SUBJECT POOL SIGN-UP PROCEDURES: A THREAT TO EXTERNAL VALIDITY

1989 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey M. Jackson ◽  
Mary E. Procidano ◽  
Carrie J. Cohen
Keyword(s):  
External Validity ◽  
Psychology Students ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Individual Group ◽  
Personality Dimensions ◽  
Self Selection ◽  
Subject Pool ◽  
Personality Questionnaires ◽  
Biased Samples

The extent to which introductory psychology students' self-selection into experiments produced biased samples was assessed in two experiments. As part of the normal sign-up procedure, students chose between apparently different experiments with quite different descriptions and between individual and group sign-up slots. Upon arriving at the laboratory, all students filled out personality questionnaires. Results demonstrated that students sorted themselves into experiments as well as into individual group sign-up slots in relation to personality dimensions. The resulting samples in each experiment were thus non-representative of even the restricted introductory psychology subject population. Implications and recommendations for the use of such populations were discussed.

Temporal Personality Variations among Participants from a University Subject Pool

1987 ◽  
Vol 60 (3_part_2) ◽  
pp. 1247-1254
Author(s):  
Ronald R. Holden ◽  
John R. Reddon
Keyword(s):  
Psychology Students ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Personality Variables ◽  
Personality Differences ◽  
Personality Research ◽  
Subject Pool

This study examined personality differences in participants from a university subject pool as a function of the time of participation during the academic term and year. For 150 introductory psychology students with required participation in a subject pool, significant associations were found between time of participation and specific personality variables as measured by Jackson's Personality Research Form. Significant temporal associations with more general personality modal profiles were also obtained. Investigators using university subject pools are warned that these temporal variations in personality may represent possible confounds in research.

Perceptual and Linguistic Encoding in Recognition Memory and Paired-Associate Learning

1971 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 803-806 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edgar A. Chenoweth ◽  
Gerry L. Wilcove
Keyword(s):  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Paired Associate ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Psychology Students ◽  
Paired Associate Learning ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Associate Learning ◽  
Paired Associates

A perceptual paired-associates task was presented in which pictures of objects and consonant-vowel-consonant trigrams served as stimulus and response members of the P-A unit, respectively. Introductory psychology students had been classified previously into encoding groups on the basis of their performance on a memory task. The prediction that the linguistic encoders would learn the PA task more slowly than the perceptual encoders was supported by the results.

Mood State, Issue Involvement, and Argument Strength on Responses to Persuasive Appeals

2007 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 739-753 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert C. Sinclair ◽  
Tanya K. Lovsin ◽  
Sean E. Moore
Keyword(s):  
Mood State ◽  
Psychology Students ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Cognitive Responses ◽  
High Involvement ◽  
Argument Strength ◽  
Induction Condition ◽  
Issue Involvement ◽  
Thought Listing ◽  
Sad Mood

This study investigated the effects of mood state, issue involvement, and argument strength on responses to persuasive appeals. Through an unrelated second study paradigm, 144 introductory psychology students were randomly assigned to High or Low Issue Involvement, Happy or Sad Mood Inductions, and Strong or Weak Argument conditions. Attitudes, measured on 9-point Likert-type scales, and cognitive responses, measured through a thought listing, were assessed. On attitudes, people in the Happy Induction condition were equally persuaded by Strong and Weak Arguments, whereas people in the Sad Induction condition were persuaded by Strong, but not Weak, Arguments. Involvement had no effect. On the thought-listing measures, people in the Happy Induction condition showed modest elaboration. A stronger pattern of effects, consistent with high elaboration, was noted on the thought listings of people in the Sad Induction condition and who were in the High Involvement group. Interestingly, people in the Sad Induction condition who were in the Low Involvement group showed mood-congruency on thoughts. The data suggest that the effects of mood state are not moderated by the effects of issue Involvement on this measure of attitudes but that there may be some moderation on measures of elaboration. Implications and directions for research are discussed.

Cultures of Diversity

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 100-107
Author(s):  
Andrew M. Guest ◽  
Zachary L. Simmons ◽  
Andrew Downs ◽  
Mark R. Pitzer
Keyword(s):  
Psychology Students ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Multicultural Awareness ◽  
Important Goal ◽  
Multicultural Sensitivity ◽  
Psychology Courses ◽  
Nature And Nurture ◽  
Undergraduate Psychology ◽  
Multiple Challenges ◽  
Topical Knowledge

Teachers of psychology tend to agree that learning about diversity is an important goal for undergraduate psychology courses. There is significantly less agreement about what aspects of diversity psychology students should understand. The current research proposes and investigates two potentially distinct ways students might understand diversity: more scientific understandings of topical knowledge related to nature and nurture and more humanistic understandings related to multicultural awareness and sensitivity. Drawing on standardized surveys and open-ended responses to diversity questions from the beginning and end of introductory psychology courses, results indicate that students’ topical knowledge of diversity is not strongly associated with multicultural sensitivity. These results emphasize the importance of clarifying the meanings of addressing diversity as a course goal and are discussed in relation to the multiple challenges of teaching about diversity in psychology courses.

Counterattitudinal Advocacy as a Means of Enhancing Instructional Effectiveness: How to Teach Students What They Do Not Want to Know

1996 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 215-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard L. Miller ◽  
William J. Wozniak ◽  
Marci R. Rust ◽  
Beverly R. Miller ◽  
Jennifer Slezak
Keyword(s):  
Psychology Students ◽  
Instructional Effectiveness ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Psychological Phenomena ◽  
Pedagogical Techniques ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Erroneous Beliefs ◽  
Beginning Students

This study, was designed to determine the effectiveness of counterattitudinal advocacy in overcoming beginning students' erroneous beliefs about psychological phenomena. Introductory psychology students (N = 71) either wrote an essay (counterattitudinal advocacy) or read an essay supporting a scientifically acceptable position contrary to one of their beliefs. Writing a counterattitudinal essay was more effective in changing students' beliefs than either reading such an essay or learning about the topic through Standard pedagogical techniques. The method of delivering instructional materials (lecture vs. text vs. both lecture and text) made no significant difference in the elimination of erroneous beliefs.

Participants' Perceptions of Ethical Issues in Research with Humans

1983 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 231-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denis Lynch ◽  
Wayne Graves
Keyword(s):  
Normative Data ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Human Subjects ◽  
Introductory Psychology ◽  
Academic Major ◽  
Willingness To Participate ◽  
Empirical Methods ◽  
Class Standing ◽  
Subject Pool ◽  
Typical Subject

The recent concern about ethical issues in research with human subjects has fostered an interest in learning more through empirical methods. The present study provides information from potential participants regarding (1) their perception of the likelihood of physical or emotional harm from various experimental procedures and (2) their willingness to participate in experiments using such procedures. Responses were obtained from 1,586 students in introductory psychology classes and were analyzed on the basis of the respondents' age, sex, class standing, and academic major. Besides providing normative data from a typical subject pool, the present study suggests a method of using a research questionnaire as a way of minimizing the chances of offending individual subjects.

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