Why is it important to remember that science is flawed?
It prevents us from thinking that we have everything figured out. It helps to keep us open to new possibilities. Science should be self-correcting. Technically many of the truths we think are objective are that way because multiple people think that they are.
What questions should we ask when reading research? Why do they help?
“Who benefits from this phrasing?” “Who is hurt from this phrasing?”
- It helps because it forces us to take a step back to realise the intent behind the writing which heavily influences the way research is done.
What are some examples of the ways that we place cause?
Psychology - Cause is placed on the individual
Sociology - Cause is placed on society
Criminology - Cause is placed on a blend of society and the individual.
- Causal placement is influenced by the theories we operate by.
How does objectivity work?
Objectivity is about inter-analyst agreement. (Two people look at something and say its the same thing.) This is the only way that objectivity is confirmed.
Explain Richard C. Lewontin’s work on Tuberculosis.
Lewontin felt the current explanation for TB wasn’t sufficient. He went back and studied the industrial revolution.
- People didn’t eat well - Cause = diet = People were eating wrong - they need to be taught how to eat better (Psycho-educational level)
- More men got TB than women = TB related to social roles? = introduce labour codes and hygiene (socio-economic and environmental)
- BUT more women died from TB = women are inferior to men = biological diff. = manage biology thru medicine/supplements
Why is it so important to understand the placement of cause?
Where we place cause heavily influences our actions. Our determination of this is due to our own beliefs and realities.
What was wrong with the public nurse’s understanding of the spread of TB?
Public nurses would say the only cause is the TB bacteria. (Micro-biological cause) They aren’t wrong, but there were cases where people would receive the bacteria and then be perfectly fine. The cause is necessary but not sufficient.
Explain what intersectionality is and how it connected to Lewontin’s study of TB.
Intersectionality is the fact that marginalised groups are often marginalised in more than one way. We can’t look at social factors alone as there is so much overlap. This is likely what was occurring with TB contraction.
- Mothers with protein example.
What was the enlightenment?
It was the era in which the hope for science really took off. Within psyc, there was a thought that we would be able to study and conclude things that were not influenced by researchers.
What is brute realism?
External reality is so strong it can overpower all of our interpretations and perceptions.
What is critical realism?
There is an external reality but meaning is socially constructed by people. We are trying to get closer and closer to an accurate solution.
What is relativism?
There are no external realities - External realities are more like a way to organize. This position traces back to idealism -
They won’t even talk about death
We can’t talk about an external reality and can only talk about how you talk about reality.
How are disciplines founded?
People start studying something, gain a following and then establish a journal and a laboratory.
Most disciplines stem from philosophy.
Who was Wilhem Wundt?
(1879) One of the first promoters of psychology. He published a journal and established a laboratory.(Psyche = soul, Ology = the study of) They originally wanted to study the soul.
Explain the first two types of psychology.
Lab psychology: They wanted psychology to be like the sciences as they saw how successful these sciences were. A lot of psychologists believe lab experiments are the best way to study psychology. You can only ask and answer certain types of questions in a laboratory study.
Volker Psychology: (Way harder!) - Study of people in everyday situations. It is so hard to understand people in the complex context of their everyday lives. Studying people this way will give us more accurate results.
What was one of the first topics psychologists wanted to study?
The human consciousness.
Structuralism
First founded by Edward Titchener. They wanted to understand the structure of consciousness. To do this they attempted to isolate and analyze the mind’s basic elements. They did this through introspection.
Pros: It was systematic and could be used to identify elements.
Cons: Elements tend to be static while consciousness is fluid and it doesn’t really show how we use our consciousness. (Phi phenomenon)
What is introspection?
The analysis of subjective experience by trained observers.
Functionalism
(William James) -It was strongly influenced by the work of Charles Darwin.
An approach to psychology that emphasized the adaptive significance of mental processes. (More holistic)
Psychoanalytic theory
An general theory that emphasizes the influence of the unconscious on feelings, thoughts, and behaviours.
Who first came up with psychoanalysis? What were the thoughts behind it?
Sigmund Freud was a Viennese MD who worked with people who had problems with living. He was interested in the consciousness, but became more intrigued by the unconscious. (The part of the mind that contains info of which people are not aware) He felt that we would repress urges in our unconscious and then these would drive our behaviour. Being made aware of these urges would (enlightenment) would help someone to be “cured”.
- Very twisted - Rape case study
Pros and cons of psychoanalysis.
Pros: Dynamic view, they see humans as developmental, change over time, it is more humane and focused on nurture. (Would have been beneficial for people who had problems with living)
Cons: Is used against victims of violence, unfalsifiable (we cannot test or gather evidence against Freud’s theory),
Oedipal Complex: An important part of development for boys especially start to become sexually attracted to their mothers at a very young age - developmentally necessary - they would recognize that dads are competitors - dad is way bigger - as an act of self-preservation and protection they would try to gain favour with dad - identification with the same sex parent
If this process is interfered with, boys become homosexuals.
Explain the concept of falsifiability.
Test? Ask all the men
No - no attraction - This supports Freud’s theory as they must’ve been attracted at some point, too much tension and they pushed it down.
Yes - Also supports his theory.
Behaviourism
(Watson and Skinner) They were very careful to not be associated with psychoanalysis. An approach to psychology that restricts scientific inquiry to observable behaviour. Classical conditioning - Learn to associate two things
Observational learning - Learn by watching others
Operant Conditioning - If behavior is rewarded, it is repeated
Focused on nurture - social world
Environmental Deterministic Position - The environment causes your behaviour
Widely used today
