IMPORTANT: 20 minute assemblies Faculty director Lewes:  Wednesday 28th September SO 23 12:10 -12:30 Thursday 29th September

Psychology as a Science Lesson 3

Homework: Monday sdcpsychology.weebly.com website Download flipped homework in preparation for the first topic: Memory

Test HWK 1: Research methods 20 minutes

Psychology as a Science Different psychological approaches emerged at different times and in your induction you encountered five approaches to psychology. Task: In groups, put the approaches in the correct order in which they emerged, telling the story of how psychology emerged as a science. Also try to match the ‘date’ which goes with each approach. You have 10 minutes. Task: Walk around to view the other group’s story, does your group want to make any changes?

TIMELINE Pair up with someone in your team. Each pair give themselves a letter A, B, C , D or E.

Exam Style Questions Task: Write an answer to ONE of the following questions: Explain what is meant by introspection (3 marks). Outline two criticisms of introspection as a method of investigation (4 marks). Briefly explain the emergence of psychology as a science (4 marks).

Find someone new… Half of you write your name on a piece of paper fold it up and place it in the box. Second half…pull out someone’s name and go and sit with that person.

What is the scientific process? Think-pair-share With the person sitting next to you, discuss what ‘science’ means – what do you see as the criteria for classification as a science? Note: This is a basic overview of the scientific process. We will be expanding on this knowledge over the course of the A level. Show them full version to check their numbers are in the right order

What you need to know about the features of science. Objectivity Empirical method Replicability Falsifiability Theory construction and hypothesis testing Paradigms and paradigm shifts. We will only look at these for now. The other features will be covered later on.

What are the features of science? Replicability: Involves research being repeated under the same conditions in order to test the validity and reliability of the findings. Standardisation is important in replicability. Objectivity: Research which is free from any bias e.g. personal opinions or past experiences. In small groups, discuss what you think these terms mean and see if you can link any of the points you came up with in the last activity. Objectivity Empirical method Replicability Falsifiability theories should be able to be disproved. If a theory can be disproved it clearly does not work and, alternatively, if a theory can be proved it does work. The empirical method: A way of gathering data which is collected through direct observation or experiment. This method is carried out carefully and reported fully so that other researchers can repeat and attempt to verify the work. Objectivity: science subjects should be free from personal views and feeling; this is known as being subjective. Falsifiability: theories should be able to be disproved. If a theory can be disproved it clearly does not work and, alternatively, if a theory can be proved it does work. Replicability: only the findings from methods that can be replicated by others are accepted.

Psychology as a science Psychology has four goals: Description – tells us “what” occurred Explanation – tells us “why” a behaviour or a mental process occurred Prediction – identifies conditions under which a future behaviour or mental process is likely to occur Change – applies psychological knowledge to prevent unwanted behaviour and to bring about desired change

What is the scientific research process? Identify a research question. (Usually this comes from observing peoples’ behaviour or from a broader psychological theory) Formulate a theory to explain an aspect of human behaviour Predictions are made from theories in the form of a testable hypothesis. Test the hypothesis (Design and carry out empirical research to find evidence). Analyse the results and draw conclusions. Can you accept or reject your hypothesis Do the results support the theory? Does the hypothesis need revising and re-testing? Does the theory need modifying? Collect further evidence in order to see whether the theory should be accepted or not. Proposed explanation for the phenomenon

Next lesson Lesson 4: Experiment and write up. Lesson 5: write up and ethics (test on ethics in class)