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Rickman begins this symposium by dividing the field of psychology into areas of research according to the number of persons studied: One-Body Psychology (perception, learning), Two-Body (mother-child relationships), Three-Body (the Oedipus complex, two parents and a child), Four-Body (the Oedipus complex plus a sibling rival), and Multi-Body (groups). In his clinical work a psychiatrist matches patterns of behavior with other patterns with which his experience has provided him. He must be aware of the influence of mental pain on this behavior. His research and therapeutic activities are inseparable. Those research approaches which do not take into account mental pain may contribute to the basic sciences but will add little to psychiatry.
Thouless emphasizes some elements in the scientific method. A scientific theory is a way of talking and a system of rules enabling us to understand a range of facts. The testing of a theory is looking for facts which the theory excludes. If these are found the theory must be modified. Scientific hypotheses must be stated in forms that can be falsifiable by experiment or observation.
It takes Isaacs some time to develop his point that we should study the ways in which we obtain knowledge. A systematic empirical-psychological examination of human learning history would provide the foundation for a practical methodology. If we are to grasp how words and concepts function or go wrong, we must treat language and word meanings as psychological formations with a psychological history.