After watching the video clip from the TV show Bones in which Dr. Brennan argues that Dr. Sweets could not possibly understand the thoughts or actions of a criminal by using psychology (what she considers to be a fake science), do you agree or disagree with her sentiments about Psychology as a science of understanding how humans think and behave?
Use what you know from our past two units to help support your answer. Give at least 3 different reasons for your agreement with Dr. Brennan or your disagreement with her.
Make sure to respond to at least one classmate that disagrees with your point of view.
Bones-Full episode (clip for class at 32.46-35 minutes)
Ben Ruffer & Savy Delong:
ReplyDeleteBased on the circumstances of the video we both said that Psychology was not a science based on the fact that every person has a unique mind set and will make different decisions that can not be predicted on a general scale. You can't predict someone is going to do or say something without actually being in their mind with them. Any person can make a last minute decision on something and it could be totally irrelevant to what you might be predicting. Predicting the mind is all by chance with a very low probability that you'll get it right, not matter how much you know about it.
Psychology is a science because researchers can implement the scientific method in order to observe and predict the brain's functions and behavior. Neuroscience is a big part of psychology, and allows us to see how the brain works and why it functions that way. It wallows reliable data and a strong basis for psychology. Observation of mental disorders and other reactions and responses, thus allowing us make observation and conclusions about how the mind works and how we behave. Although there are always exceptions to the rule, the observation that can be taken from psychological experiments can help us to solidify functions and behaviors of the mind.
ReplyDeleteDeborah said...
ReplyDeleteI think psychology is not really a science because it's more social than it is science. It isn't hard science and there are no facts to base anything off of. There is also no chance that when something is tested the same results will be gained. Everyone is different and there is no way that predicting one person will predict another person. How can there really be a specific way of how humans work when our behaviors vary from one person to the next? Science simply cannot do that.
I agree with Dr. Brennan. I believe that psychology is not a science. This is because throughout history science has been proven by hard facts. Yes, psychology has its many theories; however, psychological studies may not always be accurate because of individualism. A second reason psychology is not a science is because there are many disagreements about aspects of psychology. For example, Aristotle believed that knowledge is not preexisting and grows from experience. This can be compared to Socrates and Pluto, who believed that knowledge is preexisting. A third example of why psychology is not a science is that an outcome can be affected by variables within an experiment. For example, whether a participant answers an experimental interview question honestly is based on how believable the situation is.
ReplyDeleteLyssmusic1009= Alyssa Flora Period 1
ReplyDeleteI believe psychology is a science. Some argue that psychology does not provide "hard evidence", but psychology has many methods of verification. Correlation graphs provide tangible, visible evidence, and experimentation provides a way of proving the concepts that psychology attempts to prove. Furthermore, there are more "hard science" aspects to psychology. For example, neuroscience, the study of the brain, is a subcategory of psychology. -Moses, Hannah B., Rachel V. (we all collaborated on this)
ReplyDeleteI believe that psychology is an actual science. First, it is based off of the scientific method; research and empirical data are used to confirm or revise existing theories. Furthermore, psychology is the observation of human beings, and observing is a very important part of all sciences. Finally, psychology has to do with the actual structure and chemical processes of the brain; chemical reactions take place and both chemistry and biology take place in psychology.
ReplyDeleteTo Jackie.... I understand where you are coming from about the scientific method and neuroscience. However, how do we know that everyone thinks the same ways? Afterall, everyone has an individual brain. Therefore, how can you make observations and draw conclusions when everyone is different?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Brennan that the field of psychology is not a science. In the clip, Dr. Sweets uses psychology to explain the criminals' actions. Meanwhile, Dr. Brennan is having a hard time believing what he is saying. The reason why Dr. B is having a hard time believing is because not everyone’s actions are the same. If one person does something, it does not necessarily mean that everyone else will react the same way. That is a big reason why psychology is not a science; not everyone acts the same. Since everyone does not react the same to a situation, then it is hard to rely on results. Scientific evidence should be reliable and since psychology’s result are not always reliable, then it should not be considered a science.
