Becoming a Behavioral Science Researcher (eBook)

Rex B. Kline, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at Concordia University in Montréal. Since earning a doctorate in clinical psychology, he has conducted research on the psychometric evaluation of cognitive abilities, behavioral and scholastic assessment of children, structural equation modeling, training of researchers, statistics reform in the behavioral sciences, and usability engineering in computer science. Dr. Kline has published a number of books, chapters, and journal articles in these areas. His website is http://tinyurl.com/rexkline.

I. PROMISE AND PROBLEMS1. Introduction Not Ready for Prime Time What Students Say They Need Plan of the Book Career Paths for Behavioral Scientists Summary Recommended Readings 2. The Good, the Bad, and (the Really) Ugly of Behavioral Science Research            The Good The Bad The (Really) Ugly Why? Summary Recommended Readings II. CONCEPTS3. The Research TrinityTrinity Overview Design Measurement Analysis Internal Validity Construct ValidityConclusion ValidityExternal Validity and SamplingSummary Recommended ReadingsExercises4. Design and Analysis            Chapter OverviewFrom Question to Design Experimental DesignsControlled Quasi-Experimental DesignsNonequivalent-Group DesignsRegression-Discontinuity DesignsOther Quasi-Experimental DesignsNonexperimental DesignsResources for Learning MoreSummaryRecommended ReadingsExercises5. The Truth about StatisticsStudy StrategyA Dozen Truths about StatisticsWhat Statistical Significance Really MeansMisinterpretations of Statistical SignificanceWhy Are There So Many Myths?Other Drawbacks of Statistical TestsIn Defense of Statistical TestsRecommendations for Changing TimesSummaryRecommended ReadingsExercisesAppendix 5.1. Review of Statistics Fundamentals6. Effect Size EstimationContexts for Estimating Effect SizeFamilies of Parametric Effect SizesEstimating Effect Size When Comparing Two SamplesMeasures of Association for More Complex DesignsEffect Sizes for Dichotomous OutcomesT-Shirt Effect Sizes, Importance, and CautionsApproximate Confidence IntervalsResearch ExamplesSummaryRecommended ReadingsExercisesAppendix 6.1. Noncentrality Interval Estimation for Effect Sizes7. MeasurementChapter ScopeThe Critical Yet Underappreciated Role of MeasurementMeasurement Process OverviewResources for Finding MeasuresAdapting or Translating TestsEvaluation of Score Reliability and ValidityChecklist for Evaluating MeasuresRecent Developments in Test TheorySummaryRecommended ReadingsExercisesIII. SKILLS8. Practical Data AnalysisVision First, Then SimplicityManaging Complex Analyses (Batch to the Future)Data ScreeningSummaryRecommended ReadingsExercises9. WritingPlagiarism and Academic IntegrityWriting as LearningGetting StartedThe Role of Style GuidesGeneral Principles of Good WritingPrinciples of Good Scientific WritingWriting Sections of Empirical StudiesEffective Graphical DisplaysReady for the Big TimeSummaryRecommended ReadingsAppendix 9.1. Example Results Section10. PresentationsChallenges of Oral PresentationsProblems with PowerPoint PresentationsPrinciples for Creating Effective PowerPoint PresentationsLessons from Multimedia LearningOther PowerPoint IssuesPoster PresentationsSummaryRecommended ReadingsExercisesAppendix 10.1. 4-Color Example Slides, Handout, and PosterSuggested Answers to Exercises