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Theory Construction

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30 views2 pages

Theory Construction

Uploaded by

yoshita.chikky
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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THEORY CONSTRUCTION

The task of the scientist has been described as that of attempting to discover generalized laws
by which the observable events within his field of study may be brought into interrelation with
one another. To this end he develops and refines (mainly in the direction of quantitative
representation) his concepts or variables, arranges highly controlled (experimental) conditions
of observation and introduces theoretical constructions.
In natural sciences like Physics, theories serve to provide a functional connection between
empirical laws that were earlier considered as isolated realms of knowledge.
In behavior and social sciences, theory plays a somewhat different role. In these more complex
fields the simplest experimental situation that can be arranged usually involves such a large
number of variables that it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to discover direct empirical
laws to relate them. Theories act as a device to aid in the formulation of the laws. They consist
primarily in the introduction or postulation of hypothetical constructs which help to bridge gaps
between the experimental variables.

Like every other scientist, the psychologist is interested in establishing the interrelations within a
set of experimental variables, i. e., in discovering empirical laws. The variables may be divided
into two groups:

(1) R-variables: measurements of the behavior of organisms; attributes of simple response


patterns (actones), complex achievements (actions) and generalized response characteristics
(traits, abilities, etc.). These are sometimes referred to as the dependent variables.
(2) S-variables: measurements of physical and social environmental factors and conditions
(present and past) under which the responses of organisms occur. These are sometimes
referred to as the independent, manipulable variables.
While not all laws are quantitative, science typically strives to quantify its constructs and to
state their interrelations in terms of numerical laws. The numerical laws the psychologist seeks
may be represented as follows: R=f(S)
The problem here is two-fold:
➔ to discover what the relevant S variables are, and
➔ to ascertain the nature of the functional relations holding between the two groups of
variables.

(3)The concept of Intervening variables I-variables was introduced to describe variables other
than the ones under control of the experimenter determining the response.

THEORETICAL CONSTRUCTS MAY BE GROUPED INTO 4 CATEGORIES :-

1. Animistic conceptions: The relations of the construct to the empirical variables are left
entirely unspecified.Their locus is usually specified to be in some region within the
organism which is unaccessible to observation. These concepts are rendered
invulnerable by failure to specify what relations they might have either to the S or R
variables. Such as concepts of soul, mind, instinct, which in spite of vagueness have
withstood the test of time
2. Neurophysiological theories: Refers to neurophysiological concepts, defined in terms of
the operations and instruments of the neurophysiologist. There are many theoretical
constructs in psychology which are supposed to represent hypothetical
neurophysiological processes, but whose properties are defined
➔ either in terms of the response variables (type 3 theory),
➔ in terms of environmental factors and the response variables (type 4 theory),
➔ or just assumed to be operating without making any specification of their relations to
either the environmental or response variables (type i theory)
Example, Pavlov's constructs of excitatory and inhibitory states (type 4), and certain
neural trace theories of learning (Type 1)

3. Response inferred theoretical constructs: They depend heavily upon the


phenomenological introspections of their subjects or themselves. Example, field theory,
Lewin

4. Theoretical constructs as intervening variables between S and R variables-In sharp


contrast to these response inferred theories with their emphasis upon the
phenomenological approach is the point of view that theoretical constructs in psychology
are to be regarded as 'intervening variables' which bring into relation with one another
the dependent R variables on the one hand and the independent S variables on the
other. Example, According to Hull and Tolman, theoretical constructs, or intervening
variables have to be introduced into psychology either when we do not know all the
important variables entering into a set of experimental events, or the precise nature of
the interrelating function is not known

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