College of Education

School of Continuing and Distance Education

2014/2015 – 2016/2017
Welcome!
 PSYC 334:
Research Methods in Psychology

Topic 3:
Non-experimental Research Methods

▪ Dr. Benjamin Amponsah

Email: [email protected]
▪ Dr. Kwaku Oppong Asante
Email: [email protected]
▪ Dr. Emmanuel Nii-Boye Quarshie
Email: [email protected]
Do you remember PSYC 224?...

Non-experimental

Research Designs

Experimental PSYC 224

But why non-experimental research?
 Research Designs in Psychology

Experimental ▪ Experimental Designs

PSYC 224
(Quantitative) ▪ Quasi Experimental Designs

Research
Qualitative
Designs

▪ Cross-sectional Studies /
Non-experimental Quantitative Correlational Studies (Survey)
[Quan. & Qual.] (Observational) ▪ Case control Studies.
▪ Cohort Studies (Longitudinal)
 What is Qualitative Research?
▪ A type of research methodology that produces descriptive
data, with little emphasis given to numerical quantitative
measures (APA, 2016).

▪ Methods that use language, rather than numbers, and an

interpretative, naturalistic approach (Biggerstaff, 2012).
– Qualitative researchers work in the ‘real’ world of lived
experience, often in natural setting rather than a laboratory
based experimental approach.
▪ Qualitative researchers try to make sense of social
phenomena and the meanings people bring to them.
 The Nature of Qualitative Research

1) Qualitative research aims at providing an in-depth

and interpreted understanding of the social world of
research participants.
▪ The researcher attempts to learn about participants’ social
and material circumstances, their experiences,
perspectives, and histories.

2) Samples are typically small in scale and purposively

selected based on salient criteria.
 The Nature of Qualitative Research (Conti…)

3) Data collection methods usually involve close contact

between the researcher and the research participants.
▪ Data collection is usually interactive and evolving and allows for
emergent issues to be explored.
4) Data are very detailed, information rich and extensive
5) Analysis is open to emergent concepts and ideas, which may
produce detailed description and classification, identify
patterns of association or develop typologies and
explanations.
6) Outputs tend to focus on the interpretations of social
meaning through mapping and ‘representing’ the social world
of participants.
Partnership & Trust in Qualitative Research

▪ Two key players:

– 1) the participant = ‘reservoir’ of knowledge

– 2) the researcher = learner and co-interpreter

and guides/facilitates the process toward
required knowledge.
 Characteristics of Qualitative Research

1) Asks why & how and under what circumstance(s)

things occur (open-ended questions),
2) Seeks depth of understanding,
3) Views social phenomena holistically,
4) Explores and discovers,
5) Provides insight into the meanings of decisions
and actions.
Characteristics of Qualitative Research (Conti…)

6) Uses interpretive and other open-ended

methods
7) Is iterative rather than fixed
8) Is emergent rather than pre-structured
9) Involves respondents as active participants
rather than subjects
10) Defines the investigator as an instrument in the
research process
What a qualitative study is not

– Not a comparison
– Not relating variables
– Not proving hypotheses
– Not measuring variables
 Major Qualitative Research Designs

Five qualitative designs (Creswell, 2014):

1) Phenomenology research.

2) Ethnographic research.

3) Grounded theory research.

4) Narrative research.

5) Case study research.

 Major Qualitative Designs (Conti…)

1). Phenomenological research (phenomenology)

– Phenomenological research focuses on describing the
meaning of lived experience of several individuals.
– Attempts are made to gain access to each participant’s
life world in to:
▪ identify shared experience among various individuals
experiencing shared phenomena.
▪ locate universal nature of an experience
▪ understand what an individual experienced and how he/she
experienced it.
▪ develop interpretation of the essence of these experiences.
– Often involve the use of in-depth interviews
 Major Qualitative Research Designs (Conti…)

2). Ethnography
– Focuses on the discovery and description of the culture of a
group of people.
• The idea of culture is not limited to the notion of ethnicity or
geographic location, but also include virtually any group or
organisation.
– Ethnographers study social interactions, behaviours, and
perceptions that occur within groups, teams, organisations, and
communities (Reeves et al., 2008).
– The central aim of ethnography is to provide rich, holistic insights
into people’s views and actions, as well as the nature of the
location they inhabit, through the collection of detailed
observations and interviews.
 Major Qualitative Research Designs (Conti…)

3). Grounded Theory Research

• The researcher derives a general, abstract
theory of a process, action, or interaction
grounded in the views of participants.

