The DOI matches its Crossref record; 12 of the 12 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
There Is Nothing So Theoretical as a Good Method
Abstract
This article documents two facts that are provocative in juxtaposition. First: There is multidecade durability of theory controversies in psychology, demonstrated here in the subdisciplines of cognitive and social psychology. Second: There is a much greater frequency of Nobel science awards for contributions to method than for contributions to theory, shown here in an analysis of the last two decades of Nobel awards in physics, chemistry, and medicine. The available documentation of Nobel awards reveals two forms of method–theory synergy: (a) existing theories were often essential in enabling development of awarded methods, and (b) award-receiving methods often generated previously inconceivable data, which in turn inspired previously inconceivable theories. It is easy to find illustrations of these same synergies also in psychology. Perhaps greater recognition of the value of method in advancing theory can help to achieve resolutions of psychology’s persistent theory controversies.
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Cites
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Yarkoni, T., & Westfall, J. (2017) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/1745691617693393 · Cited by 1,916
Ferguson, C. J., & Heene, M. (2012) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/1745691612459059 · Cited by 603
The alleged crisis and the illusion of exact replication
Stroebe, W., & Strack, F. (2014) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/1745691613514450 · Cited by 597
Woo, S. E., Jebb, A. T., Tay, L., & Parrigon, S. (2018) · Organizational Research Methods · doi:10.1177/1094428117752467 · Cited by 308
The Role of Ambulatory Assessment in Psychological Science
Trull, T. J., & Ebner-Priemer, U. (2014) · Current Directions in Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0963721414550706 · Cited by 284
Metadata
- Authors
- Greenwald, A. G.
- Venue
- Perspectives on Psychological Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2012-03
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 99-108
- ISSN
- 1745-6916 (ISSN-L)
- 1745-6924
- OpenAlex
- W2139394602
- Cited by
- 281
- References
- 12
- FWCI
- 79.94
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
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