ReplyDeleteSamantha H, pd 1
Briana & Talitha & Jessie & Caitlin & Brad & Wes & Seth & Cody Said... It is clear that psychology cannot be categorized as a science. Each human is different and has unique qualities. Therefore, generalized statements cannot be made about the topic. In addition, the tools that are used in psychology clearly lack the precision needed to prove that it is a science. Finally, Psychologist are always disagreeing with themselves. How can Psychology be proved as a science if the experts are not even sure of themselves?
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennen's argument. I think that Dr. Sweets is right when he says that pyschology is a science. He stated that 87% of criminals head west, and this criminal did head west. Therefore, psychology can be statistically correct. I also think that psychology is a science because it IS the study of the brain and it's functions. Psychology experiments can follow the scientific method. You can include a hypothesis and an actual eperiment, followed by conclusions and assumptions.
ReplyDeleteTo Rachel....I do not agree with what you have said. Just because the scientific method is used doesn't mean it provides accurate results. Especially ones that apply to everyone. Next, observation can show behavior but never why they act that why or the cause and effect. So observations doesn't benefit psychology that much or make it more of a science. Finally, the chemical processes may be the same for each person but each thought and why they do it is different for every person and is constantly changing for every person. For all these reasons psychology is not a science.
ReplyDeleteNick, Janelle, Mariana, and Julia said.....
ReplyDeleteIt is not possible for psychology to be recognized as a science. Each individual thinks and acts a different way to certain stimuli. Since individuals react differently it is not possible for general statements to be made about a specific topic. With sciences it is set in stone facts and that iss not going to change while with psychology it is more taking information and processing it so that is has to do with the situation and can be better understood.
Karly,Owen,Breeze, and Meagan
ReplyDeleteWe disagree with Dr. Brennan's argument that psychology is not a science, because Dr. Sweet was able to accurately predict where the suspect was based on the statical evidence that people who are fleaing go west. Also, Dr. Brennan's last statement was contradictory to her own argument, because she uses psychology to reason that the suspect would go to the hospital. Although all people think differently the human mind is basically made up the same, therefore decisions could be slightly different, but will be at the same standard.
I agree with Dr. Brennan, psychology is a pseudoscience. The results from a psycholigcal experiment are unreiable because it is based information that is not precise, unlike other sciences which have precise information. These results can lead to generalizations, which are not always accurate because everyone is unique. Also, there are variables which can change an experiments outcomes.
ReplyDeleteI see where you are coming from but psychology is more of how the mind works and not really about the structure. in chemistry you study more chemicals than human thoughts and in biology it has more to do with our body than how we think so yeah even though we do use both of these in science its not really accurate and used in psychology.
ReplyDeleteTo Moses, I completely agree with what you said. Psychology can provide evidence, whether it's hard evidence or a correlation graph. Statistics can also prove the relation between several ideas, such as criminals heading west.
ReplyDeleteby Fritz, Molly, Mike, Becky, DeJesus
ReplyDeleteWe all strongly disagree with Dr. Brennan. This is because psychology is an established science that uses the scientific method, which uses skepticism where psychologists accept they cannot explain everything. Psychology also uses experiment to prove valid points and tests hypothesis in order to prove a theory that is used to attempt to explain reality. Psychology also takes in different academic perspectives such as philosophy, biology, and sociology (overriding themes that apply from one human to the next in different cultures). Within neuroscience, biological psychologists are one of the scientific disciplines that adds to the factual knoweledge base of psychology giving it validity that it can explain behaviors. This gives a sound explanation of why observable behaviors occur.
Psychology is a science because knowing what hormones are released when lets us know how people will react in certain situations, understanding the brain stem will let know the basic human reactions in a situation, and through an understanding of motor neurons and the nervous system, we know how someone will react before even they do. This is Andrew Miller
ReplyDeletePsychology is not a science because not all experiments can be proven or even reliable. Most of the theories are experimentation based, therefore the theories are more likely to contain error. When students signed up for this class, they signed up for it as a required social studies class and not a science class. Neuroscience is a science but it was weaved into the psychology curriculum as a separate study.
