The Scientific Method
The scientific method has been used for centuries to create a structured and concrete way to study a question. When looking at it from a psychology stand point, the scientific method allows psychologists to formulate a way to study and make sense of human nature and support their “haunches and plausible sounding theories”(Myers, 2010). Within the scientific method a theory is formed by everyday observations. It predicts behaviors or possible outcomes. Next a hypothesis must be formed. A hypothesis is “a testable prediction often implied by a theory” (Myers, 2010). A hypothesis allows scientists to then research their question and support their theories with plausible data and concrete findings. The research methods that help formulate scientists’ data and results are case studies, surveys, naturalistic observations, experiments and correlations.
Case Studies
According to the Myers text Psychology, case studies are one of the oldest research methods. A case study “examines one individual in depth in hopes of revealing things true of us all” (Myers, 2010). A key advantage of case studies is it allows scientists to look in depth into a particular event or individual. Case studies can be very revealing and provide much information on a particular incident or person. However, this is also a case studies’ disadvantage. With case studies, most of the time scientists are only focusing on one individual or one circumstance in depth. With this being the case,
In this paper, the definition and description of what a case study is, what are some reasons for using a case study, what are some disadvantages and advantages of this approach? Also included in this paper I will talk about what are some of the ways a researcher can acquire information that can is used for a case study. A case study can be defined as a descriptive account of the behavior, history, and other relevant factors concerning a particular individual (Cozby, Bates, 2012).
A case study involves in-depth research and documentation of one person or more than one person. Researchers gain a large insight into the case when it’s not as many people compared to surveys, which is one of its strengths. The advantages of a case study are a deeper understanding of the patient, and the researcher doesn’t ‘t have to do anything against his or her ethics. The disadvantages of a case study are time consumption, and it’s hard to generalize since case studies are usually unique cases unlike anything else. Case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observations are all descriptive research methods, since they cannot make predictions or determine causality.
A case study is “a method of analysis and a specific research design for examining a problem” (University of Southern California, 2010). It can be used to analyze a person, place, event, or other subjects in order to help discover mitigating issues, misconceptions, failures, trends, or recommendations (USC, 2010). Case studies will be used to gain a better understanding of situations and topics to help others make better policies, procedures, and decisions (USC, 2010).
The development of the scientific method in the late 1500’s to the early 1600’s was a crucial stepping-stone in the science community. The scientific method is based upon observations, hypotheses and experimentation. The concept is rather simple, and can be applied to many areas of study. Once an observation is made, the observer can make a hypothesis as to why that phenomenon occurs and can then design an experiment to prove whether or not that hypotheses is valid. Although the scientific method has been extremely useful in the discovery of various things from usages of medications to studying animal behavior, there are still those who question the usage of this tool. These critics claim that since
The scientific method is used during experiments to find a conclusion and or reason as to why an event or something happens.
There has been an ongoing debate on whether psychology is indeed scientific, although recent, psychology is now considered a science. This is because it uses scientific methodology in researching, devising treatments and measuring the outcomes. These methods include collecting and analysing data and concluding their findings in order to identify whether the research or treatment adequality solves the problem. Scientific studies must be replicable, this means the if repeated exactly the same, the results should produce an identical outcome. Replicability can be increased by ruling out any alternatives that may not have originally been thought of. Objectivity in science is the idea that scientist, in an attempt to get the best results, must first
To support the theory of continental drift is through topography, surveying the floors of oceans, charts of rock magnetism, and statistics on rock ages (Trefil & Hazen, 2010). At one time scientist believed that the deep ocean floors were flat; accumulating the sediment that progressively wore away from the prehistoric landmasses (Trefil & Hazen, 2010). However, they discovered steep-walled valleys and elevated highlands. This was evidences that just as the continents are transformed and are active, so to is the seafloor (Trefil & Hazen, 2010). The Mid- Atlantic Ridge, positioned in the central part of the Atlantic Ocean, is recorded to be the longest mountain range on this planet. Volcanoes, lava flow, and earthquakes are a source of
Though there are many good and bad aspects of the scientific method, there is an underlying fault with all of them. The scientific method in psychology relies on empiricism. Empiricism is a view that all knowledge is derived from experience. The scientific method can ultimately be split into two attitudes. The first is the dogmatic attitude. Dogmatism is the wish to impose regularities on the basis that repetition of regularly occurring events mean that a belief in
When it comes to the scientific method, especially in the science of psychology, there are many different ways a question can be asked in order to get the conclusion to a hypothesis. Psychology is by its nature something that not only produces many questions but also helps to find the answer to those questions. Through asking the right questions a person can see a whole new world of understanding unfold before them. This understanding of why a person or animal acts the way it does has been groundbreaking in the growth of understanding a individual on a much deeper level than the sociological standpoint. Before this understanding can be obtained however one must learn first how to ask a proper question and then in turn how to test that
The Scientific Method is the standardized procedure that scientists are supposed to follow when conducting experiments, in order to try to construct a reliable, consistent, and non-arbitrary representation of our surroundings. To follow the Scientific Method is to stick very tightly to a order of experimentation. First, the scientist must observe the phenomenon of interest. Next, the scientist must propose a hypothesis, or idea in which the experiments will be based around. Then, through repeated experimentation, the hypothesis can either be proven false or become a theory. If the hypothesis is proven to be false, the scientist must reformulate his or her ideas and come up with another hypothesis, and the experimentation begins again. This
The scientific method is research of assumptions, scientifically to see if they are true or false. It is important in human sexuality research because first, people might be afraid to be honest about answers if they think that they're being judged. Sex is a very interesting topic, but people often think they're being judged and it is hard to open up. There are two scientific goals of sexology: understanding and predicting behavior. (pp.30). The scientific method is important research because it is free from bias. The scientific method is more based on facts, rather than opinions.
One known research method is the Scientific Method which is a uniform way of creating observations, assembly data, establishing concepts, testing predictions, and understanding outcomes. These observations are made in order to observe and define behaviors. The first step to take in using a scientific method is to develop an issue or question. Next step is to perform a research and observation on the issue or question that was developed. Then a hypothesis needs to be formulated after these steps have been made.
Now, case studies are considered to be more of an in-depth study that uses many approaches and data sources of a solo case. Percy, Kostere, & Kostere, (2015, p. 19) stated that when we do a single case study, we do not mean a case study of one person, but instead we mean a study of a solo research/topic questions. From time to time there is a quantity of cases that are reported and studied together. The cases in a
On the positive side, case studies obtain useful information about individuals and small groups. On the negative side, they tend to
A case study is a specific instance that is frequently designed to illustrate a more general principle (Nisbet and Watt, 1984). Hitchock and Hughes (1995) further suggest that the case study approach is particularly valuable when the researcher has little control over evens. Case studies strives to portray ‘what it like’ to be a particular situation, to catch up reality and ‘thick description’ (Geertz, 1973) of participants’ lives experiences of, thoughts about and feelings for a situation. They involve looking at a case or phenomenon in its real-life context, usually employing many types of data (Robson, 2002). It is important in case studies for events and situations to be allowed to speak for themselves, rather than to be largely interpreted, evaluated or judged by the researcher. In this respect the case study is akin to the television documentary. Case studies can make theoretical statements, but, like other forms of research and human sciences, these must be supported by the evidence presented.