Observation Of Mobile Phone Usage PI-2

Question 1

Aim of observational study

Answer 1

Do students use mobile phones differently in social and study areas of a school environment?

Question 2

What are the categories of mobile phone use you will look for & measure?

Answer 2

Mobile phone use will be operationalised according to the following behavioural categories:
- Calling/Talking on a mobile phone - Educational/Study use
- Texting/Messaging - Entertainment e.g. to watch TV/Youtube
- Glancing e.g. to check time - Gaming
- Scrolling – to include searching for information, social media, shopping
- Listening to music - Sharing a mobile phone screen with others
- Taking a picture/camera

Question 3

Why have such behavioural categories been identified?

Answer 3

As the researchers are also students of the same age demographic as those in the target population, it is felt that the behavioural categories identified provide a comprehensive range of the observable ways that pupils are likely to use their phones in an educational setting. By identifying so many behavioural categories, this allows researchers to be more precise in the data collected, draw more accurate and robust conclusions about the way mobile phones are used in schools and avoid a waste basket category such as ‘Any other mobile phone use’.

Question 4

How will ‘social area’ be operationalised for the purpose of the current investigation?

Answer 4

A social area will be considered to be a space where the primary purpose is to gather and interact with others. It is a space deigned to promote and optimize human interaction. It is a place where friends can gather for entertainment, discussion or other social activities e.g. game playing.

Question 5

How will ‘study area’ use be operationalised for the purpose of the current investigation?

Answer 5

A study area will be considered to be a dedicated area where students can focus on their academic work without distractions. The primary purpose is to enable concentration and to learn. The space is not restricted to a particular subject or discipline by contained equipment.

Question 6

What pre-existing research have you been able to identify in the area of mobile phone use?

Answer 6

• Radesky et Al : Cell phones at the dinner table; non participant observation of 55 caregivers with 1 or more children at fast food restaurants. Common themes found that phone use decreased the caregivers responsiveness and conversation with children. Highly absorbed caregivers responded harshly to child misbehaviour. Also found kids who were ignored would make increasingly demanding gestures for attention
• Non profit organisation called common sense media involved android users aged between 11-17. Studied how much preteens and teenagers used phones. Study found duration of day, smartphone use varied from few minutes to over 16 hours. Research demonstrated however brief usage was, phones were rarely out of reach, younger children checked phones les frequently than older

Question 7

State an operationalised experimental/alternative hypothesis:

Answer 7

There will be a difference between the way sixth form students use mobile phones (measured by separate behavioural categories) in a social area (common room) and a study area (study room)

Question 8

State whether directional or non directional

Answer 8

Non directional as there is no pre-existing research into this are so need to remain open minded, can’t go in one direction

Question 9

State an appropriate null hypothesis:

Answer 9

There will be no difference in the number of participants observed to be using or not using a mobile phone in a social and study area of a school setting. Any difference that does occur does so by chance.

Question 10

State why you have chosen a non participant methodology

Answer 10

A non-participant observation has been selected as this will allow for the researcher to observe the spontaneous reactions and responses of participants without their knowledge. This will mean that there are lowered levels of demand characteristics. As the observer will be observing from afar, participants interactions with their mobile phones across the two school settings will be more realistic and generalisable to similar real-world locations.

By conducting the observation as a non-participant observation, it will also mean that the researchers will be able to record their data relating to mobile phone use in real time. This will mean that the data will be more accurate and reliable as a result as not having to record this retrospectively which is open to distortion, inaccuracy and researcher bias

Question 11

State why you have chosen time and event sampling :

Answer 11

• Time Sampling has been selected for recording the number of instances of using/not using a mobile phone in a given time frame. This will help to reduce the amount of data to be analysed compared to continuous observation and reduce the risk of researcher bias. By adopting time sampling, this will lead to the production of quantitative data which is easier to analyse than qualitative data.
• Event Sampling has also been selected, but this will be used to identify differences across several behavioural categories of mobile phone use e.g. scrolling, calling, texting in the different settings of a school environment. Event sampling will help to reduce the overall amount of data to be analysed compared to continuous observation and ensure that more accurate and informed conclusions can be reached as only those pre- determined instances of mobile phone use will be recorded.

