We get a lot of questions asked by layman users along the lines of:
I have observed X, (based on which I hypothesize this might be a recurring common pattern). I don't know what to search for. Is this studied in Psychology?
These can broadly be labeled as terminology questions and should be tagged as such. Quite frequently there is a problem with the hypothesis:
- A clear motivation for presuming this should be studied/is relevant to study in psychology is missing. At times, the hypothesis is even missing.
- If a motivation is included, it is not framed in Psychology or Neuroscience, with the unfortunate result a question is often based on faulty premises.
So, I have observed this to be a common pattern over the past few years. 🙂
I feel we know how to deal with it: (1) either help the OP formulating a proper terminology question, or (2) close as 'not framed in psychology or neuroscience'.
Instead, the purpose of this post is to start creating a resource for users to be redirected to in case they ask such questions. Perhaps, at some point this could be turned into a FAQ. Therefore, answers can extend on my observations and recommendations, to discuss whether there is a better way to deal with such questions.