PSYB32H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Statistical Significance, Conduct Disorder, Mental Disorder
11 Aug 2012
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Chapter 5-research methods in the study of abnormal behaviour. Science is the pursuit of systemized knowledge though observation. A scientific approach first requires that propositions and ideas be stated in a clear way. Only then can scientific claims be tested and subject to disproof. A theory is a set of propositions meant to explain a class of phenomena. A primary goal in science is to advance theories to account for data, often proposing a cause-and-effect relation. A theory permits the generation of hypotheses expectations about what is to occur if the theory is true to be tested in research. It is sometimes asserted that a scientist formulates a theory simply by considering data that have been previously collected and then deciding that a given way of thinking about the data is the most economical and useful. Aspects not mentioned are creativity of the act and the excitement of finding a novel way to conceptualize things.
