Lesson 2- Observational Techniques

Question 1

Observation

Answer 1

When a researcher watches or listens to participants engaging in whatever behaviour is being studied

Question 2

Non participant observation

Answer 2

Researcher doesn’t get directly involved with the interactions of the participants and doesn’t take part in their activities

Question 3

Advantage of non participant observation-

Answer 3

Can focus on the activity occurring and can make good quality notes.
Can make sure that all details are recorded and no activity/behaviours are missed

Question 4

Disadvantage of non participant observation

Answer 4

As the researcher is not engaging in the activity, it might mean that they fail to have a deeper understanding of the observed behaviour. Might lack validity.

The researcher must be careful that they do not look too out of place, and also ensure the participants do not guess that someone is watching them

Question 5

Participant observation

Answer 5

Researcher is directly involved with interactions of participant
Engages in activities pps are doing

Question 6

Advantage of participant observation

Answer 6

The observation might have greater validity than non-participant observation, as the researcher is getting involved in the activity and would have a greater understanding

Question 7

Disadvantage of participant observation

Answer 7

The researcher might lose objectivity and become too subjective and biased as they are so involved with the activity they are observing

Question 8

Covert observation

Answer 8

Psychologist goes undercover, doesn’t reveal true identity
Group doesn’t know they’re being observed

Question 9

Advantage of covert observation

Answer 9

Less demand characteristics than an overt observation. Participants do not know they are being observed and therefore are less likely to guess the aim of the study

Question 10

Disadvantage of covert observation

Answer 10

Can break ethical guidelines. Participants do not know that they are being observed and therefore there might be no informed consent and deception might be occurring

Question 11

Overt observation

Answer 11

Psychologist reveals true identity, may also say that they are observing the group
Observer effects may occur as pps may change behaviour when they know they’re being watched- invalid results

Question 12

Advantage of overt observation

Answer 12

Very ethical compared to covert observations. Participants know they are being observed and can give their fully informed consent

Question 13

Disadvantage of overt observation

Answer 13

Less valid than covert observation. Participants know they are being observed and therefore might guess the aim of the study and change their behaviour (demand characteristics)

Question 14

Naturalistic observation

Answer 14

Researcher observers pps in their own natural environment
No deliberate manipulation of the independent variable

Question 15

Naturalistic observation advantages

Answer 15

high mundane realism as the behaviour that is shown is likely to reflect everyday behaviour. also high in ecological validity + can be applied to other settings

Naturalistic observations are useful when the deliberate manipulation of variables would be impractical or unethical. For instance if we were to observe children in the playground naturally playing, it might be unethical to deliberately tell a child to be aggressive to another. However, if we saw natural aggression in the playground then this is more ethical as it has not been forced upon the participants.

Question 16

Naturalistic observation disadvantages

Answer 16

It is impossible to have any control over extraneous variables. This means that other variables might be affecting the dependent variable other than the independent variable. This could make results invalid

There is a risk of observer bias. Due to lack of control the observer might be very subjective and might be very biased when trying to interpret behaviour. These interpretations might be incorrect and could lead to unreliable results

Question 17

Controlled observation

Answer 17

Researchers observe pps in controlled environment, allows for manipulation of the IV

Question 18

Advantages of controlled observations

Answer 18

Cause and effect can be determined because the observation is highly controlled. Therefore psychologists can identify whether the independent variable caused a change in the dependent variable.

Controlled observations are likely to yield qualitative data that is rich and detailed. This also increases the validity of the study as the observation is likely to be accurately measuring the key variables identified in the aim.

Question 19

Disadvantages of controlled observations

Answer 19

Low levels of mundane realism and ecological validity because of the high control in the observation. This is likely to be restrictive and means that the results might not be an accurate reflection of everyday life and might not be able to be generalised to other settings and contexts.

Observer effects can occur as participants usually know they are being observed (overt observation). Therefore participants might show social desirability bias and might behave unnaturally which means the data collected might be invalid.

Question 20

What is inter rater reliability

Answer 20

to have two observers who each record their data separately. They then correlate their observations and data together and if a Kappa score of +0.8 is gained then the data gained from each researcher is reliable. This reduces observer bias

Question 21

Observational design concepts- behavioural categories

Answer 21

These are specific types of behaviour that are being looked for in an observation

Question 22

Sampling procedures- event sampling

Answer 22

The observer decides in advance what types of behaviour they are interested in and records all occurrences. All other types of behaviour are ignored.

Question 23

Sampling procedures- time interval sampling

Answer 23

The observer decides in advance that observation will take place only during specified time periods and records the occurrence of the specified behaviour during that period only.

Question 24

Pilot study

Answer 24

Small scale investigation of procedures to be used in main study
Selecting a few ppl and trialing the study on them, planning the study
Identifies any flaws in the investigation etc, and establishes behavioural categories to see if they are suitable
This is an advantage

Question 25

Disadvantage of pilot study

Answer 25

it's costly and time-consuming, its small sample size leads to unreliable results