¶ … psychology, it has intended to be a branch of the sciences. For it to be considered science, psychology must not hypothesize without testing. It is unfortunate that the history of psychology is marked with failed hypothesis. For it to be ethical, it has to draw conclusions after a formal laboratory experiment with stringent protocol instead of retrospective studies that result from past occurrences.
Science share basic procedures and expectations, it tests theories and get results, those results can be tested by others and achieve the same results, this is a challenge with psychology. For instance, normal therapeutic treatments involve research, diagnosis and treatment, but many results are scientifically indistinguishable. There is limited distinction between research and treatment.
There are issues that play a fundamental role in evaluation of psychological theories. First, is whether the theory adequately and formally describes the framework that accounts for observed psychological and other empirical data. Second, is whether the theory describes accurately a pattern that can be easily and directly interpreted by other theorists. Thirdly, is investigating whether the theory is logical and it consistently fits into other theories to make a coherent whole. The theory need to be consistent with theories in other subjects. Fourth, it has to be constructed in a way that important tests can be done, which...
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