Features of science

• Objectivity- observations are made from a neutral perspective without bias, rather than the scientists subjective viewpoint
• Objectivity eg- a tape measure provides a more objective measurement of something compared to a researcher's guess, similarly a set of scales is a more objective way of determining which of two objects is heavier than a researcher lifting them up each and giving their opinion
• replicability- scientific procedures and experiments can be repeated to double-check the findings are valid, eg Burger replicated Milgram's study with similar results
• falsifiability- when a theory is tested, there must be some possible observation that could prove it false- even if that never actually happens. The hypothesis that 'water boils at 100c' could be falsified by an experiment where you heated the water to 999c and it didnt boil.
• Freud's psychodynamic theories are often critiqued for being unfalsifiable- there is not really any observations that could disprove them because every possible behaviour could be explained as the result of some unconscious thought process.