Hi TIPS: I'm writing with a brain pick of sorts. I'm always reluctant to
post to listservs with these kinds of requests. But I've been rather
stymied in my searches, and am hoping that I can benefit from the remarkable
collective knowledge of this list.
Specifically, I'm wondering if anyone is aware of much good research on
the development over time of individuals' (children, adolescents, college
students, etc.) understanding of multiple levels of explanation. By this, I
mean the understanding that psychological phenomenon X can co-exist
simultaneously at several different levels - e.g., that depression can
simultaneously be viewed at the molecular level, physiological level,
psychological level, social level, and so on. I know that as educators,
most of us have discovered that some of our students "get" this concept,
whereas others never seem to be able to do so. That is, some of our
students eventually move beyond asking "Is depression biological, or it is
psychological?" and come to understand that it can be conceptualized
profitably at both (and other) levels of understanding, whereas others
don't. Just to be clear, here I'm talking about "vertical" explanation
(explanations at differing levels in Comte's hierarchy of the sciences), not
"horizontal" explanation (explanations invoking multiple causal factors at
the same level of explanation). Is there any literature on the time course
of this understanding, its domain generality vs. specificity, its
psychological correlates (e.g., IQ, Piagetian stage status), etc.?
I've found some research bearing obliquely on the development of this
understanding over time (e.g., Frank Kiel's work), but not a whole lot that
addresses it explicitly (PsycInfo searches using "levels of explanation" and
"development of" and similar terms have been only modestly helpful).
In any case, any pointers, leads, etc. would be immensely appreciated.
Thanks much in advance...Scott
Scott O. Lilienfeld, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology, Room 206
Emory University
532 N. Kilgo Circle
Atlanta, Georgia 30322
(404) 727-1125 (phone)
(404) 727-0372 (FAX)
Home Page: http://www.psychology.emory.edu/clinical/lilienfeld/index.html
The Scientific Review of Mental Health Practice:
www.srmhp.org
The Master in the Art of Living makes little distinction between his work
and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his
education and his recreation, his love and his intellectual passions. He
hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence
in whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or
playing. To him he is always doing both.
- Zen Buddhist text
(slightly modified)
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