Observational techniques & design Flashcards
What is a naturalistic observation?
- watching & recording behaviour in the setting within which it would normally occur
- researcher has no control over any aspects of the environment
What is a controlled observation?
- watching and recording behaviour within a structured environment
- some aspects of the environment (variables) are controlled to observe effects & also control of CVs & EVs
What is a overt observation?
- those in which participants behaviour is watched & recorded with their knowledge and consent
What is a covert observation?
- Those in which participants behaviour is watched and recorded without their consent
What is a non- participant observation?
- the researcher remains outside of the group whose behaviour is being watched & recorded
What is a participant observation?
- this is where the researcher becomes apart of the group whose behaviour is being studied and recorded
Strengths & weaknesses of all observations
strengths
- give special insight into behaviour
weaknesses
- observer bias, interpretation of a situation may be affected by their expectations
- cannot demonstrate causal relationships
Strengths & weaknesses of a naturalistic observation
strengths
- high ecological/external validity findings can be generalised
- less chance for demand characteristics
Weaknesses
- hard to replicate due to lack of control
- many uncontrolled CVs & EVs so difficult to judge patterns of behaviour
- ethical issues
Strengths and weaknesses of controlled observations
strengths
- easy to replicate as CVs and EVs less of a factor
- easy to record
weaknesses
- low external/ecological validity (can’t apply to real life)
Strengths and weaknesses of covert observations
strengths
- increased internal validity > demand characteristics won’t occur
weaknesses
- ethical issue ( right to privacy)
Strengths and weaknesses of overt observations
strength
- ethical as consent has been given
weakness
- decreased internal validity >demand characteristics may occur
strengths and weaknesses of participant observations
strengths
- high external validity > researcher gets an increased insight into lives of people being studied
- more in depth & valid data
-researcher gains trust of group
weakness
- lacks objectivity >bond forming & identify = subjective conclusions
- dangerous
Strenghts and weakness of non-participant observations
strengths
- researcher maintains objectivity
- less dangerous
- easy to record data
weaknesses
- less valuable insight & depth > researcher may not understand the reasons for subtle interactions
What is a unstructured observation?
- continuous recording of participant (everything researcher sees)
What is a structured observation?
- Using behaviour categories to record each time a behaviour occurs
What are behavioural categories?
- breaking down target behaviours into components that are observable and measurable
What two sampling methods can researcher use when doing structured observations?
- event sampling
- time sampling
What is event sampling?
- involves counting the number of times target behaviour occurs and recording it
What is time sampling?
- involves recording behaviour within a pre-established time frame e.g. every 60 secs
Strengths and weaknesses of an unstructured observation?
strength
- data is more rich in depth & detail (qualitative)
weaknesses
- greater risk of observer bias (no behavioural categories)
- much more difficult to record and analyse
Strenghts and weaknesses of a structured observation
strengths
- quantitative data so analysis & comparison more straight forward
- behavioural categories makes it easier to record data
- less risk of observer bias
weakness
- less detailed
Strengths and weaknesses of event sampling
strengths
- useful when target behaviour or event happens infrequently (could be missed if time sampling used)-
weaknesses
- if event is too complex important details may be overlooked
- reaction time (hard to catch every detail)
Strengths and weaknesses of time sampling
- strengths
- reduced number of observations being made
weaknesses - miss key details of observation due to intervals
- behaviour that is sampled might be unrepresentative of the observation as a whole
