Zuppa, J. (2023) Sophisticated Falsification in Psychology: The Case of Automatic Social Behavior. Master thesis, Psychology.
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Abstract
Psychological science is currently in a state of crisis due to the field’s inability to replicate findings. Amidst this crisis, a fundamental issue is investigating what are the epistemological implications of failures to replicate previous findings. One suggestion is that replication failures could be interpreted as an opportunity to apply sophisticated falsification, a central notion in Lakatos’ (1978) theory of scientific research programmes. In the present thesis, I discuss at length this idea as it applies to the research programme initiated by Bargh and colleagues (1996) on the phenomenon of automatic social behavior (ASB). Through the works of Lakatos (1978) and Meehl (1990), I demonstrate how sophisticated falsification cannot be applied to cases when experiments on ASB fail due to the deficient epistemological standards of the programme. Sophisticated falsification requires theoretical models to be well-corroborated by evidence. Presently, theories on ASB only make vague predictions in the form of directional estimates tested using null-hypothesis significance testing. Even if confirmed, these predictions are not corroborative and do not constitute good reasons to believe that a certain theory has high verisimilitude. As such, sophisticated falsification cannot be applied when experiments on ASB effects fail, and the corresponding research programme is most likely in a state of degeneration. In light of these considerations, I discuss how formal modeling could be a potential solution to improve the corroborative value of the predictions of psychological theories.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Master) |
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| Supervisor name: | Derksen, M. |
| Degree programme: | Psychology |
| Differentiation route: | Theory and History of Psychology [Master Psychology] |
| Date Deposited: | 21 Aug 2023 06:48 |
| Last Modified: | 21 Aug 2023 06:48 |
| URI: | http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/2772 |
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