ReplyDeleteRavi Sidhu- I agree with Dr. Brennan that psychology is a pseudo science because the information given is not 100% accurate. The psychologist explained that 87% of the people escaping head west, but who to say that everyone would head west such as the 13% that is not included. Psychology bascially bases its facts on common theories and what they could believe due to the fact that one observation on a human being could affect us all.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan, Psychology is not a psuedoscience. Although its theories are not set in stone they're still valid for catagorizing people. It studies the brain which is the facilitator of all mental processes. Short sweet and to the point.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr.Brennan, that Psychology can not be considered a science. Other sciences are based upon factual information, while Psychology is mainly based off of theories. Sweets mentions that when trying to escape 87% of poeple would head west in direction. Although this is a large percentage, this does not account for everyone. Sweets can not prove that the cirminal will go west, he is only taking this information from a hypothesis.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan's view that psychology is a pseudo science for several reasons. I believe that psychology is scientific because it is used to study the brain, it has theories that can be proven or disproven by experimentation, and research is conducted in the field.
ReplyDeleteKarly, Owen, Breeze and Meagan-
ReplyDeleteVery interesting observation about Dr. Brennan's statement being contradictory. I'm wondering if you can really separate psychology from different subject areas like science, history, english or math?
Megan Johnson-
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Brennan that psychology can't really be a science because in psychology, everyone is different.There can never be a study that is completely accurate for every human being because there are always different kinds of people. In science, exact answers are found, but this can't be done in psychology. Trends can be found, but never a real pattern. Even if Dr. Sweets believes that he could figure it out through trends, that is the study of statistics, not psychology. Overall, psychology is the mind, and the mind is not limited to science.
Sarah Cosgrove - I disagree with Dr. Brennan's argument that psychology is not a science. I do think that psychology is a science for multiple reasons. It is a science because it uses the scientific method in which a hypothesis is tested and either supported or rejected. The whole study relies on the scientific process. Another reason is that psychology uses scientific information about the chemicals in the human body that regulate mental states. Psychology is a science because the research is done by using the scientific method. Science is a process and psychologists use that process. Like scientists, psychologists search for an answer to a question.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Dr. Brennan is right when she says that psychology is a fake science. Sciences have strict facts, and are seen in black and white. Psychology has many shades of gray. Because each individual is unique, psychology will never be able to come up with universal truths. Also, sciences can be proven with concrete evidence. Psychology cannot present a provable argument. Finally, The way we discern psychological facts is through evaluations of humans by other humans. As humans, we are naturally flawed, and everyone is biased based on their pasts. The interpretation is left entirely to the psychologist, making their findings subject to limitations depending on the scientist. Besides this, the patient may or may not be telling the whole truth, or even be able to interpret their feelings correctly themselves. How can the scientist evaluate the patient when the patient can't even relate the information correctly? This is why I don't believe that psychology is a science.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ravi because science can never really be accurate and Dr. Sweet's presumption does not describe everyone.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Brennan's thought that Psychology can not be considered a science. A science is fact based whereas psychology is based on theories and studies. Also, every individual is diffferent; if you predict based on some experimental data that a person might react a certain way, it could end up being completely different than what was expected.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan because they had no idea otherwise which way the criminal was drvivng, so it is just common sense to take a logical guess using psychological studies then to take random shot in the dark based on no research or explanation at all. Psychology is just as much a science as physics and biology, and it needs to be taken seriously. Psychology does experimenting to proove all of its theories just like every other field. It is wrong to think psychology theories just popup at of nowhere. Psychology theories are put to the test using experiments to validate their factuality. Dr. Brennan needs to put her bias behind her and take a logical chance using the theories of the science of psychology.
ReplyDeletePsychology is a science in my opinion because it allows the scientific method to be applied to people's thoughts and feelings in order to find answers about the way people think and behave. Although answers in psychology are usually not exact, the use of the science can provide information about people's tendencies in certain situations. This was helpful in the episode of Bones because it let the detectives assume that the criminal fled to the west like people normally do. Finally, psychology is a science because it can allow scientists to determine how human brains function. For example, the experiment given as an example on our last test showed that people generally follow the majority even if that group is wrong.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Kielie because I consider psychology to be a valid science. It can provide valuable answers and generalizations about the way that people think and behave.
i believe that based on the circumstances of the video that Psychology is not a science because every person is an individual and they have their own mind and thinking's thus they will make different decisions that can not be predicted on a general scale that is based off of many people's mind. You can't predict someone is going to do or say something without actually being them and having their mind . Any person can make random decision on something totally random and it could be totally irrelevant to what you might be predicting. Predicting the mind is all by chance creates a very low probability that you will be correct because there are no two people the same therefore there are no two minds the same.
