Observational Techniques, Chapter 6, 8 Flashcards
What is a naturalistic observation?
Watching and recording behaviour in the setting within which it would normally occur
What is controlled observation?
Watching and recording behaviour within a structured environment, i.e. one where some variables are managed
What is covert observation?
Participants’ behaviour is watched and recorded without their knowledge or consent
Such behaviour must be public and happening anyway if the observation is to be ethical
What is overt observation?
Participants’ behaviour is watched and recorded with their knowledge and informed consent beforehand
What is participant observation?
The researcher becomes a member of the group whose behaviour he/she is watching and recording
Produces a first hand account
What is non-participant observation?
The researcher remains outside of the group whose behaviour he/she is watching and recording.
This is in a more objective manner
What is observation?
One important non-experimental method
It is often used within an experiment as a way. for example, of assessing the dependent variable
What do observations provide?
They provide psychologists with a way of seeing what people do without having to ask them (as in studies involving self-report methods)
What do observations allow?
They allow researchers to study observable behaviour within a natural or controlled setting. This method allows a researcher the flexibility to study more complex interactions between variables.
What are the strengths of all observations?
They all have the benefit of capturing what people actually do (may be unexpected behaviour). People often do not act the same as they would
They give special insight into behaviour
What are limitations of all observations?
Observer bias. The observer’s interpretation of a situation may be affected by their expectations, can be reduced by using one more observer
Observational studies cannot demonstrate casual relationships- though observational techniques may be used in experiments and aid in detecting cause- and-effect relationships
What are the strengths of naturalistic observations?
They tend to have high external validity as finding can often be generalised to everyday life. This is because the behaviour is studied within the environment where it would normally occur
What are limitations of naturalistic observations?
The lack of control over the research situation makes replication of the investigation difficult
There may also be many uncontrolled confounding/ extraneous variables that make it more difficult to judge any pattern of behaviour
What are the strengths of a controlled observation?
confounding/extraneous variables may be less of a factor so replication is easier
What are the limitations of a controlled observation?
They may produce findings that cannot be as readily applied to everyday life
