The Sage Handbook of Methods in Social Psychology

Carol Sansone, Carolyn C Morf, A. T. Panter, Carol Sansone, Carolyn C. Morf, A. T. Panter

• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc
• Year: 2003
• Print ISBN: 9780761925354
• eBook ISBN: 9781452261645
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Social Psychology
• Index: Psychology

"I like the premise and the resulting organizing theme. The organizational structure fits the described theme well and promises to provide a valuable resource both for educating researchers and for helping them through the myriad types of research methods that are available today...Achieves a nice balance, running the gamut of issues from the conceptual to the practical to the statistical....This book could easily become a classic."

--Donal Carlston, Purdue University

"The book?s emphasis on the conceptual decisions that have to be made in doing research is enticing….I believe that this book has a niche as an advanced undergraduate or graduate-level text. I would certainly consider this book for my advanced undergraduate social psychology research methods class; in fact, I?m desperately in need of such a book."

--John Edwards, Oregon State University

"The handbook will contribute greatly to the training of graduate students and will also be used as reference by social psychologists working in multiple domains….It could be adopted for most advanced methods courses."

--Dolores Albarracin, University of Florida

"All chapters are solid contributions, a few are gems, and every author wrote with an eye to having the work used. This is a handbook to take off the shelf and dog-ear in the classroom, lab, or field. Highly recommended."

-CHOICE

The genius of social psychology as a field has been its ability to investigate the seemingly complicated behaviors that characterize humans as social creatures. The SAGE Handbook of Methods in Social Psychology simplifies this complexity by providing researchers and students with an overview of the rich history of methodological innovation in both basic and applied research within social psychology.

Editors Carol Sansone, Carolyn C. Morf, and A.T. Panter have chosen a particular methodological approach that is essential for optimal consideration of the "big picture" concept of a program of research. In this approach, research questions guide the methods rather than the reverse. Based on this "top-down" perspective, chapters in this unique volume emphasize the conceptual basis of the methodology, with an explicit focus on the meaning of data when obtained via a particular methodology.

Features and Benefits:

• "Big Picture" Understanding. This volume focuses on the decision-making process, highlighting how methodological decisions are inextricably tied to what the researcher ultimately wants to know.
• "Top-down" Perspective. Beginning chapters explore issues of selecting and identifying research questions and populations; middle chapters address design and analysis; and later chapters expand social psychological questions to other disciplines within and outside of psychology.
• Straightforward Statistical Analysis. Statistical analysis is considered only to the extent that it helps to illuminate the meaning of data obtained through a particular methodological approach or design decision.
• Interdisciplinary Approach. Innovative chapters explore such issues as ethics, diversity, individual differences, and how social psychology is moving into new areas that cross disciplinary bounds such as social neuroscience, social development, program evaluation, health, and education.

