You Choose to Be a “Good Person”: Falsifiability, Unfalsifiability, and Validation
I’ve long-enjoyed the pastime of miniature golf. When given the option to choose (to select freely and after consideration) activities for the friends with whom I spent time in Bomb City, they anticipated that I’d select going to a movie theater, a gun range, or to play miniature golf.
In my head, my miniature golf skills were good (of a high or desired quality). Moreover, I maintained that I was good (of a favorable character or tendency) for having possessed the ability to direct a golf ball through challenging obstacles and into a hole at which I aimed.
The key distinction worth highlighting in this regard is that while my behavior (i.e., skillfully playing miniature golf) represented me, I wasn’t my actions. Thus, while I may’ve performed well (satisfactorily with respect to conduct or action), I wasn’t a good person for having done so.
I now view this matter through the proverbial lens of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), as I’ll provide a psychoeducational lesson that involves thinking and believing which is rational (in accordance with both logic and reason), or not (i.e., irrational), as it regards REBT.
Here, “logic” is the interrelation or sequence of facts or events when seen as inevitable or predictable, and “reason” is a statement offered in explanation or justification. For instance, a modus ponens syllogism uses the following logical form: If p, then q; p; therefore, q.
Before I provide an example, it may be useful to know that one source states, “A theory is, in general, any hypothesis or set of ideas about something, formed in any number of ways through any sort of reasoning for any sort of reason.” Colloquially, a “theory” alludes to a mere belief.
If every theory in which I believe possibly could be true or real (p), then every theory in which I believe empirically must be true or real (q). Every theory in which I believe possibly could be true or real (p). Therefore, every theory in which I believe empirically must be true or real (q).
This proposition follows logical form; yet I argue that it isn’t reasonable, because what could be isn’t necessarily what is. Thus, I consider this syllogistic belief as that relating to irrationality. Nevertheless, I have little doubt that at least one person on this planet disagrees with my outlook.
Noteworthy, my worldview is subjective (characteristic of or belonging to reality as perceived rather than as independent of mind). Thus, not everyone agrees with what everybody else deems as rational or not. Irrespective of advocacy for equality, not everyone maintains the same views.
For clarity, the American Psychological Association (APA) defines subjective as “taking place or existing only within the mind,” and defines objective as “having verifiable existence in the external world, independently of any opinion or judgment.”
Also, a rational perspective for one person may not be considered rational by members of a group. For example, people dedicating themselves to the practice of science may fervently disagree with referring to a mere belief as a “theory.” I agree! Yet, this is my subjective view.
Given this lesson on rational versus irrational beliefs, I now argue that the claim “my miniature golf skills were good” is a matter that could be assessed for its truthfulness. Specifically, one could use the process of falsifiability, which the APA thusly defines:
[T]he condition of admitting falsification: the logical possibility that an assertion, hypothesis, or theory can be shown to be false by an observation or experiment.
The most important properties that make a statement falsifiable in this way are (a) that it makes a prediction about an outcome or a universal claim of the type “All Xs have property Y” and (b) that what is predicted or claimed is observable.
Austrian-born British philosopher Karl Popper (1902–1994) argued that falsifiability is an essential characteristic of any genuinely scientific hypothesis.
For example, before playing miniature gold with my friends, I (a) predicted that I’d prevail when our scores were compared and (b) my prediction was observable. If I won a round of miniature golf, then my claim wasn’t false. Yet, if I lost a round, then my prediction was false.
The mere ability to assess whether or not my statement was falsifiable satisfied the concept of falsifiability. Still, there’s another matter worth addressing, regarding a claim that is unfalsifiable, which the APA thusly defines:
[D]enoting the quality of a proposition, hypothesis, or theory such that no empirical test can establish that it is false. For Austrian-born British philosopher Karl Popper (1902–1994), a theory or hypothesis that is unfalsifiable is to be judged nonscientific.
For instance, if I told the friends with whom I played miniature golf that an angel guided my hand when putting a golf ball, then this claim would be subject to unfalsifiability, because no scientific method of assessing this claim exists. Thus, the proposition is further irrational.
Also worth noting is the concept of validation, which the APA defines as “the process of establishing the truth or logical cogency of something. An example is determining the accuracy of a research instrument in measuring what it is designed to measure.”
No valid research instrument exists to determine whether or not angels exist. Ae well, the APA notes of validation, “In some forms of psychotherapy, validation may take the form of mirroring of the client’s judgment or experience by the therapist;” yet, this concept doesn’t apply herein.
Now, as REBT was formed by the late psychologist Albert Ellis, who reportedly developed the first cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) psychotherapeutic modality in 1955, this blog entry is part of an ongoing series regarding his book, Ask Albert Ellis?: Straight Answers and Sound Advice from America’s Best-Known Psychologist.
Given that I’ve differentiated between a person and one’s behavior, claiming that my friends could assess whether or not the conduct consequentially following my miniature golf skills was good, I now invite you to consider whether or not I was good. Of this, Ellis stated (page 17):
Unconditional self-acceptance (USA) and unconditional other-acceptance (UOA) lead to good results, and you can have them by merely deciding to take an existential view of your and other people’s “worth.” You choose to be a “good person” just because you are alive, human, and unique. […]
Unfortunately, this view of yourself and others as always being “good” people is arbitrary and definitional – there is no way of empirically falsifying it or validating it. You say and believe that you’re “good,” but anyone else is entitled to hold that just because you exist, are human, and unique, you are “neutral” or “bad.” What, then, are you?
I may’ve performed well at miniature golf. I may also have considered myself as worthy of dignity for simply existing in human form. Additionally, at the time, I likely believed that I was a “good person” for not having engaged in deeds which I deemed as “bad.”
However, the claim that anyone is a “good person” is unfalsifiable. To my knowledge, no scientific instrument exists which is capable of falsifying or validating such a claim – no more than any empirical method of assessment is available to examine the existence of angels.
Therefore, if you choose to be a “good person,” then I encourage you to consider whether or not such a claim is rational or irrational. Perhaps you believe that you’re good. Then, you may also be irrationally convinced that an angel guided my hand when playing miniature golf.
No such occurrence took place! Likewise, you aren’t good or bad. You are merely a fallible human being who remains capable of behaving suitably, neutrally, or unsuitably. The same is true of others. Now, I invite you to practice USA and UOA in this regard.
If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life—helping you to sharpen your critical thinking skills, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As a psychotherapist, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues ranging from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
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