Quantitative research approaches increase our knowledge by gathering data that can be manipulated mathematically. This allows us to answer questions about the meanings of psychological concepts, as well as to deter-mine their levels and variability as well as the relationships among them. Quantitative research approaches may be contrasted with qualitative approaches, which tend to collect
Qualitative research in psychology is a versatile and indispensable methodology characterized by its in-depth exploration of human phenomena within their natural context. This article provides an overview of qualitative research, outlining its defining characteristics, data collection and analysis methods, and diverse applications in psychology. Despite its merits, qualitative research faces criticisms and challenges that demand
Research in industrial-organizational psychology is increasingly being conducted across cultural boundaries to test the generalizability of Western findings and to train managers to be more effective in multicultural contexts. Although cross-cultural research involves many of the same methods that are used in typical I/O research, many unique issues arise in the cross-cultural research process—from the
Longitudinal research refers to research that investigates events or phenomena over an extended period of time. Longitudinal research studies can be as brief as 1 or 2 years, for example, when evaluating the effects of a particular learning strategy, technique, or treatment. They can also run over several decades, as when examining changes in adult
Attitudes Definition Attitudes refer to our overall evaluations of people, groups, and objects in our social world. Reporting an attitude involves making a decision concerning liking versus disliking or favoring versus disfavoring an attitude object. Attitudes are important because they affect both the way we perceive the world and how we behave. Indeed, over 70
Control Definition The term control has a long history in social psychology and has been used in a variety of ways. At the most general level, control can be defined as influence, whether it be over internal states (as in emotional control or self-control) or over external aspects of the environment, including control over outcomes (i.e.
Emotions Definition Emotions can be defined as psychological states that comprise thoughts and feelings, physiological changes, expressive behaviors, and inclinations to act. The precise combination of these elements varies from emotion to emotion, and emotions may or may not be accompanied by overt behaviors. This complex of states and behaviors is triggered by an event
Group Definition There is no consensus among social psychologists on the defining characteristics of a group. Nearly all definitions, however, emphasize that a group is not a mere aggregation of individuals. Rather, two or more individuals become a group to the extent that they are bonded together in some way, which generally means that they
Personality Definition Personality is an individual’s typical way of feeling, thinking, and acting. Given that personality is typical, it is fairly stable over time. Social behavior refers to a person’s feelings, thoughts, or actions as he or she relates to other people. These two definitions have a very close relationship. Knowing something about an individual’s
Prejudice Definition Prejudice is defined as an attitude toward people based on their membership in a group (e.g., their racial group, gender, nationality, even the college they attend). Critical to prejudice is an inflexibility in the reaction to the target person whereby the responses to the target are not based on the target’s behaviors or