This Handbook is a vital resource for behavioral scientists in the academic and research settings who are interested in learning about modern perspectives on classic and innovative methodological approaches in social psychology. Also recommended for undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in social psychology methods courses.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Detailed Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Reference
• Part I - Introduction and Overview
• Chapter 1 - The Research Process: Of Big Pictures, Little Details, and the Social Psychological Road in between
• The Research Process
• The Starting Point: The Phenomena
• The Research Question
• To Whom does the Question Apply?
• Operationalizations and Design
• Can We Answer the Question?
• Organization of This Handbook
• Organizing Principles
• Specific Organization
• Part II: Fundamental Issues in Social Psychological Research
• Part III: Design and Analysis
• Part IV: Emerging Interdisciplinary Approaches
• Part V: The Application of Social Psychology and Its Methods to Other Domains
• Conclusion
• References
• Part II - Fundamental Issues in Social Psychological Research
• Chapter 2 - The Methodological Assumptions of Social Psychology: The Mutual Dependence of Substantive Theory and Method Choice
• Introduction
• The Hypothetico-Deductive Method
• The Types of Theory That Social Psychologists Construct
• The Theory-Hypothesis Link
• Form of Data Collection
• The Dual Hegemony of Anova and the Laboratory Experiment
• Specific Theoretical Concerns and Their Methodological Implications
• The Social Cognitive Revolution
• The Relative Neglect of Theories of Interpersonal Dynamics
• The Neglect of High-Impact Manipulations and the Kinds of Theory They Promote
• The Average Person as the Locus of Explanation
• The Assumption of Irrelevant Domains and Hence the Generation of Theories with Minimal Grounded Content
• Conclusion
• References
• Chapter 3 - Ethical Issues in Social Psychology Research
• Chapter Overview
• The Evolution of Ethical Debate and Regulation in Social Psychology
• Governmental Regulations for Behavioral Research in the United States
• Professional Ethical Standards
• Ethical Dilemmas in Social Psychological Research
• Defining "Ethics," "Morality," and "Ethical Dilemma"
• Ethical Issues in the Conduct of Laboratory, Field, and Applied Research
• Laboratory Research Issues
• Field Research Issues
• Privacy
• Informed Consent
• Social Psychology Research and the Internet
• Applied Research Issues
• Ethical Safeguards and Institutional Review
• Debriefing and Other Safeguards
• Institutional Review
• Impact and Effectiveness of the Review Process
• Conclusion: Ethical Challenges and Opportunities
• References
• Chapter 4 - Developing a Program of Research
• Start by Knowing That Many Perspectives are not Yet Represented
• Compelling, Coherent Hypotheses: What's the Big Picture?
• Intellectual Sources
• Personal Sources
• Group Sources
• Worldview Sources
• General Principles, Regardless of Source
• Convincing Research: Read This Book
• Readable Write-Ups Readers will Read
• Outlets: Visible and Invisible
• Programmatic Approach: Follow Your Bliss
• Collaboration: Beside Every Good Researcher Stands a Team
• Teaching: A Piece of the Research Enterprise
• Funding: Aha! Plus . . .
• Service: Giving It Away
• Conclusion: From Madness to the Methods
• References
• Part III - Design and Analysis
• Section A. Implications of a Heterogeneous Population: Deciding for Whom to Test the Research Question(s), Why, and How
• Chapter 5 - Culturally Sensitive Research Questions and Methods in Social Psychology
• Downplaying of Cultural Issues in Social Psychology
• Key Reasons for Downplaying of Culture
• Culture-Free Approach to Situations
• Physical Science Ideals of Explanation
• Apparent Universality and Explanatory Breadth of Psychological Theories
• Disappointment with Recent Cultural Traditions of Research
• Conceptual Issues in Giving More Attention to Culture
• Views of Culture
• Integrating Cultural Considerations with Situational and Person Factors
• Methodological Strategies for Enhancing Cultural Sensitivity
• Cultural Understanding
• Sampling
• Noncomparative "Prototypic" Sampling Strategies
• Noncomparative Cultural Sampling Strategies
• Comparative Cultural Sampling Strategies
• Representativeness and Equivalence in Sampling
• Culture as Process
• Culturally Appropriate Measures
• Conclusions
• Notes
• References
• Chapter 6 - Individual Differences in Social Psychology: Understanding Situations to Understand People, Understanding People to Understand Situations
• Why Stable Individual Differences Need to be Taken into Account
• Lewin's Equation, B = f(P, E)
• P = An Individual's Dynamic Social Information Processing System: An Example
• Studying Person × Situation Interactions
• What Individual Differences?
• Individual Differences That Interact with Situations
• Processing Dynamics Type and Diagnostic Situations
