Researchers cannot make wild theories such as a link between taking a vaccine and becoming happier. If they want this to be accepted by the scientific community, scientific research evidence is needed. And still, we can only assume it is the current temporary truth. So, really in psychology, there is no end-game. Thus, scientific research aims to prove or disprove existing theories.
- We will kick off our learning by understanding the concepts of the scientific method of research, including the aims of scientific research.
- Then, we will explore the steps of scientific research generally taken in psychology.
- And finally, we will look at the types of scientific research and some scientific research examples.
Scientific Method of Research
Scientific research follows a systematic approach. It aims to acquire new information that adds to the existing knowledge in the research field. The consensus of scientific research is that researchers should plan their investigation before executing it.
This is important as it can help identify if research is observable, empirical, objective, valid, and reliable. These are the key features of scientific research.
But how can we tell if research is scientific?
Similar to how products are quality assessed before they reach customers, research is assessed using quality criteria. The quality criteria standards of qualitative and quantitative research differ.
For example, validity, reliability, empiricalness and objectivity are essential in quantitative research. On the other hand, transferability, credibility and confirmability are essential in qualitative research.
The two types of research have different quality criteria because of their different natures. Quantitative research focuses on the facts. But, qualitative research focuses on participants' subjective experiences.
Figure 1. Experimental research conducted in a lab setting is considered scientific research.
Aims of Scientific Research
Scientific research aims to identify and build scientific knowledge that discovers and explains laws or principles of natural or social phenomena. There tend to be multiple explanations proposed by various researchers to explain a phenomenon. The aim of scientific research is to either provide supporting evidence or disprove them.
The reasons why it is important for research to be scientific are:
- It leads to the progression of our understanding of a phenomenon. Based on these findings, researchers can outline the motivations/drives concerning individuals' thoughts and behaviours. They can also discover how illnesses occur and progress or how to treat them.
- Since research is used, for example, to test the effectiveness of a treatment, it is crucial to ensure that it is based on scientific and empirical data. This ensures that people get the correct treatment to improve their condition.
- Scientific research ensures that the findings collected are reliable and valid. Reliability and validity are essential because they guarantee that the results apply to the target population and that the investigation measures what it intends.
This process is what causes the progression of knowledge in the scientific fields.
Steps of Scientific Research
For research to be scientific, it should follow a specific process. Following this process ensures that the investigation is empirical and observable. It also increases the likelihood of the researcher measuring variables in a reliable, valid, and objective manner.
The seven stages that research should follow to be scientific are:
- Make an observation: observe an interesting phenomenon.
- Ask a question: based on the observation, form a research question.
- Form a hypothesis: after formulating the research question, the researcher should identify and operationalise the tested variables. These variables form a hypothesis: a testable statement concerning how the research will investigate the research question.
Popper argued that hypotheses should be falsifiable, meaning they should be written in a testable way and can be proven wrong. If researchers predict unicorns make children happier, this is not falsifiable as this can't be empirically investigated.
- Make a prediction based on the hypothesis: researchers should conduct background research before conducting research and make a guess/prediction of what they expect to happen when testing the hypothesis.
- Test the hypothesis: carry out empirical research to test the hypothesis.
- Analyse the data: the researcher should analyse the gathered data to identify if it supports or rejects the hypothesis proposed.
- Conclusions: the researcher should state whether the hypothesis was accepted or rejected, provide general feedback on their research (strengths/weaknesses), and acknowledge how the results will be used to make new hypotheses. This will indicate the next direction that research should take to add to the psychology research field.
Once research has been conducted, a scientific report should be written. A scientific research report should include an introduction, procedure, results, discussion and references. These sections must be written according to the American Psychological Association guidelines.
Types of Scientific Research
Psychology is often regarded as a fragmented subject. In biology, a natural science, usually one method, experimentation, is used to prove or disprove a theory, but this is not the case in psychology.
There are various approaches in psychology, each of which has a preference and disregards specific assumptions and research methods.
Biological psychologists have a preference towards experimental methods and disregard principles of the role of nurture.
The approaches in psychology are described as paradigms by Kuhn. He argued that the popular and accepted paradigm is based on which approach is best and most suited to explain the current theories.
When an approach can no longer explain the current phenomenon, there is a paradigm shift, and a more suited approach becomes accepted.
Scientific research can be classified based on different categorising systems. For example, whether the study uses primary or secondary data, what type of causality relationship the data provides, or the research setting. This next section will explain the different types of scientific research used in psychology.
The three main ways of categorising research are to identify the purpose of the research:
- Exploratory research aims to investigate new phenomena that have not been previously investigated or have limited research. It tends to be used as an initial stage to identify potential variables to understand a phenomenon.
- Descriptive research examines questions regarding the whats, whens, and where of phenomena. For example, to describe how variables are related to a phenomenon.
- Analytical research provides explanatory findings of phenomena. It finds and explains causal relationships between variables.
Scientific Research: Causality
Descriptive research allows researchers to identify similarities or differences and describe the data. This type of research can describe the research findings but cannot be used to explain why the results occurred.
Examples of descriptive research include:
- Descriptive statistics include the mean, median, mode, range, and standard deviation.
- A case report is a study that investigates a phenomenon of a unique characteristic observed in an individual.
- Epidemiological research explores the prevalence of epidemiology (diseases in the population).
What's important to note is that causality can be inferred from this type of scientific research.
Researchers use analytical research to explain why phenomena occur. They usually use a comparison group to identify differences between the experimental groups.
Researchers can infer causality from experimental, analytical research. This is because of its scientific nature, as the researcher experiments in a controlled setting. Scientific research involves manipulating an independent variable and measuring its effect on the dependent variable whilst controlling external factors.
As external influences are controlled, researchers can say with confidence (but not 100%) that the observed results are due to the manipulation of the independent variable.
In scientific research, the independent variable is thought of as the phenomenon's cause, and the dependent variable is theorised as the effect.
Scientific Research Examples
Research can be identified as primary or secondary research. This can be determined by whether the data used for analysis is collected themself or if they use previously published findings.
Primary research is data collected and analysed by themselves.
Some examples of primary scientific research are:
- Laboratory experiments - research carried out in a controlled environment.
- Field research - research carried out in a real-life setting. Here the researcher manipulates the independent variable.
- Natural experiments - research conducted in a real-life setting with no intervention from the researcher.
Although these examples are all regarded as scientific research, laboratory experiments are considered the most scientific and natural experiments the least. As in lab experiments, the researchers have the most control, and natural experiments have the least.
Now secondary research is the opposite of primary; it involves using previously published research or data to support or negate a hypothesis.
Some examples of secondary scientific research are:
- A meta-analysis - uses statistical means to combine and analyse data from multiple studies that are similar.
- A systematic review uses a systematic approach (clearly defining variables and creating extensive inclusion and exclusion criteria to find research in databases) to gather empirical data and answer a research question.
- A review is when the researcher critiques another researcher's published work.
Similarly, these are considered scientific; however, many critiques of these research methods concern the researchers limited control and how this can later affect the study's reliability and validity.
Scientific Research - Key takeaways
- The scientific method of research suggests that research should checkmark the following criteria: empirical, objective, reliable and valid.
- The aims of scientific research are to build scientific knowledge that discovers and explains laws or principles of natural or social phenomena.
In general, there are seven steps of scientific research.
Primary scientific research examples include lab, field and natural experiments and secondary scientific research examples include meta-analyses, systematic reviews and reviews.
Laboratory experiments are considered the most 'scientific' type of scientific research.
Explanations 
Textbooks 
Exams 
Magazine 
