Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Naïve Psychological Science: The Prevalence, Strength, and Sources of Misconceptions

  • Published:
The Psychological Record Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Studies show that misconceptions about psychology are pervasive. This study examined how the strength of prior beliefs and the sources of misinformation relate to conceptual change following an introductory psychology course. Ninety introductory psychology students completed a 36-item “Psychological Information” questionnaire. Testing during the 1st day of the semester showed 38.5% accuracy whereas testing during the last week showed 66.3% accuracy. These results suggest that misconceptions remain prevalent but can be reduced by taking an introductory psychology course. Our data also indicate that strength of belief is an important transitional variable that may reflect the process of change. Finally, although personal experience and media are important sources of misinformation, we found that they do not promote strongly held beliefs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • BARNETT, M. A. (1986). Commonsense and research findings in personality. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 62–64.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • BRANSFORD, J. D., BROWN, A. L., & COCKING, R. R. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience and school. Washington, Dc: National Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • BROWN, L. T. (1983). Some more misconceptions about psychology among introductory psychology students. Teaching of Psychology, 10, 207–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • BROWN, L. T. (1984). Misconceptions about psychology arent always what they seem’. Teaching of Psychology, 11, 75–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • COMMITTEE ON UNDERGRADUATE SCIENCE EDUCATION (1997). Misconceptions as barriers to understanding science. In Science teaching reconsidered: A handbook (chapter 4). [Electronic version], Washington, DC: National Academy of Sciences.

    Google Scholar 

  • DELLA SALLA, S. (1999). Mind myths. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • DOLE, J. A. (2000). Readers, texts and conceptual change learning. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 16, 99–118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DOLE, J. A., & SINATRA, G. M. (1998). Reconceptualizing change in the cognitive construction of knowledge. Educational Psychologist, 33,109–128.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ELKIND, D. (1987, May). The child yesterday, today and tomorrow. Young Children, 6–11.

    Google Scholar 

  • GARDNER, R. M., & DALSING, A. (1986). Misconceptions about psychology among college students. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 32–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • GARDNER, R. M., & HUND, R. M. (1983). Misconceptions of psychology among academicians. Teaching of Psychology, 10, 20–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • GARRETT, H. E., & FISHER, T. R. (1926). The prevalence of certain popular misconceptions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 10, 411–420.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • GRIGGS, R. A., & RANSDELL, S. E. (1987). Misconception tests or misconceived tests? Teaching of Psychology, 14, 210–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • GUTMAN, A. (1979). Misconceptions of psychology and performance in the introductory course. Teaching of Psychology, 6, 159–161.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • HIGBEE, K. L., & CLAY, S. L. (1998). College students beliefs in the ten-percent myth’. The Journal of Psychology, 132, 469–476.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • HYND, C. R., & GUZZETTI, B. J. (1993). Exploring issues in conceptual change. In D. J. Leu & C. K. Kinzer (Eds.), Examining central issues in literacy research, theory and practice (pp. 374–381). The National Reading Conference.

    Google Scholar 

  • KOWALSKI, P., & TAYLOR, A. (April 2001). An exploratory study of developmental misconceptions. Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association Conference, Seattle, Wa.

    Google Scholar 

  • KOWALSKI, P., TAYLOR, A., FREUND, L, & HOULDSWORTH, B. (2002, April). Assessing validity of measures of college student’s motivation to learn. Poster presented at the 82nd Annual Convention of the Western Psychological Association, Irvine, CA.

