Scientific Thinking in Psychology
Science is critical in two senses
1) It is open to public scrutiny
2) Empowering rather than enslaving people
WAYS OF KNOWING
1)- whenever e accept the validity of information from a source that we judge to be an expert, then we are relying on __ as a source of our knowledge
Authority
WAYS OF KNOWING
2) - we sometimes arrive at conclusions by using logic
Use of reason
WAYS OF KNOWING
3)
- another important way of coming to know things is through our experiences in the world. It is the process of learning things through direct observation or experience, and reflection on those experiences.
Experiences/empiricism
Ex: Social Media - information we are presented on media is not only reflective of what the users wat to see but also of the designers’ beliefs and values. Today, people are exposed to an overwhelming number of news sources, each varying in their credibility.
Confirmation Bias
Ex: When students change their answers on multiple choice tests
Availability Heuristics
Determinism
systematic observations
Public knowledge
Produces data based conclusion
Produces tentative conclusion
asks answerable questions
1) Because students experience high levels of stress during final exam week, they will be more likely to become ill if they are exposed to a virus than student not exposed to virus
2) Students asked to exercise vigorously for an hour will perform more poorly on a test of creative problem solving than students not asked to exercise.
develops theories that can be falsified
GOALS OF RESEARCH
- providing a clear, accurate ___ is an essential first step in an scientific endeavor, without it predictions cannot be made, and explanations are meaningless.
Description
GOALS OF RESEARCH
- to say that behavior follows laws is to say that regular and predictable relationship exists for psychological phenomena. The strength of these relationships allows ___to be made with some degree of confidence.
Prediction
GOALS OF RESEARCH
- this is the most important goal of scientific research. It is achieved when the cause or causes of a phenomenon are identified.
Explanation
GOALS OF RESEARCH
- This is the final goal of psychological science. This refers to the various ways of applying those principles of behavior learned through research.
Application