Summary
Eronen and Bringmann analyse the persistent 'theory crisis' in psychology, arguing that the core problem is not insufficient theory-building effort but rather the fundamental difficulty of developing sound psychological theories. They identify three major obstacles rooted in philosophy of science: the paucity of robust phenomena to constrain theories, validity problems with psychological constructs, and difficulties in establishing causal relationships between psychological variables. The paper concludes with recommendations for advancing the discipline beyond this impasse.
UK applicability
This paper addresses foundational issues in psychological science and methodology that are internationally relevant. Its conclusions would apply equally to psychological research conducted in UK institutions and influence how UK-based psychology departments approach theory development and research design.
Key measures
Not applicable—this is a conceptual and philosophical paper rather than an empirical study
Outcomes reported
The paper does not report empirical outcomes or measurements. Instead, it provides a philosophical analysis of why psychological theories fail to accumulate robust evidence and proposes recommendations for advancing theory development in the discipline.
Topic tags
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