Human Sciences Study of the self conscious animal

What?  Anthropology- of culture  Psychology- of individual behavior  Sociology- of group behavior  Human Geography- of human behavior in interaction with environment  Economics - of human choices…  Education…????

Currency?  As in, practical work, or careers?  How much of your daily life is informed by the human sciences? 5 minutes…

How are humans unique? And why are we studied differently?  Language - how does it make a difference?  Free will -  Reason -  Creativity -

Observation  Key to the sciences, but although behavior is observable, minds are not.  So, is behavior the only way to clearly study humans? What is lost?  Are surveys or interviews legitimate tools?

Loaded Questions  Do you think there should be an amendment to the Constitution prohibiting abortions, or shouldn’t there be such an amendment? 29% in favor, 67% opposed  Do you believe there should be an amendment to the Constitution protecting the life of the unborn child, or shouldn’t there be such an amendment? 50% in favor, 34% opposed  Posed in 1998 Harris poll

Other concerns  People are more idealistic in considering a hypothetical situation than in a real life one.  Identity of surveyor, public or private, other…?

The observer effect  What ways are there of getting around it?  Habituation…hidden cameras…other?  What is the deal with reality tv? What do we learn about human nature from such programs/

Predictive effect, or expectation hex  Psychology- bright vs less bright students…more than a year’s worth of difference in achievement after one year. Replicated 27 times since 1961!  What effect do your teachers’ expectations have on you?  Should reading groups exist in elementary school? G/T schools?

Economics  Bull and bear markets  Price of stocks

Measurement  How many thoughts have you had today?  Stream of consciousness - William James…or only behaviorism  When you try to make sense of what other people do, do you pay more attention to what they say or do?

How do we compare human behaviors? By affixing a price people are willing to pay?  How would you go about putting a price on human life? As in a jury settlement after a wrongful death, or alimony or child support?

How would you measure the following?  Weight Brand loyalty TemperatureSocial class Inflation Intelligence Happiness Reading ability Age Progress

Experiments..not so much  Complex real world situations are not replicable  Artificiality of controlled experiments may distort behaviors  Ethical reasons…negative effects on participants  See- Stanford Prison experiment

Laws?  To what extent is human behavior predictable?  State three generalizations…  How do insurance companies set rates?

Beware…post hoc ergo propter hoc…  Children with low self esteem tend to do poorly in school.  As a country develops economically, birth rates tend to go down.  Children brought up by talkative parents tend to be talkative themselves.

Design a human sciences study  Choose what you want to study  Design a clean study