Features of a science

Question 1

What is a Paradigm?

Answer 1

Set of shared ideas and assumptions within a scientific discipline

Question 2

What is a Paradigm Shift?

Answer 2

A significant change in these central assumptions within a scientific discipline

Question 3

What are Paradigm Shifts a result of?

Answer 3

Scientific revolution

Question 4

What separates scientific disciplines from non-scientific disciplines, according to Kuhn?

Answer 4

Paradigms

Question 5

Does Psychology have agreed upon paradigms, therefore qualifying it as a science?

Answer 5

No

Question 6

What is a Theory?

Answer 6

A set of general principles and laws which can be used to explain specific events or behaviours

Question 7

How does Theory Construction take place?

Answer 7

Gathering evidence from direct observation during investigations

Question 8

What is Deduction?

Answer 8

Process of deriving new hypotheses to an already existing theory

Question 9

What is Falsifiability?

Answer 9

A theory cannot be considered scientific unless it allows itself to be proven untrue

Question 10

What is Popper’s Theory of Falsification?

Answer 10

States that successful theories that have been constantly tested and supported simply haven’t been proven false yet

Question 11

What are sciences that cannot be proven wrong known as?

Answer 11

Psuedosciences

Question 12

What do strong theories survive?

Answer 12

A lot of falsify attempts

Question 13

What is the Hypothesis Deductive method?

Answer 13

Process of formulating hypotheses that can be either proved or disproved by experimentation

Question 14

What is Replicability?

Answer 14

The extent to which scientific methods and their results can be repeated by other researchers

Question 15

What is Objectivity?

Answer 15

All possible biases from the researcher are minimised so that they don’t influence or distort the research process

Question 16

What is the empirical method?

Answer 16

Direct observations through direct experiences

Question 17

When can a theory be deemed scientific?

Answer 17

If it can be empirically tested and verified using the experimental method or observational method

Question 18

How is psychology a science?

Answer 18

Intuitive results against common sense
Scientific methods are used in a lot of research giving them scientific credibility
Findings do positively impact society and individuals (CBT)

Question 19

How is psychology not a science?

Answer 19

Experiment interpretations can be subjective
Not all research generalisable (case studies)
Psychologists often make inferences about behaviour rather than measuring it (memory)