ERIC Number: EJ993701
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Dec
Pages: 2
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0003-066X
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Available Date: N/A
Further Sources of Our Field's Embattled Public Reputation
Lilienfeld, Scott O.
American Psychologist, v67 n9 p808-809 Dec 2012
Responds to the comments made by Newman et al., Tryon, and Teo on the current author's original article. In the original article on public skepticism toward psychology, the author delineated eight reasons why many laypersons are dubious of our field's scientific status. The author argued that although some of these sources (e.g., hindsight bias, the illusion of understanding) reflect public misunderstandings regarding the application of science to psychological questions, others (e.g., our field's reluctant embrace of evidence-based clinical practices) reflect professional psychology's failure to uphold rigorous scientific standards. The author was gratified to read these three stimulating commentaries, if only because they suggest that my article accomplished its principal aim: to engender thoughtful debate concerning the sources of, and remedies for, psychology's problematic scientific status in the public eye. The authors all noted significant points of consensus with the current author's analysis but also identified areas in which they found my coverage to be incomplete or inaccurate. The author welcomes these constructive criticisms and address each in turn.
Descriptors: Evidence, Psychology, Reputation, Public Opinion, Scientific Principles, Reader Response, Professional Recognition, Misconceptions
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Opinion Papers
Education Level: Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
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