Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Psychological Issues

Unit 1 Research Issues

YES: APA Presidential Task Force on Evidence-Based Practice, from “Evidence-Based Practice in Psychology,” American Psychologist (May/June 2006)

NO: Brent D. Slife and Dennis C. Wendt, from “The Next Step in the Evidence-Based Practice Movement,” APA Convention Presentation (August 2006)

The APA Presidential Task Force on Evidence-Based Practice assumes that a variety of traditional empirical methods is sufficient to provide evidence for psychological practices. Psychologist Brent D. Slife and researcher Dennis C. Wendt contend that traditional empirical methods are guided by a single philosophy that limits the diversity of methods.

YES: Diana Baumrind, from “Some Thoughts on Ethics of Research: After Reading Milgram’s ‘Behavioral Study of Obedience,’” American Psychologist (vol. 19, 1964)

NO: Stanley Milgram, from “Issues in the Study of Obedience: A Reply to Baumrind,” American Psychologist (vol. 19, 1964)

Psychologist Diana Baumrind argues that Stanley Milgram’s study of obedience did not meet ethical standards for research, because participants were subjected to a research design that caused undue psychological stress that was not resolved after the study. Social psychologist Stanley Milgram, in response to Baumrind’s accusations, asserts that the study was well designed, the stress caused to participants could not have been anticipated, and the participants’ anguish dissipated after a thorough debriefing.

YES: David M. Buss, from Evolutionary Psychology: The New Science of the Mind, 3rd Edition (Allyn and Bacon, 2008)

NO: David J. Buller, from Adapting Minds: Evolutionary Psychology and the Persistent Quest for Human Nature (MIT Press, 2005)

Professor of Psychology David M. Buss contends that the research data indicate an evolved female preference for high-status, resource-possessing males. Philosopher of Science David J. Buller argues that the research data support several alternative explanations for Buss’s findings.

Unit 2 Biological Issues

YES: Louann Brizendine, from The Female Brain (Morgan Road Books, 2006)

NO: Brenda J. Allen, from Difference Matters: Communicating Social Identity (Waveland Press, 2004)

Physician Louann Brizendine argues that gender differences in communication are the necessary result of “hard wired” differences in female and male brains. Professor of Communications Brenda J. Allen contends that communication differences between genders are the result of social and contextual influences and that changing these influences could change communication styles.

YES: Qazi Rahman, from “The Neurodevelopment of Human Sexual Orientation.” Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (October 2005)

NO: Stanton L. Jones and Alex W. Kwee, from “Scientific Research, Homosexuality, and the Church’s Moral Debate: An Update,” Journal of Psychology and Christianity (Winter 2005)

Professor of Psychobiology Qazi Rahman claims that the current research on the biology of homosexuality supports prenatal biological determination and refutes learning models of sexual orientation. Professor of Psychology Stanton L. Jones and Clinical Psychologist Alex W. Kwee claim the current research on the biology of homosexuality provides no firm evidence for biological causation and leaves room for learning models of sexual orientation.

YES: Glenn Geher, from “Evolutionary Psychology Is Not Evil! (. . . And Here’s Why . . .)” Psychological Topics (December 2006)

NO: Edwin E. Gantt and Brent S. Melling, from “Evolutionary Psychology Isn’t Evil, It’s Just Not Any Good,” An Original Essay Written for This Volume

Evolutionary psychologist Glenn Geher maintains that evolution provides the best meta-theory for explaining and understanding human psychology. Theoretical psychologists Edwin Gantt and Brent Melling argue that an evolutionary account of psychology omits many important and good things about humans.

Unit 3 Human Development

YES: Constance Ahrons, from We’re Still Family: What Grown Children Have to Say About Their Parents’ Divorce (HarperCollins, 2004)

NO: Elizabeth Marquardt, from “The Bad Divorce,” First Things (February 2005)

The founding co-chair of the Council on Contemporary Families, Constance Ahrons, argues not only that the commonly assumed negative effects on children of divorced families are myths but also that these children actually emerge stronger, wiser, and with closer family connections. Director of the Center for Marriage and Families at the Institute for American Values, Elizabeth Marquardt, addresses perceived flaws in Ahrons’ study and claims from her own work and experience that divorce negatively affects children for the rest of their lives.

YES: Lauren Donchi and Susan Moore, from “It’s a Boy Thing: The Role of the Internet in Young People’s Psychological Wellbeing,” Behavior Change (vol. 21, no. 2, 2004)

NO: Patti M. Valkenburg and Jochen Peter, from “Online Communication and Adolescent Well-Being: Testing the Stimulation Versus the Displacement Hypothesis,” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication (vol. 12, issue 4, 2007).

Psychologists Lauren Donchi and Susan Moore report that adolescent males who rate online friendships higher than face-to-face friendships are more likely to be lonely and experience low self-esteem. Professors of communication Patti M. Valkenburg and Jochen Peter maintain that online relationships actually enhance an adolescent’s face-to-face peer relations and psychological wellbeing.

YES: Jean M. Twenge, Sara Konrath, Joshua D. Foster, W. Keith Campbell, and Brad J. Bushman, from “Egos Inflating Over Time: A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory,” Journal of Personality (August 2008)

NO: Kali H. Trzesniewski, M. Brent Donnellan, and Richard W. Robins, from “Do Today’s Young People Really Think They Are So Extraordinary? An Examination of Secular Trends in Narcissism and Self-Enhancement?” Psychological Science (February 2008)

Psychologist Jean Twenge and colleagues argue that the evidence suggests that young people are more egocentric than the previous generation. Professor Kali Trzesniewski and colleagues maintain that the evidence shows there is no change in the over-all level of narcissism since the previous generation.

Unit 4 Cognitive Processes

YES: Howard Gardner, from Multiple Intelligences: New Horizons (Basic Books, 2006)

NO: John White, from “Howard Gardner: The Myth of Multiple Intelligences,” Lecture at Institute of Education, University of London (November 17, 2004)

Psychologist Howard Gardner argues for the validity of his theory of multiple intelligences because it both reflects the data collected about intelligent human behavior and explains why people excel in some areas but fail in others. Educational philosopher John White believes that Gardner cannot prove the existence of multiple types of intelligence and argues that people who are generally able to adapt well will excel in whatever field they choose.

YES: David H. Gleaves, Steven M. Smith, Lisa D. Butler, and David Spiegel, from “False and Recovered Memories in the Laboratory and Clinic: A...