Task 9 is psychology a science?

Question 1

Realism (four principles of science)

Answer 1

There is a physical world with independent objects, which can be understood by human intellect

Question 2

Objectivity (four principles of science)

Answer 2

Knowledge of the physical reality does not depend on the observer. Consequently, objective agreement among people is possible, irrespective of their worldviews. Science aims to uncover this knowledge so that it becomes public, verifiable and usable

Question 3

Truth (four principles of science)

Answer 3

Scientific statements are true when they correspond to the physical reality

Question 4

Rationality (four principles of science)

Answer 4

Truth is guaranteed because scientific statements are based on sound method. Scientific statements are no vague guesses, but justified conclusions grounded on convincing evidence and good reasoning, and expressed with the right level of confidence

Question 5

Thoughts before revolution

Answer 5

To a great extent, the rise of the scientific approach can be summarised as a shift in balance from deductive reasoning to inductive reasoning. Before the scientific revolution it was generally accepted that only deductive reasoning led to necessary truth (Plato, Aristotle).

Question 6

Plato and rationalism

Answer 6

to understand the universe, it was more important to rely on reason than on senses. Humans perception is fallible and observed world is only a shadow of the real world, in contrast the human soul has innate knowledge of the Universe

Question 7

Aristotle and deductive reasoning

Answer 7

theoretical knowledge started from axioms or first principles, from which new knowledge was deduced via so called demonstrations. Perception was source of information but not knowledge itself

Question 8

Correspondence theory of truth

Answer 8

a statement is true when it corresponds with reality. Assumes that there is a physical reality which has priority and which human mind tries to understand (formulated by Aristotle)

Question 9

Scepticism

Answer 9

Philosophical view that does not deny the existence of a physical reality, but denies that humans can have reliable knowledge of it

Question 10

Augustine

Answer 10

adopted Aristotle’s logic and wanted to reconcile it with Christian theology, true knowledge was based on Gods revelations.

Question 11

Galilei (scientific revolution)

Answer 11

convinced the world over importance of observations and experiments for acquisition of knowledge
 Thought experiments: easily to relate for readers because they are based on reason and imagination rather than the use of unknown equipment

Question 12

Bacon induction

Answer 12

begin with collection of a large number of facts in a mechanical way, without theoretical prejudice, and to put them in tables for a better understanding
o Emphasised not only on positive findings, negative or deviating ones should be recorded and considered as well
o Bacon: empiricist and inductive reasoning, promoted the use of systematic observations and inductive reasoning
 truth could not be obtained by simply observing Nature; it had to be extracted from her

Question 13

Newton (scientific revolution)

Answer 13

had proposed mathematical equations describing and predicting the movements in the universe, but doing so he had accepted phenomena he couldn’t explain
o Newtons scientific method was not so different from Aristotle’s demonstrations based on deduction, except for the fact that the first principles had to be based on observation, experimentation and inductive reasoning (i.e. Phenomena), rather than on self-evident axioms

Question 14

Huygens and Probabilistic reasoning

Answer 14

o It was possible to verify principles from their effects with a degree of probability that was scarcely less than complete proof, when a great number of observable phenomena in line with the principles were collected
o Truth was particular guaranteed when the principles in addition allowed researchers to make new predictions and to verify them

Question 15

Verification law by Laplace

Answer 15

 He provided a simple equation to calculate the probability of a scientific law given that it had been replicated n times in succession. This equalled: (n + 1) / (n + 2) (n=number of observations)

Question 16

An increased appreciation of hypothesis

Answer 16

o Came with the appreciation of inductive reasoning as source of new knowledge

Question 17

Whewell (Theories and observations)

Answer 17

credited with the insight that observations and theory influence each other.
 You can’t have knowledge except we have both impressions on our senses from the world without ourselves, and thought from our minds within.
 Sensation and ideas can’t be separated
 A fact is a fact when sensation is combined with ideas, a theory is a theory so far the ideas is kept distinct from sensations

Question 18

Comte

Answer 18

founder of positivism
 it is true that every theory must be based upon observed facts, it is equally true that facts cannot be observed without the guidance of some theory

Question 19

Idealization of scientific knowledge

Answer 19

o As a result of the successes of science, most of the initial doubts about whether inductive reasoning could lead to true conclusions were swept under the carpet towards the end of the nineteenth century

Question 20

Philosophy of science

Answer 20

branch of philosophy that studies the foundations of scientific research, to better understand the position of scientific research relative to other forms of information acquisition and generation

Question 21

Logical positivism

Answer 21

by wiener kreis
philosophical movement in the first half o the 20th century, claiming that philosophy should stop thinking about metaphysics, and instead try to understand the essence of the scientific approach; central was the verification principle (Demarcation)

Question 22

Failure of logical positivism

Answer 22

Because of the many criticisms, logical positivism failed, which gave positivism a negative connotation of naive belief in the power and the truthfulness of scientific research.

