(a) What are the limits of intuition and common sense? Why do psychologists emphasize on scientific methods? Discuss. (10…

(a) Intuition and common sense are everyday tools for predicting behaviour, but their limits become clear when they are tested against controlled evidence. Hindsight bias makes past events appear obvious after they occur, so people mistake post-hoc explanations for genuine prediction. Overconfidence leads individuals to trust their gut judgments more than warranted, especially in complex social situations where cues are ambiguous. Confirmation bias further narrows perception, because people seek, notice and remember information that supports their existing beliefs while discounting disconfirming evidence. Common sense is also often contradictory, culturally variable and shaped by personal experience, so it cannot provide stable generalisations. Psychologists therefore emphasise scientific methods because they provide empirical validation, replicability and falsifiability. Systematic observation, measurement and control reduce subjective errors, allow rival explanations to be tested, and make knowledge cumulative rather than dependent on individual impressions.

(b) In interpersonal conflicts, psychologists act as trained facilitators rather than arbiters. Through active listening they help conflicting parties articulate needs, recognise distorted attributions and reduce emotional escalation. Negotiation training equips individuals with skills such as non-violent communication, perspective-taking and problem-solving, which can de-escalate disputes in families, workplaces and neighbourhoods. At a broader level, community psychology interventions enable psychologists to work with local groups, schools and civil society to build trust, address grievances and create supportive networks before tensions harden into social unrest. During unrest, their role shifts to trauma counselling, crisis support and psychosocial first aid for victims, witnesses and affected communities, helping to restore a sense of safety and agency. Psychologists also contribute through policy advocacy by advising authorities on conflict-sensitive communication, mental-health services, rehabilitation and restorative justice.

(c) Group brainstorming is expected to generate more and better ideas than individual work, but social and cognitive challenges limit its effectiveness. Production blocking occurs when participants wait for their turn to speak, causing them to lose the thread of an idea or forget it before sharing. Evaluation apprehension makes members cautious, especially if they fear judgement from peers or authority figures, so they suppress unconventional suggestions. Social loafing reduces individual effort when responsibility is diffused across the group, leading some members to contribute less than alone. Conformity pressure further narrows ideas, as participants may align with dominant opinions or avoid challenging the group’s emerging consensus. Nijstad’s research highlights that groups often create an illusion of group productivity: the process feels productive, yet output may be lower than expected because of these inhibiting mechanisms. Thus, the challenge is to design procedures that minimise waiting, reduce fear of evaluation, distribute responsibility and protect cognitive independence.

(d) Mass media shapes adolescent behaviour by providing models and norms that adolescents imitate. Through social learning, repeated exposure to aggressive content in films, games or online videos can normalise hostility and make aggressive responses seem acceptable. Body image concerns are intensified by curated images on social media, where filters, beauty standards and peer comparison can promote dissatisfaction, disordered eating or low self-esteem. Media also shapes identity formation, as adolescents use celebrities, influencers and online communities to explore values, gender roles and group belonging. In India, these effects are visible in everyday media consumption: short-video trends on platforms such as Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts spread challenges, fashion styles and consumer habits among teenagers; long-running TV serials present family hierarchies, gender roles and conflict patterns that adolescents may absorb as normal; Bollywood influence can shape aspirations and consumerism, encouraging imitation of celebrity lifestyles. The influence is not deterministic; age, family guidance, peer context and media literacy moderate it.

(e) Eyewitness testimony is often treated as direct evidence, but memory is constructive, not a recording. Loftus’s misinformation effect shows that post-event information, such as leading questions or media reports, can alter what a witness remembers. Source monitoring errors occur when witnesses confuse the origin of information, mistaking a detail seen in a news report for something personally witnessed. Schema-driven reconstruction fills gaps using expectations, stereotypes or prior knowledge, producing coherent but inaccurate accounts. In trials, these processes reduce accuracy, especially when suggestive questioning, biased lineup procedures or repeated interviews are used. In Indian criminal trials, where eyewitness identification can be decisive, such errors have raised concerns about wrongful convictions and the need for corroboration. The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (which replaced the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, from July 2024), treats such accounts as oral evidence, but their weight depends on reliability.