PSY 250 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Scientific Method, Empiricism, Testability
Document Summary
Provide a way of evaluating research against a standard. Example from npr: facebook makes us sadder and less satisfied. It"s not about what you"re studying so much as how you"re studying too. Intuition- relying on common sense, judgement, and/or experience; gut reaction. Deduction- using logical reasoning and knowledge of the past; process of reason. Authority- relying on what you hear from some knowledgeable person or group. Observation- relying on what one observes as a means of knowing about the most reliable to form a conclusion world. Observation sets scientific fields apart from other fields of study (e. g. history) Observation allows us to understand and explain behavior. Use other techniques to infer information about behaviors that can"t be observed. Purpose of this course is to understand good methods that allow us to observe behavior. A science that investigates behavior, mental processes, and their causes. Therefore, a psychologist studies behavior through research (i. e. , observation) Observation is the focus of the scientific method.
