features of science

Question 1

what is a paradigm? (kuhn 1962)

Answer 1

a shared set of assumptions and methods that distinguishes scienfitic disciplines from non-scientific disciplines

Question 2

why did kuhn suggest that psychology was best seen as a ‘pre-science’?

Answer 2

• doesn’t have a universally accepted paradigm
• marked by too much internal disagreement
• has too many conflicting approaches

Question 3

what is a paradigm shift?

Answer 3

• a few researchers begin to question an accepted paradigm
• this critique gains popularity and pace
• eventually there is too much contradictory evidence to ignore
• kuhn suggested that progress within an established science occurs when there is a scientific revolution

Question 4

what is a theory?

Answer 4

a set of general laws or principles that have the ability to explain particular events or behaviours

Question 5

how does theory construction occur?

Answer 5

by gathering evidence via direct observation

Question 6

what is hypothesis testing?

Answer 6

when a hypothesis is tested using systematic and objective methods to determine whether it will be supoorted or refuted

Question 7

what is deduction?

Answer 7

the process of deriving new hypotheses from an existing theory

Question 8

counterpoint: psychology does have paradigms, paradigms are flawed

Answer 8

• vast majority of researchers would accept ‘the study of mind and behaviour’ as a definition of psychology
• could be argued that psychology has already progressed through several paradigm shifts: wundt’s structuralism -> cognitive neuroscience
• feyerabend (1975) suggested that most sciences are characterised by internal conflict, dispute and a refusal to accept new ideas in the face of evidence

Question 9

what is falsifiability?

Answer 9

principle that a theory cannot be considered scientific unless it admits the possibility of being proved untrue

Question 10

what did popper (1934) suggest?

Answer 10

• key criterion of a scientific theory is its falsifiability
• genuine scientific theory should hold themselves up for hypothesis testing the the possibility of being proven false
• even when a scientific principle has been successfully and repeatedly tested, it is not necessarily true

Question 11

how did popper distinguish a good science and a ‘pseudoscience’?

Answer 11

• good science = theories are constantly challenged and therefore can potentially be falsified
• pseudoscience = theories cannot be falsified

Question 12

why is replicability an imortant element of popper’s hypothetico-deductive method?

Answer 12

if a scientific theory is to be trusted, the findings from it must be shown to be repeatable across a number of different contexts and circumstances

Question 13

what should psychologists do for replicability to becomes possible?

Answer 13

• report their investigation with as much precision and rigour as possible
• this way, other researchers can seek to verify thier work and the findings they have established

Question 14

what does objectivity mean?

Answer 14

all sources of personal bias are minimised to not distort or influence the research process

Question 15

which methods in psychology tend to be the most effective?

Answer 15

• those with the greatest level of control
• eg. lab experiments

Question 16

what is the emprical method?

Answer 16

scientific approaches that are based on the gathering of evidence through direct observation and experience

Question 17

what are some examples of the empirical method in psychology? (2)

Answer 17

• experimental method
• observational method

Question 18

what did locke (early empiricist) suggest?

Answer 18

• knowledge is only determined by experience and sensory perception
• therefore, according to locke’s view, a theory cannot claim to be scientific unless it has been empirically tested and verified