The Scientific Method Flashcards
Why take a research methods course?
- To learn how to apply science to the study of human behavior
- To understand and interpret others’ research
- To evaluate claims in everyday media
- To discover how to acquire knowledge and make decisions by applying the scientific method
- Because it’s fun
What are non-scientific ways we “know” stuff?
Tenacity
Intuition
Authority
Rationalism
Empiricism
What is the method of tenacity?
Based on habit or superstition; believing something to be “true” even if it goes against evidence or logic
- “Don’t confuse me with the facts, my mind is already made up!”
What are the limitations of tenacity?
Potential inaccuracies; no method for correcting erroneous ideas
What is the method of intuition?
Based on a “hunch,” gut feelings, inner sense, or instinctive understanding, rather than relying solely on conscious reasoning or logical analysis
- No reason associated with it, that’s just the way it should be
What are the limitations of intuition?
No method for separating accurate from inaccurate knowledge
What is the method for authority?
Relies on information or answers from an expert in the field
What are the limitations for authority?
Does not always provide accurate information, often accepts expert’s statement as facts (method of faith)
Not all “experts” are experts
What is the rational method?
- It sounds like science but it’s not
Example: All 3-year-old children are afraid of the dark, Amy is a 3-year-old, therefore, may is afraid of the dark - In the above argument the first two sentences are premise statements, final sentence is a logical conclusion based on the premises
- Logical conclusions are only valid if the premise statements are true. The rational method “assumes” the premise statements are true
- People are not very good at logical reasoning. sometimes the argument does not logically support the conclusion
What is the empirical method?
It is a part of science but not all of it
It is also known as empiricism, answering questions by direct observation or personal experience
What is the philosophy that the empirical method is based on?
Based on the philosophy that all knowledge is acquired through the senses
What are the limitations of the empirical method?
Sometimes we see what we expect to see and observations can be misinterpreted
What is the horizontal-vertical illusion?
To most people, the vertical line appears to be longer, even though both lines are exactly the same length
What is the scientific method?
An approach to acquiring knowledge that involves formulating specific questions and then systematically finding answers
- Systematically - you plan ahead of time what you’re going to be looking for
- Combines several different methods of acquiring knowledge
What is belief perseveration?
Also known as the backfire effect or conceptual conservatism
Holding on to a belief despite extensive evidence to the contrary
What is an example of belief perseveration?
1998 study that fraudulently claimed a link between the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine and autism
- No association between the MMR vaccine and autism
What is the confirmation bias?
Seeking evidence that supports your beliefs
Why do we need science?
We need science to overcome our biases and get verifiable and objective (empirical) knowledge we can trust
- Generate public knowledge (that we can trust)
What are the general steps of the scientific method?
- Observe behavior or other phenomena
- Form a tentative answer to or explanation (hypothesis)
- Use your hypothesis to generate a testable predication
- Evaluate the prediction by making systematic, planned observations
- Use the observations to support, refute, or refine the original hypothesis
What are the three important principles of the scientific method?
- Empirical: answers are obtained by making planned and systematic observations. Results will provide clear support for the hypothesis or will clearly refute the hypothesis
- Public: observations are available for evaluation by others. Replication is key to the scientific method (if you can’t replicate it, it’s not a good scientific article)
- Objective: Outcome is not skewed by bias
What is a hypothesis?
A statement that describes or explains a relationship between variables; “best guessS”
- A hypothesis can lead to several different observable and measurable predictions
What are hypotheses generally about?
They are generally about variables: characteristics or conditions that change or have different values for different individuals
- Example: weather, health status, and age
What are the two forms of reasoning that help us generate a general hypothesis?
Inductive and Deductive reasoning
What is induction?
A small set of specific observations is the basis for forming a general statement about a larger set of possible observations
- Induction = increase
Example: I ate three green apples and all were sour. Therefore, all green apples are sour
What is deduction?
A general statement is the basis for reaching a conclusion about specific examples
- Deduction = decrease
Example: All green apples are sour. Therefore, if I eat a green apple it will be sour
Is there an end to the scientific method?
NO.
The scientific method can be viewed as a circular process or a spiral of steps. Initial observations lead to a hypothesis and a prediction, which leads to more observations and then to a new hypothesis. This never-ending process of using empirical tests (observations) to build and refine our current knowledge (hypothesis) is the basis of the scientific method.
What is pseudoscience?
Pseudoscience is a system of ideas that are typically subjective but presented as a science
- Lacks some of the key components essential to scientific research
Examples: Aromatherapy, astrology, and intelligent design
What is the research process?
1.Find a research idea: select a topic and search the literature to find an unanswered question
- Form a hypothesis
3.Determine how you will define and measure your variables
- Identify the participants or subjects for the study, decide how they will be selected, and plan for their ethical treatment
- Select a research strategy
- Select a research design
- Conduct the study
- Evaluate the data
9.Report the results
- Refine or reformulate your research idea
►Return to step 2 and continue
