Lecture 3: Sport/Ex Psych as a Science Flashcards
What is science?
Systematized knowledge gained from observation, study, and experimentation carried out to determine the nature, or principles, of what is being studied
How does intuition have a place in science?
It is not “I have this belief” however “I wonder if I am right” – finding out answers to important questions.
What are the 4 main goals of science?
- Systematic
- Control
- Empirical
- Critical
What are the 4 key characteristics to “What is Science”?
- Organized/structured: repeatable
- Isolate the main problem: poses limitations for what we can find but increases control
- You’ve got data
- Research needs to be published, quality control, theories get replaced.
Applied sport/exercise psychology techniques (PST/MST) are only as sound and useful as….
the research and theories on which they are based
Why is good science essential for sport/exercise participants?
So they can receive accurate, reliable information about human social behaviour in sport/exercise
Why is it important to be critical of science?
Not all science is created equally: Just because it is published does not mean that it is good
Sports psychology builds its body of knowledge by following the…
“Scientific Method” - same as the other sport/exercise sciences; e.g. sociology of sport, biomechanics, exercise physiology
What methods/investigative stratagies are used to ensure the scientific method is reliable?
- Historical Research – descriptive, analytical
- Observational – eg. participant observation
- Descriptive – case studies, surveys, questionnaires, interviews
- Experimental – group studies, field studies, laboratory studies, single subject design,…
What does the scientific method rely on?
observed evidence rather than biased judgements or vague impressions
What is a theory?
A good recipe - goes beyond observations and descriptions to explain and predict behaviour
When are theories accepted as complete or absolute?
Never, they are constantly tested and then modified or replaced.
Science is not a final answer but a…
Continuing process
