ABSTRACT
Like other social and behavioral sciences, social psychology rests on sev eral basic assumptions about the nature of causality and the character of human activity. These assumptions guide the specific theories of social be havior that are tested in archival, observational, and experimental re search. Confidence in a particular finding increases when the same opera tions produce similar results in different settings (empirical replication) and when different operations yield similar conceptual conclusions (con ceptual replication). Regardless of the research method chosen, the inves tigator must try to ensure that the findings obtained have both internal va lidity (freedom from artifacts) and external validity (generalizability beyond the context in which the research was performed). Archival and ob servational methods minimize the respondent’s awareness that he or she is participating in research, whereas experimental methods provide the con trol needed for precise tests of theory. In both observational and experi mental research, social psychologists must balance the potential benefits of their work against the potential risks to participants in the study. Through the refinement of theory, using methods that are ethically accept able and methodologically sound, social psychology contributes to our un derstanding of human behavior.
