Chapter 1: Psychology Is a Way of Thinking Flashcards
What does psychological science rely on?
Empirical methods
Empirical Methods
Uses evidence as the basis for conclusions.
Empiricism
Basing decisions on data, and using insights from data to develop, support, or challenge a theory.
Theory-Data Cycle
Scientists collect data to test, change, or update their theories.
Theory
A statement/set of statements that describe how something works.
What does a theory develop into?
Evidence based observations
Data
Set of observations representing the values of some variable, collected from one or more research studies.
What is the data also known as?
The backbone of how theories become stronger or weaker after observation.
Hypothesis
A way of stating the specific outcome in the data that the researcher expects to observe if the theory is accurate.
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (SST)
As one’s life is closer to being ended, motivational meaningful goals are prioritized over hypothetical ones.
What part of the theory-data cycle would this be considered:
“Children learn words better from their parents than a computer because they pay more attention to their mother’s voice.”
Theory
What part of the theory-data cycle would this be considered:
“Children will learn new words better when taught by their mom, compared to a computer game.”
Hypothesis
What part of the theory-data cycle would this be considered:
“Number of words that the child can correctly match to a picture. “
Data
What part of the theory-data cycle would this be considered:
“Would children learn new words better from their mom or a computer game teaching the same words?”
Research Question
How should theories and data be used?
In tandem with each other; complementary
What happens if you only use the theory or the data?
It can become problematic
Is the theory created at the beginning of a study permanent?
No - Additional studies can test it further, allowing for changes to be made.
What are the 2 main qualities of a good theory?
- Supported by data
- Falsifiable
What happens when there is no support for a theory?
There is no evidence that the explanations account for something real.
What is considered good support?
More than one piece of evidence
What do you need supporting data from?
Multiple studies and labs
Falsifiable
The theory must be testable and can be proven wrong.
What question must a theory be able to answer?
“What would you need to see to change your mind?”
How do you know when a theory is meaningless?
If any possible outcome can support the theory.
What happens when theories are supported?
They get stronger by testing alternative explanations.
