7.1: Observational design

Question 1

Proud father Abdul was talking to his friend, as they were both watching Abdul’s wife, Tasneem, interacting with their baby daughter, Aisha.

‘It’s amazing really,’ said Abdul. ‘Tasneem smiles, Aisha smiles back. Tasneem moves her head, Aisha moves hers, perfectly in time with each other.’

‘Yes,’ agreed the friend. ‘It’s almost as if they are one person.’

With reference to Abdul’s conversation with his friend, outline two features of caregiver-infant interaction (4 marks).
One feature is interactional synchrony, how adults and babies respond in time to sustain communication.
This is shown by ‘as if they are one person.’

Studies of attachment often involve observation of interactions between mother and baby pairs like Tasneem and Aisha.
Researchers sometimes write down everything that happens as it takes place, including their own interpretation of the events.

Explain how such observational research might be refined through the use of behavioural categories (4 marks)

Answer 1

Using behavioural categories provides clear focus for the researcher

Question 2

Proud father Abdul was talking to his friend, as they were both watching Abdul’s wife, Tasneem, interacting with their baby daughter, Aisha.

‘It’s amazing really,’ said Abdul. ‘Tasneem smiles, Aisha smiles back. Tasneem moves her head, Aisha moves hers, perfectly in time with each other.’

‘Yes,’ agreed the friend. ‘It’s almost as if they are one person.’

With reference to Abdul’s conversation with his friend, outline two features of caregiver-infant interaction (4 marks).
One feature is interactional synchrony, how adults and babies respond in time to sustain communication.
This is shown by ‘as if they are one person.’

Studies of attachment often involve observation of interactions between mother and baby pairs like Tasneem and Aisha.
Researchers sometimes write down everything that happens as it takes place, including their own interpretation of the events.

Explain how such observational research might be refined through the use of behavioural categories (4 marks).
Using behavioural categories provides clear focus for the researcher.
What do behavioural categories allow for?

Answer 2

Behavioural categories allow for more objective data recording

Question 3

Proud father Abdul was talking to his friend, as they were both watching Abdul’s wife, Tasneem, interacting with their baby daughter, Aisha.

‘It’s amazing really,’ said Abdul. ‘Tasneem smiles, Aisha smiles back. Tasneem moves her head, Aisha moves hers, perfectly in time with each other.’

‘Yes,’ agreed the friend. ‘It’s almost as if they are one person.’

With reference to Abdul’s conversation with his friend, outline two features of caregiver-infant interaction (4 marks).
One feature is interactional synchrony, how adults and babies respond in time to sustain communication.
This is shown by ‘as if they are one person.’

Studies of attachment often involve observation of interactions between mother and baby pairs like Tasneem and Aisha.
Researchers sometimes write down everything that happens as it takes place, including their own interpretation of the events.

Explain how such observational research might be refined through the use of behavioural categories (4 marks).
Using behavioural categories provides clear focus for the researcher.
Behavioural categories allow for more objective data recording.
Behavioural categories also provide data that is what?

Answer 3

Behavioural categories also provide data that is easier to analyse

Question 4

Proud father Abdul was talking to his friend, as they were both watching Abdul’s wife, Tasneem, interacting with their baby daughter, Aisha.

‘It’s amazing really,’ said Abdul. ‘Tasneem smiles, Aisha smiles back. Tasneem moves her head, Aisha moves hers, perfectly in time with each other.’

‘Yes,’ agreed the friend. ‘It’s almost as if they are one person.’

With reference to Abdul’s conversation with his friend, outline two features of caregiver-infant interaction (4 marks).
One feature is interactional synchrony, how adults and babies respond in time to sustain communication.
This is shown by ‘as if they are one person.’

Studies of attachment often involve observation of interactions between mother and baby pairs like Tasneem and Aisha.
Researchers sometimes write down everything that happens as it takes place, including their own interpretation of the events.

Explain how such observational research might be refined through the use of behavioural categories (4 marks).
Using behavioural categories provides clear focus for the researcher.
Behavioural categories allow for more objective data recording.
Behavioural categories also provide data that is easier to analyse.
What should the use of behavioural categories result in?

Answer 4

The use of behavioural categories should result in greater reliability