Science Literacy

Pseudoscience is best defined as…

Claims that appear scientific but are not evidence-based

A key feature of pseudoscience is that it…

Cannot be falsified

Phrenology claimed that…

Skull shape reflected mental faculties and character traits

Pop-psychology refers to:

Popular psychological ideas spread in media

A major issue with early “power posing” research was that…

It failed to replicate with larger samples

According to later evidence, power posing…

May influence feelings of confidence but not hormone levels

Jaeggi et al (2008) conducted a study where participants practiced a working-memory task that required comparing each new items to the one shown several steps earlier in the sequence. What did they conclude?

Practicing this WM task increased fluid-intelligence scores

A core principle of scientific literacy is…

Responsible treatment, reporting, and consumption of data

Why was phrenology scientifically rejected?

Brain stimulation showed functions didn’t match skull bumps

The discovery of Broca’s area contradicted phrenology because…

Language functions were not located in a single “organ”

A major scientific flaw in phrenology was that…

There was no agreement on the amount/location of “mental organs”

Why was phrenology harmful?

It justified racist practices

A key issue with pop-psychology claims is that they…

Are sensationalized beyond the evidence

Which statement about power posing is currently supported?

Confidence effects may replicate, but hormone effects don’t

WM training improves…

Performance on the specific task practiced

WM training does NOT improve…

General fluid intelligence