Theories in Psychology

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I am having a difficult time undertanding theories in psychology. Which one is right? there are so many theories. My teacher says that the only way to know which approach is right is through scientific approach. This approach demands that you have concepts which need to be turn into variable in order for you to be able to measure anything. This approach seems complicated, is there another way to go about testing for the validity of the many theories out there?

-- yoander villel (yvillel@hotmail.com), January 17, 2002

Answers

If we knew which one was right, we wouldn't have many theories. :-) In all fairness psychology is a very broad discipline, and so the very many theories are not all about the same phenomena, but about many different things. Typically there are only two or three theories directly competing to explain the same thing. Scientific experimentation can be complicated, but it is a very powerful tool in the production of knowledge. It is not the only way, however. There are many other approaches, some of which are better suited to some psychological questions than the strict experimental approach. For instance, using logical analysis, one can discover whether a given theory is internally consistent. Any theory that is not internally consistent is necessarily false, and so no empirical investigation is required (at least until the theory is ammended in such a way that its consistency is restored). There are other broader theoretical approaches as well. These aim not so much at testing what you call "validity" ("truth" is, I think, what you mean here; propositions are true or false, arguments are valid or invalid). Rather they examine the social and institutional forces that led to a particular theory's development and acceptance at a particular historical or socio-political juncture. For example, consider why eugenics became very popular in the U.S. at just the time that immigration from non-northwestern european countries increased dramatcally.

-- Christopher Green (christo@yorku.ca), January 17, 2002.

Yoander - Instead of feeling overwhelmed by the many theories, couldn't you try to rejoice in them, instead?

Would you like a garden in which only one kind of flower ever bloomed?

Would you want to live in a country where only one kind of political belief-system was being adhered to?

Would you consult a therapist if you knew that he treated everyone in the exact same way, based on one single theory that might or might not apply to your individual struggle?

Human beings are wonderfully unique and complex. It's a pity that we have only so FEW theories with which to try to understand how each person functions.

Theories are like flowers in a garden, and it's completely up to you, to remove those that smell bad, those that appear ugly to you, those that attract nasty insects, and those that are poisonous.

Take the power! :-)

-- visualize me (visualizeme@webtv.net), January 20, 2002.


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