¿Herramientas=teorías=datos? Sobre cierta dinámica circular en la ciencia cognitiva

• Gigerenzer, Gerd ^[1] ; Sturm, Thomas ^[2]
  1. [1] Max Planck Institute for Human Development

     Max Planck Institute for Human Development

     Berlin, Stadt, Alemania

     
  2. [2] Dept de Filosofia-UAB
• Localización: Quaderns de Psicología, ISSN 0211-3481, Vol. 13, Nº. 2, 2011, págs. 35-61
• Idioma: español
• DOI: 10.5565/rev/qpsicologia.949
• Títulos paralelos:
  • Tools=Theories=Data? On Some Circular Dynamics in Cognitive Science
• Enlaces
  • Texto completo (pdf)
• Resumen
  • español

    Algunos instrumentos han jugado un papel tan importante en la investigación psicológica que se han convertido en metáforas para el contenido mismo de la investigación, o han conducido a la generación de nuevos conceptos y teorías en psicología. Este capítulo proporciona dos casos prácticos relacionados que apoyan esta afirmación. Desde la llamada "revolución cognitiva" de la década de 1960, la mente humana ha sido descrita teóricamente como un "estadístico intuitivo" (una persona que piensa de forma intuitiva en términos estadísticos) o como un programa de ordenador. Estas teorías han sido fuertemente inspiradas por las herramientas introducidas en la investigación psicológica antes de la difusión de tales teorías en la comunidad psicológica: la estadística inferencial y el ordenador digital. Aquí discutimos los pros y los contras de las metáforas. Las metáforas pueden ser ventajosas, pues abren nuevas áreas de investigación, llevan a nuevas preguntas y datos; pero las metáforas pueden también incluir pérdidas, ya que siempre recalcan algunos aspectos y dejan otros fuera. Además, en lugar de teorías que son evaluadas por datos recogidos mediante herramientas de investigación aparentemente neutrales, hay una tendencia hacia teorías que se ajustan al funcionamiento o a los usos de herramientas específicas de investigación. Tal tendencia se ve en ocasiones reforzada por los datos que sólo pueden ser producidos por las nuevas herramientas. Los científicos deberían ser conscientes de esta dinámica para evitar circularidades en su teorización.

  • English

    Some instruments have played such a strong role in psychological research that they have become metaphors for the subject matter of such research itself, or that they have lead to the generation of new psychological concepts and theories. This chapter provides two related case studies for this claim. Since the so-called "cognitive revolution" of the 1960s, the human mind has been theoretically described as an "intuitive statistician" or as a computer program.  Such theories have been strongly inspired by the tools introduced into psychological research somewhat before the spreading of such theories within the psychological community:  inferential statistics and the digital computer.  We discuss both the pros and cons of the metaphors. Metaphors can be advantageous, as they can open up new research areas, questions, and data; but metaphors can also include losses, because they always emphasize some aspects and leave others out.  Moreover, instead of the theories being evaluated by data gathered by means of seemingly neutral research tools, there is a bias towards theories which match with the functioning or uses of specific research tools, a bias which is sometimes reinforced by data which can only be produced by the new tools.  Scientists should be aware of such a dynamics in order to avoid circularities in their theorizing. 

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