Observe the child for 15 minutes and take into account (by writing detailed field notes) their motor skills and activities, social interactions, language use and development, disciplinary episodes, play behaviors, affect/emotions, etc.

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Observational methods are commonly used to understand child development. To give you experience with this method, you will conduct 1 observation of a child between 0 and 13 years of age and write a 3-5 paper (it is ok if you go over 5 pages, but the paper must be at least 3 pages. Also note the observation notes do not count towards the 3-5 page requirement.). Find a setting in which you can unobtrusively observe this child.  Your observation should last approximately 15 minutes.  Possible settings for this observation include playgrounds, grocery stores, at home, or in a park. Please make sure social distancing guidelines are followed!

Observe the child for 15 minutes and take into account (by writing detailed field notes) their motor skills and activities, social interactions, language use and development, disciplinary episodes, play behaviors, affect/emotions, etc.  Be sure to provide a description of the setting in which this observation took place as well as a description of who the child was with during the observation (e.g., caretaker, siblings, peers, etc.)

 

  1. The first page of your paper should consist of your naturalistic observation notes, where you describe what you observed during the 15-minute observation.
  2. Next, discuss the setting in which you observed, noting the approximate age of the child, the child’s gender, and the types of behaviors that you observed.
  3. Following this, choose three (3) behaviors that you find most interesting and use concepts and theories from the class to explain what you observed (e.g., Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development, attachment theory, concepts in language development such as telegraphic speech, and more). For each behavior, describe the behavior you will be discussing, then describe the concept you will be using to explain the behavior. Be sure to state the importance of this concept or stage of human development.
  4. Finally, include a section on how you think the child’s culture influences one of the three behaviors you discussed. Culture is defined as the belief systems and value orientations that influence customs, norms, practices, and social institutions, including psychological processes (language, care taking practices, media, educational systems) and organizations (media, educational systems; (Fiske, Kitayama, Markus, & Nisbett, 1998).
  5. This assignment should be APA style.

Why is it important to know the amount of shared variance when interpreting both the significance and the meaningfulness of a correlation coefficient?

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University of Phoenix Material

 

Time to Practice – Week Five

 

Complete Parts A, B, and C below.

 

Part A

 

Some questions in Part A require that you access data from Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics. This data is available on the student website under the Student Text Resources link.

 

1.   Use the following data to answer Questions 1a and 1b.

 

Total no. of problems correct (out of a possible 20) Attitude toward test taking (out of a possible 100)
17 94
13 73
12 59
15 80
16 93
14 85
16 66
16 79
18 77
19 91

 

 

a.   Compute the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient by hand and show all your work.

b.   Construct a scatterplot for these 10 values by hand. Based on the scatterplot, would you predict the correlation to be direct or indirect? Why?

 

2.   Rank the following correlation coefficients on strength of their relationship (list the weakest first):

 

+.71
+.36
–.45
.47
–.62

 

 

3.   Use IBM® SPSS® software to determine the correlation between hours of studying and grade point average for these honor students. Why is the correlation so low?

 

Hours of studying GPA
23 3.95
12 3.90
15 4.00
14 3.76
16 3.97
21 3.89
14 3.66
11 3.91
18 3.80
9 3.89

 

 

4.   Look at the following table. What type of correlation coefficient would you use to examine the relationship between ethnicity (defined as different categories) and political affiliation? How about club membership (yes or no) and high school GPA? Explain why you selected the answers you did.

 

Level of Measurement and Examples
Variable X Variable Y Type of correlation Correlation being computed
Nominal (voting preference, such as Republican or Democrat) Nominal (gender, such as male or female) Phi coefficient The correlation between voting preference and gender
Nominal (social class, such as high, medium, or low) Ordinal (rank in high school graduating class) Rank biserial coefficient The correlation between social class and rank in high school
Nominal (family configuration, such as intact or single parent) Interval (grade point average) Point biserial The correlation between family configuration and grade point average
Ordinal (height converted to rank) Ordinal (weight converted to rank) Spearman rank correlation coefficient The correlation between height and weight
Interval (number of problems solved) Interval (age in years) Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient The correlation between number of problems solved and the age in years

 

 

5.   When two variables are correlated (such as strength and running speed), it also means that they are associated with one another. But if they are associated with one another, then why does one not cause the other?

