Correspondence problem (psychology)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The correspondence problem comes from the philosophy of science and deals with the question of the extent to which precisely the theoretical construct that was meant in the corresponding theory can be captured in an investigation with the indicators used . The questions of what correspondence rules are, what status they have (definitions, logical deductions, empirical hypotheses) and how to ensure that certain indicators belong to certain theoretical constructs are examined.

More detailed description

Since the term arises from the structure and structure of a particular theory and is intertwined with it, coping with the problem in practice essentially depends on the precise definition and the quality of the operationalization of the term. In the methodology of empirical social research, this problem is dealt with in part in the quality criterion validity , especially in the question "To what extent does the test instrument measure what it is supposed to measure?" The other part, the theory formation and conceptual construction, is concerned with the philosophy of science (relationship between theory and reality) and language philosophy (relationship between language and reality).

The so-called basic sentence problem must be distinguished from the correspondence problem , in which the correspondence between the theory-bound term and survey key figures is not considered, but the extent to which observations correspond to reality.

Both problems have in common the question of the relationship between reality and theory, as posed by Lakatos , for example . He uses the correspondence problem as a starting point for his epistemological reflections on the research programs .

example

One researcher hypothesizes that educated people are more satisfied with life than uneducated people. For this purpose, the construct “life satisfaction” is taken from a theory, operationalized and a test instrument in the form of a questionnaire is created. In a study, life satisfaction is recorded with this questionnaire and the test subjects are grouped according to their schooling. The results show that there is no statistical relationship between school education and life satisfaction. The researcher may now wonder whether there is really no causal relationship or whether he may have used incorrect or poor quality indicators for life satisfaction and education. The examination of this question includes dealing with the problem of correspondence.

literature

  • Bortz, J. & Döring, N. (2006). Research methods and evaluation for human and social scientists. Springer: Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-33305-0
  • Schnell, R. et al. (2008). Methods of empirical social research. Munich: Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag. ISBN 9783486587081 (pp. 74–79)

See also

Operationalism

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Schnell, R. et al. (2008). Methods of empirical social research. (P. 75) Munich: Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag. ISBN 9783486587081
  2. ^ Bortz, J. & Döring, N. (2006). Research methods and evaluation for human and social scientists. (P. 19) Springer: Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-33305-0
  3. ^ Bortz, J. & Döring, N. (2006). Research methods and evaluation for human and social scientists. (Pp. 19-21) Springer: Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-33305-0
  4. ^ Bortz, J. & Döring, N. (2006). Research methods and evaluation for human and social scientists. (P. 24 f.) Springer: Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-33305-0