A Review of Psychology of Science
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Psychology and Behavioral Sciences 2019; 8(6): 173-178 http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/pbs doi: 10.11648/j.pbs.20190806.15 ISSN: 2328-7837 (Print); ISSN: 2328-7845 (Online) A Review of Psychology of Science Xi Yanhui 1, Li Jianshan 2 1Department of Sociology, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo, China 2School of Philosophy, Nankai University, Tianjin, China Email address: To cite this article: Xi Yanhui, Li Jianshan. A Review of Psychology of Science. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences . Vol. 8, No. 6, 2019, pp. 173-178. doi: 10.11648/j.pbs.20190806.15 Received : October 11, 2019; Accepted : December 19, 2019; Published : December 30, 2019 Abstract: As an important part of the metascience, psychology of science serves a crucial sector of the science research from the perspective of humanities and social science. In the 1930s, psychology of science began to sprout, but in the following decades psychology of science was relatively silent, with few iconic achievements, and was rarely valued. Since the 1970s, due to the outstanding contributions of Kuhn's paradigm theory, psychology of science has been widely recognized. Since the mid-1980s, psychology of science research has gradually brought together researchers and produced a series of important achievements. The discipline of psychology of science has been formally established. In general, the subjects of psychology of science mainly include psychology of scientific creation, social psychology of science, and psychology of scientist personality. In China, Wang Jisheng made pioneering contributions in the study of psychology of science in the mid-1980s, but psychology of science had few achievements in 1990s to the 2010s, and the results are also mainly concentrated on the scientific image. Since 2013, the research of psychology of science in Chinese have gradually increased, the theoretical discussion of psychology of science has increased, and the exploration of the autonomy has begun to show. All in all, the development of psychology of science still needs more scholars to join, and needs the recognition and attention of the academic community. Keywords: Psychology of Science, Social Psychology of Science, China, Wang Jisheng 1. Introduction 2. The Distinction Between Scientific Psychology of science is an important component of the metascience, which together with history of science, Psychology and Psychology of Science philosophy of science and sociology of science constitutes a There are two different kinds of “ke xue xin li xue” in the basic metascience subject (Ziman's words). Kuhn first broadly context of Chinese, one is scientific psychology in the field of legitimized psychological studies of science in the history of psychology, and the other is psychology of science in the field psychology of science. The true history of science can not be of metascience. revealed completely without psychology of science [1]. D. K. Simonton also pointed out that the essence of science 2.1. Scientific Psychology in the Field of Psychology imagination will be incomprehensible if there’s no psychological dimension [2]. It is also believed by Ziman that Scientific psychology in the field of psychology is also the sociological features of college science can only be known as scientism psychology, of which formation is related understood through psychological terminology. Psychology to the psychology’s scientific pursuit. It was created in the of science is now at the edge of metascience research. But the imitation of the paradigm of natural science research. It was more it is in this situation, the more it is necessary to review pursuing scientific methods, quantitative criteria, technical, the history of psychology of science in order to better and judging the value of psychological studies with scientific understand the overall outline of this subject. or not. Overtime, scientific has become the dominant ideology of psychology. Scientific psychology refers to the method of following the natural science approach strictly, taking a Psychology and Behavioral Sciences 2019; 8(6): 173-178 174 completely objective observation, experimental and statistical Implications of psychological research for contemporary approach on the premise of value neutrality, achieving philosophy of science” (1981). (2) R. D. Tweney, M. E. scientific by means of elemental theory, reductionism, Doherty, & C. R. Mynatt published “On scientific thinking” atomism, etc. The most important for this kind of psychology (Columbia University Press, 1981). (3) D. T. Campbell’s is not problem, but method, and only method can be ensured “Experiments as arguments” published in E. R. House (Eds) the scientific. Evaluation stuides review