• This process involves using multiple stages of

data collection and the refinement and
interrelationship of categories of information
(Charmaz, 2006; Corbin & Strauss, 2007).
 Major Qualitative Research Approaches (Conti…)

4). Narrative Research

▪ The researcher studies the lives of individuals and
asks one or more individual to provides stories
about their lives (Riesman, 2008).
▪ This story is then often retold by the researcher in a
narrative chronology.
▪ Usually, in the end, the narrative combines views of
the participant’s life with those of the researcher’s
life in a collaborative narrative (Clandinin &
Connelly, 2000).
 Major Qualitative Research Designs (Conti…)

5). Case Study Research

– Intensive and detailed description and
analysis of one or more cases.
– A case may refer to a person, group, community,
an organisation, an activity, a process, or an event
(Christensen et al., 2011).
– Case studies may be conducted using different
methods such as interviews, observations, and
analysis of documents or records.
– There are different approaches to conducting
a case study:
▪ Intrinsic case study: The research is only
interested in understanding the individual case.
▪ Instrumental case study: The researcher studies
a case in order to understand something more
general than the particular case.
▪ Comparative case study: A study of multiple
cases for the purpose of comparison.
Methods of Data Collection Used in
Qualitative Research
1) Qualitative interviews

2) Focus groups

3) Participant observation

4) Collection and analysis of text and documents

5) Audio-visual
 1). Qualitative Interviews
▪ Interviews remain the most common data collection
method in qualitative research.
▪ They offer a flexible way of asking people about their
opinions and experiences.
▪ The interview may be unstructured or semi-structured
 Qualitative Interviews
▪ Unstructured interview: The researcher may start
with a single question to which the interviewee is
allowed to respond freely; the interviewer simply
responds to points that are worthy of being
followed up.

▪ Semi-structured interview: The researcher has an

interview guide (list of questions on fairly specific
topics), but the interviewee is given a great deal of
flexibility in how to respond; questions may not be
asked in the same order to all interviewees.
Kinds of Qualitative Interview Questions
▪ Kvale (1996, pp.133-135) suggested nine kinds of questions:
1. Introducing questions: e.g., “Can you tell me about your work?”
2. Follow-up questions: getting the interviewee to elaborate his or her
answer. E.g., “what do you mean by you were abused?”
3. Probing questions: getting the participant to say more through direct
questioning? “E.g., in what ways do you find your supervisor abusive?”
4. Specifying questions: “how did you react to what your supervisor said?”
5. Direct questions: “Are you happy with the way you and your husband
share the housework?” Such questions are best left until the end of the
interview.
6. Indirect questions: “What do you people in this department think of the
ways that management treats its staff?”
7. Structuring questions: E.g., I would like to move on to a different topic or
issue”
8. Silence: pausing to signal that you want the interviewee to reflect
9. Interpreting questions: “Do you mean management has not been fair to
you in the way it handled your problem?”
 Advantages Limitations

▪ Allows participants to ▪ Minimal control over the

express their own order in which the topics
ideas. are covered.

▪ Allows interviewer to be ▪ Usually small sample size

responsive to individual limited due to cost and
time.
differences and
situational
circumstances.
 2). Focus Groups
▪ An interviewing method involving
more than one, usually at least four
interviewees (Bryman, 2012).
▪ Focus groups typically emphasise a
specific theme or topic that is
explored in-depth.
▪ Often, the researcher is interested in
the ways in which individuals discuss
a certain issue as members of a
group.
▪ The person who runs the interview is
called the moderator or facilitator.
 Why Focus Groups?
▪ Focus group interview allows the researcher to develop an
understanding about why people feel the way they do.
• Participants may probe each other on why they hold particular
views
▪ Participants are able to discuss issues in relation to a topic
they deem to be important or significant.
• This means the moderator may have to relinquish some degree of
control to the participants
▪ The researcher is able to study the ways in which
individuals collectively make sense of a phenomenon and
construct meaning around it.
 Issues to Consider in Focus Groups
▪ How many groups?
– The number of focus groups can be deemed
enough when the research (or moderator)
reaches the point that he or she is able to
anticipate accurately what the next group is going
to say (Calder, 1977).