• Types of Person Variables That Affect Processing Dynamics
• Interactions May Involve Highly Content-Specific Person and Situation Characteristics
• Going beyond the Bandwidth-Fidelity Trade-off
• Behavioral Signatures of Person Types Guide an Inductive Approach to Discovering Individual Difference Constructs
• Methodological Challenges for Intensive within-Subject Analyses
• Finding, Evaluating, and Using Measures of Individual Differences
• What Makes a "Good" Measure: The Intertwined Nature of Reliability and Validity
• Bootstrapping Upward in the Evolution of Constructs, Theories, and Measures
• An Example of Construct Validation Research: The Multitrait-Multimethod Matrix
• Construct Validation of Individual Differences Measures via Experiments
• A Valid Measure has been Found! What Should We do with It? Implications for Data Analysis and Experimental Design
• Continuous or Categorical? It can Matter
• To Block or not to Block on Individual Difference Measures?
• Recasting the Problem: Going beyond Individual Differences as a Poor Person's Substitute for an Experiment
• Understanding the Effects of Situations for Each Person First
• Trading Instant Generalizability for Ultimate Generalizability: The Implications of a Person- and Type-Centered, More Inductive, Approach
• Concluding Thoughts: Understanding Situations to Understand People, Understanding People to Understand Situations
• Notes
• References
• Section B. Operationalizing the Constructs: Deciding What to Measure, Why, and How
• Chapter 7 - Constructing and Evaluating Quantitative Measures for Social Psychological Research: Conceptual Challenges and Methodological Solutions
• Defining Quantitative Measures
• Stages in Constructing Quantitative Measures
• Specifying Measurement Goals and Theoretical Assumptions
• Specifying One's Goals for the Measure
• Specifying Theoretical Assumptions
• Item Generation
• Creating Items
• Item Content and Wording
• Number of Items
• Response Scale Format
• Response Option Order and Item Order
• Traditional Scaling Procedures for Item Generation
• Thurstone Equal-Appearing Intervals
• Likert Summated Ratings
• Semantic Differentials
• Item Evaluation and Selection
• Judge Ratings
• Between-Group Differentiation
• Item Descriptive Statistics
• Item-Total Correlations
• Factor Analysis
• Item Response Theory
• Evaluating Measure Quality
• Reliability
• Internal Consistency
• Stability (Test-Retest)
• Validity
• "Associative" and "Dissociative" Forms of Validity Evidence
• Associative Forms of Validity
• Dissociative Forms of Validity
• The MTMM Approach
• Beyond Self-Report Measures
• Notes
• References
• Chapter 8 - Measures and Meanings: The Use of Qualitative Data in Social and Personality Psychology
• Qualitative Data in Social Psychology: An Empirical Example
• Advantages of Asking Open-Ended Questions
• Qualitative Data may Answer Many Questions at Once
• Qualitative Data Allow Us to Measure What isn't Said or can't be Said
• Qualitative Data Give Us the Flavor of the Whole
• Qualitative Data are (Relatively) Timeless
• Methods of Qualitative Research
• Participant Selection and Recruitment
• Deciding What Questions to Ask and How to Ask Them
• Coding the Data
• Extant Coding Schemes
• Creating New Coding Schemes
• Using Naïve Coders
• The Training Phase
• The Coding Phase
• Naïve Coders and the Bottom-up Approach
• Reliability and Validity
• Reliability
• Validity
• Additional Challenges of Using Qualitative Data in Social Psychology
• Methodological Problems and Confounds
• Losing the Trees for the Forest
• Special Ethical Considerations
• New Approaches to Quantifying Qualitative Data
• Conclusion
• References
• Chapter 9 - Implicit Methods in Social Psychology
• The Psychodynamic Heritage
• Projective Tests
• The Subtle and the Obvious
• The Priming Solution
• The Importance of Matching Tasks
• Priming as a Measure of Implicit Attitudes
• Critique of Priming
• The Implicit Association Test
• The IAT as a Psychometric Device
• Critique of the IAT
• The Unobtrusive, the Automatic, the Implicit—and the Psychologist's Fallacy
• Notes
• References
• Chapter 10 - Mediated and Moderated Effects in Social Psychological Research: Measurement, Design, and Analysis Issues
• Measurement Issues
• Practical Benefits of Theory
• Formally Designating the Status of Variables in a Model
• An Example
• Optimal Measurement
• Design Issues
• Asserting Causal Priority
• Timing and Tests of Mediation
• Experimental Designs
• Analysis Issues
• Analysis Issues Specific to Mediation
• Analysis Issues Specific to Moderation
• Stumbling Blocks
• Ambiguous Theory
• One-Shot Data
• Limited Sample Size
• Limited Number of Indicators
• Conclusion
• References
• Section C. Research Designs: Deciding the Specific Approach for Testing the Research Question(s), Why, and How
• Chapter 11 - Experimental Design and Causality in Social Psychology Research
• Introduction
• Designing Controlled Experiments: The Aims and Structure of This Chapter
• Why and When Should We do Experiments?
