Mark Rubin
@markrubin.bsky.social
social psychology ▪︎ metascience ▪︎ philosophy of science ▪︎ higher education
Professor at Durham University, UK. He/him.
Website: https://sites.google.com/site/markrubinsocialpsychresearch/
Substack: https://markrubin.substack.com/
Professor at Durham University, UK. He/him.
Website: https://sites.google.com/site/markrubinsocialpsychresearch/
Substack: https://markrubin.substack.com/
Thanks! Yes, I think many people assume that methodological and statistical rigor should precede concerns about theory. But another interest question here is the extent to which theoretical specification informs (contextualizes) methodological and statistical rigor.
E.g., doi.org/10.1177/2378...
E.g., doi.org/10.1177/2378...
November 24, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Thanks! Yes, I think many people assume that methodological and statistical rigor should precede concerns about theory. But another interest question here is the extent to which theoretical specification informs (contextualizes) methodological and statistical rigor.
E.g., doi.org/10.1177/2378...
E.g., doi.org/10.1177/2378...
"Prioritizing 'one best way' of doing science can polarise views about appropriate research standards, raise negative emotions ((collective) guilt, shame, anxiety, schadenfreude), and can fuel unproductive rivalry between research groups."
By Naomi Ellemers
By Naomi Ellemers
The missing link: Theory in social psychology as key contribution to transdisciplinary research
Recent developments in social psychology advocate methodological and statistical innovations, suggesting there is “one best way” of doing research. However, each research approach has its own benef...
doi.org
November 23, 2025 at 5:17 PM
"Rather than chasing newsworthy 'surprising' effects that turn out to be difficult to replicate, we should strive to uncover the general principles that underlie social phenomena, whether surprising or not."
New article by Arie Kruglanski and @sophiamoskalenko.bsky.social
Few quotes follow 🧵
New article by Arie Kruglanski and @sophiamoskalenko.bsky.social
Few quotes follow 🧵
Social psychology in the age of uncertainty: A tale of three quandaries
We examine the current state of social psychology in terms of three major quandaries that challenge our field: Value, Trust, and Purpose. The Value quandary involves balancing commitments to truth ...
doi.org
November 23, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Theorizing is important. There's a few posts about that in this recent European Review of Social Psychology special issue on “Reflections on social-psychological theorizing and the state of our field”...
"Progress in theorising means treating our theories as works in progress in need of continuous improvement, and this sometimes also means having to kill one’s darlings."
Martijn van Zomeren and @ayseuskul.bsky.social introduce the ERSP special issue on theorizing in social psychology.
#SocialPsyc
Martijn van Zomeren and @ayseuskul.bsky.social introduce the ERSP special issue on theorizing in social psychology.
#SocialPsyc
Introduction to the ERSP special issue on “Reflections on social-psychological theorizing and the state of our field”
Published in European Review of Social Psychology (Vol. 36, No. 2, 2025)
doi.org
November 23, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Theorizing is important. There's a few posts about that in this recent European Review of Social Psychology special issue on “Reflections on social-psychological theorizing and the state of our field”...
“As a whole, this literature draws attention to the epistemic diversity within science and, by de-centering rigidly positivistic accounts within metascience, calls into question metascience’s dominant view of science as a unitary object of inquiry.”
November 23, 2025 at 2:35 PM
“As a whole, this literature draws attention to the epistemic diversity within science and, by de-centering rigidly positivistic accounts within metascience, calls into question metascience’s dominant view of science as a unitary object of inquiry.”
“My intervention can be situated within what I term the ‘critical metascience’ literature, that is research that applies philosophical, sociological and hermeneutical methods of analysis to metascientific knowledge and practices.”
November 23, 2025 at 2:35 PM
“My intervention can be situated within what I term the ‘critical metascience’ literature, that is research that applies philosophical, sociological and hermeneutical methods of analysis to metascientific knowledge and practices.”
Part of the Topical Issue “Theory Specification and Theory Building in Psychology”
doi.org/10.1027/2151...
#MetaSci #PhilSci #SocialPsyc #PsycSci
doi.org/10.1027/2151...
#MetaSci #PhilSci #SocialPsyc #PsycSci
November 23, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Part of the Topical Issue “Theory Specification and Theory Building in Psychology”
doi.org/10.1027/2151...
#MetaSci #PhilSci #SocialPsyc #PsycSci
doi.org/10.1027/2151...
#MetaSci #PhilSci #SocialPsyc #PsycSci
“Truly cumulative theory building should be based on a combination of the two strategies discussed here: specifying and testing boundary conditions for an effect to occur (and building these conditions into the theory) and probing empirical phenomena for theoretical overspecification.”
November 23, 2025 at 12:48 PM
“Truly cumulative theory building should be based on a combination of the two strategies discussed here: specifying and testing boundary conditions for an effect to occur (and building these conditions into the theory) and probing empirical phenomena for theoretical overspecification.”
“In general, a hypothesis is overspecified whenever (1) it can be simplified, that is, when assumptions and restrictions can be removed without noticeable loss in explanatory power; or when (2) it can be replaced by a simpler, more parsimonious, or more general alternative.”
November 23, 2025 at 12:48 PM
“In general, a hypothesis is overspecified whenever (1) it can be simplified, that is, when assumptions and restrictions can be removed without noticeable loss in explanatory power; or when (2) it can be replaced by a simpler, more parsimonious, or more general alternative.”
For the original Bloomberg article, see...
In case you can't access the original article in full: archive.is/M2wK8
"Multiple men have remained in senior roles at Oxford for months or years after allegations of sexual misconduct emerged against them, Bloomberg found in a nine-month investigation based on interviews with almost 50 people as well as documents and other records."
November 21, 2025 at 10:46 PM
For the original Bloomberg article, see...
Far too long! Such a relief for those involved.
Things are slowly changing...
Things are slowly changing...
Ban on Non-Disclosure Agreements in employment rights bill is welcome
Universities are big users of NDAs with Unis of Oxford
and Cambridge to the fore (see recent Alice Jolly case in @theguardian1.bsky.social )
This is contrary to everything a university is meant to stand for
Universities are big users of NDAs with Unis of Oxford
and Cambridge to the fore (see recent Alice Jolly case in @theguardian1.bsky.social )
This is contrary to everything a university is meant to stand for
November 20, 2025 at 9:16 AM
Far too long! Such a relief for those involved.
Things are slowly changing...
Things are slowly changing...
“There will always be people who are harassers,” [Baker] said. “The mark of the institution is how those people are dealt with.”
#AcademicSky #PhdSky #UKHE
#AcademicSky #PhdSky #UKHE
November 19, 2025 at 9:56 PM
“There will always be people who are harassers,” [Baker] said. “The mark of the institution is how those people are dealt with.”
#AcademicSky #PhdSky #UKHE
#AcademicSky #PhdSky #UKHE
"[Emily Baker] is one of at least seven women who described leaving their academic studies at Oxford because of harassment. Others said they had been left in limbo or were suffering from post traumatic stress disorder."
November 19, 2025 at 9:56 PM
"[Emily Baker] is one of at least seven women who described leaving their academic studies at Oxford because of harassment. Others said they had been left in limbo or were suffering from post traumatic stress disorder."
"Outcomes of internal investigations are often kept quiet, allowing wrongdoers to move on to other universities with their reputations intact."
November 19, 2025 at 9:56 PM
"Outcomes of internal investigations are often kept quiet, allowing wrongdoers to move on to other universities with their reputations intact."