Chapter 1 What Is Psychology? 35N
ow that you have finished this chapter, you are
ready to explore more deeply what psychologists
have learned about human behavior.
At the start of each of the remaining chapters,
we will present one or more real news stories that
raise psychological questions. Then, at the end of
the chapter, we will revisit the story to show how thematerial you have learned can help you answer those
questions. For now, if you are ready to share the
excitement of studying human behavior; if you love
a mystery and want to know not only who did it but
also why they did it; if you are willing to reconsider
what you think you think... then you are ready to
read on.Psychology in the news Revisited
2Psychology in the News
The Science of PsychologyWhat Psychologists Do
Critical and Scientific Thinking in PsychologyDescriptive Studies: Establishing the FactsCorrelational Studies:
Looking for RelationshipsThe Experiment: Hunting for Causes
Evaluating the FindingsPsychology in the News,
RevisitedTaking Psychology WYou: Lying With Statisticsith
WHAT IS
PSYCHOLOGY?1Zaniness on Parade in PasadenaDoo PASADENA, Dah Parade, CA, April a joyful 27, (^2013) celebration T.he 37th Occasional of wacky weirdness, Pasadena
took Pasadena’Known place as s Rose “the today other Parade to parade” the on cheers January (the of 1), more fans the lining famous event the encouragesone streets. being (^)
marchers of as Leisure they please. to Synchronized shed their inhibitions and dress as outrageouslyThe parade’Nap s favorites Team, Tehave quila included Mockingbird the Men &
the Grill TRoyal eam, and the Clown Doctors from Outer Space.Doo Dah Orchestra, the BBQ & Hibachi Marching
CityBOSTON, the “Biggest Loser”’s WeJanuary ight Loss Campaign23, 2013. It seemed like (^) a great idea last April,
when free exercise classes to help them work off their potbellies and shed a the million city pounds of Boston of challenged excess weight residents in a yearto , and collectively offered
love the of only handles. bulge, 74,597 the results But pounds. with have only Ironicallbeen a few disappointing: y, months the same left week in a collective the that battle City Hall loss of
“A kicked Bowl,” little off the mixed its nationexercise messaging,” ’s largest classes, concedes all-you-can-eat it hosted a spokesman the ice-cream annual for “Scooper contest. the Bos-
ton Public Health Commission.Armstrong Admits Doping, Past Lies
NEW Armstrong view with YORK, has Oprah January confessed Wi18, nfrey, 2013.former to In taking (^) bicycling a much-anticipated performance-enhancing champion Lance inter-
drugs Tomany ur de and years. France lying Since titles repeatedly the taken scandal about away broke, and it has to he colleagues been has banned seen and his fans from seven for the
sport. and the doping apologize “I will had spend to been people,” the necessary rest he of my told to life level Oprah. trying the But playing he to earn also field, back said trust that “like
Devils or dragons: Anything goes at the Doo Dah Parade. [putting] air in my tires.”
Lying With Statistics
We have seen that statistical procedures are
indispensible tools for assessing research.
But statistics can also be manipulated, mis-
represented, and even made up by people
hoping to promote a particular political or
social agenda. An essential part of critical
and scientific thinking is learning not only
how to use statistics correctly but also how
to identify their misuse.
We don’t want you to distrust all statis-
tics. Statistics don’t lie; people do—or, more
likely, they misinterpret what the numbers
mean. When statistics are used correctly,
they neither confuse nor mislead. On the
contrary, they can expose unwarranted con-
clusions, promote clarity and precision, and
protect us from our biases and blind spots.
You need to be careful, though, about sta-
tistics in blogs and the media. Here are a
few things you can do when you hear that “2
million people do this” or “one out of four
people are that”:
ask how the number was computed. Suppose
someone on your campus gives a talk about
a social problem and cites some big number
to show how serious and widespread the
problem is. You should ask how the number
was calculated. Was it based on government
data, such as the census? Did it come from
just one small study, several published stud-
ies, or a meta-analysis of many studies? Or is
it pure conjecture?
ask about base rates and absolute
numbers. Suppose we tell you that the
relative risk of getting ulcers is increased
by 300 percent in college students who eat
a bagel every morning (it isn’t, of course).
That may sound pretty alarming, but it does
not tell you much. You would need to know
how many students get ulcers in the first
place, and then how many bagel-eating
students get ulcers. If the “300 percent in-
creased risk” is a jump from 100 students
in every thousand to 300 students, then
you might reasonably be
concerned. If the number
shifts from one in every
thousand to three in ev-
ery thousand, that is still
a 300 percent increase,
but the risk is small and
could even be a random
fluke. Many health find-
ings are presented as an
increased relative risk of
this or that. But what
you want to know be-
fore you start to worry
is the absolute risk—that
is, what the increase is
in actual, absolute num-
bers. It may be trivial
(Bluming & Tavris, 2009;
Gigerenzer et al., 2008).
ask how terms were de-
fined. If we hear that “one
out of every four women” will be raped at
some point in her life, we need to ask: How
was rape defined? If women are asked if they
have ever experienced any act of unwanted
sex, the percentages will be higher than
if they are asked specifically whether they
have been forced or coerced into intercourse.
Conversely, although far more women are
raped by men they know than by strangers,
many women do not define acts of date rape
or acquaintance rape as rape, and that fact
will lower the percentages.
Taking Psychology With You
©The New Yorker Collection 1989 Lee Lorenz from cartoonbank.com. All Rights Reserved.
“I still don’t have all the answers, but I’m beginning
to ask the right questions.”