The sociological determinants of scientific bias

Michalski, Joseph H.

doi:10.1080/03057240.2020.1787962

Cited by 6 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Being influenced by emotions when processing and evaluating information falls within the field of motivated reasoning [25]. Motivated reasoning, also called cognitive bias, is defined as "heuristics or 'mental shortcuts' that lead to judgments and decision-making processes that deviate from rational objectivity or include systematic errors in the thinking process" [28]. Confirmation bias, one type of motivated reasoning, is when prior beliefs influence choices made in where to find information.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Addressing confirmation bias in middle school data science education

Hedges¹,

Given²

2023

FoDS

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<p style='text-indent:20px;'>More research is needed involving middle school students' engagement in the statistical problem-solving process, particularly the beginning process steps: formulate a question and make a plan to collect data/consider the data. Further, the increased availability of large-scale electronically accessible data sets is an untapped area of study. This interpretive study examined middle school students' understanding of statistical concepts involved in making a plan to collect data to answer a statistical question within a social issue context using data available on the internet. Student artifacts, researcher notes, and audio and video recordings from nine groups of 20 seventh-grade students in two gifted education pull-out classes at a suburban middle school were used to answer the study research questions. Data were analyzed using a priori codes from previously developed frameworks and by using an inductive approach to find themes.</p><p style='text-indent:20px;'>Three themes that emerged from data related to confirmation bias. Some middle school students held preconceptions about the social issues they chose to study that biased their statistical questions. This in turn influenced the sources of data students used to answer their questions. Confirmation bias is a serious issue that is exacerbated due to endless sources of data electronically available. We argue that this type of bias should be addressed early in students' educational experiences. Based on the findings from this study, we offer recommendations for future research and implications for statistics and data science education.</p>

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Addressing confirmation bias in middle school data science education

Hedges¹,

Given²

2023

FoDS

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“…Scientific knowledge is always a provisional way of explaining the world (Ferreira & Serpa, 2017;Michalski, 2020;Serpa & Ferreira, 2018). Following the positioning adopted by Serpa and Ferreira (2018) and in summary for the present argument, Scientific knowledge may be considered as a set of verified and verifiable knowledge, obtained through a systematic process and demonstrated in a rigorous and controlled way.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Despite various definitions, Sociology can be considered as a science (Michalski, 2020) that -in its theoretical specificities as multi-paradigmatic, object of study and methodological -seeks to grasp social reality in a rigorous manner through empirical information and by applying Durkheim's already classic general principle of explaining the social through the social (Ferguson, 2016;Ferreira & Serpa, 2017;Serpa & Ferreira, 2018, 2019a, 2019bSerpa et al, 2020). In line with Serpa and Ferreira (2019b), Sociology as a science and as a profession (in the diversity of roles and inherent professional cultures) studies the (dis)order of the social world, and deals with interactions, which result from the interaction and have implications in this interaction among human beings, such as objects, practices, representations and values, inserting them in their social context (online).…”

Section: Sociology As a Sciencementioning

confidence: 99%

Sociology: Tension between Science and Militant Activism?

Serpa

Ferreira²

2020

JESR

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This position paper is based on the assumption that there is an appreciation of Sociology as a justification for certain representations and practices of social and political intervention. In Sociology: Tension between science and militant activism?, the authors aim at justifying, on a reasoned basis, the relevance of Sociology as a specific form of scientific knowledge in current times, without, however, confusing the role of Sociology with the direct resolution of inequalities and injustices. At the methodological level, a bibliographic search on this subject has been carried out in scientific literature databases, such as Scopus, Web of Knowledge, SCILIT and institutional repositories, supplemented by the experience of the authors as sociologists, both in the teaching and research dimensions. Sociology focuses on sociological problems and not directly on social problems, and, as a science, it can contribute greatly to the understanding of the social world. Furthermore, the results from sociological research can potentially be applied in society in the most diverse political senses (in the broadest sense of this term). In conclusion, and as an implication, if this militant activist tendency is accentuated, Sociology may paradoxically lose recognition and scientific, academic and social legitimacy, contributing to its des-institutionalisation and consequent difficulty in having its knowledge applied to the resolution of social problems.

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“…Research and its philosophical pillars of ontology, epistemology, methodology and methods (Zukauskas et al, 2017) is an exclusively human endeavour directly impacted by those sociological forces applied throughout the social universe, including the scientist"s social location. (Michalski., 2020). Like the rest of the community, researchers swim in a melting pot of experience (author removed) that guides their research approach (Zukauskas et al, 2017).…”

Section: Research Barriersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The phrase "complex communication needs" is common within the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) which Sigafoos et al (2014) refer to as a clinical specialization within the broader field of speech-language pathology). "Complex communication needs" describes those for whom spoken language is not sufficient to meet their communication needs due to congenital or acquired disabilities (Therriena & Light, 2018) often associated with conditions such as cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, multiple sclerosis, autism, brain injury and stroke (Beukelman et al, 2012) and sometimes with mental illness (Garcí a-Mieres et al, 2020;Cohen et al, 2014). Predominantly the professional domain of speech and language therapy, AAC has developed into a specialized area of research and provision in recent decades (Schlosser, 2003) in this context there is a therapeutic focus on treating client needs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recruiting Participants with Complex Communication Access Needs in Social Science Research: Issues of Capacity and Consent

Dee-Price¹

2022

ISS

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Qualitative research assumes verbal and written communication ability from participants. Legitimised by the ethical pillars of ‘capacity’ and ‘consent’, articulate speech acts are the hidden ticket to research inclusion. The knowledge contribution of people with complex communication access needs is left off; a situation that undermines social science, reinforces disability exclusion paradigms and bypasses opportunities to remediate the problem. In this study, an important part of capacity assessment was transferred from the researcher to the prospective participants to sign off on the investigators’ capacity to communicate using alternative augmentative communication. The article begins with an exploration of the problem before describing the adaptations made and implemented in this study and their implications for social science.

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The sociological determinants of scientific bias

Cited by 6 publications

References 41 publications

Addressing confirmation bias in middle school data science education

Addressing confirmation bias in middle school data science education

Sociology: Tension between Science and Militant Activism?

Recruiting Participants with Complex Communication Access Needs in Social Science Research: Issues of Capacity and Consent

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