Question 23

Perception is more than sensing stimuli

Answer 23

o Perception needs interpretation, so facts cant be objective observations
o A theory changes the perception of facts (flat earth to round earth changed perception)
o A theory enables scientists to focus on the important facts (The more observers know about a particular phenomenon, the richer their perceptions)

Question 24

Popper

Answer 24

o Influenced by Comte and Whewell and their theory that human observation is not theory dependent
o Science constantly questions its explanations, whereas non-scientific movements have no such inclination
o Falsification over verification

Question 25

Falsificationism

Answer 25

view within the philosophy of science that statements are scientific only if the can be falsified empirically
o Different degrees of falsifiability: The more falsifiable a theory was, the higher the scientific status

Question 26

Hypothetico-deductive method

Answer 26

scientific progress involves a combination of inductive reasoning on the basis of observation, induction and educated guesswork, a theory of a phenomenon is formulated; the correctness of the theory is evaluated by the formulation of a testable prediction (hypothesis) on the basis of deductive reasoning; the prediction is subsequently put to a falsification test, which provides new observational data for further theorising

Question 27

Confirmation bias

Answer 27

The tendency people have to search for evidence that confirms their opinion; goes against falsification (weakness of falsification)

Question 28

Sophisticated falsificationism

Answer 28

o Don’t give up too easily

o Modification of theories in the light of counterevidence, must under no condition make the theory less falsifiable

Question 29

Ad hoc modification

Answer 29

modifications to a theory that according to Popper make the theory less falsifiable; decrease the scientific value of the theory

Question 30

Kuhn’s theory

Answer 30

o Pre-science: starts with an unorganised amalgam of facts, observations and models to explain small-scale phenomena
o Creation of paradigm: general framework is proposed, gives overview about field of interest and method
 Paradigm: notion introduced by Kuhn to refer to the fact that scientists share a set of common views of what the discipline is about and how problems must be investigated (temporary set of ideas)
o Normal science: the discipline finds itself doing normal science (falsifying etc.)
o Crisis and revolution:
 the phase of normal science will yield results that cannot be accounted for by the paradigm leads to state of crisis (is not always progression)
 Degenerative research programme: notion introduced by Lakatos to indicate a paradigm that does not allow researchers to make new predictions and that requires an increasing number of ad hoc modifications to account for the empirical findings (leads to progressive research program)
 Progressive research program: notion introduced by Lakatos to indicate a paradigm that allows researchers to make new, hitherto unexpected predictions that can be tested empirically
o Return to normal science:
 After the paradigm shift took place the new paradigm has to be tested

Question 31

Paradigm

Answer 31

notion introduced by Kuhn to refer to the fact that scientists share a set of common views of what the discipline is about and how problems must be investigated (temporary set of ideas)

Question 32

Kuhn and idealism

Answer 32

o Kuhn’s scrutiny suggested that all they were doing was creating a set of stories about their perceptions (idealism), shrouded in a secretive language (jargon) and adorned with an unjustified air of objectivity, which in a hundred years’ time would be looked upon as another outmoded paradigm based on wrong assumptions

Question 33

Postmodernists

Answer 33

in the philosophy of science, someone who questions the special status of science and sees scientific explanations as stories told by a particular group of scientists

Question 34

Social constructions (Postmodernists)

Answer 34

notion used by postmodernists to indicate that scientific knowledge is not objective knowledge discovering the workings of an external reality, but a story told by a particular scientific community on the basis of its language and culture

Question 35

Science war

Answer 35

notion used by the postmodernists to refer to their attacks against the special status of science and their unmasking of scientific knowledge as a social construction

Question 36

Pragmatism (Pierce)

Answer 36

view in philosophy that human knowledge is information about how to cope with the world; the truth depends on the success one has engaging with the world, on that works

Question 37

Non-scientific ways of gathering information

Answer 37

 1. The method of tenacity. People hold assumptions and beliefs because they have been around for a long time.
 2. The method of authority. People form opinions by consulting ‘experts’. This is usually associated with the influence various religions have on human thinking.
 3. The a priori method. People use their own reason and logic to reach conclusions. This includes deductive reasoning, without feeling a need to verify them empirically. This type of knowledge also includes intuitive knowledge

Question 38

Paradox of trust in science

Answer 38

trust in science paradoxical as it’s supposed to be facts
 Science as a way of controlling the risk of not getting the truth
 Sometimes have to trust in the knowledge of others if it is impossible to figure truth out yourself

Question 39

Complexity of scientific knowledge

Answer 39

public trust in science essential as they can’t know better

Question 40

Easy access to science related info

Answer 40

judgement about which sources are trustworthy

Question 41

Seminal model (Mayer)

Answer 41

three components that make up the trustworthiness of a trustee
 Ability – domain specific skills & competencies that enable the trustee to have influence within the same domain
 Benevolence – independent acting from an egocentric profit motive and in a beneficial interest for the trustor
 Integrity – act according to set of rules/ principles acceptable to the trustor

