Lesson 6 Features Of Science - Replicability And Falsifiability: Theory Constrcution And Hypothesis Testing Flashcards
What is replicability?
Extent to which findings of research can be repeated in different contexts and circumstances
What does replicability rely on?
Findings being consistent over time
What does replicability help?
Help validate research findings
What does replicability serve the purpose of?
Guarding against scientific fraud
Check for “one off fluke” caused by extraneous / confounding variables
Reliability
Validity
When is replicability the highest?
Lab experiments
When is replicability the lowest?
When experimenter has failed to manipulate IV properly
E.g. observations
Who defined falsifiability?
Popper 1934
What is falsifiability?
Notion that scientific theories can potentially be disproved by evidence, hallmark of science
Refers to proving a hypothesis wrong
How are theories or ideas falsified?
Other research or theories have failed to support it or severely contradicted it
Assumption made the research or idea is false
What does “pseudoscience” disciplines produce?
Theories that cannot be falsified easily
E.g. Freud
How are theories constructed?
Via hypothesis testing and re-testing
What is deductive reasoning?
First have a theory then devise a hypothesis
Can you state the stages in deductive reasoning for research?
Propose a theory
Develop a hypothesis
Test theory
Draw conclusions
Can you give examples of each stage in deductive reasoning?
People find good looks more attractive than personality than dating
Men / women prefer god looks more than personality
Experiments / observations to test whether theory is correct
Draw conclusions
What is inductive reasoning?
Observations lead to a hypothesis
