The importance of problem-driven research: Bringing Wachtel's argument into the present

Abstract

There is no one best way to do psychological research. Rather, the “best” way depends on the fit to the problem. Research should be problem-driven rather than method-driven. Psychologists sometimes envy certain natural scientists, and over-reward those who do research with a surface structure more like that of research in the natural sciences, leading to sub-optimal progress in the field.