Two kinds of theory: What psychology can learn from Einstein
Abstract
© The Author(s) 2020. A century ago, Einstein distinguished between two kinds of theory—theories of principle and constructive theories. These have separate but complementary roles to play in the advancement of knowledge, in the manner in which they relate to data and in how they are developed. The different kinds of theory carry implications for what kinds of data we produce and for how they are put to use. We outline Einstein’s distinction and the model of theory formation that it involves. We then use the distinction to look at some of the discussion of scientific practice in psychology, particularly recent work on the need for more theoretical, rather than purely methodological, sophistication. We argue in agreement with Einstein that the distinction is a useful one and that adopting it as a tenet of theoretical development requires a renewed commitment to a natural history of psychology.
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of Publication
2020
ISSN
09593543
Volume
30
Issue
5
PubMed ID
10.1177/0959354320937804
Publication Title
Theory and Psychology
Publisher
SAGE
School
School of Arts and Humanities
RAS ID
32639
Copyright
subscription content
First Page
674
Last Page
689
Comments
McGann, M., & Speelman, C. (2020). Two kinds of theory: What psychology can learn from Einstein. Theory & Psychology, 30(5), 674-689. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354320937804