DEVELOPMENTAL: Chaney et Al. (2004)

Question 1

What was the aim of this study?

Answer 1

To test whether use of a positive reinforcement via the Funhaler could improve medical compliance in young asthmatics, compared to use of a conventional inhaler with no additional features.

Question 2

Why did Chaney carry out this study?

Answer 2

Research showed that children struggle to comply with doctor’s instructions with asthma medication and find it hard to master deep breathing.

Recent study showed that OPERANT CONDITIONING is a approach used to improve compliance so chaney tested out whether Funhaler could improve children’s medical compliance.

Question 3

What is Operant Conditioning?

Answer 3

The learning through consequences and responses that they receive from carrying out a particular behaviour.

Question 4

What is the design of the study?

Answer 4

Field experiment as it was held in participants’ own homes.

Repeated measures as all participants had been using Breath-a-tech (the standard inhaler)

Question 5

Why was counterbalancing not used?

Answer 5

Children had already been using standard.

Would give adverse effects and wouldn’t give an accurate comparison.

Question 6

What was the Independent variable?

Answer 6

The device used to deliver the asthma drugs

• funhaler
• breath-a-tech

Question 7

What was the dependent variable?

Answer 7

How well participants COMPLIED

operationalised through the parental responses to a self-report questionnaire.

Question 8

How many children?

Answer 8

32 Children

mean aged of 3.2 yrs

Question 9

What was the sampling method?

Answer 9

RANDOM

recruited from clinics across a large geographical area.

Question 10

Describe the procedure.

Answer 10

1) Parents gave informed consent and completed a structured closed questionnaire with an interviewer about their child’s current asthma device and the childs/parents attitudes towards the compliance level and medication.
2) Children given funhaler for 2 weeks.
3) One random phonecall asking if child had used the funhaler the day before.
4) after 2 weeks parents completed a matched item questionnaire on the funhaler to allow comparison with standard device.

Question 11

What is the funhaler?

Answer 11

An inhaler with an attachment toy used to distract the children and to encourage correct breathing pattern
eg. spinning disc and whistle

Question 12

On calling to ask about using inhaler the day before how many had used the funhaler? and how many had used the standard device before funhaler was given?

Answer 12

standard = 59%
funhaler = 81%

Question 13

How many parents were successful getting their child to use existing device vs funhaler?

Answer 13

standard = 10%
funhaler = 73%

Question 14

What conclusion was made?

Answer 14

Funhaler and use of positive reinforcement techniques improved medical compliance.

Question 15

Is the study valid?

Answer 15

High in ecological validity as it was carried out at home during everyday life.
but self report questionnaires may have caused bias responses to please researcher
order effect as participants knew this is the newer device

Question 16

Any ethical issues?

Answer 16

No, informed consent was received and care was taken to make sure funhaler administered satisfactory level of medication as the study involved the use of drugs essential to the child’s health.

Question 17

Was the study reliable?

Answer 17

High levels of replicability as participants were given same instructions

Question 18

Problems with sample?

Answer 18

Random sampling with participants from differing socioeconomic/ geographical areas of Perth so fairly representative but may not be generalisable to people outside of australia with different culture.