Lesson1: What is Science?

What is Science? The Scientific Study of Psychology - A Brief Overview

Why do we study Psychology as a science?

Psychology is a branch of the sciences and in this class we will discuss many different scientific articles and findings. As such, it is important that you understand how psychologists approach questions about the mind and behavior scientifically. This section will give an overview of the most important concepts of science applied to the study of Psychology.

So, let’s talk about science. I think the definition provided by The Science Council Links to an external site. (Science Council , 2009) is a great one: Science is the pursuit and application of knowledge and understanding of the natural and social world following a systematic methodology based on evidence. I especially like the 2 terms used in the definition: Systematic and Evidence-based

Systematic: Systematic means that science is careful and planned. Scientists use the Scientific Method to carefully collect observations, formulate and test hypotheses, and form and revise conclusions.

Evidence-based: Importantly, science is rooted in empirical observation.

Empiricism is the idea that knowledge should be obtained through evidence from direct observation. It isn’t enough to use reason. Though reason is an important part of science, it is critical that this reasoning is based on observations.

So, let’s take an example of one discussion we will have in this class: “Is creativity related to madness?” If our approach to this discussion is based on science, then we will be discussing carefully collected observations, rather than personal reflections, stories, or intuitions. But why is science an important resource for answering this question? Asked differently, why not rely on personal reflection, etc. to explore this question?

Because when it comes to the ability to generalize, that is to extend the findings of a study to many people, science has many advantages. While there are appropriate times for personal reflections, stories, intuitions, etc., and of course you will need to use all these tools at different times to understand yourself and the world around you, science is the most suitable approach when it is necessary to make observations that can be applied across situations.

One advantage of using scientific methodology is that its systematic nature is a tool for reducing biases. A bias is an inclination to perceive reality in a certain way that is habitual and unreasoned – a prejudice. As a cognitive psychologist I can affirm that it is human nature to perceive things in a very biased way. I have included a link to a wiki listing many of these biases Links to an external site. (Rational Wiki).

One particularly difficult bias to overcome is called a confirmation bias, which is the tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions. You have probably seen this in people who are very liberal or very conservative: many tend to pay more attention to articles or stories in the news that support their point of view. They may only read articles they know they will agree with and may not criticize the content of those articles very much. Conversely, many tend to avoid and/or be very critical of any opposing information.

For this course, if we already believe that there is a link between creativity and madness, we may be more tempted to seek out biographies of artists who were known to have mental illness. We may accept these accounts wholeheartedly but dismiss counter examples by saying things like “oh that artist is probably really insane but good at hiding it” and so on. We hang on to this tendency to confirm our preexisting ideas even after we have been amply informed of the confirmation bias and the consequences - it is a really tough bias to shake.

The example I gave you about selecting only biographies that support the conclusion we want is referred to as a selection bias: the tendency to select a sample based on your preconceptions. This may be done consciously or subconsciously. The presence of biases subconsciously motivating our choices as we collect observations is one reason to follow a system of collecting and documenting these observations. The subconscious nature and persistence of our biases is why adopting the scientific method such a crucial basis for understanding psychology.

Take a minute to take some notes: What are some biases? How does a scientific approach help alleviate the effects of these biases?

The observations scientists collect are called data. Here are some different methods for collecting data:

Case Study
Archival Research
Nonexperimental (Corrleational) Methods
Experimental Studies

A Case Study is an in-depth descriptive account of the past history, behavior, and other factors concerning one specific individual. Usually, case studies are conducted with individuals with rare conditions or circumstances such as a particular genetic or brain disorder or and exceptional level of creativity. For example, psychologist Nancy Andreasen, studied the author Kurt Vonnegut Links to an external site.extensively (Andreasen, 2014).

Archival Research is the use of existing sources of information for research. These sources may include statistical records, survey archives, and written records like letters and newspapers. In this class we will specifically reference historiometric research - a methodology that gathers numerical data from historic individuals and events and analyzes them to generate inferences. We will read many studies that have collected archival data on imminently creative individuals, using their medical records, interviews in periodicals, and letters from relatives and so on to understand them better.

Image Source: http://www.schoolimprovement.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/research.jpeg Links to an external site.

Nonexperimental (or correlational) method - Psychologists sometimes gather 2 or more quantitative variables to determine whether or not they are related to one another. In this kind of study there is no control over the variables in question, each variable is just measured to establish whether or not there is a relationship between then. Our question falls under this category since we have no control over who is creative and who is ‘mentally ill.’ We can just measure how creative people are and how mentally ill they are and calculate the relationship between these measures.

In contrast, there is the Experimental Method, which is method for determining whether or not 1 variable causes changes in another variable. In an experiment, the researcher manipulates the independent variable and controls all other variables either through randomization or by direct experimental control. Say we could randomly assign people to be creative or not. We could eliminate the effects of other variables we don't care about: family history, amount of practice, dietary habits etc. We would have full control over who was creative and who was not. Then we could be sure that creativity was the cause of the madness!

Of course, unless we really are mad scientists, when we have a participant variable, or a variable concerning something intrinsic to the individual, we cannot use the experimental method because we cannot control who is creative ... or who is female, who is a smoker, etc. We could use the experimental method using many varieties of nonparticipant variables, such as investigating the effect of instructions or settings. For example numerous studies have demonstrated that individuals are less creative when there is a reward involved. Researchers randomly assign participants to the reward group (aka the 'experimental' group) or the no reward group (aka the 'control' group) and then measure the performance of each group for comparison (Pink, 2011).

Causality is a very special term in science. Like Voldemort in the Harry Potter books, it is a term no one uses unless they are being very careful! There are very specific conditions that must be met to say or to even imply that one state causes, or brings about, another. Specifically, three conditions must be met:

Covariation of Cause and Effect - there must be a relationship between the cause and effect
Temporal Precedence – We must show that the cause came first!
Elimination of Alternative Explanations – we must be able to eliminate all alternative explanations

Typically, unless you can randomly assign people in your study to conditions, you can not meet all three conditions.

Take a minute to take some notes: What are four different methodologies? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each method?

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