Question 12

State why you have chosen tally chart as the method of data collection

Answer 12

A behavioural checklist/tally chart has been selected as:
- Data will be quantitative and so therefore easier to analyse (no. of tallies in each category of mobile phone use e.g. calling, texting, scrolling)
- Will allow for additional focus on the specific instances of mobile phone use under interest
- Data can be quickly and conveniently recorded in real time so to avoid retrospective recollection of data. Written notes would have resulted in extensive amounts of qualitative data which is time consuming to produce and difficult to analyse. Audio/video recordings have been avoided due to privacy/consent implications particularly due to the age of pps and the school environment being utilised.

Question 13

State why you chose 3 observers:

Answer 13

No more than 3 were chosen as it ensures that observers remain covert as it would not be discrete to observe mobile phone use with more observers and can lead to students finding out there are being studied. More than 2 observers were used as it ensures inter-rater reliability so that observations of mobile phone use are measured accurately

Question 14

State why you have chosen the field as the location of research

Answer 14

A field location of a school has been selected as this will allow for greater ecological validity of the data. The mobile phone use observed is likely to be authentic and natural and therefore more generalisable to real world behaviour and so increasing the relevance of the research findings. If a lab location had been adopted, this would have increased the risk of demand characteristics and pps may have used their phones differently to their typical and real-world behaviour as a result of the unfamiliar and highly controlled setting.

Question 15

Describe how the ethical issues will affect your study

Answer 15

Confidentiality: Participants will be unaware of their participation and so it is essential to protect their identity as they may not wish to be linked to the data collected on their mobile phone use e.g. the amount of time spent scrolling.

Risk of stress, anxiety, humiliation or pain: Participants may experience embarrassment or humiliation if their mobile phone use was observed to be particularly excessive or if they were using their phone for social purposes in the academic setting and vice versa. The experience of being observed could also be particularly distressing for some.

Risk to privacy: Participants will be unaware as to their participation and some may feel that being watched and analysed for their mobile phone use constitutes an invasion of their privacy.

Consent: Individual consent will not be sought from participants. This would result in the observation becoming overt and may result in a change in behaviour either to provide the results that they think the researcher wants or to sabotage the study (demand characteristics).

Question 16

How will you overcome these ethical issues

Answer 16

Confidentiality: This will be dealt with by ensuring the anonymity of participants. No personal data including names will be recorded, or necessarily known to the observers. Only tally scores relating to mobile phone use across the different settings will be collected, meaning participants will not be directly identifiable from the data.

Risk of stress, anxiety, humiliation or pain: Any risk of harm and humiliation is deemed minimal as the observation will be conducted covertly, participants will not be aware of being observed and as their names will not be taken/used there is no risk of embarrassing use of their mobile phones being linked to them personally in order that a stigma be created against them. A general statement of debrief was posted to the online notice boards of Year 12 and Year 13 pupils.

Risk to privacy: The observation will be conducted in a public place on school site. This is a location where students would be expected to be viewed by others. Participants will be made aware through prior general consent that observations of mobile phone use will be taking place in these locations. If student participants feel that their privacy is being infringed upon, they can avoid these public spaces during the published observational window. Furthermore, only observable actions of mobile phone use will be recorded, there will be no attempt to identify what is taking place on the screens of the mobile phones being viewed.

Consent: Consent for the observation will be sought from the Head of Sixth Form who has pastoral responsibility for the sixth form students being used as participants. In addition, prior general consent will be sought by placing a notice on the online noticeboards of Year 12 and Year 13 students to advise that observations of mobile phone use will be taking place across a series of days and should participants not wish to have their mobile phone use observed that the designated social and study areas of the school be avoided.

Question 17

Who are your target population

Answer 17

Sixth form students in a high school, aged 16-18

Question 18

State why you have chosen opportunity sampling

Answer 18

• Opportunity sampling has been selected due to its efficiency compared to other research methods e.g. random sampling. There is a strict time limit placed on the investigation because it is being conducted as a school-based study. The opportunity method is far quicker and more convenient than a random method of sampling.
• Opportunity sampling works well based on the covert nature of the observation taking place. In using those conveniently available in the 2 locations under observation, they will be unaware of their participation in the study. In self selected sample mobile phone use will be not be natural and demand characteristics can result in social desirability bias so may present mobile phone use acceptably

Question 19

Are there any potential EXTRANEOUS variables which could compromise/bias the results of the investigation?

