Empericsm

Question 1

What is an empirical method?

Answer 1

A scientific method of gathering information and summarising it, in hopes of identifying general patterns

Question 2

What is the psychology definition of empiricism ?

Answer 2

it’s the idea that understanding human behavior and mental processes requires observation and experimentation rather than speculation or theory alone.

Question 3

What’s the history / roots?

Answer 3

Empiricism traces its origins back to ancient Greek philosophers such as Aristotle and later gained prominence during the Enlightenment era

Question 4

What is empiricism closely related to?

Answer 4

Empiricism is closely linked with the experimental method in psychology. This involves formulating hypotheses, conducting experiments, and analyzing data to draw conclusions about human behavior and cognition.

Question 5

What does empiricism stress the importance of?

Answer 5

Empiricism stresses the importance of direct observation in studying behavior and mental processes. This can involve naturalistic observation in everyday settings or controlled observation in laboratory experiments.

Question 6

Verification within empiricism

Answer 6

Empiricism emphasizes the need for empirical verification of hypotheses through systematic observation and experimentation. Findings must be replicable by other researchers to be considered valid.

Question 7

Critics

Answer 7

Critics argue that not all aspects of human experience can be adequately captured through observation and experimentation alone, and that subjective factors such as introspection and intuition also play a role in understanding behavior and cognition.

Question 8

Research within psychology

Answer 8

Empiricism guides much of the research conducted in psychology, including studies on topics such as perception, memory, learning, social behavior, and mental health.