Samuel And Bryant - Conservation Study

Question 1

Strengths of Sample

Answer 1

• Drawn from variety of schools and playgroups in and around Crediton, Devon. Therefore participants are representative of that area and it is generalisable.
• Sample is fairly large, each age group has 63 participants, therefore it is likely it is representative of children in general and can be generalised to British population as a whole.
• Boys and Girls used therefore findings representative and generalisable to both genders.
• Age 5-8.5: sample is drawn from pre-operational and concrete operational stages of cognitive development. Therefore allow Samuel and Bryant to test whether those in both stages could conserve and this shows piagets methodology may have been flawed.

Question 2

Research method

Answer 2

Lab experiment.
IV: 
   - age
   - materials used
   - experimental condition
DV:
   Ability to conserve mass, number and volume

Question 3

Why is it considered a snapshot study

Answer 3

Studied different groups of children at different stages of their development, at one point in time.
their ability to conserve number, mass and volume was compared using one set of data.

Snapshot study=participants of different ages or from different groups are studied simultaneously, and their behaviour compared using one set of data.

Question 4

Strength of snapshot

Answer 4

Can be conducted over short period of time and allow researcher to compare individuals/groups at one period in time to see how they may be similar or different.
Compared conservation abilities of four groups of children over a short period of time in 1983, and showed their ability to conserve number, mass and volume increased with age.

Question 5

Weakness of snapshot

Answer 5

Do not allow researcher to discover whether the results are cut to the development of the behaviour or to individual differences.
Used 63 children x4 with mean ages of 5.25,6.25,7.25,8.25. Difference in their ability to conserve may not have been due to their development but due to such factors as their home environment, education.

Question 6

Procedure

Answer 6

Each child had four attempts at the tests for conservation of mass, volume and number.
Group they had been allocated to did not vary.
Order children took tests was systematically varied to prevent order effects.