According to the philosophers of science Hempel and Oppenheim (1948), who were cited appropriately by Lilienfeld (see record 2011-12007-001) in his article, scientific explanations serve to answer "why" questions. Clarifying the logic of explanations in the sciences, they developed famously the notion that phenomena can be explained (using…

Comments on an article by J. J. Arnett regarding the assertion that American psychology focuses too narrowly on Americans while neglecting the other 95% of the world's population. The authors agree with Arnett's call for greater attention to this issue. However, they fundamentally disagree with his position on issues related to generalizability…

Intellectual and psychosocial functioning develop along complex learning pathways. Steinberg, Cauffman, Woolard, Graham, and Banich measured these two classes of abilities with narrow, biased assessments that captured only a segment of each pathway and created misleading age patterns based on ceiling and floor effects. It is a simple matter to…

The authors respond to both the general and specific concerns raised in Fischer, Stein, and Heikkinen's commentary on their article (Steinberg, Cauffman, Woolard, Graham, & Banich), in which they drew on studies of adolescent development to justify the American Psychological Association's positions in two Supreme Court cases involving the…

Comments on an article by Eidelson and Eidelson (see record 2003-03645-004) which made an important contribution, at a critical juncture, to the discussion of international conflicts by identifying core dimensions that allow for the systematic examination of the problem. Their article also posed a danger that mirrors a disturbing trend in the…