ReplyDeleteI believe that psychology is a science because it studies the brain, can prove its results, and uses the scientific method. There have been many improvements in understanding people with mental disabilities because of psychology. different psychologists usually repeat experiments to prove that the results are authentic. Also, psychologists use the scientific method to perform experiments that are as accurate as possible.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Brennan's view that psychology is not a science. Science is based on hard facts, while psychology is based mostly on statistics. For example, Sweets uses the statistic 87%. Although this is a large percent of people, it does not describe everyone. Not everyone would do the same thing. Also when doing an experiment in science you get a final conclusion based on facts. When conducting a psychology experiment you can get a conclusion, but it is not always accurate.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with what Nick, Janelle, Mariana, and Julia said. You say we all don't think alike, but you are simply assuming so because you may not share the same personalities and favorite books, movies, and shows and such. Deep down we all evolved from the same primal human, and our deepest instincts are quite similar. How can I prove this? By using psychological experiments to help to prove my point. But how do you plan to prove your point that we all don't think the same? Since you don't believe psychology is a science, what type of experiment do you plan on doing to prove your point. You can't just assume such facts out of thin air. You need facts, facts which can only be gathered using the science of psychology!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Brennen that psychology is a pseudoscience. Psychology is based more on theories and provides statistics that give a prediction on the behavior of humans, but cannot give concrete evidence that the outcome will be the same every time. Some people are atypical to the general population, and may differ from the statistics psychology provides. Dr. Sweets is basing is assumption on a generalization, but the criminal could be atypical and not follow the found statistics. Also, psychology is open to interpretation. Psychologists view behavior and mental processes through different perspectives and there is not one “correct” way to view psychology, making psychology vague compared to other sciences.
ReplyDeleteScience is defined as the "knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through the scientific method and concerned with the physical world and its phenomena." Psychology does not hold laws such as Newton's Laws that pertain to set situations. Rather, it is based on observations and experimental results that contain variation. Within the Bones clip it was said that many criminals would flee west. Given these circumstances if I were fleeing my current location I would choose to go South. Therefore, individuals have different mind sets, ideals, and thoughts on their decisions. Just because a percentage of people would go West does not mean this correlation is a truth; whereas, the relationship may be coincidense. Also, our national boundaries confine the places that can be fled to. By going too far North or South, one is faced with international borders. This shows that by going West, one is fleeing the farthest away from their original location in which they are being pursued. Psychology is a form of sociology which shows influence of an environment on a person (nature vs. nurture). By conquering this, Sociology is a form of social studies rather than a science.
ReplyDeleteDr. Sweets used critical thinking, data analysis, statistics, correlation, and past occurences to determine where/what the criminal was going/doing. Psychology uses common sense and reasoning to find potential answers. Dr. Brennan in incorrect in saying that pyschology is not a science. Pyschology uses the scientific method to come up with possible theories which leads to conclusions; it also experiments to find potential answers. Although some theories are not set in stone, they are used to classify people.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan's statement about psychology not being a science. Psychology is a science because psychologists use the scientific method to prove or disprove their hypothesis. They do research and complete experiment and case studies to help back-up their ideas. They also collect statistical data to make generalizations about humans.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan. I believe that psychology can be considered a science. When the police are interrogating a suspect, they use psychology to determine the best way to get information out of the perp. Also, the scientific method has given psychology the credentials to be called a science. Finally, in the rest of the episode, Sweets proves Dr. Brennan wrong. He says that people who are escaping go west, they'd want to be somewhere comfortable, and due to the injury they'd have to stop at a hospital. They called a hospital near where the couple owned property and there was their perp.
ReplyDeletePsychology is not a science. I believe this because there is a lot of gray area in psychology, for example many things are not set in stone and theories aren't facts. I believe that the personal view points of many cause different outcomes of experiments therefore it cannot be a science. I agree with her sentiments about psychology.
