Empirical research methods

At the heart of any scientific knowledge lie certain methods of cognition of reality, thanks to which the branches of science receive the necessary information for processing, interpreting, constructing theories. Each individual industry has its own specific set of research methods. But in general, scientific methods are uniform for all and, in fact, their application and distinguishes science from pseudoscience.

Empirical research methods, their features and types

One of the most ancient and widely used methods of research are empirical methods. In the ancient world there were philosophers-empiricists who knew the surrounding world through sensory, sensory perception. Here, the research methods originated, which in the direct translation means "perception by the senses."

Empirical methods in psychology are considered basic and most accurate. In general, in the study of the features of a person's mental development, two basic methods can be used: the cross-section, to which empirical studies refer, and the longitudinal, so-called longitude, when one person is the object of research over a large time interval, and when the characteristics of his personality Development.

Empirical methods of cognition presuppose observation of phenomena, their fixation and classification, as well as the establishment of interrelations and regularities. They consist of different types of observations, experimental laboratory studies, psychodiagnostic procedures, biographical descriptions, and exist in psychology since the XIX century, ever since it began to stand out as a separate branch of knowledge from other social sciences.

Observation

Observation as a method of empirical research in psychology exists in the form of self-observation (introspection) - the subjective cognition of one's own psyche, and in objective external observation. Moreover, both occur indirectly, through the external manifestations of mental processes in various forms of activity and behavior.

Unlike everyday observation, the scientific must meet certain requirements, a built methodology. First of all, its tasks and goals are determined, then the object, the subject and the situations are selected, and also the methods that provide the most complete information. In addition, the results of observation are recorded and then interpreted by the researcher.

Different forms of observation are certainly interesting and indispensable, especially when it is required to compile the most general picture of the behavior of people in natural conditions and situations where the intervention of a psychologist is not required. However, here there are certain difficulties in interpreting the phenomena associated with the personality characteristics of the observer.

Experiment

In addition to observation, in psychology , such empirical methods as laboratory experiments are often used. They differ in that they study cause-effect relationships in an artificially created environment. In this case, the experimental psychologist does not just model a concrete situation, but actively influences it, changes it, and conditions vary. Moreover, the created model can be repeated several times, respectively, and the results obtained during the experiment can be reproduced repeatedly. Experimental empirical methods make it possible to study internal mental processes with the help of external manifestations in an artificially created situational model. There is in science and this kind of experiment, as a natural experiment. Conduct it in natural conditions or in the most close to them. Another form of the method is the forming experiment, which is used to form and change a person's psychology while studying it.

Psychodiagnostics

Empirical methods of psychodiagnostics are intended to describe and document the psychological characteristics of a person, the similarity and difference between people using standardized questionnaires, tests and questionnaires.

These main methods of empirical research in psychology, as a rule, are used in a complex manner. Complementing each other, they help to better understand the features of the psyche, to discover new aspects of the personality.