TOK - Psychology as a Human Science.

Sample questions

To what extent are the methods of the natural sciences applicable in

the human sciences?

Are the findings of the natural sciences as reliable as those of the

human sciences?

To what extent can empathy, intuition and feeling be legitimate ways of

knowing in the human sciences?

To what extent can information in the human sciences be quantified?

Do knowledge claims in the human sciences imply ethical

responsibilities?

To what extent do the knowledge claims of the social sciences apply

across different historical periods and cultures?

Noam Chomsky has written

we will always learn more about human life and human personality from
novels than from scientific psychology.
Would you agree?

Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive

scientist, logician, political commentator and activist. Sometimes
described as the "father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is also a
major figure in analytic philosophy

PSYCHOLOGY- A subject for both science and non-scientific methods

to study human behaviour...

ToK, methods in psychology

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Introduction- Noam Chomsky quote.

Listen to Elvis- highlight key areas that could be investigated.
Brainstorm areas on the board
In groups of 4 discuss how you could research them
Using the list of concepts (and definitions) identify the key concepts that link to
your investigation.
Provide examples of quantitative and qualitative research for the ghetto
Reflect on ethics and investigator effects, demand characteristics.
Can we answer Noam Chomskys question? The other questions?
Play the methods game- hand out the concepts (minus definitions).

Architecture, music, civil rights movement/minority groups, psychology and

geography, politics (laws for equality and government benefits and charity),
situational and individual (Chicago school versus nature), attitudes towards
reasons for plight, gun debate, family and work. Changes over time? Cross
cultural comparisons.
10. In sociology and later criminology, the Chicago School (sometimes
described as the Ecological School) was the first major body of works
emerging during the 1920s and 1930s specialising in urban sociology, and the
research into the urban environment by combining theory
and ethnographic fieldwork in Chicago, now applied elsewhere.
The Chicago School is best known for its urban sociology and for the
development of the symbolic interactionist approach. It has focused on human
behaviour as determined by social structures and physical environmental
factors, rather than genetic and personal
characteristics. Biologists and anthropologists have accepted the theory of
evolution as demonstrating that animals adapt to their environments. As
applied to humans who are considered responsible for their own destinies,
members of the School believed that the natural environment which
the community inhabits is a major factor in shaping human behaviour, and that
the city functions as a microcosm:
11. 1969, Play Elvis in the Ghetto http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=6am8V5KNJ4A
12. Questions formulated about the song- hypotheses

13. Areas of possible study- music, global communication (worldwide impact of

Elvis), Architecture (Ghetto), Poverty and unemployment (statistics)
brainstorm and in pairs come up with ideas of how to research this further.
14. Each student given a concept (and its definition), think alone for a moment to
work out how the concept could be used to investigate the ghetto, feedback
to rest of the group.
Research methods board game- identify concepts you think could be useful in
investigating the ghetto. Explain why.
6. to kill a mocking bird (Harper Lee) was also published in the 1960s?
and finally... history moves on...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0A_NwmiMo James Brown Black and Im proud.

