Discussion Questions
- Some claim that science has done more harm than good. What do you think?
- Humanity is faced with many challenges and problems. Which of these are due to human behavior, and which are external to human actions?
- If you were a research psychologist, what phenomena or behaviors would most interest you?
- Will psychological scientists be able to help with the current challenges humanity faces, such as global warming, war, inequality, and mental illness?
- What can science study and what is outside the realm of science? What questions are impossible for scientists to study?
- Some claim that science will replace religion by providing sound knowledge instead of myths to explain the world. They claim that science is a much more reliable source of solutions to problems such as disease than is religion. What do you think? Will science replace religion, and should it?
- Are there human behaviors that should not be studied? Are some things so sacred or dangerous that we should not study them?
- Why was psychophysics important to the development of psychology as a science?
- How have psychologists participated in the advancement of social issues?
- Name some ways in which psychology began to be applied to the general public and everyday problems.
- Describe functionalism and structuralism and their influences on behaviorism and cognitive psychology.
Diener, E. (2018). Why science?. In R. Biswas-Diener & E. Diener (Eds), Noba textbook series: Psychology. Champaign, IL: DEF publishers. DOI:nobaproject.com
Baker, D. B. & Sperry, H. (2018). History of psychology. In R. Biswas-Diener & E. Diener (Eds), Noba textbook series: Psychology. Champaign, IL: DEF publishers. DOI:nobaproject.com