Answer 19

Time of Day: If observations were made at different times of the day this would confound findings. Participants may use their phones differently in the morning session of the school day in comparison to the afternoon session. Ty Celyn (social space) is very quiet in the afternoon and so pupils may be more likely to use their phones at this time due to lack of company.

Time of School Term/Academic Year: If observations were made at different times of the school year, this may impact student use of mobile phones. It may be that students use their phones less during exam season as they will be revising.

Weather conditions: If observations were made under different weather conditions this may confound findings. Pps may be more likely to use their mobile phones when the weather is poor than under sunny/warm conditions.

Question 20

Are there any potential CONFOUNDING variables which could compromise/bias the results of the investigation ?

Answer 20

Data Connection/Network signal/Battery life: This could compromise findings as different students may have better/worse access to network signal or data/chargers than others. This could offer an alternative explanation for their mobile phone use.

Individual Differences: Participants using the two locations may differ to one another in terms of their sociability. This could impact their mobile phone use. Students in the study setting may be less sociable than those in the study setting and may use their phones more as a result of frequency of time spent alone.

Demand Characteristics: As pps were made aware that observations will be taking place for ethical purposes, it may be that some pps will purposefully alter their mobile phone use in the study and social spaces under study to try and please the researchers.

Question 21

How do you intend to turn such CONFOUNDING/EXTRANEOUS variables into controlled variables and so eliminate their impact on the investigation?

Answer 21

Time of day – all observations will be conducted during the same lesson in the am/pm session of the school day.

Time of school term/academic year - all observations will be conducted during the same lesson, on the same day of the school year.

Weather conditions – as observations will be conducted across different settings at the same time of day, weather conditions will be held constant.

Access to mobile phones – all students will attend the same school and come from the same serving catchment area. Access to mobile phones will be similar for all pps attending the school where the research is taking place.

Demand characteristics – pps are unaware of exactly when observations will be taking place, observations will also be conducted covertly. This will reduce the extent to which pps will be able to purposefully alter their mobile phone use.

Wifi connection – on the day of the observation IT technicians will be consulted to ensure that the school’s public Wifi was fully functional.

Question 22

Confounding/extraneous variables that are not able to be controlled

Answer 22

Data Connection/Network signal/Battery life: We have no way of knowing what level of signal/data/battery life pps currently have on their mobile phones as the observation will be conducted as non-participant and covert.

Individual Differences – as the observation is being conducted using opportunity sampling and making use of those individuals who are conveniently available in the two school locations at the time of the observation, no details are known about pps in advance of the data collection. There is no way to therefore measure and control for the personality and sociability levels of pps included in the study.

Question 23

Are there any issues of reliability within the current investigation

Answer 23

Inter-rater/Inter-observer reliability: recording of behaviour and interpretation of the behavioural categories of mobile phone use e.g. calling, texting, scrolling could differ across the X (number) observers tasked with data collection. E.g. would two observers interpret & record ‘glancing’ in the same way as one another?

Stability (or intra-rater reliability): Can the same observer apply the categories of mobile phone use consistently across the two different settings (social and study areas). E.g. the observer may have a better viewing position in one location in comparison to another and records mobile phone use differently.

Question 24

Explain how you would implement inter rater reliability

Answer 24

• Two or more assessors will independently score/record their own data of mobile phone use across the different academic settings under comparison. They will each implement time and event sampling. Time sampling of whether pps under observation are using/not using their mobile phone at given time intervals. Event sampling will involve observing mobile phone use across different behavioural categories e.g. calling, texting, scrolling.
• The data obtained from each scorer will be correlated.
• A significant positive correlation obtained from observers indicates good reliability and that categories of mobile phone use have been applied consistently across individuals.

Question 25

How could you improve the reliability of the investigation?

Answer 25

• Operationalisation: explicit definitions of examples of mobile phone use expected within each behavioural category
• Film/ Record the behaviour under observation: This would allow researchers to re-view the observational footage and check the recordings of mobile phone use that were made. This could be viewed several times for increased accuracy.
• Pilot study: This would allow the observers to see if behavioural categories were comprehensive and completely accounted for all forms of mobile phone use likely to be seen, if not changes/additions could be made.
• Training: this would ensure that observers were better able to conduct observations successfully and accurately record all noted instances of mobile phone use.

