Science and Art

Methods of Acquiring Knowledge

• Tenacity
• Intuition
• Authority
• Rationalism
• Empiricism

1. A true, physical universe exists
2. The universe is primarily a orderly system
3. The principles of the orderly universe can be discovered
4. All knowledge is tentative.

Observation and Inference: Facts and Constructs

• Most facts observed in psychology are behaviours
• The internal condition is not observed. It is inferred.
• Ideas formed from inferences are called constructs.

• Models are representations of reality
• Models need not be real

Inductive and Deductive Thinking

• Inductive: from particular to general
• Deductive: general to the specific

Models and Theories in Science
Theory: a formalized set of concepts that organizes observations and inferences and predicts and explains phenomena.

• Inductive theory
• Deductive theory
• A theory is never right or wrong

Naturalistic Observation:

• Observe subjects in their natural environment. The researcher should not intervene with the subjects.

• Subjects are moved into a moderately limiting environment. The researcher intervenes to a slight degree.

• Quantify the degree of the relationship between two variables. Measurement procedures must be carefully defined and followed.

• Two or more pre-existing groups of subjects are compared. The setting is usually highly constrained. Measurement procedures must be carefully defined and followed.

• Identical to differential research except that subjects are assigned without bias to the various groups or conditions in the study. Highest constraint level in research.

• Behavioural variables
• Stimulus variables
• Subject variables
• Independent variable
• Dependent variable
• Constant

Controls reduce threats to validity.

A measure cannot be a valid measure unless it is a reliable measure, but a measure can be a reliable measure without being a valid measure of the variable of interest.