▪ What should the size of the group be?

– Typical group size of 6 to 10 members has been
suggested (Morgan, 1998).
 Limitations
Advantages
▪ Researcher has less control
▪ Provides opportunity for all
over the flow of discussion.
to participate and give their
opinions.
▪ Facilitating focus group
▪ Dominant and submissive interviews requires considerable
participants can be directed skill.
and controlled.

▪ Difficult to distinguish between

▪ Discussion generated individual view and group view.
between participants.

▪ Large quantity of
information collected in a
short amount of time.
 3). Participant Observation

▪ Involves observation and participation in a

group’s activities in its natural setting.

▪ Types of participant observation are categorized

based on the degree to which the researcher
becomes involved with the subjects.
 Types of Participant Observation

1]. Complete Observation (non-participatory)

– The observer is typically detached from the participants;
the researcher is neither seen nor noticed by participants.

2]. Observer as Participant (passive participation)

– The researcher is known and recognised by participants,
and may know the research goals of the observer. There
is limited interaction with participants. The researcher
aims to be as neutral as possible.
 Types of Participant Observation (conti…)
3]. Participant as Observer (Moderate participation)
– The researcher is fully engaged with the
participants; more of a friend or colleague than a
neutral third party.

4]. Complete Participation

– The observer fully engages with the participants
and partakes in their activities. Participants are not
aware that observation and research is being
conducted, even though they fully interact with the
researcher.
 Nature of Participant Observation

▪ Demands on time and personal cost (personal

involvement).
▪ The participant observer must be two dimensional,
i.e., maintain objectivity despite becoming an insider.
▪ Avoid over-socialisation, i.e., “going native”.
▪ Avoid over-identification with the study group and
aversion to it
– remain objective despite personal subjective bias – do not
be judgmental.
 Procedures of Participant Observation

▪ Recording methods: field notes/diaries, mnemonics,

recordings, and photographs. Know when and where
to do these activities – the primary objective is to
observe and listen.
– Use with caution, rapport is more important than
recording results
▪ Know the jargon of the group to be studied in order
to gain access.
▪ Identify the true purpose of the study with the group
– announcement of intentions.
Trustworthiness (validity and reliability issues) in
Qualitative Research
▪ Guba and Lincoln (1994) proposed that qualitative research can be assessed on the
basis of trustworthiness.
▪ Trustworthiness consists of four criteria, each of which has an equivalent criterion
in quantitative research:
1]. Credibility – parallels internal validity.
This involves ensuring that research is carried out in accordance with good practice
and getting participants to confirm that the research has correctly understood their
social world (respondent validation).
2]. Transferability – parallels external validity.
This relates whether findings “hold in some other context, or even in the same
context at some other time” (Guba, 1985, p. 316)
3]. Dependability – parallels reliability.
This entails ensuring that complete records are kept of all phases of the research
process; this enables peers to audit the research
4]. Confirmability – parallels objectivity.
It must be clear that the researcher has not allowed personal values of theoretical
inclinations to unduly influence the research and its findings.
 Critique of Qualitative Research
Some criticisms of qualitative research approaches:
1) Qualitative research is seen as too subjective
– Qualitative research findings rely too much on the researcher’s
views about what is significant and important.
2) Difficult to replicate
– Because qualitative research often relies on the researcher’s
ingenuity, it is almost impossible to conduct a true replication.
3) Problem of generalisation
– The scope of the findings of qualitative research is restricted
• generalisation beyond the immediate participants may be difficult
4) Lack of transparency
– It is sometimes difficult to establish what the research actually did
and how he or she arrived at the study’s conclusion.
 ▪ Methods of qualitative
data analysis.

▪ Reflexivity.

