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2: Research Methods in Learning and Behavior

  • Page ID
    370934
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    Chapter Overview

    Chapter 2 will cover the critical issue of how research is conducted in the experimental analysis of behavior. To do this, we will discuss the scientific method, research designs, the apparatus we use, how we collect data, and dependent measures used to show that learning has occurred. We also will break down the structure of a research article and make a case for the use of both humans and animals in learning and behavior research.

    Chapter Learning Objectives
    • Describe the steps in the scientific method and how this process is utilized in the experimental analysis of behavior.
    • Describe specific research designs, data collection methods, and apparatus used in the experimental analysis of behavior.
    • Understand the basic structure of a research article.
    • List and describe dependent measures used in learning experiments.
    • Explain why animals are used in learning research.
    • Describe safeguards to protect human beings in scientific research.

    • 2.1: The Scientific Method
      This page covers the scientific method in psychology, detailing its steps from questioning to communicating findings, and highlights key concepts such as functional relationships and operational definitions. It stresses the systematic inquiry into behavior and learning.
    • 2.2: Research Designs Used in the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
      This page covers essential research methods and designs in psychology and behavior analysis, including observational research, case studies, surveys, correlational research, and experiments. It highlights intervention designs and data collection methods for assessing behavior, alongside various maze apparatuses used in cognitive studies.
    • 2.3: Dependent Measures
      This page outlines eight dependent measures used in learning experiments in behavioral analysis: errors, frequency, intensity, duration, latency, topography, rate, and fluency. Errors track learning progress, frequency counts behavior occurrences, intensity gauges response strength, duration measures behavior length, latency assesses response time, topography describes behavior form, rate shows response change over time, and fluency combines speed with accuracy.
    • 2.4: Animal and Human Research
      This page examines the essential role of animal models in research for scientific insight, disease modeling, and safety, while introducing the ethical framework of the 3Rs (Replace, Reduce, Refine) governed by IACUC. It also highlights the importance of ethical standards in human research, focusing on informed consent, participant rights, and the oversight of IRBs to safeguard human subjects.
    • 2.5: Chapter Recap
      This page outlines the research process in studying learning and behavior, emphasizing the scientific method's six steps. It discusses causal statements' clarity in behavior analysis and reviews five main research designs, focusing on experimental and observational methods, data collection, and participant considerations.


    This page titled 2: Research Methods in Learning and Behavior is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Lee W. Daffin Jr. via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.