annual (1982). (4) “Historical distributions of multiple discoveries and theories of scientific 2.2. Psychology of Science from the Perspective of change” published by A. Brannigan and R. A. Wanner in Metascience Social Studies of Science (1983). (5) Harvard University Psychology of science in the perspective of metascience is Professor Miller’s “Image in Science Thinking” (1984), which quite different from the scientific psychology. Psychology of emphasized the key role of image in science creation. science is a branch of the metascience, and it is a 1986 was a key year in the history of psychology of science. psychological research that directed at science. It mainly In this year, psychology of science conference was held at the focuses on the creative thoughts of scientists, their cognitive Memphis State University. The basic issues was discussed and and personality characteristics which are different from the specialized research group was formed during the meeting. ordinary people. For nearly two decades, psychology of After that, many studies has emerged. Results are as follows: science has presented diverse research subjects and (1) D. Kulkarni and H. A. Simon’s article “The processeses of landscapes. In particular, social psychology of science scientific discovery: The strategy of experimentation”, research represents a new trend of this research. published in the journal of Cognitive Science (1988). (2) M. L. Frank and K. Richard’s article “Psychology of the scientist: LVIII Anxiety about research: An initial examination of a 3. Psychology of Science: History and multidimensional concept” published in the Psychological Subject Reports (1988). (3)B. Gholson and A. C. Houts’s article “Toward a cognitive psychology of science” published in 3.1. The Development of Psychology of Science Social Epistemology (1989). (4) A. Serchuk’s article“What can the cognitive psychology of science bring to the science Psychology of science has experienced a long period of and technology studies?” (Social Epistemology, 1989). (5) W. silence since it was born. The existence of psychology of R. Shadish and R. A. Neimeyer’s article “Contributions of science as the sub-science was recognized as early as science psychology to an integrative science studies: The shape of of science was born in the end of 1930s, but there were few things to come”, in The cognitive turn: Sociological and research in the next 20 years until 1950s. Wertheimer, a psychological perspectives on science , edited by S. Fuller, M. Gestalt psychologist, published the book “ Creative Thinking ” Demey, T. Shinn & S. Woolgar (1989). in 1959. In 1966, the humanistic psychologist Maslow In 1989, a very representative collection of papers was published a monograph on The Psychology of Science . There published which is “Psychology of science: Contributions to are also some related papers during that period: (1) D. T. metascience” edited by B. Gholson, W. R. Shadish, R. A. Campbell’s “Blind variation and selective retention in creative Neimeyer, and A. C. Houts (Cambridge University Press). It thought as in other knowledge processes” published in reviewed the history of psychology of science systematically, Psychological Review in 1960. (2) R. C. Jacobs with D. T. and developed a blueprint for its theoretical and practical Campbell’s “The perpetuation of an arbitrary tradition through research. In the essay, A. C. Houts wrote the article several generations of a laboratory microculture” published in “Contributions for the psychology of science to metascience: the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology in 1961. (3) J. A call for explorers”. P. Barker wrote “The reflexivity problem A. Chambers, published a paper in the Psychological in the psychology of science”. In the 1990s, Shadish and Monographs: General and Applied named “Relating Fuller’s “The Sociel Psychology of Science” (Gilford Press, personality and biographical factors to scientific creativity”. 1994) opened up a new direction in the study of psychology of 1970 was a turning point for psychology of science which science, marking a new perspective beyond cognition, was mainly due to the success of Kuhn’s influence. B. F. personality and creativity. After 2000, G. J. Feist’s book “The Singer published paper “Toward a psychology of science” in Psychology of Science and the Origins of the Scientific Mind” the American Psychologists . I. I. Mitroff published a paper (Yale University Press, 2006) was published and became entitled “The subjective side of science” in 1974. In 1976, M. another masterpiece in the 21 st century. In addition, R. W. J. Mahoney published “Scientist as subject: The psychological Proctor and E. J. Capaldi edited “Psychology of Science: imperative”. And R. Fisch’s “Psychology of science” was Implicit and Explicit Processes”, the research topics