The main reason I was sorry to miss this year's annual conference of Association for Psychological Science (APS) was because I did not get to hear Carol Tavris speak about "pseudoneuroscience and biobunk." Fortunately APS has included an overview of the talk on their site. Excerpt from "How to Spot Pseudoneuroscience and Biobunk":
Tavris dedicated the rest of her talk to sharing four surefire ways to spot the biobunk that underlies what she refers to as “pseudoneuroscience.”
(1) Look for technomyopia, or “the technology knows more than I do” phenomenon. Just because a technology sounds impressive, doesn’t mean the science you can do with it is substantive.
(2) Murky methods are a sure sign of pseudoneuroscience. Statistical problems and artifacts are often hidden behind flashy findings.
(3) Reductionism is rampant in pseudoneuroscience. Be wary of conclusions that seem too neat and simple.
(4) Watch out for hype and overselling. Often “neuromarketers” will hawk impressive sounding devices or treatments to desperate parents, students, and teachers that are backed by questionable science.
Click to read the rest.
Last year I linked to an interview of Tavris by APS in which she also discussed psychobabble. Click to read the post with the link.
I think we owe thanks to people like Tavris who are honest, articulate, and wise in their warnings about the ways neuroscience has been diluted and distorted. Let's hear it for the curmudgeons, a group with which Tavris identifies. From the overview of this year's talk:
When it comes to pseudoscience, social psychologist and writer Carol Tavris is a self-appointed curmudgeon.
She may be my favorite curmudgeon; she plays the role with such humor and charm.
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