LABORATORY EXPERIMENT

NATURAL EXPERIMENT

QUESTIONNAIRE

FIELD EXPERIMENT

INTERVIEW

CASE STUDY

NATURALISTIC OBSERVATION

PROTECTION FROM HARM

CONFIDENTIALITY

PRIVACY

ETHICAL ISSUES

ETHICAL GUIDELINES

DEBRIEFING

INFORMED CONSENT

CONTENT ANALYSIS

MEASURE OF CENTRAL TENDENCY

MEASURE OF DISPERSION

MEAN

MEDIAN

MODE

RANGE

STANDARD DEVIATION

CLOSED QUESTION

OPEN QUESTION

NEGATIVE CORRELATION

POSITIVE CORRELATION

QUALITATIVE DATA

QUANTITATIVE DATA

SCATTER GRAM

VOLUNTEER SAMPLING

OPPORTUNITY SAMPLING

RANDOM SAMPLING

DEMAND CHARACTERISTICS

REPEATED MEASURES

INDEPENDENT GROUPS

MATCHED PAIRS

RELIABILITY

VALIDITY

EXTRANEOUS VARIABLES

OPERATIONALISATION

PILOT STUDY

HYPOTHESIS

COUNTERBALANCE

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

INVESTIGATOR EFFECT

BEHAVIOURAL CATEGORY

DIRECTIONAL HYPOTHESIS

NON-DIRECTIONAL HYPOTHESIS

INDEPENDENT VARIABLE

DEPENDENT VARIABLE

PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH METHODS

Laboratory experiment- the researcher deliberately manipulates the independent
variable whilst maintaining strict control over extraneous variables through
standardised procedures.
Natural/Quasi experiment- where the experimenter does not directly influence the
allocation of participants to the conditions under study but makes use of divisions
that already exist.
Field experiment- Replaces the artificial setting of the laboratory with a more natural
one. Participants are not aware that they are taking part in an experiment.
Questionnaire- research that stresses the interpretation of language/ context of
expression through interviews, diaries, case studies.
Interview- face to face interaction between the interviewer and interviewee.
Case study- an attempt to explore, in some considerable depth, the behaviour and
experiences of an individual.
ETHICS a consideration of what is acceptable or right behaviour in the pursuit
of a particular personal or scientific goal.
Protection from harm- ensuring that participants leave the conditions in a
similar state as they entered into it.
Confidentiality Participants and the data they provide should be kept
anonymous unless they have given their full consent.
Privacy- respect the individuals right to keep their data from being used if they
so wish.
Ethical issues- conditions that may place breach the guidelines set down to
protect participants.
Ethical guidelines- a set of rules to guide researchers when using human and
animals as participants for research.
Debriefing- informing those tested of the reasons for the research.
Informed consent- participant is made aware of the research and agrees to
participate.
STATISTICS- a mathematical calculation that reflects the characteristics of a sample
of behaviour or of the selected participants in a study.
Measures of central tendency, mean, median, mode

Measure of dispersion- a measurement of the spread or variability in a set of scoresE.g. range and standard deviation.
Mean- average calculated by dividing the total of all scores added together by
the number of scores, E.g. 3+5+6+3+3/5= 4
Median- the middle value in a set of scores when they are placed in rank order,
e.g.3, 3, 3, 5, 6=3
Mode- the most frequently occurring middle value in a set of scores, e.g.3, 3, 3, 5,
6=3
Range- a measure of dispersion within a set of scores. It is calculated by subtracting
the lowest score from he highest and gives an idea of the spread of the scores.
Standard deviation- a statistical measure of the variation in a set of scores. The
standard deviation gives a researcher an idea of how spread-out a set of scores is
around the mean value.
Scatter gram- a graphical representation of the correlation between two sets of
measurements (IQ). Positive and negative correlation.
Quantitative data- patterns and relationships of human behaviour can be
measured and represented in numerical form (statistics on IQ)
Qualitative data- analysing the meaning that people attribute to their
behaviour. Descriptive information that may be hard to categorise in numerical
format.
Positive correlation- the relationship between two variables whereby as one variable
increases so does the other (and vice versa, if one variable decreases so does the
other).
Negative correlation- the relationship between two variables whereby as one
increases the other decreases.
Open questions- provides qualitative data, participants provide
meaning/semantic explanations for their behaviour.
Closed questions- quantitative data, yes/no answers that produce
statistics/numerical data (%).
SAMPLING- refers to the process by which research psychologists attempt to select
a representative group from the population under study.
Volunteer sampling- participants who volunteer/offer to take part in the
research

Opportunity sampling- roughly a case of selecting whoever is available at the

time at that location.
Random sampling- each member of the population under study stands the same
chance of being selected.
Demand characteristics- any aspect of the experimental situation that prompts
the participant to interpret the study in a specific way and adjust their
behaviour accordingly. By adjusting their behaviour to what they see as the
demands of the experiment, participants introduce a bias that may
contaminate the results of the study.
Repeated measures- all participants take part in all conditions.
Independent groups- participants are randomly allocated to different
conditions.
Matched pairs- an attempt is made to relate the participants in some way (e.g.
gender, age personality)
Experimental design- a procedure to control the influence of participant variables in
an experiment. 3 types- independent measures, repeated measures, matched pairs.
Counterbalance-an experimental technique used to overcome order and practice
effects (tiredness/boredom and practice).
Hypothesis- a statement of what you believe to be true.
Pilot study- an initial run-through of the procedures to be used in the experiment.
Operationalising define ghetto and how it could be measured as a concept
Extraneous variables- also known as confounding variables. The possible influence
of other uncontrolled factors on the behaviour being measured (Dependent variable)
in an experiment.
Reliability- if a finding can be repeated, it is described as being reliable.
Validity- the confidence that we may have that a test measures what it is
supposed to measure.
Investigator effect- where some aspect of the experimenter has an effect on
the behaviour of the participant. E.g. age, sex, personality, physical
attractiveness, culture.
Behavioural category-ways of categorising behaviour- event sampling (key
behaviours are recorded each time they occur), time sampling- behaviour is
observed over a period of time, (e.g. every 5 minutes)

