observational techniques Flashcards
what is an observational technique ?
when researchers observe participants and measure or record their behaviour
naturalistic observation
everyday life setting
controlled observation
artificial environment - standardised
covert observation
ppt unaware they are being watched
overt observation
ppt aware they are being watched
participant observation
researcher participates in the activity the ppt are doing
non participant observation
the researcher doesn’t participate in the activity the ppt are doing
what does observations provide for psychologists ?
a way of seeing what people do without having to ask them
what does observations allow researchers to study ?
observable behaviour within a natural or controlled setting
evaluation of naturalistic observations
strength:
- high ecological validity -generalised to everyday life
limitation:
- lack of control over the research situation makes replication of the investigation difficult- uncontrolled confounding or extraneous variables
evaluation of controlled observations
strength:
- better control over extraneous variables
limitation:
- may produce findings that cannot be as readily applied to everyday life
evaluation of overt observations
strength:
- more ethical than covert observations - informed consent
evaluation of covert observations
strength:
less investigator effects
less social desirability bias
evaluation of participants observations
strength:
- increased insight and understanding into behaviour - increase external validity
limitation:
- researcher may come to identify too strongly with those they are studying and lose objectivity
evaluation of non participants observation
strength:
- less investigator effects
