Computational Scientific Discovery in Psychology

Bibliographic Data

ID21786183
AuthorsLaura Bartlett (0000-0001-5202-4504, London School of Economics and Political Science, corresponding author), Angelo Pirrone (0000-0001-5984-7853, London School of Economics and Political Science), Noman Javed (0000-0001-7770-6616, London School of Economics and Political Science), Fernand Gobet (0000-0002-9317-6886, London School of Economics and Political Science)
Year2023
Volume18
Issue1
Pages178-189
Publication date2023-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePerspectives on Psychological Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1745-6916 • E-ISSN: 1745-6924
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/17456916221091833
PMID35943820
OpenAlexW4290786007
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited86

Scientific discovery is a driving force for progress involving creative problem-solving processes to further our understanding of the world. The process of scientific discovery has historically been intensive and time-consuming; however, advances in computational power and algorithms have provided an efficient route to make new discoveries. Complex tools using artificial intelligence (AI) can efficiently analyze data as well as generate new hypotheses and theories. Along with AI becoming increasingly prevalent in our daily lives and the services we access, its application to different scientific domains is becoming more widespread. For example, AI has been used for the early detection of medical conditions, identifying treatments and vaccines (e.g., against COVID-19), and predicting protein structure. The application of AI in psychological science has started to become popular. AI can assist in new discoveries both as a tool that allows more freedom to scientists to generate new theories and by making creative discoveries autonomously. Conversely, psychological concepts such as heuristics have refined and improved artificial systems. With such powerful systems, however, there are key ethical and practical issues to consider. This article addresses the current and future directions of computational scientific discovery generally and its applications in psychological science more specifically

Cognitive science · Computational model · Data science · Epistemology · Heuristics · Management science · Scientific discovery · Scientific progress · Cognitive Science and Mapping · Computer Science · Mental Health Research Topics · Psychology · Artificial Intelligence

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Open DOIOpen Access