Directional hypothesis- predicts a particular direction (one tailed) that one

condition will do better/worse than the other.
Non- directional hypothesis- two tailed, simply predicting an effect such as a
difference between the conditions.
Independent variable- the variable altered/manipulated to see the effect it has on the
other variable.
Dependent variable- the main measured outcome of the experiment.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBqgr5xZLz0

The blind men and the elephant

Non-Scientific methods

PSYCHOLOGY

Scientific methods

I---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I

Science is a process Psychological scientists have found many results that have
been replicated:

the causes of bystander apathy the more people who are around when
you are attack, the more likely it is that you will not get help

the evidence that romantic couples tend to be more alike than they are
different (birds of a feather flock together has more support than opposites
attract)

the phases of the moon do not cause increases in crime or admissions to

mental health facilities

Applied Behavioural Analysis is a very effective treatment technique of

children with Autism

Systematic desensitization is a well established and effective treatment for

phobias

Mnemonics are a very effective way to memorize things

Spaced practice and frequent self testing are effective ways to learn

Non-Scientific methods

PSYCHOLOGY

Scientific methods

I---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBqgr5xZLz0

The blind men and the elephant

Behaviourism

Humanistic

Psychodynamic

Cognitive

Biological

This song is about poverty, describing a child who can't overcome his surroundings and
turns to crime, which leads to his death. It was the first song Elvis recorded with a
socially-conscious message. He was reluctant to do it for that reason, but knew it would
be a hit.
This was written by Mac Davis, who entered the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2006. At
the ceremony, Davis explained: "It's a simple matter of growing up with a little boy who's
father worked with my father. He lived in a part of town that was a dirt-street ghetto. I
grew up in Lubbock, Texas, and it was a ghetto in every since of the word, but we didn't
use that word back then. I was trying to come up with a song called 'The Vicious Circle,'
how a child is born, he has no father, and the same thing happens. The word 'Ghetto'
became popular in the late '60s to describe the poor parts of town.

1969 - Richard Nixon is inaugurated as President

1969 - "Vietnamization" begins

1969 - Stonewall riots in New York City marks the start of the modern gay rights movement in
the U.S.

1969 - Chappaquiddick incident, where Sen. Edward M. Kennedy drives off a bridge on his
way home from a party on Chappaquiddick Island, Massachusetts, killing his passenger, Mary Jo
Kopechne

1969 - Neil Armstrong walks on the Moon

1969 - The Woodstock Festival in White Lake, New York becomes an enormously successful
musical and cultural gathering; a milestone for the baby-boom generation

1969 - Warren E. Burger appointed Chief Justice of the United States to replace Earl Warren

1969 - U.S. bombs North Vietnamese positions in Cambodia and Laos

1969 - Sesame Street premieres on National Educational Television.

FACTS about this decade.

Population 177,830,000

Unemployment 3,852,000

National Debt 286.3 Billion

Average Salary $4,743

70 million children from the

Teacher's Salary $5,174

post-war baby boom became

Minimum Wage $1.00

teenagers and young adults.

Life Expectancy: Males 66.6 years, Females

73.1 years

conservative fifties continued

Auto deaths 21.3 per 100,000

and eventually resulted in

An estimated 850,000 "war baby" freshmen

enter college; emergency living quarters are
set up in dorm lounges, hotels and trailer
camps.

1960 - 1969

The sixties were the age of

youth, as

The movement away from the

revolutionary ways of thinking

and real change in the cultural
fabric of American life. No

longer content to be images of the generation ahead of them, young people

wanted change. The changes affected education, values, lifestyles, laws,
and entertainment. Many of the revolutionary ideas which began in the
sixties are continuing to evolve today.

Elvis Presley In The Ghetto Lyrics

(words & music by Scott Davis)
Ghetto definition:
a part of a city, especially a slum area, occupied by a minority group or groups.

As the snow flies

On a cold and gray Chicago mornin
A poor little baby child is born
In the ghetto
And his mama cries
Cause if there's one thing that she don't need
Its another hungry mouth to feed

In the ghetto
People, don't you understand
The child needs a helping hand
Or hell grow to be an angry young man someday
Take a look at you and me,
Are we too blind to see,
Do we simply turn our heads
And look the other way
Well the world turns
And a hungry little boy with a runny nose
Plays in the street as the cold wind blows
In the ghetto

And his hunger burns

So he starts to roam the streets at night
And he learns how to steal
And he learns how to fight
In the ghetto
Then one night in desperation
A young man breaks away
He buys a gun, steals a car,
Tries to run, but he don't get far
And his mama cries
As a crowd gathers round an angry young man
Face down on the street with a gun in his hand

In the ghetto
As her young man dies,
On a cold and gray Chicago mornin,
Another little baby child is born
In the ghetto

A ghetto is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live,

especially because of social, legal, or economic pressure.