Question 42

Epistemic trust

Answer 42

trust in knowledge that has been produced/ provided by scientists
 Default trust – people are generally trustful to others as a predisposition for communication and cooperation, laying the groundwork for people to defer to the knowledge of others
 Vigilant trust – includes cognitive mechanisms that allow people to make rather fine-grained ascriptions of trustworthiness before accepting what others say

Question 43

Wissenschaftliche Weltauffassung: Manifesto from Vienna circle (1929)

Answer 43

o Truth divides into two types: empirical truth and logical truth
 Empirical truth make claims about he world and are established through empirical verification (observation and experiment
 Logical truth are based on deductive logic and are influenced by linguistic conventions
o Statements not belonging to one of the categories above are meaningless

Question 44

Verificationism

Answer 44

adherence to the principle that a proposition is meaningful only if it can be verified as true or false; with respect to science states that a proposition is scientific only if it can be verified through objective, value free observation
o Proving truth is logically impossible on the basis of repeated observations
o Scientific theories are full of non-observable variables (measurable ones are still fine)
o Non-observables may become observable
o Verifiable observations are no guarantee of correct understanding

Question 45

Psychology is a science

Answer 45

• Research model has to be described in such way that it can be replicated
• Standardised test are used
• The scientific method has proven to be a fruitful approach and is fully integrated within mainstream psychological research
• Psychological research is fully integrated within other scientific research. It is one of the seven major areas with strong links to two other major areas
• Organisations such as APA control the psychology society

Question 46

Psychology is not a science

Answer 46

• Stereotypes that limit psychology on the treatment of person and not the science of human functioning
• Professional psychologist outnumber the number of psychology researchers
• People are convinced that they have as much knowledge about psychological issues as psychologists
• hermeneutic approach agrees more with public view of psychology as non-scientific

Question 47

Dilthey’s appraoch

Answer 47

o Psychology should be content based, no focus on how brain function, but on the meaning structure of the person
o Psychology is the human experience in its totality, including cognition, emotion and motivation to act
o The context of a persons life, socio-cultural and historical context
o Understanding
 elementary forms of understanding used to solve the simple problems of life
 empathy through which an observer can re-experience someone else’s experiences
 the hermeneutic level of understanding, by which an observed person can be better understood than the person understands him/herself

Question 48

deductive reasoning

Answer 48

o Is a from of reasoning in which one starts from known statements and deduces new conclusions
o The conclusions are guaranteed to be true and if the correct logical rules are followed
o Usually presented in the for of syllogism, a logical argument consisting of two premises and a conclusion e.g.
 All children younger than 6 months cannot talk yet
 Hattie is younger than 6 months
 Therefore, Hattie cannot talk yet
o Is stressed in rationalism, according to which reality can be known by reasoning from innate knowledge
o Is used in science to formulate hypothesis on the basis of existing theories, so that

Question 49

Inductive reasoning

Answer 49

o Is a form of reasoning in which likely conclusions are drawn on the basis of a series of convergent observations
o The conclusion is not necessarily true. In the beginning conclusions are often guesses that turn out to be wrong and have to be replaced
o Is mostly used:
 To generalise from limited number of observations to a general conclusion (e.g. concluding that sparrows are brown on the basis of the sparrows we have seen thus far)
 To detect correlations between events (e.g. noticing that there are more sparrows in the garden after we put food in the feeder)
 To make causal interferences (e.g. concluding that there are more sparrows in the garden after we put food in the feeder, because the sparrows are hungry and want to get some of the food).
o Is the type of reasoning stressed in empiricism, according to which knowledge is achieved on the basis of experiences and observation
o Is used in science to work out explanations for observed phenomena (reasoning from effects to causes)

Question 50

Demarcation

Answer 50

setting and marking the boundaries of a concept; used, for instance, in the philosophy of science to denote attempts to define the specificity of science

Question 51

Realism

Answer 51

o Concepts used in human knowledge refer to a physical reality which has priority (e.g. is more important for survival)
o knowledge is discovered rather than created, and
o truth is determined by the correspondence between knowledge and the physical world

Question 52

Idealism

Answer 52

o the world as we know it is a construction of the mind
o human knowledge is a subjective or social construction that does not necessarily correspond to an outside world
o all knowledge is affected by language and culture, and
o the truth of statements depends on their coherence with the rest of the knowledge

Question 53

Hermeneutic

Answer 53

approach in psychology according to which the task of the psychologist is to interpret and understand persons on the basis of their personal and socio-cultural history (in line with freuds approach)

Question 54

Humanistic psychology

Answer 54

psychological movement promoted by Rogers and Maslow as a reaction against psychoanalysis and behaviourism; stressed that people are human, inherently positive, endowed with free will and living within a socio-cultural context

Question 55

Critical psychology

Answer 55

movement in psychology that criticises mainstream psychology for failing to understand that knowledge does not refer to an outside reality (idealism), that scientific knowledge is not cumulative but consists of social constructions, and that psychological theories and claims have an impact on the world in which people live