Clearer Thinking with Spencer Greenberg

How meanings get words and social sciences get broken (with Literal Banana)

May 25, 2022

In this playful and insightful discussion, Literal Banana, a unique banana with a fascination for human social science, chats about the tricky nature of language and meanings. They explore how specialized jargon can both clarify and confuse social research. The conversation dives into the challenges of measuring abstract concepts like happiness and the complexities of survey design. With humor, they discuss the need for clearer definitions in sensitive topics like sexual assault and advocate for skepticism in existing research methods to foster meaningful change.

01:20:24

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Episode guests

Literal Banana

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Episode notes

Intro

2min

The Language of Hobbies: Jargon Unpacked

7min

Challenges in Measuring Abstract Concepts

19min

The Importance of Question Interpretation in Social Research

4min

Navigating the Complexities of Sexual Assault Measurement

3min

Navigating Social Science Research

20min

Reassessing the Progress and Methods of Social Sciences

3min

Navigating Social Science: Skepticism and Insights

15min

Collaborative Discourse and Anecdotal Truths

8min

Read the full transcript here.

How do meanings get words? What is ethnomethodology? Some attempts at defining words are successful; but why do some words seem to become more slippery the more we try to pin down their meanings? What sorts of problems uniquely plague the social sciences? What subtle aspects of the placebo effect are not noticed or easily forgotten by researchers? How can social science researchers clarify and strengthen the meanings of words in their questionnaires? More broadly, what are some of the less-talked-about ways that the social sciences can become more robust and reliable?

Literal Banana is literally a banana who became interested in human social science through trying to live among them. After escaping from a high-tech produce delivery start-up, she now lives among humans and attempts to understand them through their own sciences of themselves. Follow Literal Banana on Twitter at @literalbanana.

Staff

Spencer Greenberg — Host / Director
Josh Castle — Producer
Ryan Kessler — Audio Engineer
Uri Bram — Factotum
Janaisa Baril — Transcriptionist

Music

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