Define psychology, including its scope, goals, and methods. (p. 4)
Name and describe the different subfields of psychology and distinguish between them by giving examples of the work and workers in each field. (pp. 5-8)
Identify and describe two newer fields of psychology. (p. 7-8)
Identify the significant demographic trends of the profession, including place of employment, international and gender distribution, and educational background. (pp. 8-9)
A Science Evolves: The Past, the Present, and the Future
Discuss the history of the science of psychology and the approaches taken by early psychologists. (pp. 11-12)
Name and outline the key characteristics of each of the five current perspectives in psychology. (pp. 12-14)
Psychology's Key Issues
List the key issues for psychology and identify statements that represent each issue. (pp. 16-18)
Discuss the trends that are emerging within psychology. (p. 18)
Research in Psychology
Describe the scientific method approach. (p. 20)
Distinguish between theory and hypothesis and describe the role of each in scientific inquiry. (pp. 20-21)
Define research and distinguish between archival, naturalistic observation, survey, and case study research methods. (pp. 22-24)
Describe how correlational research determines the relationship between two sets of variables. (pp. 24-25)
Define the key elements common to all experiments, including independent and dependent variables, experimental and control groups, random assignment of participants, and a hypothesis that links the variables. (pp. 25-28)
Discuss the importance of statistical techniques used to establish whether the outcome of an experiment is significant. (p. 29)
Discuss the importance of replicating experiments and testing the limits of theories and hypotheses for proving the existence of a causal relationship between variables in specific circumstances. (p. 29)
Research Challenges: Exploring the Process
Describe the ethical concerns involving the welfare of human and animal participants in scientific research. (pp. 31-34)
Identify the possible sources of experimental bias and discuss techniques used to safeguard against them. (p. 34)
Apply the knowledge of scientific methods to evaluate how well research supports particular findings. (pp. 34-35)
