1: Science Flashcards
What is science according to Bordens and Abbot?
Bordens & Abbott: “Science is a set of methods used to collect information about phenomena in a particular area of interest and build a reliable base of knowledge about them.”
What is science according to Harrison?
Harrington: “An interconnected series of concepts and
conceptual schemes that have developed as a result of experimentation and observation and are fruitful of further experimentation and observation.”
What are Methods
Methodologies, ways of doing things
what is another word for information?
data
what does fruitful mean?
Heuristic value of science
what are heuristics?
Heuristics are mental shortcuts that allow people to solve problems and make judgments quickly and efficiently.
Scientific explanations are
- Empirical
- Rational
- Testable
- Parsimonious
- General
- Tentative
- Rigorously evaluated
what does empirical mean in the context of what scientific explanations are?
“show me the data” and control
what does rational mean in the context of what scientific explanations are?
facts and logic
what does testable mean in the context of what scientific explanations are?
verifiable
what does parsimonious mean in the context of what scientific explanations are?
simple explanations first, eg: simple system approach in neuroscience
what does general mean in the context of what scientific explanations are?
broad reach, not too specific
what does tentative mean in the context of what scientific explanations are?
can be challenged (and will be)
what are other types of explanations (not science)
Pseudoscientific explanations
Common sense explanations
Belief-based explanations
What is a pseudoexplanation? and are are the problems with it
have the surface features of explanation, without it explaining
The problem: The weakness of the instinct concept
ex) Konrad Lorenz (ethologist), Sigmund Freud (psychoanalyst), William McDougall (psychologist): Aggression is an instinct (innate behaviour).
tautology (circular explanation)
What are the methods of inquiry
Method of tenacity
Method of intuition
Method of faith
Method of authority
Rational method
Empirical method (empiricism)
what are methods of tenacity
Based on beliefs, habits or superstitions. Belief perseverance
what are methods of intuition
Hunch or gut feeling
what are methods of faith
From authority (not necessarily experts)
without questioning or challenging.
what are methods of authority
Only useful in the early stages of research. Many non-scientists consider this “research” (because they researched the topic), but it is not the same as “doing research”. From experts. Common in History
what are rational methods
From “rationalism”, based on logic; extensively used in Philosophy. Essential in the planning of research (designs).
what is the empirical method (empirism)
Direct experience or observation only.
what is the eastern european tradition (explain it) and who believed in it
Dialectical thinking / reasoning (Kant, Hegel, Marx, Engels)
A method: Thesis, antithesis, synthesis
An explanation for historical changes: Sometimes explains
changes in science (in epistemology and the history of science)
* Example: Ethology vs. psychology in the first half of the 20th Century.
* Specifically: Nature / nurture debate
* Other example: Mind / body debate in psychology, philosophy, neuroscience (monism vs. dualism).
what dialectical changes are there
Group selection theory: Allee, Wynne-Edwards
* Early years (thesis): Group selection theory
* Later years (antithesis): Kin selection theory
* Modern perspective (synthesis): Multi-level selection
* Illustrates well the pendulum movements in science: from
polarized stances, to the “golden middle”.
Olfactory processing in the brain: similar “debates” between
biophysicists, physiologists, neuroscientists, geneticists, etc.
(e.g., Luca Turin and his opponents).
persistence of theories: popper
- Falsifiability: Falsification of scientific data, of theories; main method of verification.
- His philosophy of science: Critical rationalism,
falsificationism. - Rejects: classical empiricism, observationalist or inductivist
approach - Similar to Charles Peirce’s faillibilism.
persistence of theories: kuhn
- Paradigms
- Theories persists and endure time in unjustified ways
sometimes (i.e., lack of supporting counter-evidence). - Kuhn: Theories die with their theorists.
- Cause (motivation): the massive (sometimes) life-long time investment, and financial investment, the time and money
spent convincing granting agencies and colleagues…
persistence of theories:
Imre Lakatos
- Research programs are important in the context of
falsification. Not theories or hypotheses. - Progressive Research Programs
- Degenerating Research Programs
- Synthesis of Popper’s empirical validity focus and Kuhn’s perspective on conventional (i.e., by convention) consistency
and persistence.
why are science and theories shades of gray, rather than black and white polarized thinking of many scientists
- Black and white thinking and unipolarized thinking are either from ignorance (young scientists) or are presented as
“wisdom” (from older, well-established scientists or their
peers). Either way, arrogance and pretentiousness is often at
the basis of this state of affair. - Again, the “truth” is often in between, in the shades of grey, in the yet-to-discover or yet-to-be-published theory or data.
what are the 7 dichotomous approaches to science
A) fundamental (basic) vs Applied
B) experimental vs non-experimental
C) Deductive vs Inductive
D) Nomothetic vs Idiographic
E) theoretical (theory-driven) vs A-theoretical (data-driven)
F) Diachronic (historical) vs Synchronic
G) Quantitative vs Qualitative
Fundamental (basic) vs Applied research and its problems
- Applied research relies on fundamental research (that is why some authors call fundamental research, BASIC
research). - Applied research can be BAD research if not grounded on
good fundamental research.