 

6.   Given the following information, use Table B.4 in Appendix B of Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics to determine whether the correlations are significant and how you would interpret the results.

 

a.   The correlation between speed and strength for 20 women is .567. Test these results at the .01 level using a one-tailed test.

b.   The correlation between the number correct on a math test and the time it takes to complete the test is –.45. Test whether this correlation is significant for 80 children at the .05 level of significance. Choose either a one- or a two-tailed test and justify your choice.

c.   The correlation between number of friends and grade point average (GPA) for 50 adolescents is .37. Is this significant at the .05 level for a two-tailed test?

 

7.   Use the data in Ch. 15 Data Set 3 to answer the questions below. Do this one manually or use IBM® SPSS® software.

 

a.   Compute the correlation between income and level of education.

b.   Test for the significance of the correlation.

c.   What argument can you make to support the conclusion that lower levels of education cause low income?

 

8.   Use the following data set to answer the questions. Do this one manually.

 

a.   Compute the correlation between age in months and number of words known.

b.   Test for the significance of the correlation at the .05 level of significance.

c.   Recall what you learned in Ch. 5 of Salkind (2011)about correlation coefficients and interpret this correlation.

 

Age in months Number of words known
12 6
15 8
9 4
7 5
18 14
24 18
15 7
16 6
21 12
15 17

 

 

9.   How does linear regression differ from analysis of variance?

 

10.  Betsy is interested in predicting how many 75-year-olds will develop Alzheimer’s disease and is using level of education and general physical health graded on a scale from 1 to 10 as predictors. But she is interested in using other predictor variables as well. Answer the following questions.

 

a.   What criteria should she use in the selection of other predictors? Why?

b.   Name two other predictors that you think might be related to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

c.   With the four predictor variables (level of education, general physical health, and the two new ones that you name), draw out what the model of the regression equation would look like.

 

11.  Joe Coach was curious to know if the average number of games won in a year predicts Super Bowl performance (win or lose). The x variable was the average number of games won during the past 10 seasons. The y variable was whether the team ever won the Super Bowl during the past 10 seasons. Refer to the following data set:

 

Team Average no. of wins over 10 years Bowl? (1 = yes and 0 = no)
Savannah Sharks 12 1
Pittsburgh Pelicans 11 0
Williamstown Warriors 15 0
Bennington Bruisers 12 1
Atlanta Angels 13 1
Trenton Terrors 16 0
Virginia Vipers 15 1
Charleston Crooners 9 0
Harrisburg Heathens 8 0
Eaton Energizers 12 1

 

 

a.   How would you assess the usefulness of the average number of wins as a predictor of whether a team ever won a Super Bowl?

b.   What’s the advantage of being able to use a categorical variable (such as 1 or 0) as a dependent variable?

c.   What other variables might you use to predict the dependent variable, and why would you choose them?

 

From Salkind (2011). Copyright © 2012 SAGE. All Rights Reserved. Adapted with permission.

 

Part B

 

Some questions in Part B require that you access data from Using SPSS for Windows and Macintosh. This data is available on the student website under the Student Text Resources link. The data for this exercise is in thedata file named Lesson 33 Exercise File 1.

 

Peter was interested in determining if children who hit a bobo doll more frequently would display more or less aggressive behavior on the playground. He was given permission to observe 10 boys in a nursery school classroom. Each boy was encouraged to hit a bobo doll for 5 minutes. The number of times each boy struck the bobo doll was recorded (bobo). Next, Peter observed the boys on the playground for an hour and recorded the number of times each boy struck a classmate (peer).

 

1.   Conduct a linear regression to predict the number of times a boy would strike a classmate from the number of times the boy hit a bobo doll. From the output, identify the following:

 

a.   Slope associated with the predictor

b.   Additive constant for the regression equation

c.   Mean number of times they struck a classmate

d.   Correlation between the number of times they hit the bobo doll and the number of times they struck a classmate

e.   Standard error of estimate

 

From Green & Salkind (2011). Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved. Adapted with permission.

