Is psychology a science? Those engaged in the discipline of psychology have often heard phrases that question their scientific character for their subjectivity. We’ve even heard things like, “I’m good at psychology, I see people as they are. “Show us that there is a lot of confusion about it, because most of the population has never studied and does not really know what psychology is.
To understand why psychology is a science, you first have to know what a science is, because there are also doubts about this other subject, many people believe that science carries the truth, that it observes reality and describes it, generating undisputed claims. But reducing science to this definition can lead to many mistakes. So let’s see why.
- A science is a branch of knowledge that seeks to describe.
- Explain.
- Predict and modify a field of reality.
- In the case of psychology we are talking about human behavior and cognitive processes.
- Science has a very pragmatic goal.
- Seeks to understand certain events in order to be able to use them in your favor.
- For all this to happen.
- A specific methodology called a scientific method is used.
The scientific method is a hypothetical-deductive strategy to draw conclusions and certainties about the purpose of the study, consisting of a series of steps that we briefly explain:
The key to this whole process is to understand that science acts by attacking the veracity of its own assumptions, it is a way to reduce error and avoid the affirmation of undisputed dogmas, always leaving in doubt the chosen hypotheses, science is constantly called into question. To the test Thanks to this, we have a very dynamic method that adapts to the new data that appears over time.
Another important issue is the distinction some people make between “hard science” and other types of science that really couldn’t fit into this original concept of science. The hard sciences, also known in Brazil as hard sciences, are biology, physics and chemistry In other words, it is these sciences that seem most objective and easily observable.
But this division and nomenclature is a mistake. For example, at the same time as in physics there is interference of gravity, which can be observed in everyday events, in psychology we can also have the same kind of experience with anxiety, emotions or learning processes.
Even today, we know that there were mistakes in the classical law of gravity. Science isn’t about describing what’s going on, it’s about why. And to do this, hard science and other science use exactly the same method.
We all generate intuitive theories about what is the world around us, it is a natural cognitive process that helps us maintain control and predict what will happen next, therefore we have an intuitive psychology in us that tells us how we believe others behave. and why they behave this way. However, it would be a grave mistake to think that our beliefs correspond to the truth.
This intuitive psychology is based on mental shortcuts formed by previous experiences. Depending on our education, experiences and our life story, we will have one way or another to perceive and understand what is going on around us. These trials are completely subjective and do not follow any scientific rigor at all. They’re part of our lives, but they have nothing to do with psychology as science.
Scientific psychology completely opposes this intuitive psychology, in this work we do not listen or accept beliefs or value judgments to explain human behavior, we use the scientific method, using experimentation and the collection of objective data to interpret and draw conclusions, even if they are contrary to our original hypothesis.
As a result of the various surveys conducted around the world, constructions on psychology are born that are based on various empirical data, and can even be combined into broader surveys, which jointly analyze data from various surveys on the subject. called meta-analysis and constitutes the highest level of evidence of any science.
A key aspect to understand, which makes it easier to understand why psychology is a science, is to know the difference between an opinion and a rational interpretation. When we talk about opinions, we mean the beliefs we have about a certain aspect of reality because of our own experience. For example, we can say that human beings are good and that society corrupts them, because experiences shape the man who wants to have this pure interior.
However, interpretation is something very different from this: it is a question of analyzing, deciphering and explaining an event through scientifically obtained data in a neutral way, if we use the same example as before, if the data show us that human beings are neither good nor bad, we will have to interpret them from a different point of view than we think , and use all the information we have.
Scientific psychology is not a matter of opinion. Science cannot be discussed in the same terms that we discuss our beliefs in intuitive psychology, it is first based on the interpretation of the evidence obtained, and then the debate should take place around the different possibilities of giving meaning to the information we have.
In other words, the only way to disprove the results of scientific research in psychology is to use other objective data that refutes the idea. Isn’t it with an opinion that it just says “I think otherwise. “That is why scientific psychology is part of the mold of science, being itself, therefore, one of them.
We have already seen that psychology uses the same methods and has the same validity and reliability as the rest of the sciences, but then why are there so many doubts as to whether psychology is really a science or not?reasons which, in my opinion, are the main reasons why this is happening.
The first is the great confusion that exists about the concept of science, most of the population has in mind a somewhat nebulous definition, a fact that added to the knowledge of the instruments used to measure mental behaviors and processes results in a categorization of psychology as highly subjective and non-suroffic.
The second reason is pseudoscientific practices derived from psychology. Unfortunately, there are many people who are on the sidelines of psychology, but who use the same term to refer to practices that do not use any scientific method, this leads to the majority of the population, albeit erroneously, linking psychology with these pseudosciences, although in reality one has nothing to do with the other. Examples of this are coaching practices or parts of psychoanalysis.
Finally, one of the reasons for this resistance that exists when it comes to taking the test of psychology is that it directly involves the human being, when we talk about physics, chemistry or other sciences, the results worry and only annoy those who are very involved. on the subject, and accept the evidence without any problem.
But when we talk about who human beings are, the situation is very different, as the results can go completely against the intuitive psychology of the person, and will quickly try to resolve this cognitive conflict simply by ignoring the evidence presented. option that requires less of yourself than restructuring your personal beliefs.
So, faced with the question of whether or not to classify psychology as science, you know that the answer is a confident yes, we cannot fall into the error of denying evidence and trying to slow scientific progress in this discipline, which is so important for us to understand ourselves both individually and socially.