Exploring the Role of Problem-based Learning in Fostering the Epistemological Beliefs of Psychology Students: A One-Group Pretest–Posttest Study

Ahmed Rasheed. S M (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Science, Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Amarkantak-484887, Madhya Pradesh, India)
Lalit Kumar Mishra (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Science, Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Amarkantak-484887, Madhya Pradesh, India)
Gyanesh Kumar Tiwari (Department of Psychology, School of Humanities & Social Sciences, Doctor Harisingh Gour Vishwavidyalaya, Sagar, 470003, Madhya Pradesh, India)

Journal of Psychological Perspective
Vol. 8 No. 3 (2026)

Psychology students must acquire sophisticated epistemological beliefs when engaging with evolving, ill-structured problems. The fast-paced progress in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its psychological influence on human lives is one such ill-structured problem. This study examined the impact of problem-based learning (PBL) on epistemological beliefs by comparing pre-test and post-test scores acquired via the Epistemological Belief Inventory (EBI). Data were gathered from a convenience sample of 29 psychology students at a central university in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. A paired-samples t-test was employed to compare the pre-test and post-test mean values, and retrospective semi-structured interviews were conducted after the PBL intervention to supplement and corroborate the EBI results. The paired samples t-test indicated that there was a significant improvement in epistemological beliefs from pre-test (M = 115.7, SD = 14.7) to post-test (M = 67.9, SD = 9.5), following the PBL implementation, t(28) = 15.3, p < .001. The findings suggest that when students engage with complex, unstructured topics like AI and its psychological ramifications, PBL significantly strengthens their epistemological beliefs. The pedagogical value of PBL is highlighted by its capacity to promote more complex ways of knowing and reasoning.