Ch 2: Why Research is Best and How to Find It

Ways of knowing: Experience

1. Strengths: Personal and direct

2. Weaknesses: No comparison group, confounded variables

Ways of knowing: Intuition

1. Strengths: Feels natural and immediate

2. Weaknesses: Cognitive biases (e.g., availability heuristic, confirmation bias)

Ways of knowing: Authority

1. Strengths: Can be credible if based on research

2. Weaknesses: Authorities can be biased or rely on anecdotal evidence (Jenny McCarthy being an anti-vaxxer)

Availability heuristic

Judging based on easily recalled examples (noticing things more once they come to your attention)

Present/present bias

Not noticing what is absent; failing to think about what we cannot see

Confirmation bias

Seeking information that supports preexisting beliefs

(i.e. I think that women are bad drivers and someone cuts me off, so I look and see that it’s a man. “he’s having a bad day” vs if it were a woman “OF COURSE IT’S A WOMAN”)

Ways of knowing: Research (Empirical Evidence)

1. Definition: Systematic, data-driven approach

2. Strengths: Comparison groups, control for confounds, reduces bias

Bias blind spot

Recognizing others' biases but not our own

Empirical journal articles

original research; original studies

Review articles

summarize multiple studies; summarize and synthesize existing research on a topic, can help students/researchers understand trends

Meta-analyses

Statistical review of multiple studies

Reading Research with a Critical Eye

1. Assessing the credibility of sources

2. Checking for bias and misinformation

3. Understanding the difference between anecdotal and empirical evidence

Popular (not scientific) Sources

News articles, blogs, and social media