What is psychology Flashcards
biggest misconception
studying the “abnormal”
studying behavior taking into account: blank & blank
context & environment
psych is the scientific study of:
behavior and mental processes
psych is a science because…
it uses the scientific method / critical analysis / questions are answered through science
the 4 goals of psych
describe, explain, predict, and influence
goal of describing
observations become data and you can only describe with it
goal of explaining
to explain something, you need to know the cause. (investigating causes of something). *Causation implies no other influencing factors
goal of predicting
being able to understand(pinpoint) the exact conditions needed for something(a behavior) to happen
goal of influencing
to affect people, either to prevent consequences or to promote outcomes
what is a theory
principles that explain how seperate facts are related to one another
strong vs weak theory
strong is supported by a number of studies
weak is not supported by any studies
good theories are…
falsifiable
basic research vs applied research
basic is new to explore and advance a general understanding (nothing specific)
applied is to solve problems and looks at ways to change behavior and quality of life
