Thinking Critically With Psychological Science

The Birth of Modern Psychology

Aristotle (4th century BCE): Held ideas about body and mind, using guesses.
Wilhelm Wundt (1879): Pioneered modern psychology by adding carefully measured observations and controlled experiments.
- Experiment: Measured reaction time difference between hearing a ball drop ( $1/10$ sec) and consciously being aware of hearing it ( $2/10$ sec), demonstrating slower conscious awareness.

Early Schools of Thought

Structuralism (Edward Titchener):
- Method: Introspection (reporting on sensations and other elements of experience).
- Goal: To build a view of the mind's structure.
Functionalism (William James):
- Focus: Psychological processes have a function related to survival and adaptation.
- Question: How did thinking and behavior enable ancestral survival and reproduction?

Shifting Definitions of Psychology

Around 1900 (Wundt and Titchener): "The science of mental life."
1920s (Behaviorists like John B. Watson and B.F. Skinner): "The scientific study of observable behavior." Rejected introspection.
1960s (Cognitive psychologists): Studied internal mental processes, aided by neuroscience.
Current Definition: "The science of behavior and mental processes."

Key Trends in Psychology

Behaviorism: Studied observable behavior, conditioned responses (Watson), and consequences shaping behavior (Skinner).
Freudian/Psychoanalytic Psychology (Sigmund Freud): Focused on studying and helping people with mental disorders, emphasizing unconscious processes.
Humanism (Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers): Focused on people striving to thrive, self-acceptance, and reaching full potential.

Psychology's Big Issue: Nature vs. Nurture

Question: To what extent are traits innate (nature) versus developed through environment/experience (nurture)?
Historical Views:
- Nature Advocates: Plato (inborn ideas), René Descartes (innate ideas), Charles Darwin (natural selection for traits).
- Nurture Advocates: Aristotle (knowledge from senses), John Locke (mind as a blank slate).
Conclusion: "Nurture works on what Nature endows." Traits are shaped by both.

Biopsychosocial Levels of Analysis

Deep Level (Biology): Genes, brain, neurotransmitters, survival, reflexes, sensation.
Middle Level (Psychology): Thoughts, emotions, moods, choices, behaviors, traits, motivations, knowledge, perceptions.
Outer Level (Environment): Social influences, culture, education, relationships.

Psychological Perspectives

Cognitive: How reliable is memory? How can thinking be improved?
Social-cultural: How behavior, skills, and attitudes are influenced by culture.
Behavioral genetics: How behavior, skills, and attitudes are genetically programmed.
Neuroscience: Role of body/brain in emotions, pain inhibition, senses.
Psychodynamic: Impact of inner childhood conflicts on behavior.
Behaviorist: How problematic behaviors are reinforced, fears conditioned, and how to change them.
Evolutionary: Why humans are prone to panic, anger, and irrational judgments.

Psychology’s Subfields

Basic Research (e.g., Biological, Developmental, Cognitive, Personality, Social, Positive Psychology): Studies specific aspects of behavior and mental processes.
Applied Psychology (e.g., Clinical, Counseling, Educational, Industrial-Organizational, Community): Uses psychological principles to solve practical problems.
Distinction: Psychiatrists are medical doctors ( $MDs$ or $DOs$ ) who can prescribe medication, unlike most psychologists.

The Need for Psychological Science

"Common Sense" Thinking Errors:
- Hindsight Bias: "I knew it all along"; events seem more predictable after they occur.
- Overconfidence Error: Overestimating one's performance, skills, or accuracy.
- Coincidence Error: Mistakenly perceiving order in random events.
Scientific Attitude:
- Curiosity: Always asking new questions.
- Skepticism: Not accepting 'facts' without challenging them and attempting to disprove them.
- Humility: Seeking the truth rather than trying to be right; accepting being wrong.
Critical Thinking: Analyzing information, arguments, and conclusions to decide if they make sense, looking for hidden assumptions, biases, and alternative explanations.

The Scientific Method

Definition: Process of testing ideas about the world by turning theories into testable predictions, gathering and analyzing data, and modifying ideas as needed.
Tools:
- Theory: A set of principles that explains a phenomenon and predicts future behavior (e.g., "All ADHD symptoms are a reaction to eating sugar.").
- Hypothesis: A testable prediction consistent with a theory (e.g., "If a kid gets sugar, the kid will act more distracted, impulsive, and hyper.").
- Operational Definitions: Defining research variables in measurable terms to guide observations (e.g., Impulsivity = # of times/hour calling out without raising hand).
- Replication: Repeating a study's methods with different participants or situations to confirm results.

Research Strategies and Goals

Description: Systematic, objective observation to provide a clear, accurate picture.
- Case Study: In-depth study of one individual; useful for generating ideas but risks overgeneralization.
- Naturalistic Observation: Observing behavior without intervention; useful for studying multiple individuals in natural settings.
- Survey: Gathering self-reported information from many people.
  - Keys to useful surveys: Careful question wording (wording effects) and random sampling.
  - Random Sampling: Ensures every individual in a population has an equal chance of being in the sample, making the sample representative.
Correlation: Measuring how closely two factors vary together or how well one predicts another.
- Correlation Coefficient: A number ( $0.00$ to $+/-1.00$ ) indicating the strength and direction (positive or negative) of a relationship.
- Crucial Point: Correlation does not equal causation. Third variables or reverse causation are possible.
Experimentation: Manipulating one or more factors (Independent Variables) to determine their effect on other factors (Dependent Variables), thus establishing cause-effect relationships.
- Independent Variable (IV): The factor that is manipulated (the cause).
- Dependent Variable (DV): The factor that is measured for change (the effect).
- Control Group: A group not exposed to the treatment, used for comparison.
- Experimental Group: A group exposed to the treatment.
- Random Assignment: Randomly assigning participants to control or experimental groups to control for confounding variables.
- Placebo Effect: Experimental effects caused by expectations alone.
  - Placebo: Inactive substance or fake treatment given to the control group.
  - Blind/Double-blind Studies: Participants (single-blind) or both participants and research staff (double-blind) are unaware of who receives the real treatment.
- Confounding Variables: Other variables that might affect the $DV$ and are controlled by random assignment.

Drawing Conclusions from Data

Reliability: Can the result generalize or predict future behavior?
- Achieved by: nonbiased sampling, consistent data, many data points.
Significance: Could the result have been caused by random chance?
- Achieved when data is reliable AND the difference between groups is large (distribution curves do not overlap significantly).

FAQ about Psychology

Laboratory vs. Life: Lab studies, by isolating variables, reveal general principles applicable to real life.
Diversity (Culture/Gender): Research can discover human universals and also how culture and gender influence behavior; requires careful generalization.
Ethics (Animals): Some studies use animals to gain insights, which remains controversial due to safety and dignity concerns.
Ethics (Humans): Human subjects are protected by guidelines for non-harmful treatment, confidentiality, informed consent, and debriefing.
Impact of Values: Researchers' values influence topic choice, interpretations, and advice; truly value-free research is an ideal, not a reality.

Applying Psychology to Learning: SQ3R Method

Scientific Principles for Study: Retrieval practice/testing effect, active processing, spaced rehearsal, and avoiding overestimation of mastery.
SQ3R Steps:
- Survey: Scan chapter outlines and headings.
- Question: Ask questions the text might answer.
- Read: Look for answers, reading in manageable amounts.
- Rehearse: Recall what you've read in your own words; self-quiz.
- Review: Look over text and notes to review main ideas.