*Applied research is often used in Canada and the USA over fundamental research
Basic categories of research
approaches
Experimental
Quasi-experimental
Non-experimental
What is experimental research?
Control over the assignment of participants. Control condition(s)
what is quasi-experimental research?
Typically, no control over the
assignment of participants (i.e., no randomization). Sometimes no control conditions. Often associated with time series, pre/post test, single-case experimental designs, etc.
what are some examples of non-experimental research?
- Correlational (finding associations between variables)
- Descriptive (more next slide), including observational
types of descriptive research
Observational (the most relevant to this course)
* “Counting” cells (neurons), animals, etc.
* Participant observation (e.g., anthropology)
* Naturalistic (direct) observations (e.g., ethology)
* Unobtrusive or nonreactive observations : e.g., archives, physical traces.
- Case histories / studies: clinical (e.g., neuropsychology)
- Surveys, interviews (e.g., personality, social psych.)
- Others: content analysis, meta-analysis, etc.
what does correlational data help with
Correlational data can help generating new hypotheses.
Going from correlation to causation
non-experimental research: not all bad
Correlation versus causation: How to use correlational research to generate experimental research?
Small n research: How to use small n research to generate
experimental data?
Anecdotal data, unsystematic observations, and pilot (exploratory) studies often initiate hard core experimental
studies.
what are some examples of hybrid types?
You can do observational studies in the laboratory with an experimental component
You can have a correlational component in an observational study.
what is ecological validity and it’s exceptions
Definition: an experiment has ecological validity if it reflects
real life situations or the data that would be obtained in real
life settings.
Often difficult to obtain, with exceptions:
Non-experimental: Naturalistic observations
Experimental: Field experiments
Related issues: invasiveness or obtrusiveness
what are some types of scientific reasoning
abduction
deduction
induction
what is abduction
(retroduction; abductive reasoning)
signs + symptoms;
inference by “educated guesses” (Bayesian)
Common in medicine, clinical diagnostic (e.g., clinical psychology and clinical neuroscience); Sherlock Holmes actually used abduction, not deduction as often said
what is deduction
(subsumption; deductive reasoning):
experimentations
Common in hypothetic-deductive (experimental) sciences: Experimental biology, experimental psychology, experimental neuroscience, etc
what is induction
(generalization; inductive reasoning)
observations
Common in descriptive and observational sciences, e.g., astronomy, ethology, developmental psychology, some neuroscience
Induction: Theories from facts.
* Appeal to prior knowledge
* Generalizations from observable facts
Inductivists: Favour experience over logic (deduction)
Modern approach to inductivism: Bayesian
* Use of conditional probabilities (probabilities in the light of new evidence)
* Importance of priors, history, “background”, updatable knowledge
Epistemological distinction
- Idiographic versus nomothetic sciences
- A distinction of necessity or preference (“bias”?).
- Originally proposed by the philosopher Wilhelm Windelband (1848-1915) in his 1894 “History and Natural Science” (he was from the Baden neo-kantian school).
- Historically applied to psychology (personality theory) by Gordon Allport.
- Relevant distinction within psychology and neuroscience
(biological sciences in general).
Small versus large n research
Large n research (nomothetic):
* Subjects are grouped.
* Data = group averages. Variability with groups important: variance, standard dev.
* Statistical significance assessed by inferential statistics (t-tests, ANOVA’s).
Small n research (idiographic/ morphogenic):
* Each subject = separate experiment
* Use of within-subject designs
* Presented data: individual subjects
* Comparisons between subjects
* Reliability is assessed by replication (repetition)
when is Idiographic vs.
Nomothetic Research approach useful
- Assumption of minimal biological or psychological variability
* Much of neuroscience - “Convenience” or availability of subjects.
* Psychophysics
* Cognitive and behavioural neuroscience
* Human clinical neuropsychology/neurology
* Clinical psychology
* Animal learning and cognition (tradition?)
Outliers
- A problem with nomothetic sciences:
- The dilution (or elimination) of exceptional (“different”, “abnormal”) cases.
- Outliers can be informative in relation to the norm (e.g., abnormal behaviour can inform us on normal behaviour), or better, can make us aware of isolated, idiosyncratic populations.
- Jean Rostand (1894-1977): “Monsters in the Ponds”; Illustrates how outliers can have a massive informative value and major impact on science and marks the beginnings of ecotoxicology: When the exception becomes the rule