• The Logic of Experiments
• Replication
• Identifying Plausible Confounds
• Multiple Factors
• When not to Conduct Experiments
• Experimental Components
• Independent Variables (TVs)
• Randomization
• Theoretical Relevance
• Manipulation Checks
• Between- and within-Subjects Designs
• Dependent Variables (DVs)
• Scale Construction
• The Relevance-Sensitivity Trade-off
• The Experimental Sample
• Representativeness
• The Importance of Theory
• Using Specialized Samples
• Experimental Assembly
• Threats to Internal Validity
• Dealing with Confounds
• Uncertainty Management
• Ruling out Alternative Hypotheses: Dealing with Specific Threats to Internal Validity
• Maturation Effects
• History Effects
• Experiment Effects
• Sample Effects
• Experimental Control
• Threats to External Validity
• Reactivity
• Artificiality
• Inferring Causal Relationships from Experimental Research
• Lessons from the Social Psychology of Causal Inference
• Detecting Covariation
• Beyond Covariation
• Mediational Analysis
• The Logic of Mediation
• Problems of Interpretation
• Conclusion
• Note
• References
• Chapter 12 - Quasi-Experimental and Correlational Designs: Methods for the Real World When Random Assignment isn't Feasible
• Quasi-Experimental Designs: An Overview
• A Counterfactual Conception of Causality
• From the Concept of Causality to Kinds of Comparisons
• Comparisons across Time
• The One-Group, Pretest-Posttest Design
• Interrupted Time-Series Designs
• Interrupted Time-Series Designs with a Control Group
• Analysis of Interrupted Time-Series Designs
• Comparisons across Groups
• The Regression-Discontinuity Design
• Nonequivalent Group Designs
• Analysis of the Pretest-Posttest Nonequivalent Group Design
• The Pretest-Posttest Nonequivalent Group Design with Separate Pretest and Posttest Samples
• Complex Nonequivalent Group Designs
• Summary
• Correlational Designs
• Threats to the Validity of Correlational Designs
• The Analysis of Data From Correlational Designs
• Beyond Individual Studies: Research Programs, Lines of Research, and Research Syntheses
• Conclusions
• Design Matters
• But Design is not Everything
• The Pattern of Observed Effects Also Matters
• Recognizing and Reporting Threats to Validity Matters too
• Finally, Social Psychologists Should not be One-Trick Ponies
• References
• Chapter 13 - Within-Subject and Longitudinal Experiments: Design and Analysis Issues
• Perspectives on Causal Inference
• Three Design Elements
• Basic within-Subject Design
• Unit Homogeneity
• Randomization
• within-Subject Experiments
• Approaches to Controlling for Order of Treatment Conditions
• Random Ordering
• Counterbalancing
• Latin Square Designs
• Randomized Matched Designs (Predictor Sort Designs)
• Moderator Effects
• Mediation
• Summary and Conclusions
• Longitudinal Experiments
• Threats to Causal Inference
• Attrition
• SUTVA
• Some Longitudinal Experimental Designs
• Pre-Post Randomized Experiment
• Solomon Four-Group Design
• Multiwave Longitudinal Experiment
• Analysis Approaches: Traditional and Modern
• Univariate Analysis of Variance
• Three Possible Improvements to the Univariate Analysis of Variance Approach
• Correction of p Values
• Multivariate Approach
• Contrast Approach
• Growth Models
• Extensions
• Mediation
• Summary and Conclusions
• Final Conclusion
• Notes
• References
• Chapter 14 - Measuring Individuals in a Social Environment: Conceptualizing Dyadic and Group Interaction
• Non-Independence and Interdependence
• The Intraclass Correlation
• Graphical Representation of the Intraclass Correlation
• Individual and Group Effects: One is not Enough
• The Use of Dyad Means as Indicators of Shared Variance
• Influence and Interaction: A Model of Interdependence
• Hierarchical Linear Modeling: Same Old Story or a New Perspective?
• Morals
• References
• Chapter 15 - Quantitative Research Synthesis: Examining Study Outcomes over Settings, Samples, and Time
• Uses for Quantitative Research Synthesis
• Evaluating Existing Theories
• Testing Novel Hypotheses
• Procedures in Conducting a Research Synthesis
• Determining if You have Enough Studies
• Defining the Problem, Variables, and Sample
• Locating Relevant Studies
• Forming the Meta-Analytic Database
• Coding Study Features
• Selecting Computer Programs to Calculate and Analyze Effect Sizes
• Calculating Effect Sizes
• Problems (and Solutions) When Calculating Effect Sizes
• Independence of Observations
• Complex Primary Study Designs
• Correcting for Effect Size Bias
• Strategies for Nonreported Results
• Analyzing Meta-Analytic Data
• Step 1: Choosing a Model
• Step 2: Estimating Means and Variability
• Step 3: Investigating Possible Moderators
• Step 4: Reporting Findings
• Drawing Conclusions from Meta-Analyses
• Interpreting Effect-Size Statistics
• The Impact of Synthesis Findings and the Future of Research Synthesis
• Notes
• References
• Part IV - Emerging Interdisciplinary Approaches: The Integration of Social Psychology and Other Disciplines
