Observational Techniques Flashcards
naturalistic observation
an observation carried out in an unaltered setting in which the observer does not interfere in any way and merely observes the behaviour as it happens normally
controlled observation
conducted under strict conditions, where extraneous variables are controlled
covert observation
observing people without their knowledge
overt observation
where the participants know/are aware that they are being observed
participant observation
where the person who is conducting the observation also takes part in the activity being observed
non-participant observation
where the person who is conducting the observation does not participate in the activity being observed
strengths of controlled observations
-variables can be controlled to establish causality
-research can be replicated to check for reliability
weakness of controlled observation
low ecological validity
strength of naturalistic observation
high ecological validity
weakness of naturalistic observation
-lack of control over extraneous variables
-lacks replicability
strengths of participant observation
-greater insight into behaviour being observed
-unlikely to overlook any behaviours only seen up close
weakness of participant observation
-may be too involved to record data as they can’t step back
-may lead to researcher bias as they lose objectivity
strengths of non-participant observation
-observers are objective and can stand back
-can record data more easily
weakness of non-participant observation
likely to affect the situation just by their presence
strength of covert observation
high validity due to participants unaware and therefore behaving normally (investigator effects unlikely)
weakness of covert observation
often go against ethical guidelines (no informed consent nor exercise the right to withdraw)
strength of overt observation
ethical: can gain informed consent and the right to withdraw can be given
weakness of overt observation
possibility of investigator effects (participants may act unnaturally)
behavioural categories
breaking the target behaviour up to be precisely defined, and more observable and measurable
event sampling
where an observer records the number of times that the target behaviour occurs, for the duration of the observation
time sampling
where an observer records behaviour at pre-established intervals
inter-observer reliability
the extent to which two or more observers are observing and recording behaviour in the same way
strengths of event sampling
-useful when a target behaviour happens infrequently
-every behaviour in the theory will be counted for the duration
limit to event sampling
-if complex, observer may miss important details if numerous happen at once, or if noting down
strength of time sampling
reduces the number of observations that have to be made
limits to time sampling
-results may be unrepresentative of what really happened in the observation
-not every behaviour of relevance will be counted if it occurs between the allocated time frames
