Science Refers to a System of Knowledge - Essay Example

? Science of psychology What is science Science refers to a system of knowledge that can be explained rationally and could be applied on events and happenings in a reliable manner. The knowledge is gathered in the form of assumptions that have prevailed through the historical periods and tested against the real facts of life. In broader sense, science symbolizes a wide range of reliable knowledge in different fields of study that have been gathered with the help of assumptions and tested and explained in a logical manner through application of the knowledge. In modern times, science has developed significantly to explain the happenings of the material universe and its laws. Science has a widely spread domain where it is applied to explain facts in a logical manner in the specialized fields of physics, geology, chemistry, biology, psychology, etc. The scientific methods for explaining the facts and figures include formation of a hypothesis, carrying out experiments with assumptions and then validating the findings with the assumptions in order to reach a desired conclusion. The study of science is solely dependent on the logical reasoning of the scientist in order to explain the facts of real life and other areas of interest (Latour, 1987). With the help of science, a logical explanation to the areas of interest could be achieved which helps in understanding the reality. The findings obtained through the application of scientific knowledge are subject to change as there is no research that could be termed as perfect. This is the reason for development of science through the ages that led to new inventions and discoveries. Why should it be considered science Psychology is an applied field of study that aims to explain the rational behind the mental processes and functions that controls the behavior. The field of psychology is dedicated to explain the behavior and mental approach of individuals and groups by defining the principle of behavior and mental functions and then undertaking research studies to explain the mental process and behavior in a logical manner. The findings of the studies of mental behavior of individuals could be applied to a larger group of the society. Thus the fruits of the study of psychology are available to the society to use it to their advantage. Several emotions and feeling of the mind like confidence of knowledge, power of reasoning, decision taking abilities and abilities to handle difficult situation are all identified and explained through the study of psychology. The social behavior of the individuals is also explained in a logical manner by using the principles of psychology. The physiological and neurological functions are also studied in order to explain the psychology and behavior of individuals and groups. Due to the prevalent concept of explaining the mental functions and behavior in a rational way in the field of psychology, the connection with the field of psychology and science could be strongly established. The connections of the field of psychology with the field of science could be established by similarities in approach of establishing the principles of the subject and then testing the real facts and findings with the assumptions undertaken in order to provide a logical explanation. For these reasons, psychology could be considered as an applied field of science. In line with the principles of science, the applied science of psychology depends on the underlying theories and assumptions and then undertakes research and experiments on the behavior of the individuals and groups to obtain rationale findings and then explain the findings in a logical manner (King, 2010). The concepts of perception, brain functions, motivation, emotion, characteristic traits and interpersonal relations are use in psychology to explain the mental function and behavior of the individuals and groups. Psychological claims are logical ideas developed due to the functioning of brain and are different from the experiments and researches conducted by the scientists. This gives rise to the concept of pseudo science. People tend to believe that psychological claims are valid in the realm of science. The psychological perspectives and functioning of the brain through cognitive abilities, power of knowledge and decision taking ability guides the methods and process of undertaking a research. The mental emotions and the motivation of the human also develops the endurance power and the ability to toil and stick to the area of research until a logical explanation of study is obtained (Rust and Golombok, 1999). Thus psychological claims in the field of the study influence the methodology and the perseverance of the scientist and the researcher to produce a logical explanation of the area of examination. For this reason, most people tend to promote the importance of psychological claim in the field of science. Give example of studies that shows psychology is science An example of study that establishes the fact that psychology is an applied field of science has been given below. The study on forecasting the stock prices of market in taking a calculated decision of investment involves the power of knowledge of the individual to interpret the forecasted prices of the stock, the functioning of brain in controlling the emotions and the ability to take decisions for investment is an example that shows psychology is science. In this example, a stock broker forecasts that the prices of the stock market would go up and mails the information to prospective investor. The intention of the stock broker is to become a financial advisor of the prospective investor. The stock broker mails the forecasts of the stock market on a monthly basis to the prospective investor. Every time the stock broker mails the forecasts beforehand to the prospective investor, the actual fluctuation of the stock market prices matched with the forecast. In order to validate the forecast of stock prices, the prospective investors banks on his power to knowledge, cognitive abilities, emotions towards losses and gains, and the reasoning skill to understand whether the forecasts are done with the help of justified analytical tools or not. The mental functions and behavior of the prospective investor plays a crucial role in deciding whether to hire the stock broker as a financial advisor. Thus psychological functions play a crucial role in deriving a rational explanation of the real life events by testing against the assumptions (Kimble, 1996). This shows that psychology is science. Something that is claimed not valid as science It could also be established that a psychological claim may not be valid in the realm of science. The claims as a result of psychological behavior may have flaws if the reasoning skills adopted for decision making is not perfect. This could be explained by considering the example of stock broker and the prospective investor. The stock may have deceived the prospective investor by a tactical plan. The stock broker may have mailed a list of prospective investors about the forecast on stock market. A case where half of the investors were mailed with positive forecasts and other half were mailed with negative forecasts could be considered. After removing the first half of the list of investors, the stock broker may divide the remaining half and mail the first half with positive forecasts and the second half with negative forecasts. Continuing with the same process over a period of six months, a section of prospective investor would continuously receive correct forecasts over a period of six months. There is a probability that a percentage of these investors hire the stock broker as financial advisor. Thus the stock broker in this case is able to influence the psychological claims of the investors. However, the actual fact being that the psychological claim that lacks the power of reasoning to explain the real facts of the stock markets in a logical manner is not valid as science. References King, L. (2010). The Science of Psychology: An Appreciative View. USA: McGraw Hill Professional. Rust, J. and Golombok, S. (1999). Modern Psychometrics: The Science of Psychological Assessment. USA: Routledge. Kimble, G. A. (1996). Psychology: The Hope of a Science. USA: MIT Press. Latour, B. (1987). Science in Action: How to Follow Scientists and Engineers Through Society. USA: Harvard University Press. Read More