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Science Forum Index » Psychology Forum » tip of my tongue - help!
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| Templeton |
 Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2003 4:44 am |
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Guest
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I'm trying to think of a word that means that a supposed explanation
is really just a rewording of the question. Psychologists use it all
the time - especially behaviourists. I think it starts with an 'h' but
I'm not sure.
ex 1:
Why do some people behave violently?
Because they have a violent personality.
What is a violent personality?
The tendency to act violently.
ex 2:
Why does a copper sulphate solution look blue?
Because it has a pigment in it.
What is a pigment?
An ingredient that gives something a colour.
So copper sulphate is blue because it has something in it that makes
it blue?
Obviously the word I'm looking for means that the explanation is a
psuedo-explanation.
Can anyone help me?
Please email.
Templeton
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?" (1 Corinthians 10.29)
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| nate thomas |
| Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2003 1:43 pm |
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are you thinking of tautology? i'm not sure what the behaviourists use,
but it fits with what you're describing.
from dictionary.com:
tauˇtolˇoˇgy
n. pl. tauˇtolˇoˇgies
1.
1. Needless repetition of the same sense in different words;
redundancy.
2. An instance of such repetition.
2. Logic. An empty or vacuous statement composed of simpler
statements in a fashion that makes it logically true whether the simpler
statements are factually true or false; for example, the statement
Either it will rain tomorrow or it will not rain tomorrow.
what you're describing is also simply a circular argument.
Templeton wrote:
Quote: I'm trying to think of a word that means that a supposed explanation
is really just a rewording of the question. Psychologists use it all
the time - especially behaviourists. I think it starts with an 'h' but
I'm not sure.
ex 1:
Why do some people behave violently?
Because they have a violent personality.
What is a violent personality?
The tendency to act violently.
ex 2:
Why does a copper sulphate solution look blue?
Because it has a pigment in it.
What is a pigment?
An ingredient that gives something a colour.
So copper sulphate is blue because it has something in it that makes
it blue?
Obviously the word I'm looking for means that the explanation is a
psuedo-explanation.
Can anyone help me?
Please email.
Templeton
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?" (1 Corinthians 10.29)
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| Critter |
| Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2003 10:30 pm |
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Not sure about that because I cant be certain.
"nate thomas" <nthomas@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:3FB5222C.2030908@hotmail.com...
Quote: are you thinking of tautology? i'm not sure what the behaviourists use,
but it fits with what you're describing.
from dictionary.com:
tauˇtolˇoˇgy
n. pl. tauˇtolˇoˇgies
1.
1. Needless repetition of the same sense in different words;
redundancy.
2. An instance of such repetition.
2. Logic. An empty or vacuous statement composed of simpler
statements in a fashion that makes it logically true whether the simpler
statements are factually true or false; for example, the statement
Either it will rain tomorrow or it will not rain tomorrow.
what you're describing is also simply a circular argument.
Templeton wrote:
I'm trying to think of a word that means that a supposed explanation
is really just a rewording of the question. Psychologists use it all
the time - especially behaviourists. I think it starts with an 'h' but
I'm not sure.
ex 1:
Why do some people behave violently?
Because they have a violent personality.
What is a violent personality?
The tendency to act violently.
ex 2:
Why does a copper sulphate solution look blue?
Because it has a pigment in it.
What is a pigment?
An ingredient that gives something a colour.
So copper sulphate is blue because it has something in it that makes
it blue?
Obviously the word I'm looking for means that the explanation is a
psuedo-explanation.
Can anyone help me?
Please email.
Templeton
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?" (1 Corinthians
10.29)
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| Templeton |
| Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2003 5:13 am |
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Quote: are you thinking of tautology?
That's it! thanks. The syllable "haut" kept going thru my brain.
Quote: i'm not sure what the behaviourists use,
They do use it, in response to some of the softer subfields of
psychology.
Quote: what you're describing is also simply a circular argument.
Yes. It's very similar to one, but it involves only one premise
instead of at least two.
thanks again.
regs.
Templeton.
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Some people bring happiness wherever they go.
Some people bring happiness whenever they go.
(Oscar Wilde)
Templeton
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"why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?" (1 Corinthians 10.29)
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| Critter |
| Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2003 10:28 pm |
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Quote: are you thinking of tautology?
That's it! thanks. The syllable "haut" kept going thru my brain.
i'm not sure what the behaviourists use,
They do use it, in response to some of the softer subfields of
psychology.
and also in response to minds which they consider inferior, in a transparent
attempt to confuse |
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