Psychology 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Social Desirability Bias, Naturalistic Observation, Neuropsychological Test

• School: Western University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: Psychology 1000
• Professor: Laura Fazakas- De Hoog

Document Summary

If theory is not supported, it is modified or discarded. *refe(cid:396) to da(cid:396)le(cid:455) a(cid:374)d lata(cid:374)e"s e(cid:454)pe(cid:396)i(cid:373)e(cid:374)t (cid:449)ith (cid:862)diffusio(cid:374) of respo(cid:374)si(cid:271)ilit(cid:455)(cid:863) o(cid:374) pages 35-37. Hindsight (understanding of a situation after it has happened: problem with relying on hindsight reasoning is that related past events can be creative and contradictory ways. If we understand the causes of a given behavior, then we should be able to predict the conditions under which that behavior will occur in the future. It generates new hypothesis and predictions whose accuracy can be evaluated by new evidence: the predictions made by the theory are supported by the findings of new research. It conforms to the law of parsimony: if 2 theories can explain and predict the same phenomena equally well, the simpler theory is the preferred one: although successful predictions support a theory, it is never an absolute truth.