Question 26

Are there any issues with validly in this investigation

Answer 26

Researcher bias (Internal): this could be created if the researcher’s expectations of which setting (social/study) will elicit more instances of mobile phone use or if phones will be used differently in the two locations. This may unintentionally skew the way in which mobile phone use is interpreted.

Sample bias (External): Limited generalisability of findings due to the restricted age range of pps. Therefore, findings can only be generalised to mobile phone use in young people. This is further exacerbated by adopting opportunity sampling, which means that the sample has a narrow focus compared to the target population.

Social Desirability Bias (Internal): It is possible that pps may guess that they are being observed and they may alter mobile phone use intentionally to come across as socially acceptable. This would mean that the observation was based on false behaviour as observers will simply have viewed cast participants pretending to behave in a particular way e.g. use their mobiles for academic purposes in a social setting.

Demand characteristics - Aim of the study worked out by pps therefore altering the way in which they observe their phones, positively or to skew results

Question 27

Explain how you would implement face and construct validity

Answer 27

Face validity – ask naïve, independent individuals if it appears as though our categories of mobile phone use appear comprehensive and include all of the different ways that mobile phones may be utilised in an academic setting. We would have good face validity if a non-expert agrees that the categories of mobile phone use are exhaustive and accurate.

Content Validity: This would involve seeking the advice of an individual deemed to be an expert within the field of social psychology & mobile phone use who has conducted research of a similar nature previously. The deemed expert would be asked to judge whether the categories of mobile phone use under study accurately cover the behaviour under interest. If the behavioural categories appear accurate and complete to an expert, then the study would be deemed to have good validity.

Question 28

How could you improve the validity of the investigation?

Answer 28

Sample bias: This could be improved by investigating/observing a wider range of individuals, this would increase the extent to which findings could be generalised beyond the specific group sampled e.g. the observation could be repeated in a coffee shop/library and include older individuals.

Researcher bias: independent observers who are unaware of the research aims/hypothesis could be utilised to collect data. This would ensure that the researcher’s prior knowledge and expectations could not skew the results
(i.e. double blind).

Social Desirability Bias: Participants will be unaware as to the exact time at which observations will take place. They will be given a broad window of time only for prior general consent purposes. Therefore, pps will be less able to guess when the observations are being carried out and so the behaviour viewed should be authentic. Researchers will also conduct observations covertly and will record data on their own mobile phones so that pps are less aware of the fact that an observation is taking place

Question 29

Procedures

Answer 29

1. Mobile phone use was operationalised into 5 observable categories in adoption of a top-down
   approach (i.e. mobile phone use behaviours for analysis were decided before conducting the observation)
2. Categories included calling, texting, taking pictures, music, scrolling etc.
3. Due to the nature of the investigation, it was not possible to seek consent from participants personally, so permission to carry out the observation was sought from the Head of Sixth Form. Prior general consent was also sought by placing a notice on the Google Classroom pages for Y12 & Y13 to notify them that Ty Celyn (Common Room) and Learning Hub (study area) would be used for observational research by A Level Psychology students that week.
4. Observation 1 was conducted in the Learning Hub, during the AM/PM session of the school day,
   3 observers strategically placed themselves at different locations in the room where they had a good view of the room and the students studying there.
5. Each observer identified 5 different target students that they would each observe for mobile phone use for 10 minutes.
6. Time Sampling – at one minute intervals each observer would record if their target individuals were using their phones or not.
7. Event sampling – Each observer would also record during the 10 minute observational window any instances of mobile phone use seen within the operationalised behavioural categories.
8. Each observer would use their own mobile device to monitor timings within the observational window so that they could go unnoticed.
9. Observation 2 was conducted in Ty Celyn during the same lesson on the same school day. The same process was adopted as that of observation 1.
10. All observations were recorded as they happened in real time using the behavioural checklist/tally chart.
11. Results were collated and analysed across the two different settings.
12. Students were debriefed by placing a statement on to the Google Classroom pages for Y12 & Y13 & the results shared with the Head of Sixth Form at their request.

Question 30

Explain why the descriptive statistics selected (mean,range) were appropriate for use for this investigation

Answer 30

The mean was selected to produce an average score for instances of mobile phone use seen across the different social and study settings of a school environment. This allowed for an average of the observations of the multiple observers to be used for comparison across the two settings to avoid skewed/biased data.

