Authority

learning by listening to what people in authority say is true

Cognitive biases-

predictable flaws in thinking

Confirmation bias-

observing and analyzing information in a way that confirms what you already think is true

Direct experience-

learning through informal observation

Dunning-Kruger effect-

when unskilled people overestimate their ability and knowledge (and experts underestimate their ability and knowledge)

Intuition-

your “gut feeling” about what to do

Macro-level-

examining social structures and institutions

Meso-level-

examining interaction between groups

Micro-level-

examining the smallest levels of interaction, usually individuals

Overgeneralization-

using limited observations to make assumptions about broad patterns

Practice wisdom-

“learning by doing” that guides social work intervention and increases over time

Research methods-

an organized, logical way of knowing based on theory and observation

Science

is a particular way of knowing that attempts to systematically collect and categorize facts or truths.

Epistemology-

a set of assumptions about how we come to know what is real and true

Objective truth-

a single truth, observed without bias, that is universally applicable

Ontology-

a set of assumptions about what is real

Qualitative methods-

examine words or other media to understand their meaning

Quantitative methods-

examine numerical data to precisely describe and predict elements of the social world

Subjective truth-

one truth among many, bound within a social and cultural context

Evaluation research-

research that evaluates the outcomes of a policy or program

Evidence-based practice-

making decisions on how to help clients based on the best available evidence