©2005, Pearson Education/Prentice Hall CHAPTER 1 Goals and Methods of Science

©2005, Pearson Education/Prentice Hall

CHAPTER 1

Goals and Methods of Science


• A system that uses past knowledge and conservative procedures for gaining new knowledge which ultimately advances society.

What is Science?


Ways of Acquiring Knowledge and Beliefs

There are various ways in which we gain knowledge and beliefs. Let’s discuss 5 of them:

• Tenacity• Authority• Intuition• Rationalism• Empiricism


Characteristics of Science

• Scientific Method– A set of conservative and deliberate

procedures.– If the scientific method is followed rigorously

in a research setting we can be confident in the truth of the research results.

– Some key components of the scientific method include:

• Rational thinking• Systematic observation


• Science Assumes the Lawfulness of Events– Science assumes that events in the world are

lawful and do not occur randomly.– So science believes that if we knew the

underlying laws for any event we could predict the event with accuracy.

– Discuss the ongoing debate of determinism versus free will.



• Science Asks Empirical Questions– Empirical questions are questions that can be

answered through direct or indirect observation.

– Answers to empirical questions generate data– Data is factual information, usually in

numerical form, that can be used to answer empirical questions and generate new empirical questions.



• Science Applies Controls– Two Features of Control

• Conditions in science are set up so they can be deliberately and systematically manipulated.

• Conditions of interest are isolated - to the best of our ability - so they are virtually free of unwanted or extraneous influence.



• Science is Objective– Science is not influenced by personal feelings

or expectations.• Why is this difficult to achieve?

– A research method for dealing with subjective expectations that might influence data is called a “blind” procedure.

• Speculate on the meaning of single-blind and double-blind procedures.



• Science is Self-Correcting– Because new research in science generally builds on

previous scientific research, errors rarely get propagated.

• Replication: Sometimes, when results are controversial, scientists will perform the exact same controversial research to verify the results. If the results are not verified they are corrected.

– More often scientist perform variants of the original research to build upon existing knowledge. If the new results don’t support the original results the existing knowledge may be corrected.



Performing Scientific Research

1. Identify Ideas to Test

2. Design Scientific Test Procedures

3. Observe and Collect Data

4. Analyze and Interpret Data

5. Communicate The Results


What is Pseudoscience?

• Pseudoscience is a system of knowledge and methods that loosely resembles science and people mistakenly view as science.– Why do people believe in pseudoscience?

• Partly because of intuition, tenacity, and authority.• But mostly because people generally don’t think in

a scientific manner.


How to Identify Pseudoscience?

• The “Trappings” of Science– Pseudoscience tries to be like real science.– Pseudoscience makes predictions about

phenomenon, but rarely tests them.

• Data is Often Based on Testimonials– Data like this can be easily manipulated.

• Evasion of Disproof– Explanations given by the pseudoscience to account

for data that disprove the pseudoscience are difficult/impossible to test (e.g., the phenomenon can’t be measure by conventional means)


Research Goals and Strategies: The Basics

• Theories– Networks of plausible, organized, and

logical principles and facts that attempt to explain the connections between various events.

– Theories have 3 functions:1. Explain phenomenon

2. Organize exist knowledge

3. Make prediction that can be tested


Theories

• Good Theories1. Organize concepts well

2. Are parsimonious (simple and easy to comprehend)

3. Make clear and testable predictions (principle of falsifiability)


Models

• Models are like theories but not as complex and organized. Models provide descriptions of the relationships between a set of variables within the context of a theory.

• Sometimes, in research, a model is an analogy or substitution of a given process. For example, there are animal models of depression.


Hypotheses

• A hypothesis is a statement, based on a theory, that makes a specific prediction about the outcome of a proposed study.– For example: Participants who receive drug A

will have greater pain relief that those who receive a placebo drug.

– For example: Females will score higher on a test of intuition than males.


Goals of Scientific Research

• There are 4 main goals of scientific research:

1. Description

2. Prediction

3. Understanding

4. Application


Research Strategies

• There are 4 main research strategies used in

psychological research and covered in detail in

the remainder of the text:

1. The Experimental Strategy

2. The Quasi-experimental Strategy

3. The Correlation Strategy

4. The Descriptive Strategy

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©2005, Pearson Education/Prentice Hall CHAPTER 1 Goals and Methods of Science