The American Psychological Association offers a definition of psychology as “the scientific study of mind and behavior,” but how accurate is this definition? Is psychology really a real science? If so, what aspects are used to classify it as such? Here we will consider both arguments and take a deep dive into this controversial topic. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, science can be defined as “knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of particular general laws as obtained and tested through the scientific method.” Science has given us many answers to the questions we ask about the world and has offered us numerous ideas that are very different from those of a religious or philosophical nature. For example, science chooses to focus on the natural world around us rather than on forces spiritual and supernatural suggested by religion. Science has played a crucial role in our society for many years but it is precisely during the Renaissance period that its contributions are significantly concentrated of changes in the way people think. Many began to become curious about how the world works and wanted a sense of understanding. This is where the new era of science came into play. René Descartes and Isaac Newton made significant contributions to science and mathematics; they did not know at the time that their ideas would soon change the world. One such contribution was the scientific method. This method was the combination of using observations, measurements, and experiments to formulate tests and hypotheses. It relied on manipulating one variable to determine whether other variables would be affected by the change. Galileo, along with many other scientists, made great use of controlled experiments. Once the experiment was completed, they analyzed the data to determine the accuracy of their theories. This experimental method was, and still is, very important to science as a means of seeking truth. It offers consensual data that can be used to support or deny certain ideas or beliefs. Like any other, this process has various strengths and limitations. Some strengths include, but are not limited to, the fact that the researcher has control over the variable himself, can use the results to determine a process that will produce the greatest good in our society, and finally, it can be combined with other methods to produce more. accurate data. Some limitations, however, are the following. These experiments are subject to significant human error, the sample chosen may not be an accurate representation of a population, the results may become difficult to replicate as they may only apply to a specific situation, human responses are very complex and difficult to measure, and finally, performing certain experiments can become very unethical very quickly. There are many disadvantages associated with this method, but that does not make the resulting discoveries any less important. This approach has been used to understand behavior in early physiology and psychology in numerous ways. For example, the early works of Ivan Pavlov helped provide basic stepping stones that could later be developed by other psychologists. He studied salivation and this led him to conduct one of the most important studies in the field of psychology. In this studio, Pavlov playeda bell before presenting food to a dog. After a while, just the sound of the bell made the dog salivate. In other words, the dog had been conditioned to respond to a stimulus that had previously had no effect on him. The main result of this research was the idea of ​​unconditioned stimuli, unconditioned responses, conditioned stimuli, and conditioned responses because they offer an accurate explanation of how we learn and even teach others. Subsequently, further Pavlov experiments were conducted focusing on the processes that occur after learning. For example, he coined and defined the term generalization. It became known as having a conditioned reaction to stimuli similar but not necessarily identical to the original stimulus. Considering Pavlov's research alone, it is quite obvious that the experimental method played a very significant role by testing various hypotheses and helping us determine exactly how the world works. Furthermore, many psychologists believed that their work met all the criteria necessary to be considered valid in their field. considered a science. Belief in behaviorism was significant in supporting their thesis. Behaviorism is defined by the American Psychological Association as “an approach to psychology based on the study of objective, observable facts rather than subjective, qualitative processes, such as feelings, motivations, and consciousness.” Those who supported this approach made great use of the experimental method by extending previous experiments. Two very important behaviorists who did this were John Watson and BF Skinner. John Watson was the main founder of American behaviorism. In 1913 he wrote a psychological review which he entitled Psychology as a Behaviorist Sees It in which he made three main points. The first identified psychology as an objective natural science without introspection or subjective data. The second emphasized the prediction and control of human behavior rather than describing and explaining it and, finally, specified that there is no obvious dividing line between humans and animals. In 1919 he wrote another book entitled Psychology from the Point of View of a Behaviorist in which he discussed human behavior, extended animal research methods to humans, established innate emotional responses (fear, anger, and love), and stated that all other emotional responses are acquired. . It is important to pay attention to Watson's most famous study, the Little Albert study. Here, he conditioned an eleven-month-old baby to have a learned fear of white rats and various other objects by banging a gong every time it was placed in front of him. His method in this and all his other studies was to begin with observation, then administer tests, present a verbal report, and finally use the conditioned reflex method. BF Skinner also built his research on previous studies. He took the idea of ​​classical conditioning, as established by Pavolv, and developed operant conditioning. Operant conditioning occurs when organisms learn through consequences. To test his theories, Skinner built and used an apparatus called the Skinner box. This box has been used to study reinforcement schedules in animals. It included a lever, bar or button that the animal could use, when pressed or moved, objects such as food, water or treats were dispensed to reinforce the behavior. These studies have made it easy to control the environment and learn the speed at which learning occurs. Programs were classified as fixed interval, fixed ratio, variable interval, or variable ratio. Skinner continued his studies hypothesizing that i..