Chapter 1- Psychology as a way of thinking Flashcards
Psychology
The scientific study of human behaviors and mental processes
Empiricism
Using objective methods to analyze your data- relying on your own individual experiences means that they can’t be verified, asking questions and testing theories. The aim is to be systematic and rigorous, and to make their work independently verifiable by other sources- Empiricists don’t base their conclusions on intuitions or on casual observations of their own experiences or others’ experiences.
Why is the producer role of research important? (3)
- For coursework in psychology
- For working in a research lab
- For graduate school
Why is the consumer role of research important?
When reading printed or online news stories based on research, it’s better to find the original paper. Journalists don’t have a scientific background. It’s also important for your future career when taking an evidence based approach.
Characteristics of good scientific theories (4)
- Supported by data
- Falsifiable- might not be supported when tested
- Have parsimony- simple theories are better than complex theories
- Don’t prove anything- prove implies there is no room for error, want to find support for theory
Basic, translational, applied research examples
Basic research- What parts of the brain are active when experienced meditators are meditating?
Translational research- In a laboratory study, can meditation lessons improve college students’ GRE scores?
Applied research- Has our school’s new meditation program helped students focus longer on their math lessons?
How do scientists share the results of their research with the scientific community?
Submit it to a scientific journal
Benefits of journalism coverage of science
The general public can have access to information. This fulfills the communality norm- science journalism is easy to access and no specialized education is required to understand it.
Risks of journalism coverage of science
Journalists don’t have scientific training so they might promote inaccurate information. They might just write about one study and its results rather than analyzing all literature on a specific subject. In their efforts to tell an engaging, clickable story, journalists might overstate the research or get the details wrong. Approaches- reading the original scientific article and maintaining a skeptical mindset when it comes to popular sources.
Evidence based treatments
Therapies that are supported by research
The theory-data cycle
In the theory-data cycle, scientists collect data to test, change, or update their theories. Example- the weather app on your phone isn’t working. You would form theories about why, ask questions- is it just that app, is there something wrong with the wifi, and update your theories based on these answers.
Theory
A set of statements that describes general principles about how variables relate to each other- Harlow’s theory was that contact comfort was the basis for attachment. Theories lead to questions and to hypotheses about the answers. Often leads to multiple hypotheses, requiring multiple studies to test an entire theory
Contact comfort theory (Harlow)
States that babies are attached to their mothers because of the comfort of their warm, fuzzy fur (not just because their mothers give them food). Harlow made 2 “mothers” for baby monkeys to test the theory. One provided food but not comfort, one provided comfort but not food. The time each monkey spent with each mother was recorded (the data). The monkeys spent much more time with the comfort mother, favoring the theory.
Hypothesis
A prediction stated in terms of the study design. Harlow’s hypothesis was that babies would spend more time on the comfort mother than the food mother. Usually pre-registered- after the study is designed but before the researcher collects any data, the researcher publicly states what the study’s outcome is expected to be.
Data
A set of observations. Harlow’s data were the amount of time the monkeys stayed on each mother. If they match the theory’s hypotheses, they strengthen the researcher’s confidence in the theory. If the data doesn’t match, the results indicate that the theory needs to be revised or the study design needs to be improved.
Why don’t studies prove theories?
The word “prove” isn’t used in science. Empirically, we aren’t justified in making generalizations about phenomena we haven’t observed- we haven’t observed all possible situations or all people. When a single study supports a theory, that doesn’t mean it “proves” the theory. We just say that it supports the hypothesis/is consistent with the hypothesis, or is inconsistent with the hypothesis
If a study is inconsistent with a theory, does that mean the theory is wrong?
If inconsistent, that doesn’t mean the theory isn’t true- you might want to troubleshoot the study design
Replication
The study is conducted again to see whether the results are consistent
Weight of the evidence
Scientists evaluate their theories based on the weight of the evidence- the collection of studies, including replications, of the same theory. Harlow’s theory wasn’t “proved”, but it was strongly supported by many other studies
Falsifiability
A theory should lead to hypotheses that could fail to support the theory when they are tested. Some pseudoscientific techniques have been based on theories that are not falsifiable- on practices that “only work if they’re not scrutinized”.
Self-correcting
Discovering mistaken theories through testing assumptions and correcting the theories
Merton’s scientific norms (4)
- Universalism
- Communality
- Disinterestedness
- Organized skepticism
Universalism
Scientific claims are evaluated based on the merit of the claim, not the researcher’s credentials. Anyone can do science even if they don’t have an advanced degree.
Communality
Scientific knowledge is created by a community and its findings belong to the community. Scientists should be transparent and freely share the results of their work with the public
