Lab/ Field Experiments

Question 1

(Lab) practical advantage

Answer 1

Somewhat useful for establishing cause and effect

Question 2

(Lab) theoretical disadvantage- interpretivists

Answer 2

Interpretivists: not useful because people do not have automatic responses to external stimuli.
Instead, people are motivated by they meanings we attach to things

Question 3

(Lab) practical disadvantage: Keat & Urry

Answer 3

Only useful when researcher can measure all relevant variables. Labs are closed systems but society is an open system so it is not useful in this way either

Question 4

(Lab) ethical advantage

Answer 4

May be easier to maintain anonymity

Question 5

(Lab) ethical disadvantage

Answer 5

Artificial environment may result in researchers deliberately witholding information

Question 6

(Lab) theoretical advantage

Answer 6

Positivists: very reliable

Question 7

(Lab) theoretical disadvantage

Answer 7

Lack of validity because of the artificiality of the environment (causes hawthorne effect)

Question 8

(Field) practical advantage

Answer 8

Cheaper than lab

Question 9

(Field) practical disadvantage

Answer 9

Difficult to establish cause and effect

Question 10

(Field) ethical advantage

Answer 10

Avoids harming/ decieving participants

Question 11

(Field) ethical disadvantage and example

Answer 11

Unethical because they often don’t use informed consent as exemplified by Noon’s experiment (NO HARM DONE THOUGH!

Question 12

(Field) theoretical advantage

Answer 12

More likely to be favoured by positivists and theoretical sociologists due to severe practical issues with lab experiments

Question 13

(Field) theoretical disadvantage

Answer 13

Data may be unrepresentative due to smaller sample sizes