Longitudinal research methods

Question 1

What is a longitudinal study?

Answer 1

A longitudinal study takes place over a long period of time and often involves comparing a single sample group with their own performance over time which means that development changes can be seen through the patterns of measurements.
E.g. they can show a disorder developing over time, which is much better than just a ‘snapshot’ of an ill person at any moment in time.

Question 2

What is a common sort of longitudinal study?

Answer 2

A prospective study is a common sort of longitudinal study which usually involves following a single participant or a cohort of people who are all the same age or who start a course of treatment at the same time. These types of studies might reveal which therapies are effective.

Question 3

What if a benefit of longitudinal studies even thought they are time consuming?

Answer 3

They are time consuming and demanding, but reveal a lot more about the development of mental disorders than other sorts of research.

Question 3

What if a benefit of longitudinal studies even thought they are time consuming?

Answer 3

They are time consuming and demanding, but reveal a lot more about the development of mental disorders than other sorts of research.

Question 4

What is the danger of longitudinal studies?

Answer 4

There is also a danger in longitudinal studies of sample attrition because people might “drop out” of a long study. One way around this is to use a cross-sectional design instead, which compares groups at different stages all at once.

Question 5

Strengths of longitudinal studies

Answer 5

• It is a reliable way to measure the effect of time on the behaviour in question which is important in deciding whether treatments actually have the ability to significantly improve a patients quality of life in the long term.
• Patients often have very different symptoms and experiences even when suffering from the same illness, there is no difficulty in making comparisons between different individuals that could be affected by individual differences.
• The same group of participants is followed throughout the entire study, so participant variables do not affect data collected.

Question 6

Weaknesses of longitudinal studies

Answer 6

• A major problem is that the research has to go on for such a long period of time, leading to several issues. patients may drop out, die or not be able to contacted, reducing sample size and making final outcome less valid. Sample attrition - people drop out.
• Another issue is that by the time meaning full data can be used to draw a conclusion in the study, the data may be irrelevant. Clinical psychology is a fast-paced area of research with new ideas and treatments being developed all the time especially in relation to biological factors and drug treatment so research conducted could be outdated.
• There are a number of practical difficulties with longitudinal studies; they can be expensive, they are very time-consuming and the data collection and analysis can vary in its strengths if the researchers change over time.