 

Part C

 

Complete the questions below. Be specific and provide examples when relevant.

 

Cite any sources consistent with APA guidelines.

 

Question Answer
Draw a scatterplot of each of the following:

 

·     A strong positive correlation

·     A strong negative correlation

·     A weak positive correlation

·     A weak negative correlation

 

Give a realistic example of each.
What is the coefficient of determination? What is the coefficient of alienation? Why is it important to know the amount of shared variance when interpreting both the significance and the meaningfulness of a correlation coefficient?
If a researcher wanted to predict how well a student might do in college, what variables do you think he or she might examine? What statistical procedure would he or she use?
What is the meaning of the p value of a correlation coefficient?

 

 

University of Phoenix Material

 

Time to Practice – Week Five

 

Complete Parts A, B, and C below.

 

Part A

 

Some questions in Part A require that you access data from Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics. This data is available on the student website under the Student Text Resources link.

 

1.   Use the following data to answer Questions 1a and 1b.

 

Total no. of problems correct (out of a possible 20) Attitude toward test taking (out of a possible 100)
17 94
13 73
12 59
15 80
16 93
14 85
16 66
16 79
18 77
19 91

 

 

a.   Compute the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient by hand and show all your work.

b.   Construct a scatterplot for these 10 values by hand. Based on the scatterplot, would you predict the correlation to be direct or indirect? Why?

 

2.   Rank the following correlation coefficients on strength of their relationship (list the weakest first):

 

+.71
+.36
–.45
.47
–.62

 

 

3.   Use IBM® SPSS® software to determine the correlation between hours of studying and grade point average for these honor students. Why is the correlation so low?

 

Hours of studying GPA
23 3.95
12 3.90
15 4.00
14 3.76
16 3.97
21 3.89
14 3.66
11 3.91
18 3.80
9 3.89

 

 

4.   Look at the following table. What type of correlation coefficient would you use to examine the relationship between ethnicity (defined as different categories) and political affiliation? How about club membership (yes or no) and high school GPA? Explain why you selected the answers you did.

 

Level of Measurement and Examples
Variable X Variable Y Type of correlation Correlation being computed
Nominal (voting preference, such as Republican or Democrat) Nominal (gender, such as male or female) Phi coefficient The correlation between voting preference and gender
Nominal (social class, such as high, medium, or low) Ordinal (rank in high school graduating class) Rank biserial coefficient The correlation between social class and rank in high school
Nominal (family configuration, such as intact or single parent) Interval (grade point average) Point biserial The correlation between family configuration and grade point average
Ordinal (height converted to rank) Ordinal (weight converted to rank) Spearman rank correlation coefficient The correlation between height and weight
Interval (number of problems solved) Interval (age in years) Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient The correlation between number of problems solved and the age in years

 

 

5.   When two variables are correlated (such as strength and running speed), it also means that they are associated with one another. But if they are associated with one another, then why does one not cause the other?

 

6.   Given the following information, use Table B.4 in Appendix B of Statistics for People Who (Think They) Hate Statistics to determine whether the correlations are significant and how you would interpret the results.

 

a.   The correlation between speed and strength for 20 women is .567. Test these results at the .01 level using a one-tailed test.

b.   The correlation between the number correct on a math test and the time it takes to complete the test is –.45. Test whether this correlation is significant for 80 children at the .05 level of significance. Choose either a one- or a two-tailed test and justify your choice.

c.   The correlation between number of friends and grade point average (GPA) for 50 adolescents is .37. Is this significant at the .05 level for a two-tailed test?

 

7.   Use the data in Ch. 15 Data Set 3 to answer the questions below. Do this one manually or use IBM® SPSS® software.

 

a.   Compute the correlation between income and level of education.

b.   Test for the significance of the correlation.

c.   What argument can you make to support the conclusion that lower levels of education cause low income?

 

8.   Use the following data set to answer the questions. Do this one manually.

 

a.   Compute the correlation between age in months and number of words known.

b.   Test for the significance of the correlation at the .05 level of significance.

c.   Recall what you learned in Ch. 5 of Salkind (2011)about correlation coefficients and interpret this correlation.

