Psychological theories vary widely in their formality—the extent to which the components of the theory and the relationships among them are specified clearly and in detail. At the informal end of this dimension are theories that consist of simple verbal descriptions of a few important components and relationships. The habituation theory of expressive-writing effects on health is relatively informal in this sense. So is the drive theory of social facilitation and inhibition. At the more precise, formal end of this dimension are theories that are expressed in terms of mathematical equations or computer programs.
Formal Theories in Psychology
People who are not familiar with scientific psychology are sometimes surprised to learn that psychological theories can take the form of mathematical equations and computer programs. The following formal theories are among the best known and most successful in the field.
- ACT-R. A comprehensive theory of human cognition that is akin to a programming language, within which more specific models can be created. See http://act-r.psy.cmu.edu.
- Prospect theory. A formal theory of decision making under uncertainty. Psychologist Daniel Kahneman won the Nobel Prize in economics based in part on prospect theory. Read about Kahneman’s Nobel Prize work athttp://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/2002/kahneman-autobio.html.
- Rescorla-Wagner model. A theory of classical conditioning that features an equation describing how the strength of the association between unconditioned and conditioned stimuli changes when the two are paired. For more on this formal theory—including an interactive version—see http://psych.hanover.edu/javatest/rescrolawagner.
Both informal and formal theories have their place in psychological research. Informal theories tend to be easier to create and to understand but less precise in their predictions, which can make them more difficult to test. They are especially appropriate, however, in the early stages of research when the phenomena of interest have not yet been described in detail. Formal theories tend to be more difficult to create and to understand—sometimes requiring a certain amount of mathematical or computer programming background—but they also tend to be more precise in their predictions and therefore easier to test. They are especially appropriate in the later stages of research when the phenomena of interest have been described in detail
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