ReplyDeletePsychology is a science for many different reasons. First, psychology uses the scientific method to prove different results. Also data analysis, critical thinking, and common sense are used in psychology to prove different theories. Psychology is made up of many other science therefor it incorporates different ideas to prove theories about humans. many past experiments are also used to prove these theories. Psychology observes the different behaviors and sciences are learned by observing things and corrolating them
ReplyDeletePersonally, I agree with Dr. Brennan that psychology is not a science. In the clip, Dr. Brennan disagrees how the psychologist suggests that the man would have been driving. It isn't necessary for the man to be driving. Psychology is based on the mind. The mind in everyone thinks differently. "Scientific psychology becomes unscientific because it is dealing with mind, and mind does not lend itself to experimental precision." It is impossible to know the intentions of a person because it is unpredictable. Just like meteorologists cannot always predict the weather due to many factors of nature, likewise psychologists don't have the power to predict the power of the human mind. Dr. Sweets talks about how there are some "psychological truths in psychology" such as running around in a clockwise pattern.. Yet when people run track why is it that they run counterclockwise. 87% is only based on statistics they have taken. But it isn't possible for that to apply to everyone. The experiments that occur in psychology cannot be applied to everyone. Psychological experiments are more detailed and can only apply to certain things. Therefore, I agree with Lyssmusic that psychology is a pseudoscience.
ReplyDeleteI support Dr. Brennan because I believe psychology does not have enough support to be considered a science. First, there are too many perspectives in psychology that conflict in ideology. I.E. Aristotle vs. Plato. Second, psychology has too many experimental exceptions to fully be considered a science. There is not much concrete evidence in psychology that does not also involve an exception.
ReplyDeleteI think that Dr. Brennan was incorrect by saying that psychology was not a science. Psychology is a science in my mind because you have to do experiments using the scientific method to be able to prove their points. Also, a main chunck of psychology is studying the brain, which in my opinion has to do with science since science can be very abstract. Tirdly, psychology is a science because it helps to prove hypothesis using statistical reasoning.
ReplyDeleteDr. Brennan is a very objective person, which is why I believe she has a difficult time acceptin/believing Psychology is a science. Psycholoy is described as a "young science rooted in many disciplines." Science is such a broad topic that pertains to various areas, such as Psychology. A misconception about Psychology is that it isnt reliable because of individualism, however, Whilhelm Wundt expriemented such as Thoman Edison did, constant repition. Science is expeirmentaion, but Psychoilogy is not as ojective as say Phsyics, butthat is because it it not the same topic. Psychology is defined as the science of behavior and mental process, not the mathematical equations of our mental processess. Its an indivduals own science.
ReplyDelete~nora ((apologies for alll the typos)
Dr. Brennan is incorrect by saying psychology is not a science. Psychology is a science because you can use scietific beliefs to prove psychological theories. For example, you can do experiments to help prove what psychological beliefs you are feeling or trying to prove.
ReplyDeleteDr. Brennan's comment that psychology is not a science I believe is valid. Science can best be defined as knowledge gained by facts. Psychology is based on assumptions or the predictabble behavior. For example as seen in the Bones Clip, the psychologist states that the criminal is most likely to flee west based on observable behavior of humans. This however is an assumption not a fact, therefore having no validity. Dr. Brennan based her predictions on fact, that a certain amount of force will fracture the leg and inflict enough amount of pain to cause the victim to seek immediate hospital treatment. If one were to look at Psychology's experiments they are not objective as that of Physics or Chemistry. They hold too many variables that are close too impossible to eliminate. Sciences help make one understand life better based on facts, psychology simply dictates how others live and therefore is not applicable.
ReplyDeleteI agree with using Sweets from Bones because i think Psychology is a science of understanding how humans think and behave. I disagree with Dr. Brennan because if humans are doing crimes, then the study of humans(psychology) will discuss why humans do crimes and how and why they carried out the actions. Psychology is a science because there are theories that have been proven to be correct about how humans think and behave. Pyschology is also not a fake science because there have been experiments carried out over and over again yielding same results about human behavior. Psychology can predict how humans behave and why they behaved that way because of past results. Psychology is a real science.
