A recent Twitter thread started by Ekaterina Damer has gathered numerous suggestions from psychologists, offering insights into a variety of theoretical frameworks and resources. These suggestions cover important themes in psychology, delivering valuable viewpoints for both experienced practitioners and those new to the discipline.
One suggestion comes from Iris van Rooij, who emphasized Robert Cummins’ work, “How does it work?” vs. “What are the laws?” Two views on psychological explanation. Ed Orehek highlighted a notable special issue regarding theory construction in social personality psychology, published in the Personality and Social Psychology Review.
Djouria Ghilani referenced Gerd Gigerenzer’s “Personal Reflections on Theory and Psychology,” which is supplemented by Barry N. Markovsky’s selected writings. Tal Yarkoni encapsulated views on Donald T. Meehl’s foundational contributions, with links to his essential papers, including debates on the paradox of theory-testing in psychology compared to physics.
PsychBrief offered a curated compilation of Paul Meehl’s lectures and papers, acting as a thorough resource for those keen on the philosophy of science. Burak Tunca suggested Robert I. Sutton & Barry M. Staw’s “What Theory is Not,” which clarifies prevalent misunderstandings about theories.
Joshua Skewes advocated for Valerie Gray Hardcastle’s work on theory development in cognitive science, while Randy McCarthy directed readers to an introduction to theory and explanation in social psychology by Gawronski and Bodenhausen. Kimberly Quinn recommended McGuire’s piece on innovative hypothesis generation in psychology.
Daniël Lakens pointed out Jaccard & Jacoby’s manual on theory development and model-building techniques for social scientists, as well as Fiedler’s views on theory creation published in the Personality and Social Psychology Review. Tom Stafford examined Roberts and Pashler’s commentary on the influence of theory testing.
Updates from 16 August 2018 presented more resources: Richard Prather recommended Simmering et al.’s discussion on the significance of computational modeling in developmental science. Brett Buttliere announced a Facebook group aimed at exploring psychological theory. Eric Morris highlighted Wilson’s notes on theoretical constructs from a contextual behavioral viewpoint.
Michael P. Grosz drew attention to an article on “Theoretical Amnesia” by Denny Borsboom, while Ivan Grahek cited Fiedler’s research on robust psychological science and a priori theorizing. Additional discussions and suggestions were provided by Iris van Rooij in two Twitter threads.
The ongoing dialogue highlights the intricacy and variety of theoretical views in psychology, reflective of the rich discourse and continuing development within the field.