This story reports that pregnant women are less likely to go into spontaneous labor on a negatively toned holiday (Halloween). Similarly, they are more likely to do so on a positively toned holiday (Valentine's Day). Here's a quote from the New York Times story: In a study published this month, however, researchers at the Yale …
Tag: teaching research methods
Can makeup change the way women are perceived?
Recently, researchers tested how makeup affects people's impressions of women. Here is how the story was covered by ABC News--the story includes a video. In the study, a set of female targets posed for photos in which they were wearing no makeup, some makeup, professional makeup, or full, "glamour" makeup. Then the photos were rated …
Continue reading Can makeup change the way women are perceived?
Coffee drinking and depression
A study recently reported that among a large sample of nurses (the sample included only women), women who drank more cups of coffee per day were less likely to be diagnosed with depression. Here's how the story was covered by MSNBC. The journalist reported the following about the study: Participants were followed from 1996 to …
Shrimp on a treadmill? What’s research really about?
Sometimes journalists or politicians call out research projects that they consider to be a waste of money, such as a line of research in biology and ecology in which shrimp ran on a treadmill. This news story from National Public Radio covers some examples of research whose measures or instruments have been criticized as silly, …
Continue reading Shrimp on a treadmill? What’s research really about?
Curly or straight? A journalist experiments on her hair…
In this ABC news video, a reporter shows what happened when she presented herself with her naturally curly hair or her straightened hair, in three situations. 1. Consider the first experiment--with the panel of men. a. What were the independent and dependent variables in the reporter's study? b. How did she manipulate the independent variable--as …
Continue reading Curly or straight? A journalist experiments on her hair…
The rich are different….and not in a good way
This article on msnbc.com presents a summary of research by Dr. Dacher Keltner on differences in empathy and social reasoning between upper- and lower-class Americans. How does the evidence support the view that richfolks, like Mr. Potter here, are less sensitive to others? Photo: RKO Radio Pictures/Photofest 1. The article describes several studies from Dr. …
Continue reading The rich are different….and not in a good way
An expert’s take on “online search”
Recently, Google’s Daniel Russell presented a talk on Search Literacy, a skill for the information age. The 35-minute presentation is viewable on youtube as one of the GoogleTechTalks. Anyone who spends time searching for information online can benefit from this presentation. Russell presents some tips for designing good searches and recognizing false or faked information. …
Facebook helps your self-esteem
CNN published an article with this headline: Study: Facebook helps your self-esteem Before you read the article, consider: 1. What kind of claim is the headline of this article making? Causal? Association? Or Frequency? 2. What are the variables in the headline’s claim—what two variables will you expect to read about in the article? …