Observational Techniques and Observation Design

Question 1

what is a naturalistic observation?

Answer 1

-An observational technique, where behaviour is observed and its natural context, without intrusion by the person who is doing the observing.
-There is no direct population of variables
-The emphasis is on how people behave in natural situations

Question 2

While the strength of naturalistic observations

Answer 2

-High Ecological Validity
-Study behaviour where variables can’t be manipulated

Question 3

Why do naturalistic observations have high ecological validity?

Answer 3

-as the participants are unaware of the observation and behaving in their natural environment
-there is less chance of demand characteristics influencing the participants behaviour (in lab/ctrled observation- potential for artificial behaviour)

Question 4

why can you study behaviour where variables cannot be manipulated in naturalistic observations? (Strength)

Answer 4

-Data talk be collected from participants who cannot be tested in other ways e.g. babies and when manipulation is unethical or impractical

Question 5

what are the limitations of naturalistic observations?

Answer 5

-observer bias (investigator effect)
-lack of control

Question 6

why may naturalistic observations have observer bias?

Answer 6

-The observer may see what he she expects to see
-Different observers mess, different things which leads to lower inter-observer reliability

Question 7

why do naturalistic observations having a lack of control mean?

Answer 7

no control of variable therefore, replication is impossible
-Means it is hard to establish external validity

Question 8

what is a controlled observation?

Answer 8

-Where the researcher attempts to control certain variables
-control of the environment can occur if the observation is conducted in the laboratory

Question 9

what is an example of a controlled observation?

Answer 9

Strange situation

Question 10

what are the strengths of controlled observations?

Answer 10

-Time saving
-Preliminary research

Question 11

Why is a controlled observation time saving?

Answer 11

it is possible to manipulate the situation, and therefore you do not have to wait for the desired behaviour to be shown
-in this way, the control observation is a quicker more economical method than the naturalistic observation

Question 12

what is preliminary research a strength of a controlled observation?

Answer 12

-provides a means of conducting preliminary research to develop new hypothesis for future investigations or may help prevent the time being wasted in carrying out unrealistic experiments.

Question 13

What are the limitations of controlled observations?

Answer 13

-lower ecological validity
-observed bias (same as naturalistic observation)

Question 14

why may controlled observations have lower ecological validity?

Answer 14

-participants behaviour may change because they know they’re being observed
-The full behaviour may not be natural which lovers ecological validity, compared to the natural observation

Question 15

What is a covert observation?

Answer 15

Participants are unaware they are being observed

Question 16

what is the strength of a covert observation?

Answer 16

High ecological validity as behaviour is more natural as the participants are unaware they are being watched

Question 17

What is the limitation of a covert observation?

Answer 17

-Ethics may be questionable due to invasion of privacy and lack of informed consent- you cannot breach ethics

Question 18

what is an overt observation?

Answer 18

Participants know their behaviour is being observed

Question 19

what is the strength of an over observation?

Answer 19

more ethical than covert if gained informed consent

Question 20

what is the limitation of an overt observation?

Answer 20

-reduced ecological validity because the participants know they are being watched -this may lead to participant reactivity

Question 21

what is participant observation?

Answer 21

The observer becomes part of the group they are studying

Question 22

What is the strength of participant observation?

Answer 22

Allows the researcher up to gain special insight into the behaviour that may only be seen from ‘inside’, increasing validity of findings

Question 23

What is the limitation of participant observation?

Answer 23

observer bias- objectivity of findings may be affected by being part of the group

Question 24

What is non participant observation?

Answer 24

The researcher remains separate from the group they are studying

Question 25

What is the strength of non-participant observation?

Answer 25

observer is more likely to be objective, compared to the participant observation

Question 26

what is the limitation of non-participant observation?

Answer 26

compare to participant observation, data lacks richness

Question 27

When designing an observation, why is it essential that care is taken?

Answer 27

To reduce observer bias

Question 28

what are the techniques that ensure observations are systematic and objective?

Answer 28

-Behavioural categories
-Sampling procedures (not methods)
(time and event sampling)

Question 29

What do behavioural categories involve?

Answer 29

-dividing a target behaviour into subset behaviours
-This can be done using a behaviour checklist, rating scales or a coding system

Question 30

What should behavioural categories be?

Answer 30

-objective
-cover all aspects of the behaviour
-mutually exclusive (each can only fit into one category)

Question 31

What do behavioural categories provide?

Answer 31

-A clear focus for the researcher and can result in great reliability (consistency)- inter- observer reliability
-categories provide data that is easier to analyse

Question 32

How is behaviour recorded in most observations?

Answer 32

in a systematic way, using specific techniques (event and time sampling)

Question 33

What is event sampling?

Answer 33

An observer records, target behaviours whenever they occur in a target individual or individuals
-The observer records the number of times particular behaviour is demonstrated on the behavioural checklist

Question 34

what is an example of event sampling?

Answer 34

observers might record the number of shoves, kicks, and punches on the behavioural checklist during a school playtime

Question 35

What is the strength of event something?

Answer 35

Observer can record a variety of behaviours that can change frequently so behaviours will normally not be missed and with time sampling

Question 36

What is a limitation of event sampling?

Answer 36

-it can be difficult to accurately record behaviour or behaviour changes rapidly
-this can reduce the validity of the observation

Question 37

What is time sampling (schedule)?

Answer 37

-an observed records the target behaviours at set time points during a specific period.
-that specific time intervals, the observer will tick or mark categories from the behavioural checklist according to the behaviour shown
-any behaviours that occur between the time points are ignored and not recorded

Question 38

what is an example of time sampling?

Answer 38

whilst recording the social behaviour of a child during a 10 minute break, every 30 seconds, one or more relevant behavioural categories should be tallied

Question 39

what is the strength of time sampling?

Answer 39

The observer has time to record what they have seen, which means the observation is easier to manage if a lot of behaviours are occurring through the set observation time

Question 40

what is the limitation of time sampling?

Answer 40

Behaviours that change between time points are missed and not recorded. Therefore observations may not be representative.

Question 41

how do you improve the reliability of observations?

Answer 41

-when more than one observer is used, they should be similarly trained in order for the researcher to know how to record behaviour in a consistent manner
-Behavioural categories should be operationalised and mutually exclusive and cover all possible behaviour
-pilot study can be used to check observers are applying the behavioural categories consistently

Question 42

how do you improve the internal validity of observations?

Answer 42

-IV may be a problem if observers are biased
-this can be improved by having more than one observer, averaging data across observers training observers, using a pilot study in clear, behavioural categories

Question 43

How do you improve external validity (population validity) of observations?

Answer 43

-population validity may be an issue for observational studies (e.g. if only your children are observed from middle class homes are we will not be able to generalise to all children.)
-This can be improved by conducting observations with varied participants.

Question 44

How do you improve external validity (ecological validity) of observations?

Answer 44

-may be low if the controlled observations are used or participants are aware they are being watched
-This can improve using naturalistic or covert observation