Features of science

Question 1

What are the 5 key features of science?

Answer 1

• There must be a paradigm
• There must be theories from which hypotheses are derived and tested
• Concepts must be falsifiable
• There must be investigation using empirical methods which are replicable
• There must be general laws that govern human behaviour (generalisability)

Question 2

What is a paradigm?

Answer 2

An agreed central theory about a subject.

Question 3

What is pre-science?

Answer 3

No paradigm exists, and there is much debate about what the subject is and the best theoretical approach.

Question 4

What is normal science?

Answer 4

A generally accepted paradigm that can account for all the phenomena related to the subject, and can explain and interpret all findings.

Question 5

What is scientific revolution?

Answer 5

Evidence against the old paradigm reaches a certain point, and there is a paradigm shift. The old paradigm is replaced by a new one.

Question 6

What is the process of deduction?

Answer 6

Theory
     |
Hypothesis
     |
Observation 
(empirical method)
     |
Confirmation (or not)

Question 7

What is deduction?

Answer 7

Deriving and testing new hypotheses from a theory.

Question 8

What is falsifiability?

Answer 8

Can it be shown to be false?

Question 9

What is the importance of falsifiability?

Answer 9

Scientific theories must always be stated in such a way that the predictions derived from them could potentially be shown to be false.

Question 10

What is the role of theory in scientific research?

Answer 10

Theories are a set of ideas from which hypotheses can be developed and tested. Observations will then inform further development of the theory.

Question 11

What is the role of hypothesis testing in psychology?

Answer 11

Hypothesis testing allows us to gather empirical evidence through observation to support or refute our theory and to allow further theory development.

Question 12

What must a psychologist do in order to ensure replicability of their research?

Answer 12

Be specific and clear - operationalise variables and use standardised methods and tasks.

Question 13

Why is replicability important?

Answer 13

Our research needs to be open to scrutiny by others or our findings cannot be considered reliable.

Question 14

Why can a researcher not generalised their conclusions if the sample is small?

Answer 14

A small sample is unlikely to be representative of the target population, as they may be a unique or unusual group, and so the results cannot be generalised.

Question 15

Why can’t a researcher generalise their conclusions if the experiment was set in a laboratory?

Answer 15

Cannot be generalised to everyday behaviour because behaviour may be different in real life - it has low ecological validity.

Question 16

Why can’t a researcher generalise their conclusions to different cultures?

Answer 16

Cultures are different so people may behave differently. If we generalise when we shouldn’t this is known as an imposed etic.