Experimental Psychology – Fall 2024

Course Description

This course provides students with hands-on experience in experimental psychology by utilizing a range of physiological and behavioral measurement tools, including eye-tracking systems, EEG headsets, galvanic skin response sensors, heart rate monitors, and voice recorders. Through a combination of lectures and lab work, students will learn experimental methods, design their own experiments, collect data, and analyze their results, culminating in group projects. Ethical considerations and the historical context of psychological experimentation will also be explored.

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, students will:

  1. Gain a foundational understanding of experimental design, hypothesis testing, and measurement in psychology.
  2. Develop proficiency in using experimental tools such as eye-tracking, EEG, GSR, and heart rate monitors.
  3. Learn to conduct experiments, collect and interpret data, and present their findings in a scientific format.
  4. Understand and apply ethical standards in experimental psychology research.
  5. Critically evaluate the use of technology and physiological measures in psychological research.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:

  1. Formulate testable hypotheses and design experiments to investigate psychological phenomena.
  2. Utilize lab equipment to collect physiological and behavioral data.
  3. Analyze and interpret experimental data using appropriate statistical methods.
  4. Present research findings clearly in both written reports and oral presentations.
  5. Identify and address ethical issues in psychological research.
  6. Collaborate effectively in small teams to execute experimental projects.

Assessments

(1) Research Report on Unethical Experiment (10 points): Students will write a report on an unethical historical psychological experiment, analyzing the methods, outcomes, and ethical concerns. Breakdown:

  • 3 points: Completeness of the Report.
  • 3 points: Ethical analysis.
  • 4 points: Personal reflection.

(2) Designing and Executing an Experiment (10 points): In groups, students will design and execute an experiment using one of the lab devices. A final report and presentation will summarize their findings. Breakdown:

  • 2 points: Experimental design and hypothesis.
  • 2 points: Data collection and methodology.
  • 2 points: Data analysis and interpretation.
  • 2 points: Written report.
  • 2 points: Presentation of results.

Tentative Class Schedule

  • Week 1:
    • Course Introduction and Overview
  • Week 2:
    • Theory:
      • Experimental Research Method
    • Practical:
      • Form project groups of 4 students
      • Select topics for projects (experimental + research)
  • Week 3:
    • Theory:
      • Hypothesis Testing + Experimental Design
      • Samples, Participants, Populations
    • Practical:
      • Reports Formats: Research Project + Experimental Project
  • Week 4:
    • Theory:
      • Variables
    • Practical:
      • Training Eye-Tracking System
  • Week 5:
    • Theory:
      • Submission Due of “Research Paper Report“
    • Practical:
      • Experimental Setups + Performing Experiments
      • Data Collection + Interpreting Results
  • Week 6:
    • Theory:
      • Present “Research Paper Report“
    • Practical:
      • Training GSR, Heart Rate and EEG Devices
      • Setting Up Experiments for Groups
  • Week 7:
    • Practical:
      • Hold Experiments Groups 1 to 4
  • Week 8:
    • Practical:
      • Hold Experiments Groups 5 to 8
  • Week 9:
    • Practical:
      • Hold Experiments Groups 8 to 11
  • Week 10:
    • Eye-Tracking Experimental Evaluation
      • Data collection for final project
      • Analyzing data from the final project
      • Hypothesis testing, Choose participants, sample size.
      • Independent and dependent variables and measures.
      • Types of experimental designs, analysis or results.
  • Week 11:
    • Present Final Group Projects 1 to 6
  • Week 12:
    • Present Final Group Projects 7 to 11
  • Week 13:
    • Advanced Topics in HCI
      • Brain-Computer Interface
      • Human-Robot Interaction 
      • Future Directions in HCI
  • Week 14:
    • Open Discussion Session

Topics of Research Projects

Student groups will select a topic from the list of Unethical Experiments below. For your selected topic, write a report using this Report Template.

  • Stanford Prison Experiment
  • The Milgram Obedience Experiment
  • Little Albert Experiment
  • The Monster Study
  • Harlow’s Monkey Experiments
  • The Landis Facial Expressions Experiment
  • The David Reimer Case
  • The Robbers Cave Experiment
  • The Bystander Effect: The Murder of Kitty Genovese
  • Project MKUltra
  • The Willowbrook Hepatitis Study
  • The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment
  • The Human Radiation Experiments
  • The CIA Sleep Deprivation and Torture Experiments

Topics of Experimental Projects

For your selected topic design and experiment. The designed experiment to include the following sections: title – research problem – hypothesis – null hypothesis – the dependent and independent variables – materials – stimuli – setup – procedure – results – analysis of results – conclusions.

For your selected topic, write a report using this Report Template.

  1. Subliminal messages affecting our decisions
  2. Selective Attention/Invisible Gorilla Experiment
  3. Priming and Word Recognition
  4. Visual Search Task
  5. Emotional Visual Attention
  6. Attentional Bias Toward Advertisements
  7. Scene Perception and Object Recognition
  8. Reading Comprehension and Attention
  9. Visual Perception and Change Blindness
  10. Stroop Effect
  11. Social Conformity
  12. Crowding Effect in Visual Perception
  13. Classical Conditioning
  14. Memory Recall and Forgetting
  15. The Impact of Sleep on Learning and Memory
  16. Facial Expressions and Emotion Recognition
  17. Effects of Multitasking on Cognitive Performance
  18. The Placebo Effect
  19. Attentional Blink
  20. Eyewitness Testimony Reliability
  21. Color and Mood
  22. Effects of Positive vs. Negative Reinforcement
  23. Reaction Times and Distraction
  24. Misinformation Effect
  25. Body Language and Perception
  26. Mental Rotation and Spatial Ability
  27. False Memories
  28. Subliminal Priming
  29. Prosocial Behavior and Empathy
  30. Effects of Time of Day on Cognitive Performance
  31. Personality Traits and Risk-Taking

Lab Policies

  1. Attendance: Attendance is mandatory for all lab sessions. Unexcused absences may result in point deductions.
  2. Safety and Conduct: All students are expected to handle lab equipment carefully and ethically. Respect for participants and their data is paramount.
  3. Ethical Considerations: All experiments must be conducted with informed consent from participants. Ethical breaches will result in a failing grade for the assignment.
  4. Deadlines: Assignments and projects must be submitted on time. Late submissions will incur penalties unless a prior extension has been granted.