American and British college students' epistemological beliefs about research on psychological and biological development

Epistemological beliefs about the nature, sources, and limits of knowledge are often assumed to be similar across different domains of knowledge. This assumption was tested by comparing beliefs about scientific research on psychological and biological development. Undergraduates from the United Stat...

Full description

Saved in:

Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Journal of applied developmental psychology Vol. 23; no. 6; pp. 625 - 642
Main Authors:	Estes, David, Chandler, Melanie, Horvath, Keith J, Backus, Diane W
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Norwood, NJ Elsevier Inc 01-01-2003 Elsevier
Subjects:	Attitudes toward science Biological and medical sciences College students Educational psychology Epistemological beliefs Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry Psychology. Psychophysiology Pupil and student. Academic achievement and failure Theory theory United Kingdom United States North America Europe America Attitudes toward science College students Theory theory Epistemological beliefs Belief Social environment Human Crosscultural study Student Ripening University Scientific research Development Epistemological belief
Online Access:	Get full text
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!

Description
Summary:	Epistemological beliefs about the nature, sources, and limits of knowledge are often assumed to be similar across different domains of knowledge. This assumption was tested by comparing beliefs about scientific research on psychological and biological development. Undergraduates from the United States and the United Kingdom responded to a set of epistemologically relevant statements about each field and then compared the two fields directly in terms of their confidence in the conclusions and advice of experts. On all measures, more negative beliefs were expressed about research on psychological development. Although U.S. students were more skeptical about both fields, U.S. and U.K. students displayed similar response patterns. To justify their skepticism toward scientific research as a valid source of knowledge about psychological development, students in both countries gave similar reasons (e.g., the difficulty in accurately measuring psychological variables). These results demonstrate that epistemological beliefs can differ substantially between two closely related fields. They also highlight issues that must be addressed to make education about the validity of research in developmental psychology more effective.
ISSN:	0193-3973 1873-7900
DOI:	10.1016/S0193-3973(03)00002-9