 

Age in months Number of words known
12 6
15 8
9 4
7 5
18 14
24 18
15 7
16 6
21 12
15 17

 

 

9.   How does linear regression differ from analysis of variance?

 

10.  Betsy is interested in predicting how many 75-year-olds will develop Alzheimer’s disease and is using level of education and general physical health graded on a scale from 1 to 10 as predictors. But she is interested in using other predictor variables as well. Answer the following questions.

 

a.   What criteria should she use in the selection of other predictors? Why?

b.   Name two other predictors that you think might be related to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

c.   With the four predictor variables (level of education, general physical health, and the two new ones that you name), draw out what the model of the regression equation would look like.

 

11.  Joe Coach was curious to know if the average number of games won in a year predicts Super Bowl performance (win or lose). The x variable was the average number of games won during the past 10 seasons. The y variable was whether the team ever won the Super Bowl during the past 10 seasons. Refer to the following data set:

 

Team Average no. of wins over 10 years Bowl? (1 = yes and 0 = no)
Savannah Sharks 12 1
Pittsburgh Pelicans 11 0
Williamstown Warriors 15 0
Bennington Bruisers 12 1
Atlanta Angels 13 1
Trenton Terrors 16 0
Virginia Vipers 15 1
Charleston Crooners 9 0
Harrisburg Heathens 8 0
Eaton Energizers 12 1

 

 

a.   How would you assess the usefulness of the average number of wins as a predictor of whether a team ever won a Super Bowl?

b.   What’s the advantage of being able to use a categorical variable (such as 1 or 0) as a dependent variable?

c.   What other variables might you use to predict the dependent variable, and why would you choose them?

 

From Salkind (2011). Copyright © 2012 SAGE. All Rights Reserved. Adapted with permission.

 

Part B

 

Some questions in Part B require that you access data from Using SPSS for Windows and Macintosh. This data is available on the student website under the Student Text Resources link. The data for this exercise is in thedata file named Lesson 33 Exercise File 1.

 

Peter was interested in determining if children who hit a bobo doll more frequently would display more or less aggressive behavior on the playground. He was given permission to observe 10 boys in a nursery school classroom. Each boy was encouraged to hit a bobo doll for 5 minutes. The number of times each boy struck the bobo doll was recorded (bobo). Next, Peter observed the boys on the playground for an hour and recorded the number of times each boy struck a classmate (peer).

 

1.   Conduct a linear regression to predict the number of times a boy would strike a classmate from the number of times the boy hit a bobo doll. From the output, identify the following:

 

a.   Slope associated with the predictor

b.   Additive constant for the regression equation

c.   Mean number of times they struck a classmate

d.   Correlation between the number of times they hit the bobo doll and the number of times they struck a classmate

e.   Standard error of estimate

 

From Green & Salkind (2011). Copyright © 2012 Pearson Education. All Rights Reserved. Adapted with permission.

 

Part C

 

Complete the questions below. Be specific and provide examples when relevant.

 

Cite any sources consistent with APA guidelines.

 

Question Answer
Draw a scatterplot of each of the following:

 

·     A strong positive correlation

·     A strong negative correlation

·     A weak positive correlation

·     A weak negative correlation

 

Give a realistic example of each.
What is the coefficient of determination? What is the coefficient of alienation? Why is it important to know the amount of shared variance when interpreting both the significance and the meaningfulness of a correlation coefficient?
If a researcher wanted to predict how well a student might do in college, what variables do you think he or she might examine? What statistical procedure would he or she use?
What is the meaning of the p value of a correlation coefficient?

 

Decide which of the following concepts are most applicable to each scenario: differential reinforcement of other behavior, avoidance contingency, punishment by prevention of reinforcer, punishment by loss of reinforcer, oravoidance of loss.

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Decide which of the following concepts are most applicable to each scenario: differential reinforcement of other behavior, avoidance contingency, punishment by prevention of reinforcer, punishment by loss of reinforcer, oravoidance of loss.

 

Defend your answer in 2–3 sentences each, using citations as needed.

