Formative on Unit 7.

Human Sciences
Word count: 669
The observer effect is one of the most famous phenomena in the natural

sciences. For example, in physics there is a very shocking experiment that,

depending on the presence (or absence) of an observer, electrons behave

differently, in two ways: in the first case, as particles, in the second – as waves.

Thus, the observer effect is called the theory that a simple observation of a

phenomenon inevitably changes it. An interesting fact is that this effect also extends

to human sciences. Considering that the end goal of human sciences is not general

knowledge (as in natural science), but individual knowledge, and the fact that it is

aimed at understanding the laws of human behavior, the observer effect jeopardizes

the validity and reasonableness of all human sciences in the pursuit of knowledge.

The observer effect in the human sciences is clearly revealed in psychology, namely

in the field of psychological perceptions, since the semantic orientation of almost

any phenomenon depends on the observer, or rather on the prism through which a

particular person perceives the phenomenon. Therefore, it is very important to

eliminate the observer effect as much as possible, since it implicitly influences

human behavior and distorts the prism.

There are two ways with different perspectives by which you can eliminate

the presence of the observer effect. First perspective is that the observer is hidden,

second perspective is that the observer becomes a part of what is being observed.

The observer effect works in such a way that a change in behavior occurs

directly due to the presence of an observer. Thus, if you hide the presence of an

observer for those who participate in a psychological experiment or survey, the

observer effect itself will not happen. To make it easier to understand, here is an

example of social experiments. The main task of social experiments in psychology

is to find out how society and individuals will react in various life situations. This is

necessary in the pursuit of knowledge for a better understanding of how culture and
people work, how they interact with each other. Often, social experiments are acute

social topics that force people to show themselves either from the good or the bad

side in a given situation. Often people show themselves from the bad side, for the

same reason these experiments are carried out so that people can analyze their

behavior. In this case, there is no observer effect, since people do not know that

they are being recorded, thereby revealing their true behavior. However, it happens

when a person notices the camera and realizes that the whole situation is just an

experiment, in which case the observer effect appears in the form of a recording

camera. A person's behavior immediately changes and he shows himself from the

best side. Thus, one of the ways to eliminate the observer's effect is to hide the

observer, thereby showing the real behavior of people. On the other hand, this

decision may encounter obstacles, since hidden observance of people is unethical,

and in some moments even illegal.

The second perspective implies that what is being observed is the observer.

You can supplement the first example and create a psychological situation where

people observe the social experiment themselves, not through the camera. They

know that this is an experiment, at the same time their reaction to the experiment

and behavior at this moment is recorded. In this case, they themselves are

observers, but at the same time they are being monitored. They show their behavior

and reaction to what is happening in the experiment. In this case, the observer

effect is eliminated and there are no obstacles with ethics or law.

Thus, it is possible to reduce the observer effect in the human sciences,

namely in psychology. These solutions with these perspectives are very working,

but they encounter several obstacles in their path, since the human sciences

examine people's behavior, which is a very ethical issue. This is the main difference

between the human and the natural sciences.