• Chapter 16 - Methodological and Ethical Issues in Conducting Social Psychology Research via the Internet
• Minimum Requirements for Online Experimenting
• Potential Advantages of Research via the WWW
• Examples of Recruiting and Testing Participants via the Internet
• Recruitment Method and Sample Characteristics
• Demographics
• Web Participants do not Represent a Population
• Effect of Diversity on Power and Generality
• Experimental Control, Measurement, and Observation
• Two Procedures for Holding an Exam
• Precision of Manipulations and Measurements
• The Need for Pilot Work in the Lab
• The Need for Testing of HTML and Programming
• Testing in Both Lab and Web
• Dropouts and between-Subjects Designs
• Experimenter Bias
• Multiple Submissions
• Ethical Issues in Web and Lab
• Risks of Psychological Experiments
• Ease of Dropping out from Online Research
• Ethical Issues Peculiar to the WWW
• Deception on the WWW
• Privacy and Confidentiality
• Good Manners on the Web
• Concluding Comments
• References
• Chapter 17 - Social Neuroscience: Bridging Social and Biological Systems
• Social Neuroscience and Links to Biological Systems
• Inferring the Psychological Significance of Physiological Signals
• The Psychological and Physiological Domains
• Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)
• The BOLD Response
• Task Demands
• Tissue and Psychology
• Electrophysiological Measures of Brain Activity
• Summary
• Notes
• References
• Chapter 18 - Supplementing the Snapshots with Video Footage: Taking a Developmental Approach to Understanding Social Psychological Phenomena
• What does It Mean to Use the Video Camera?
• Why Use the Video Camera?
• How to Use the Video Camera
• Developmental Designs
• The Cross-Sectional Design
• The Longitudinal Design
• The Cross-Sequential Design
• Operationalizing Developmental Phase
• Micro-Analytic and Macro-Analytic Strategies
• Identifying the Processes Underlying Developmental Change
• Other Considerations in Conducting Developmental Research
• Recruitment
• Procedural Equivalence
• Methodological Benefits of Conducting Developmental Research
• But You Can't Just Use Only the Video Camera
• Conclusion
• References
• Part V - The Application of Social Psychology and Its Methods to Other Domains
• Chapter 19 - Program Evaluation, Action Research, and Social Psychology: A Powerful Blend for Addressing Applied Problems
• What is Program Evaluation?
• Framework for the Chapter
• The Program Evaluation Field
• Action Research and Program Evaluation
• Action Research Applied to Issues of Educational Opportunity
• "Traditional" Evaluations of School Structures
• Policy-Relevant Evaluation: Modeling Impacts of School Accountability
• Longitudinal Evaluation Designs and Collaborative Work: Understanding Relations of Poverty with Achievement
• Methodological Tools and Their Uses
• Limitations of Action Research Models for Program Evaluation
• Closing Note
• References
• Chapter 20 - Methodological Challenges and Scientific Rewards for Social Psychologists Conducting Health Behavior Research
• A Brief Introduction to Research in the Health, Emotion, and Behavior (HEB) Laboratory
• Challenge #1: Serving Two Masters
• Challenge #2: Testing Your Question
• Challenge #3: Ethical Issues
• Relationship with the Community
• Professional Development
• Graduate School
• Postdoctoral Training
• Employment
• Integrating Social Psychology and Health Behavior
• References
• Chapter 21 - Research Methods of Micro Organizational Behavior
• Relationship of Micro OB to Organizational Research
• Comparison of Micro OB to Social Psychology
• The Key Factor Distinguishing Micro OB from Social Psychology
• Key Independent Variable
• Key Dependent Variable
• Omnipresence
• Research Project Development in Micro OB
• Step 1: Problem in Real World Stimulates Unresolved Question
• Step 2: Researcher Reformulates the Real World Problem into a Testable Research Question
• Step 3: Researcher Consults Theory to Derive Hypotheses
• Step 4: Researcher Devises Study to Test Hypotheses
• Step 5: Data Analysis and Results
• Step 6: Conclusions: Theoretical and Prescriptive
• Step 7: Application
• Common Methodologies in Micro OB Research
• Setting
• Design
• Classroom Setting
• Field Setting
• Laboratory Setting
• Conclusion
• References
• Chapter 22 - Conducting Social Psychological Research in Educational Settings: "Lessons We Learned in School"
• Moving out of the Lab and into the Classroom: Choosing the Setting
• Moving into the Classroom: Choosing a Design
• Moving into the Classroom: Choosing Measures
• Moving into the Classroom: Implications and Methodological Trade-offs
• Moving Back to the Lab
• Back to the Classroom: Validity Issues Revisited
• Lessons We Learned in School
• Lesson #1: The Importance of Using Multiple Research Methodologies in Multiple Settings
• Lesson #2: Dealing with the Dilemma of the Social Psychologist
• Lesson #3: Increasing the Credibility and Valuation of Research
• References
• Name Index
• Subject Index
• About the Editors
• About the Contributors