ReplyDeleteAfter looking at the pros and cons for whether or not psychology is a science, I would have to agree that psychology is indeed a science, overall disagreeing with Dr. Brennan. Reasons for psychology being a science include that psychology does indeed use the scientific method. As seen in chapter one, the scientific method is very important in determining the theories that major psychologists have discovered as of today. Ideas and experiments have taken place, like Wilhelm Wundt's study on the mental aspects of individuals. In addition, critical thinking is an important aspect in psychology that most sciences do cherish. Critical thinking allows both psychology and sciences to receive accurate results about a certain topic. Aristotle would not have created a new view of the body and mind if it were not for critical thinking. Gains in both of these fields would not occur without critical thinking. One last idea that makes psychology a science is that, just like scientists use chemicals to figure out the compositions of certain substances, psychologists use chemicals to figure out the different processes of the brain. Cognitive and behvioral sciences are an example.
ReplyDeleteAs I noticed in Alyssa's blog, she diagreed in Dr. Brennan's, which I am having a hard time wrapping my head around. I think that people can have concrete solutions in psychology, but they do not last for a long time. Also., Dr. Sweets has very good evidence to the reasons as to why he says the things he says.
Dr B was right to say that psychology is not a science. It's difficult to make facts out of the debatable topics that are found in psychology. Many topics in psychology are debatable, such as nature vs nurture or reasoning behind why people do certain things or religion. People's minds are constantly changing and they are always doing things that seem "irrational" or seem unfit to a set pattern. Concerning life or death matters, psychology is not always reliable. It's helpful to use as a tool. However, basing entire decisions on psychology does not always work out as planned. Science is based on testable explanations but since psychology is not always explainable, it’s not 100% reliable. Since it’s not 100%, it should not be used as a fact.
ReplyDeleteI would have to disagree with Doctor Brennan in the fact the Psychology is a science. My first example is a broad one but psychology is the study of the brain and mental processes, which then proves that it is a science because it is the study of something. My second example to show that psychology is a science is that psychology is used by different people to get what they need. EX being, a police officer uses psychology to get information out of a criminal, like who helped with the crime or even how they did it. My final example that proves psychology is a science is because it has scientific methods, and also experiments involved. Anything that involves experiments would be considered a science.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan, I believe that psychology is a science because it contains statistics. It can be observed and you can experiment it just like other sciences. For example astronomy, there are theories that are made just like in psychology and some of them are not even actually proved to be right or wrong.
ReplyDeleteKristine Hernandez I believe psychology is a science because past scientists have supported and/or psychological theories.
ReplyDeleteI personally believe that Dr. Brennan is wrong in saying that psychology can not be used in crime scenes. One reason supporting this is most sciences are based upon reasoning made through assumptions and psychology is the same way. Also the study of psychology contains factual statistics on human tendencies that can be used in crime scene investigation. Another reason I disagree with Dr. Brennan is that the definition of science is an organized knowledge base and pschology is exactly that. These reasons are why psychology should be used in crime scene investigation.
ReplyDeletePsychology is, in fact, a science by definition. Science is defined as "systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation". Psychology follows all of these guidelines. The physical aspect being the brain and it's functionings and both observation and experimentation are used for the majority of all research done. Psychology also involves other fields of science, such as biology. The only strong argument against psychology as a science is that there is no solid evidence and no way to observe mental processes. However, there are other sciences, such astronomy that is considered scientific and does not involve hard evidence. Also, modern technology makes it possible to read the brain's waves in order to understand it's functionings. This contradicts the idea that there is no way to observe mental processes.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dr. Brennan's statement, I believe that psychology is a hard science. First of all, psychology is based on biology and philosophy. Biology is and has almost always been a "real" science. Because psychology is based on this and borrows many elements from biology, it has many traits of a real science. Philosophy, which is a social science, yet still a science, also give psychology some of its traits. This creates a mixture of two different disciplines, making it harder to classify psychology. Second, because psychology involves basic humanistic traits such as the needs for comfort, shelter, and food, patterns can be determined, for all humans have specific biological needs. This then leads to correlations and associations between certain traits and events. Next problems can be solved or knowledge can be gained through applied and basic research respectively. "Hard" science also uses such methods to provide conclusions to experiments. Therefore psychology is and should be defined as a real science.
ReplyDeleteCommenting on Tyler Toren's post making the assertion that psychology is a science since it involves the scientific method is incoherent. The scientific method is applicable to any problem, does not only deal with those in the fields of science. For example I can use the scientifc method as a way to solve how many gumballs I can fit in my mouth, which is more math correlated than science.
