PSY 12000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Naturalistic Observation, Falsifiability, Empiricism
31 Oct 2018
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Empiricism: the belief that accurate knowledge can be acquired through observation. Scientific method: a procedure in finding truth by using empirical evidence: empirical evidence = observations. Theory: hypothetical explanation of a natural phenomenon: hypothetical because we are guessing > it must be tested, there must be evidence to proof a theory valid. Hypothesis: a falsifiable predication that is make through a theory. Empirical method: a set of rules/techniques for observations. Methods of gathering information to work around complexity/variability/reactivity. Observation > what people do (does not tell why) Measurement: define > what property is desired to measure, detect > how will it be measured. Operational: a description of a property in concrete measurable terms: example: hyperactivity > restlessness, inability to concentrate. Instrument: anything that can detect the conduit that your operational definition is referring to: stopwatch/camera/notes. Validity: the goodness with which a concrete event defines a property (measurement of accuracy)
