precausal thinking

the tendency of a young child (under the age of 8) to perceive natural phenomena, such as rain, wind, and clouds, in terms of intentions and willful acts, that is, in anthropomorphic rather than mechanical terms. See also animism. [first described by Jean Piaget]

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

May 9th 2024

best fit

the theoretical pattern that best accounts for the relationships among variables in a data set. For example, a regression equation having the best fit to sample data is the one that minimizes differences between observed and predicted values. On a scatterplot, a line of best fit provides a visual depiction of this pattern, allowing extrapolation to values not part of the original data set. It is important to note that the best-fitting pattern is not necessarily the one that generated the observed data, as other patterns not considered may provide a superior fit.