Observational Techniques and Observation Design Flashcards
what is a naturalistic observation?
-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
While the strength of naturalistic observations
-High Ecological Validity
-Study behaviour where variables can’t be manipulated
Why do naturalistic observations have high ecological validity?
-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)
why can you study behaviour where variables cannot be manipulated in naturalistic observations? (Strength)
-Data talk be collected from participants who cannot be tested in other ways e.g. babies and when manipulation is unethical or impractical
what are the limitations of naturalistic observations?
-observer bias (investigator effect)
-lack of control
why may naturalistic observations have observer bias?
-The observer may see what he she expects to see
-Different observers mess, different things which leads to lower inter-observer reliability
why do naturalistic observations having a lack of control mean?
no control of variable therefore, replication is impossible
-Means it is hard to establish external validity
what is a controlled observation?
-Where the researcher attempts to control certain variables
-control of the environment can occur if the observation is conducted in the laboratory
what is an example of a controlled observation?
Strange situation
what are the strengths of controlled observations?
-Time saving
-Preliminary research
Why is a controlled observation time saving?
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
what is preliminary research a strength of a controlled observation?
-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.
What are the limitations of controlled observations?
-lower ecological validity
-observed bias (same as naturalistic observation)
why may controlled observations have lower ecological validity?
-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
What is a covert observation?
Participants are unaware they are being observed
what is the strength of a covert observation?
High ecological validity as behaviour is more natural as the participants are unaware they are being watched
What is the limitation of a covert observation?
-Ethics may be questionable due to invasion of privacy and lack of informed consent- you cannot breach ethics
what is an overt observation?
Participants know their behaviour is being observed
what is the strength of an over observation?
more ethical than covert if gained informed consent
what is the limitation of an overt observation?
-reduced ecological validity because the participants know they are being watched -this may lead to participant reactivity
what is participant observation?
The observer becomes part of the group they are studying
What is the strength of participant observation?
Allows the researcher up to gain special insight into the behaviour that may only be seen from ‘inside’, increasing validity of findings
What is the limitation of participant observation?
observer bias- objectivity of findings may be affected by being part of the group
What is non participant observation?
The researcher remains separate from the group they are studying
What is the strength of non-participant observation?
observer is more likely to be objective, compared to the participant observation
what is the limitation of non-participant observation?
compare to participant observation, data lacks richness
When designing an observation, why is it essential that care is taken?
To reduce observer bias
what are the techniques that ensure observations are systematic and objective?
-Behavioural categories
-Sampling procedures (not methods)
(time and event sampling)
What do behavioural categories involve?
-dividing a target behaviour into subset behaviours
-This can be done using a behaviour checklist, rating scales or a coding system
What should behavioural categories be?
-objective
-cover all aspects of the behaviour
-mutually exclusive (each can only fit into one category)
What do behavioural categories provide?
-A clear focus for the researcher and can result in great reliability (consistency)- inter- observer reliability
-categories provide data that is easier to analyse
How is behaviour recorded in most observations?
in a systematic way, using specific techniques (event and time sampling)
What is event sampling?
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
what is an example of event sampling?
observers might record the number of shoves, kicks, and punches on the behavioural checklist during a school playtime
What is the strength of event something?
Observer can record a variety of behaviours that can change frequently so behaviours will normally not be missed and with time sampling
What is a limitation of event sampling?
-it can be difficult to accurately record behaviour or behaviour changes rapidly
-this can reduce the validity of the observation
What is time sampling (schedule)?
-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
what is an example of time sampling?
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
what is the strength of time sampling?
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
what is the limitation of time sampling?
Behaviours that change between time points are missed and not recorded. Therefore observations may not be representative.
how do you improve the reliability of observations?
-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
how do you improve the internal validity of observations?
-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
How do you improve external validity (population validity) of observations?
-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.
How do you improve external validity (ecological validity) of observations?
-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