The range was selected to show the variation in scores collected across different observers in the number of instances of mobile phone use across the different settings. The smaller the range, the greater the level of inter- rater reliability.

Question 31

Strength and weakness of mean and range

Answer 31

☺ Mean – where there are no anomalous results, most sensitive method of calculating the average due to taking all values into consideration.
☺ Range – easy to calculate & provides an alternative way of describing the data. Two data sets could have the same or similar means, but quite different ranges. Informs us as to inter-rater reliability.
😔Mean – difficult to calculate in comparison to other methods e.g. median and mode. Effected by extreme scores as all values are considered.
😔Range – effected by extreme outlying scores, as only the biggest and smallest values are taken into consideration.

Question 32

Explain why your choice of graphical representation is appropriate for the data collected:

Answer 32

A bar chart was selected to visually present the data. Data are nominal and reflect different categories of mobile phone use e.g. calling, texting, scrolling as well as whether pps were either using or not using their mobile phones at specific time intervals across the 2 settings of a school environment. This means data are non-continuous. A bar chart allowed for efficient comparison of mean mobile phone use across the different categories/settings and made it far easier to spot trends and/or anomalies than if just using a table of raw data.

Question 33

Explain why your choice of inferential statistic is appropriate: (Chi-square)

Answer 33

• Test of difference – looking for a difference in the number of participants observed to be using or not using their mobile phones in a study and social setting of a school environment.
• Nominal data – data were considered according to categories of using or not using a mobile phone in a social or study setting. Researchers counted the frequency of instances of mobile phone use in each category.
• Data are independent – independent groups design with different pps observed in the study and social setting of the school environment.

Question 34

Summarise findings

Answer 34

Mean for mobile phone use in social - 21. Not using on social - 29
Mean for mobile phone use in study - 32. Not using in study - 18

There is significant difference in results for mean. Range was smallest in social for mobile phone use (1) and was greatest in study for mobile phone use (9)

Question 35

Conclusions from findings

Answer 35

The results show that mobile phone usage in a study setting is significantly greater than mobile phone usage in a social setting; a significant difference was found. We can conclude that in a social setting, more people socialise through conversations rather than mobile phone usage compared to a study area which suggests more people use phones for study purposes

Question 36

Can current research be extended to address future questions

Answer 36

• Alternative setting: Now that we have established that mobile phones are used differently in a social and study area of a school environment, it would be of interest to explore other settings and to establish if similar results are found. For example, it may be interesting to look for differences in mobile phone use in a public library and a neighbouring coffee shop. Students mobile phone use may have been affected by the fact that they were in a school environment where they are closely monitored, this may be different in a less restrictive, public setting.
• Correlational research – On the basis of these findings which have demonstrated a small but significant difference in mobile phone use in social and study settings of a school environment, it would be interesting to follow up to establish if there is a relationship between mobile phone use & exam results? As those students in a study setting were more likely to be on their phone and those in the social setting less likely, it would be useful to establish if that actually leads to a difference in outcomes at GCSE or A Level.

Question 37

Ways in which research could’ve been improved

Answer 37

• Sample attrition – during the observations sample attrition became an unforeseen problem. It was not discussed or anticipated before hand between observers that some individuals being observed may choose to leave the setting whilst being watched e.g. to go to a lesson, the canteen, use the toilet. This was problematic as the situation was likely treated differently by different observers. This would have resulted in reduced reliability in the data. To overcome this a pilot study would be beneficial as it would allow researchers to trial the observation and to realise all of the problems that they may come across, so that they could ensure a consistent approach and improved inter-rater reliability during final data collection.
• Training for observers - If repeated, it would be appropriate to insist on proper training for observers. The current investigation was conducted by A Level students as part of their Psychology course meaning that they were non-experts in operationalising behavioural categories of mobile phone use or conducting an observation. As a result, acts of mobile phone use may have been missed, or not categorised appropriately. The intervals of time sampling may not have been managed appropriately. With training, data would be more accurate and there would be little to no variation in scores between observers.

Question 38

are there any practical applications from findings to real world

Answer 38

• Educational App Development – The findings of this study have shown that students are less likely to use their phones in a social setting compared to a study setting. This may highlight the need for more generation of educational apps to support pupils in their independent study and learning. Questionnaires could be conducted amongst students to find out what resources they prefer to use for study which can aid in educational app developments to aid learning.