Module 2 Flashcards
(13 cards)
__ refers to a more careful style of forming and evaluating knowledge than simply using intuition. In addition to the scientific method, this will help us develop more effective and accurate ways to figure out what makes people do, think, and feel the things they do.
- The brain is designed for surviving and reproducing, but it is not the best tool for seeing ‘reality’ clearly.
- To improve our thinking, we will learn to catch ourselves in some critical thinking errors.
-Critical thinking
When our natural thinking style fails:
- “I knew it all along.”
- “The dice must be fixed because you rolled three sixes in a row.”
- “I am sure I am correct.”
-Hindsight bias:
-The coincidence error, or
mistakenly perceiving order in random events:
-Overconfidence error:
__….Why the name?
The mind builds its current wisdom around what we have already been told. We are “biased” in favor of old information.
For example, we may stay in a bad relationship because it has lasted this far and thus was “meant to be.”
Hindsight “Bias”
Overconfidence Error 1:__
- We are much too certain in our judgments.
- We overestimate our performance, our rate of work, our skills, and our degree of self-control.
Performance
Overconfidence Error 2:__
- We overestimate the accuracy of our knowledge. People are much more certain than they are accurate.
- Overconfidence is a problem in eyewitness testimony.
- Overconfidence is also a problem on tests. If you feel confident that you know a concept, try explaining it to someone else.
Accuracy
From an evolutionary perspective:
- Hindsight bias:
- Perceiving order:
- Overconfidence error
- might be an offshoot of our useful habit of analyzing an event and trying to figure out why it occurred.
- helps us make predictions; we just need to test these and not overdo it.
- might help us lead other people; certainty builds confidence in followers more than accuracy does.
- Scientific Attitude Part 1: Curiosity –>
- Scientific Attitude Part 2: Skepticism–>
- Scientific Attitude Part 3: Humility–>
- always asking new questions
- not accepting a ‘fact’ as true without challenging it; seeing if ‘facts’ can withstand attempts to disprove them
- seeking the truth rather than trying to be right; a scientist needs to be able to accept being wrong.
\_\_: analyzing information to decide if it makes sense, rather than simply accepting it. Goal: getting at the truth, even if it means putting aside your own ideas. - - - - -
Critical thinking
- See if there was a flaw in how the information was collected.
- Consider if there are other possible explanations for the facts or results.
- Look for hidden assumptions and decide if you agree.
- Look for hidden bias, politics, values, or personal connections.
- Put aside your own assumptions and biases, and look at the evidence.
Lab vs life:
Question: How can a result from an experiment, possibly simplified and performed in a laboratory, give us any insight into real life?
Answer: By isolating variables and studying them carefully, we can discover general principles that might apply to all people.
Diversity:
Question: Do the insights from research really apply to all people, or do the factors of culture and gender override these “general” principles of behavior?
Answer: Research can discover human universals AND study how culture and gender influence behavior. However, we must be careful not to generalize too much from studies done with subjects who do not represent the general population.
Ethics:
Question: Why study animals? Is it possible to protect the safety and dignity of animal research subjects?
Answer: Sometimes, biologically related creatures are less complex than humans and thus easier to study. In some cases, harm to animals generates important insights to help all creatures. The value of animal research remains extremely controversial.
Ethics:
Question: How do we protect the safety and dignity of human subjects?
Answer: People in experiments may experience discomfort; deceiving people sometimes yields insights into human behavior. Human research subjects are supposedly protected by guidelines for non-harmful treatment, confidentiality, informed consent, and debriefing (explaining the purpose of the study).
The impact of values:
Question: How do the values of psychologists affect their work? Is it possible to perform value-free research?
Answer: Researchers’ values affect their choices of topics, their interpretations, their labels for what they see, and the advice they generate from their results. Value-free research remains an impossible ideal.
