Multimedia and Web Resources

Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.

Video Resources

Video 1: TED Talk on Why People Believe Weird Things

Learning Objective: 1-1: The connection between thinking critically and thinking like a researcher. | 1-3: How to take a scientific approach and apply the steps in the scientific process.

Description: Michael Shermer discusses the role of skepticism in science. He uses videos, pictures, and music to help demonstrate that people can convince themselves to believe in strange phenomena, but points out that science is a process by which we think more deeply to find explanations for such phenomena.

Video 2: TED Talk on Conflict of Interest

Learning Objective: 1-1: The connection between thinking critically and thinking like a researcher. | 1-2: How to think critically about research ethics, including understanding and applying the ethical principles and standards of your discipline.

Description: Dan Ariely discusses how science can be impacted by conflicts of interest. In particular, he notes the problem with throwing out data so that it fits your hypothesis. He notes that scientists, like others, may be affected by such conflicts of interest even when they are trying to be unbiased. He suggests that knowing our potential to be biased can help create processes to avoid bias.

Video 3: Jamie Oliver on Scientific Studies

Learning Objective: 1-1: The connection between thinking critically and thinking like a researcher. | 1-3: How to take a scientific approach and apply the steps in the scientific process.

Description: Note that is an “R” rated clip with mild profanity and sexual content. The comedian Jaime Oliver illustrates how the media often reports snapshots of scientific studies without any critical analysis, which may leave the public confused or dismissive of science. He suggests multiple reasons for this problem, including the “publish or perish” mentality and p-hacking, lack of replication, press releases or media that oversimplify or misrepresent results of scientific studies. The key point of the video is that science is a “slow and rigorous process that does not lend itself to sweeping conclusions.”

Audio Resource

Audio 1: How Cognitive Psychologists Helped Find a Sunken WWII Battleship

Learning Objective: 1-1: The connection between thinking critically and thinking like a researcher. | 1-3: How to take a scientific approach and apply the steps in the scientific process.

Description: Article and podcast about how cognitive psychologists used psychological science to find a WWII battleship.

Web Resources

Learning Objective: 1-2: How to think critically about research ethics, including understanding and applying the ethical principles and standards of your discipline.

Description: Ethics codes for different social science disciplines

American Anthropological Association (AAA):

Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS): http://www.acjs.org/pubs/167_671_2922.cfm

American Educational Research Association (AERA):

American Political Science Association (APSA)

American Psychological Association (APA): www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.aspx

American Sociological Association (ASA): www.asanet.org/images/asa/docs/pdf/CodeofEthics.pdf

National Association of Social Workers (NASW):

Cornell University Online Plagiarism Quiz

Learning Objective: 1-4: Basic research terms that we will expound on in later chapters.

Description: Online quiz that checks students’ knowledge of when and how to credit sources.