Lecture 4: Observational Research Flashcards
What is observation?
A research technique, a systematic process of recording behavioural patterns as they occur.
Is observation qualitative or quantitative?
Can be both
Does the researcher ask participants to reflect or provide insight?
No
What are the relative advantages of observation?
- Measures actual behaviour
- Lesser researcher influence on participant data
- Does not rely on respondent insight/awareness
What are the relative disadvantages of observation?
- Underlying motivations, attitudes, etc can only be inferred (can’t be observed)
- Time consuming
- Question of ethics
- Difficulty in observing without impacting the setting
What are the various natures of observations?
- Structured vs. unstructured
- Disguised vs undisguised
- Direct vs indirect
- Mechanised vs human
- Natural vs contrived
What is structured observation?
- Where the research problem is clearly identified
- Researcher enters the observation setting knowing the precise categories of behaviours that will be observed
- Data collected is usually quantitative - e.g. research investigating characteristics of users of self-serve check-outs in supermarkets
What is unstructured observation?
- Used where the research problem isn’t clearly formulated
- Researcher enters the observation setting and records notable features and trends
- Data collected is often qualitative e.g. research investigating the various ways people approach self-serve tech
What is disguised observation?
Refers to whether the individs know they are being observed.
Disguised individ is unaware of researcher
Can be valuable when observation may impact behaviour and problematic if research relates to a sensitive topic
What is undisguised observation?
Researcher interacts with individ by alerting them to study, questioning about observed behaviours
What is direct observation?
Refers to recording evens that occur or what people actually do i.e. what he/she is watching
What is indirect observation?
Must rely on the reported observations (including self-observations) of others
What are some advantages of observation done by machines?
- It’s reliable
- Removes observer influence
- Can collect data on an ongoing
What is natural observation?
Natural settings (e.g. shopping malls, streets, schools, playgrounds) Good for observing behaviour as it occurs
What is contrived observation?
Contrived settings (e.g. research labs, focus groups, product testing facilities). Good usually since designed for observation of target behaviour
What is used to keep observation ethical?
- Institutional review boards (ethics committees)
- Industry codes of conduct
- Privacy legislation
3 questions to think about with observational research:
relates to ethics
- Is the behaviour performed in public where people know others can observe?
- Is the behaviour anonymous?
- Has the person consented?
What is physiological observation?
Rather than observing the behaviour of people, researchers can observe physiological responses when people are presented with stimuli.
- Avoids some issues of respondent insight and bias
- Can be difficult to interpret
- Can be costly e.g. eye tracking devices
What are some types of physiological observation?
- Pupilometer - measures changes in pupil diameter. Arousal (e.g. due to interest, attention) is associated with dilation of pupil
- Psychogalvanometer - to measure skin conductance, with greater skin conductance associated with arousal
- Brain activity - measured with EEG, fMRI, etc
What is content analysis?
Examining and observing patterns in documented content, e.g.
- amount of junk food ads during primetime TV
- Political features across a range of newspapers
- Ethnic representation in media
What is ethnography?
Researcher become a participant observer
What is an audit?
Research takes stock of consumers’ pantry, fridge, etc
What are the pros to observation?
- Reduced respondent bias
- Overcomes participant insight and memory issues
- Nonverbal behaviour data may be obtained
- Can be used to support other methods (e.g. surveys)
What are the cons of observation?
- Cognitive phenomenon cannot be observed
- Requires researcher interpretations, inferences
- Possible invasion of privacy
- Observer bias
What is a trace analysis?
Data are based on physical traces left behind after past behaviour