    Google Scholar 

  • KRUGER, J., & DUNNING, D. (1999). Unskilled and unaware of it: How difficulties in recognizing one’s own incompentence lead to inflated self-assessments. Journal of Social and Personality, 77(6), 1121–1134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LAMAL, P. A. (1979). College students common beliefs about psychology’. Teaching of Psychology, 6, 155–158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LAMAL, P. A. (1995). College students misconceptions about behavior analysis’. Teaching of Psychology, 22, 177–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LIMON, M. (2001). On the cognitive conflict as an instructional strategy for conceptual change: A critical appraisal. Learning and Instruction, 11, 357–380.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MAKI, R. H. (1998). Test predictions over text materials. In D. J. Hacker, J. Dunlosky, & A. C. Graesser (Eds.), Metacognition in educational theory and practice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • MCCUTCHEON, L. E. (1991). A new test of misconceptions about psychology. Psychological Reports, 68, 647–653.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MCCUTCHEON, L. E., FURNHAM, A., & DAVIS, G. (1993). A crossnational comparison of students misconceptions about psychology’. Psycholoqical Reports, 72, 243–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MCKEACHIE, W. J. (1960). Changes in scores on the Northwestern Misconceptions Test in six elementary psychology courses. Journal of Educational Psychology, 51, 240–244.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MESSER, W. S., & GRIGGS, R. A. (1989). Student belief and involvement in the paranormal and performance in introductory psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 16, 187–191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MILLER, R. L., WOZNIAK, W. J., RUST, M. R., MILLER, B. R., & SLEZAK, J. (1996). Counterattitudinal advocacy as a means of enhancing instructional effectiveness: How to teach students what they do not want to know. Teaching of Psychology, 23, 215–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • OTERO, J. (1998). Influence of knowledge activation and context on comprehension monitoring of science texts. In D. J. Hacker, J. Dunlosky, & A. C. Graesser (Eds.), Metacognition in educational theory and practice (pp. 145–164). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • PANEK, P. E. (1982). Do beginning psychology of aging students believe 10 common myths of aging? Teaching of Psychology, 9, 104–105.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • PINE, K., MESSER, D., & ST.JOHN, K. (2001). Children’s misconceptions in primary science: A survey of teachers’ views. Research in Science & Technological Education, 19, 79–96.

    Google Scholar 

  • POSNER, G. J., STRIKE, K. A., HEWSON, P. W., & GERTZOG, W. A. (1982). Accommodation of a scientific conception. Toward a theory of conceptual change. Science Education, 66, 211–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • QIAN, G., & GUZZETTI, B. (2000). Conceptual change learning: A multidimensional lens. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 16, 1–3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • RUBLE, R. (1986). Ambiguous psychological misconceptions. Teaching of Psychology, 13, 34–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Science and engineering indicators 2002. Chapter 7: Science and technology: Public attitudes and public understanding. Retrieved on 5-1-02 from http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/sre/seind02/start.htmT059

    Google Scholar 

  • SEGAL, J. (1989, July). Ten myths about child development. Parents, 81–84.

    Google Scholar 

  • SIMES, R. J. (1986). An improved Bonferroni procedure for multiple tests of significance. Biometrika, 73, 751–754.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • STERNBERG, R. J., & GRIGORENKO, E. L. (1999). Myths in psychology and education regarding the gene-environment debate. Teachers College Record, 100, 536–553.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • TAYLOR, A., & KOWALSKI, P. (June, 2002). Variables affecting reducing misconceptions in psychology. Poster presented at the Ninth Annual Aps/Stp Teaching Institute, at the 14th American Psychological Society Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA.

    Google Scholar 

  • TAYLOR, A., KOWALSKI, P., & LAGGREN, L. (April, 2000) Myths & misconceptions about psychology: Strength of belief is not related to accuracy. Poster presented at the 80th Annual Convention of the Western Psychological Association, Portland, OR.

    Google Scholar 

  • TAYLOR, A., KOWALSKI, P., NEGIN, L., & HEISE, R. (May, 2001). Sources of misinformation in psychology: Media, personal experience, and the classroom. Poster presented at the 81st Annual Convention of the Western Psychological Association, Maui, HI.

    Google Scholar 

  • VALENTINE, W. L. (1936). Common misconceptions of college students. Journal of Applied Psychology, 20, 633–658.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • VAUGHN, E. D. (1977). Misconceptions about psychology among introductory college students. Teaching of Psychology, 4, 38–41.

    Google Scholar 

  • VOSNIADOU, S. (2001). What can persuasion research tell us about conceptual change that we did not already know? International Journal of Educational Research, 35, 731–737.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • WRIGHT, D. B., GASKELL, G. D., & O’MUIRCHEARTAIGH, C. A. (1997). The reliability of subjective reports of memories. European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 9, 313–323.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of San Diego, 5998 Alcala Park, San Diego, CA, 92110, USA

    Annette Kujawski Taylor & Patricia Kowalski

Authors
  1. Annette Kujawski Taylor
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Patricia Kowalski
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Annette Kujawski Taylor.

Additional information

This work was supported, in part, by the University of San Diego through Faculty Research Grants to both authors.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Taylor, A.K., Kowalski, P. Naïve Psychological Science: The Prevalence, Strength, and Sources of Misconceptions. Psychol Rec 54, 15–25 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03395459

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03395459

Search

Navigation