ReplyDeleteI do not agree with Rachel because the reason behind why humans do certain things is not always clear. Some things are not explainable and therefore are left a mystery and unsolved. Although there have been cases were psychology has been helpful in solving problems and questions, it does not always work. It's not a science. Science is based on fact, not patterns. Many of the patterns in psychology are broken, and therefore cannot be used.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Morgan that psychology is a science solely based on assumptions. I feel that psychologists perform experiments in order to come up with factual evidence on human tendencies that can and should be used in crime scene investigations
ReplyDeleteI agree with Dr. Brennan that Psychology is not a true science. First off, Psychology is based off surveys and social testing which may incorporate the believe and thinking of some people, it may not cover everyone within that particular window. Another point about Psychology is that the theories presented are not truly based on concrete evidence, but merely on a general thesis. Finally, Psychology varies from individual to individual and is an ever changing study rather than a solid science.
ReplyDelete-Jon
I disagree with Morgan's comment. I believe that psychology IS a real science. It involves elements from many different disciplines including biology, mathematics, and history to piece together an image of the human mind. The predictions made by Dr. Sweets are not simply conjured out of thin air, they are based on real findings over long periods of time.
ReplyDeleteAlthough it is understandable that Dr. Brennan would think that psychology lacks the verification of other scientific facts, she was, in fact incorrect in her assumption. Though the human mind is a difficult subject to study or observe, that does not make the few observations and experiments that can be done less scientific. Psychology as it exists today is definitely based on the same methodology as every other science. Modern technology could even be changing the difficulty we have in observing the mind.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with shensley93 because even though not everyone acts the same, the majority of the people do act the same way. A possible one percent of out 100 people may act differently but that should not override the whole theory. Even in science, an experiment may not yield the same results 100% of the time.
ReplyDeletePersonally i am against Dr. Brennans idea that phychology is not a science. It is a science for many reasons, including that fact that everyday we use the scientific method in our thought process without even noticing. Another reason why is because heredity experiments involve both biology and psychology. I disagree with Kiele because yes its only 87% chance he would have went there and not !00% but at least psycholgy gives them a good chance and a certain direction to look in. By the end of the clip Dr. Brennan was even defending Dr. Sweets ideas.
ReplyDeletePsychology is a science because it uses the scientific method, the chemicals released from our brains make us act a certain way, and statistics also prove the reality as Sweets said, 87% of criminals go west as did the criminal in the case they were working on.
ReplyDelete@2011janchrm
I do think that your agruement that psychology is listed as a social studies class is a very interesting view, but i have to disagree because the actual term is a "social science" due to the involvment of people and the scientific background.
I agree with Dr. Brennan that psychology is not a science because our minds and behaviors can be influenced by our culture and geography, which does not deal with science. Also, in science there is always a right or wrong answer but in psychology there are many different theories about certain topics and any theory can be correct if it is defended. I disagree with Danielle R because although experiments are done, these experiments can only be generalizations because every human is different in there own way. In science a specific answer is found and in psychology every human brain is different and there is no specific answer.
ReplyDeleteI think that psychology is a science. First, researchers use the scientific method in order to study and observe behaviors; research, theories, experiments, and predictions are used to study and determine behaviors. Second, psychology uses graphs (correlation graphs and scatterplots) to analyze and interpret data. The data explains the relationships between two variables and can further make accurate predictions. Third, neuroscience is a part of psychology and it explains the make up of the brain and it further can explain its functions and behaviors. neuroscience can chemically and scientifically explain people's thoughts and actions. Therefore, psychology is in fact a science.
ReplyDelete____________________________
I agree with Fritz's group's statements because I believe that psychology is a science. I agree that the scientific method supports the reasoning for it being a science. You made a great point by saying that psychologists use skepticism where they accept that they cannot explain everything but they can use experiments to prove valid points and test hypotheses and theories to explain reality. In many types of sciences there are not answers for everything, not only psychology. Additionally, you supplied numerous types of other sciences that psychologists use; this enhances psychology as a science as well! Also your example of neuroscience to validate and explain behaviors proves psychology as a science. I strongly agree with your group's statement that psychology is a science.
