Samuel & Bryant Flashcards
Sample
252 children
Split into 4 groups: 5,6,7,8 years
Split into 1 question, 2 question, fixed array
Mass, number, volume (4)
(So each child is asked 12 or 24 questions)
Aim
To test whether the methodology in Piaget’s conservation study was the reason why children made errors than a lack of conservational understanding
Independent Variables
Age
Type of conservation
Form of presentation
Dependent Variable
Conservation ability
Who made least errors?
8 year olds
Who made most errors?
5 year olds
Type of question order of errors
From most to least: fixed array, one judgment, standard
Order for errors between forms
From most to least: volume, mass, number
Conclusions (4)
Piaget’s traditional 2 question method produced more errors than standard condition
Piaget had underestimated the ability of younger children
Children think in different ways as they develop
Children can conserve number before mass and then volume
Method
Laboratory experiment (quasi)
Validity
High levels of control eliminates extraneous variables
Effected by order affects - boredom - reduces reliability
Demand characteristics - reduce validity
Reliability
Standardised procedures
Each question is asked 4 times
Only 21 children of each age, not representative
Ethnocentric bias
Location?
Devon, England