Further reading
▪ Advantages and
Disadvantages of
participant observation.
 Research Designs

Experimental ▪ Experimental Designs

PSYC 224
(Quantitative) ▪ Quasi Experimental Designs

Research
Qualitative
Designs

▪ Cross-sectional Studies /
Non-experimental Quantitative Correlational Studies (Survey)
[Quan. & Qual.] (Observational) ▪ Case control Studies.
▪ Cohort Studies (Longitudinal)
 Quantitative: Observational Studies

▪With quantitative research, the data are collected and

presented in the form of numbers - average scores for
different groups on some task, percentages of people who
do one thing or another, graphs and tables of data, and so
on.
▪ In an Observational Study, the researcher can only
observe the effect of the exposure on the study subjects;
he or she plays no role in assigning exposure to the study
subjects.
▪Three main types of Observational Studies:
1) Cross-sectional Studies / Correlational Studies.
2) Case control Studies.
3) Cohort Studies.
1]. Cross-sectional Studies / Correlational Studies

▪ Correlational Study: An approach to research that

involves measuring different variables to see whether
there is a predictable relation among variables.
▪ Finding Relationships
– The goal of some correlational studies is simply to find out if
variables are related
• E.g., Is there a relation between whether students prefer early
or late classes and their grades in those classes?
▪ Correlational Studies involve relationships among
variables. It is not possible to make determinations of
causation with a correlational study.
 Correlational Studies (conti…)
Making Predictions
– Prediction Study: A correlational study in which the goal is to
predict the value of one variable (the criterion variable), given
the level of another variable (the predictor variable) with the
predictor variable occurring first.
▪ Example: predicting the GPA of prospective
undergraduate students (the criterion variable), given their
WASSCE scores (the predictor variable).
– Predictions of behaviour are never perfect, but knowing the
relation between the predictor variable and the criterion
variable will improve the predictions made.
 Correlational Studies (conti…)
▪ Positive Correlation: this indicates that increases in one
variable are matched by increases in the other (or decreases
correspond with decreases). Eg., there is a positive
correlation between one’s income level and self-esteem.
▪ Negative Correlation: this shows that increases in the first
variable are associated with decreases in the second variable
(the two variables move in opposite directions). Eg., a negative
correlation exists between class size and teacher-pupil
attention.
▪ Zero correlation (non-existing correlation): this means
there is absolutely no relationship between the two variables in
either the positive or negative direction. Eg., there is a zero
correlation between one’s shoe size and IQ level.
• Correlations are normally plotted in a form of graph
(scatterplots).

Positive Correlation Negative Correlation Zero Correlation

 Correlational Studies (conti…)
Problems in Determining “Causes” with Correlational
Studies
Third Variable Problem: When two variables are correlated,
you cannot say that one causes the other because there may
be a third variable you do not know about that affects either
or both of the variables you are investigating.

Directionality Problem: When two variables are related,

you do not know if the first ‘causes’ the second or the second
‘causes’ the first.
 ▪ Survey research is based on
the simple idea that if you want
to find out what people think
about some topic, you just ask
[Correlational Studies (conti…)] them.
▪ A survey is a structured set of
Survey questions or statements given
to a group of people to
measure their attitudes,
beliefs, values, tendencies to
act, or prevalence of a
condition.
▪ The same variable is
measured only once for each
participant.
▪ Topic 4 focuses on SURVEY.
 ▪ There are two groups in a
case-control study: one has
a health issue (Case group),
and this group is “matched” to
2]. a Control group without the
health issue based on
Case Control Study characteristics like age,
gender, occupation.

▪ In this study type, we can look

back in the patient’s histories
to look for exposure to risk
factors that are common to
the Case group, but not the
Control group.
 Advantages Limitations

▪ Requires comparatively ▪ Susceptible to recall bias or

few subjects. information bias.

• Multiple exposures or
risk factors can be ▪ Selection of an appropriate
examined. comparison group may be
difficult.
FURTHER READING

Case-control studies:
▪ Advantages.
▪ Limitations.
 ▪ Cohort is a “group of people with
defined characteristics who are
followed up to determine
3]. incidence of, or mortality from,
some specific disease, all
Cohort Study causes of death, or some other
(Longitudinal Study) outcome” (Morabia, 2004,
pp.249-250).

▪ Researchers measure exposure

variables before the occurrence
of outcomes and compare the
disease incidence between the
exposed and unexposed cohorts
after an extended period of time.
Schematic diagram of Cohort study design (Jose & Cotellessa, 2015)
 Advantages Limitations

▪ Multiple diseases and

conditions can be  Expensive and time
studied at the same consuming.
time.
 Susceptible to loss to
• Gather data regarding follow-up or withdrawals.
sequence of events;
can assess risk factors.
FURTHER READING

Cohort studies:

▪ Advantages.
▪ Limitations.
I thank you
for your attention ▪ Questions?
▪ Comments?
▪ Concerns?

✓ Announcements