-Nina P./2nd period
I think that Dr. Brennan is overall correct about her opinion regarding psychology, in regards to it not being a hard science. By definition Psychology is the study of the mind's processes and behaviors. That being said, I believe there's is a disconnect between a study, and a science. Psychology does indeed have elements which are logical,and exact, but as a whole most of the field is based on strong inference, and observation of the human behavior, and introspection. That being said however, these logical conclusions are drawn from case studies, experiments and correlations. These various processes are focused towards the human mind and its inner workings. Some of which are done or asked of while the person is, or was asleep. How can a person recall his thoughts and feelings while unconscious, to the 100% assurance? This is because with any human involvement in any area, there is the inevitable factor of human error and bias. This is because all human are different. Some say that psych is a science because is can be supported by the biological makeup of the human body, and how is can be used to make conclusions and theories. This in itself is a contradiction, because, even though the general biological workings of the human condition is the same throughout mankind, no matter how similar they all may be, every human being's Biological makeup is, in fact, different. In essence, the definition of psych is indeed the study of the mind, but that, however, is the key in determining that it cant be a hard, exact, logical science, such as Physics; because it's studying the MIND, and the mind no matter how technologically advanced or how intelligent the human race may become, will never be fully understood. It's one of those things that keeps us unique, keeps us Human.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Tyler when he mentions things like, Psych uses the scientific method, and the words behavioral. The scientific method in a science such as Chemistry, uses elements such as percent error, and measurements, and other exact values which make it a true hard science. Psych's SM is different and incorporates human interaction, and influence most of the time which presents inaccuracy. Also the simple use of the words human behavior contracts his thoughts because again each human is physically, mentally, emotionally, and any other "ly", Different. which can't be analyzed 100% accurately.
wow, didn't realize how much that was
ReplyDeleteTalitha Poore-
ReplyDeleteTo Megan Johnson, I completely agree with you that there can never be a study that is 100 percent accurate and that most exact answers are never found. The mind can not be limited to science.
Psychology is NOT a pseudoscience. Psychology uses experiments and operation directions so that theories may be proven over and over again. To all those who say that psychology generalizes and is specific in certain cases, I would argue that science also allows for discrepancies in its laws.
ReplyDeleteI think Psychology is considered a science because of it's use of theories, developing a testable hypothesis, researching, and experiments. This use of analyzing and interpreting data is also known as the Scientific Method. The Scientific Method gives credibility and other sciences use it,making it seem very reliable as a science. Science, like psychology uses logic to create assumptions. Like Scientists, Psychologists detect a theory, perform scientific calculations, and find an answer to their hypothesis.
ReplyDeleteEven though Kielie makes a valid point that the statistic of fleeing west is not absolute, it does present a strong correlation between fleeing and the direction taken. However, this does not prove causation. I believe that psychology is a science, which effectively uses experiment and hypotheses to test theories just as other sciences do. Psychology gets a bad reputation because it is one of the newer sciences; it does not have a long, storied history such as biology and physics.
ReplyDeleteMichael Witman
I believe that psychology itself is not a science. First, psychology stems from biology, but biology just explains some of the theories of psychology. Psychology is influenced from other established sciences but cannot be a science itself. Second, in psychology there are atypical people that are exceptions. Therefore, there is no precise answer to every theory. Also, psychology is a generalization to many people. There may be no way to experiment on every person to prove a theory to be exact. I disagree with several explanations that psychology uses the scientific method, therefore it is a science. Psychology is not just a science because it uses the scientific method. When the scientific method is used in psychology, it is only testing theories not provable facts.
ReplyDelete--Amanda Horvat
I agree with Dr. Brennan that psychology is not a science. To start off, the use of the scientific method in psychology can only verify theories but cannot prove any reliable facts. This is because psychology is based off of changing philosophies. Another reason is that every human thinks or acts differently for different reasons. This makes psychology unreliable because many different theories can be used to explain the same emotion or behavior. Although psychology involves statistics, the statistics are based on humans' actions and reactions to certain situations, which could be explained with various theories depending on the specific type of psychologist.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Victoria because the use of the scientific method does not make it a science. The scientific method in psychology is based off of observations of people's emotions which is not reliable.