Philosophy of Science for Psychology Students

Psychology and philosophy are interesting disciplines in their own right, and closer cousins than many of us often realize. In this book, psychology and philosophy are in dialogue as the author aims to engage readers with some significant questions from the philosophy of science that impact how psychology is currently practiced. The author has done so by dividing the book into seven chapters: Chapter 1 discusses the replication crisis and answers the question: is psychology even science? Chapter 2 discusses the influence of positivism on psychology, particularly regarding psychology's use of operational definitions. Chapter 3 discusses the statistical revolution and its relationship to induction in science and psychology. Chapter 4 discusses the Kuhnian concept of scientific revolutions and asks whether psychology can be paradigmatic. Chapter 5 addresses whether or not it can properly be said there is one scientific method. Chapter 6 addresses questions about the future of psychology as a scientific discipline. Finally, Chapter 7 is an invited chapter by Dr. Jeanette Braswell about the relationship between spirituality and psychology. Dr. Braswell is a brilliant writer who takes a perspective different from the modal standpoint on psychology. In summation, the goal of the book is to raise several questions about the philosophy of science and its relevance to psychology.