 

1. Sally, a 13-year-old teenager, is tired of having her mom nag her about her bedroom. Her mom nags about the clothes on the floor, the bed being unmade, and the trashcan spilling over in her bathroom.  Sally comes home from school in a bad mood and the last thing she wants to hear is her mom’s nagging voice. To get around the expected response from her mom, she cleans her room, makes her bed, and empties her trashcan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Sally makes the 7th-grade track team by finishing before another girl by less than 0.05 seconds in her event—the 400 meter relay.  Sally is proud of making the team but needs to work harder in the practices that follow. The first track meet does not go well. Out of the four girls on the relay team, she has the slowest time, so her track coach removes her from the team, and makes her sit as an alternate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. In the weeks that follow being pulled from the track team, Sally listens to her coach’s direction and works hard to qualify for the next meet. Running her fastest time ever, Sally is excited when she qualifies to run the relay for the third track meet. Now that she has earned her spot on the team, she continues to work hard every week to keep her place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Chad is a 45-year-old man going back to school while working full time. A self-proclaimed procrastinator, his job as a computer programmer can handle his laid back style and ever-changing deadlines.  In school, however, he is having difficulty turning his homework in on time. The teacher has told him that success is impossible if he does not turn his papers in on time, yet he fails to do so week after week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Chad continues to stay in school and is a B-minus student due to the procrastination aspect of his work ethic. He has been complaining lately about school and thinking about withdrawing. His comments about the teacher, the class, the work and his grades are starting to get annoying so his mom decides to only reinforce his verbal behavior every 5 minutes he talks to her without making a negative comment about school.

Explain how this insight may impact your behaviors in the future to lead to better psychological and physical health.

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During our forum in Week 5, we are discussing dreams. The meaning, origin, and analysis of dreams have fascinated psychologists since the inception of the field of psychology. Sigmund Freud, often referred to as the father of psychology, focused a great deal of his theoretical energy on trying to understand and interpret dreams.

Contemporary psychologists are beginning to recognize the interconnectivity of human physiology and psychology in a way not previously understood. This is in part because of new interest in holistic health and in part because of brain/body connections we are now able to see and understand for the first time due to enhanced technology. Yoga, mindfulness, healthy eating, meditation, holistic health – all of these practices are gaining more traction in mainstream society and among psychological circles as we recognize how the mind and body work together. In light of this growing area of interest in psychology, for this assignment you will maintain a sleep/dream journal during weeks 3 and 4, and complete an analysis and reflection on your experience in a summary reflection paper in week 5.

Specifically, for this assignment you will:

  • Keep a sleep/dream journal for at least 10 days throughout Weeks 3 and 4. In your journal make note of:
    • any dreams you had
    • any initial thoughts about the dream – events of the day that may relate, etc.
    • your general sleep schedule (if you have a tracker such as fitbit, include data on your sleep patterns as well – wakefulness, restlessness, times asleep/awake per night, total sleep, etc.)
    • your general eating habits by day
    • your general exercise habits by day
    • anything else of note in your psychological or physical health (stress, excitement, changes, etc.)
  • You may use any format you wish to record the data (notepad, computer, hardcopy spreadsheet, etc.).
  • Complete a 3-4 page reflection (not counting title or reference pages) in which you analyze the results of your sleep/dream journal. Consider how your psychological and physical health interacted. What patterns did you see? Discuss the impact that various factors such as fatigue, diet, stress and exercise had on your dreams and sleep patterns. Explain how this insight may impact your behaviors in the future to lead to better psychological and physical health.
  • Utilize at least 2 academic resources (your text can be one of these) to support your analysis and discussion.
          • Title page in APA format
          • Reflection minimum 3 pages, double spaced
          • Reference page in APA format
          • If desired (this is optional), a copy of the original data/journal

        Assignment Grading Rubric – Total 100 points:

        • Provided a thoughtful analysis of how physical and psychological health interact, particularly in connecting waking behaviors with sleep and dreams. Max. 30 points
        • Provided detailed evidence in the form of examples and data to support analysis and conclusions. Max. 25 points
        • Described how the information gleaned from the analysis will or will not impact future behaviors and awareness. Max 20 points
        • Incorporated references from at least two academic sources. Max 10 points
        • Writing was clear, focused, organized and grammatically correct with few to no errors in spelling, punctuation, or sentence structure. Max 15 points