Observational Research

Week 4
9/30 & 10/2
Ch. 4
 Observational Research
• Human behavior is very complex
– There is a lot to observe!
• Observational Research is more than just “people
watching”
– We observe casually
– Unaware of factors that bias our observations
– Do not record our observations
• Scientific observations are made under defined
conditions, are systematic and objective, and involves
careful record keeping
 Observational Research
• Many times observational research occurs in
naturalistic settings
– But can also occur in laboratories
• Scientists aim to describe behavior fully and
accurately
– Cannot observe all behavior
– Observe samples of behavior
– Is this behavior usual? Does behavior change in different
contexts?
• Observations must occur across different times and settings to
provide and accurate description of “usual” behavior
 Sampling Behavior
• Samples of behavior are used to represent larger population of
all behaviors
– Similar to samples of people used to represent the larger population
• Scientists choose settings, times, and conditions that are
representative of a population (“real life”) in order to
generalize their findings
– External Validity (“truthfulness”)- extent to which a study’s findings
can be generalized to different populations, settings, conditions, etc.
• Settings, times, and conditions also influence who is observed
– e.g., making observations on a college campus, at an assisted living
home, at a sci-fi convention
 Time Sampling
• Time Sampling- researchers aim for representative
samples using time intervals
– Can be Systematic, Random, or both
– Systematic- four 30 min. observations occurring every 2
hours (9AM, 11AM…)
– Random- four 30 min. observations occurring randomly
over the course of the day
– Both- four 30 min. observations occurring every 2 hours
(9AM, 11AM…) where the researcher makes observations
during 2-minute intervals randomly during those times
 Time Sampling continued…
• Use of electronic devices (e.g., pagers, video recorders)
• Not effective sampling method when the event/behavior is
infrequent (e.g., tantrums)
– May miss the event/behavior
– If event has a long duration, researcher might miss important info (start
observing after behavior started, quit observing before behavior has
ended)
• In these cases it is better to use Event Sampling
– Recording/observing when predefined event occurs
– Can be predictable (observe during school assembly) or unpredictable
(observe reactions to natural disasters)
– Can introduce biases to sampling (e.g., only observing during
“convenient” times
 Situation Sampling
• Observing behavior in many different situations and
conditions
– Reduces risk of behavior being context- or situation-
specific
– Increases external validity
• For example, observing children’s tantrums at home,
in school, in the park, at the store, at different times
of day, across cultures/countries
– Increases diversity of observations and participants
 Subject Sampling
• Nearly impossible to observe all behaviors for
all subjects during situations
• Use Subject Sampling
– Determining which subjects to observe
– Can be systematic (every 3rd child to enter a play
ground) or random
Dimensions of Observational Research
• Observation without intervention versus
observation with intervention
• Recording all (or most) of behavior versus
recording only specific behaviors
 Observation Without Intervention
• Observation in natural setting- not an “artificial
environment”
– Naturalistic Observation
– Events occur naturally- not manipulated
– No attempt to interfere or intervene
– Researcher is a passive recorder
• Goals: describe behavior as it ordinarily occurs-
investigate the relationship between variables present
in the natural setting
• Moral/ethical issues for controlling or influencing
certain behaviors-- many of these behaviors occur
naturally in the real world
 Observation With Intervention
• More common form of psychological research
– Cause an infrequent event or to observe a behavior that
occurs under conditions in which it is difficult to observe
– Observe organism’s response to varying qualities of a
stimulus
– Access to an event that is generally not open to scientific
observation
– Control antecedents of behavior (ABC’s of behavior)
– Comparison- manipulating various IV’s to determine
effects on behavior
 3 Methods of Observation with
Intervention
• Participant Observation
– Observer participates actively in the situation
– Can be undisguised or disguised
– Participant observer may have similar experiences
to participants-- immersion
• Can affect objectivity of observations and behavior of
participants
– No direct manipulation of variables in the
environment (no necessary IV)
 3 Methods of Observation with
Intervention continued...
• Structured Observation
– Observer intervenes to “set up” a situation or behavior
– Observer/researcher exerts some “control” over the
situation- manipulate IV’s
– Compromise between naturalistic observations and
laboratory studies
– Can involve elaborate schemes and “confederates”
– Can occur in natural settings or in laboratories
– Example: Simons and Levin- Change Blindness
– Often times inconsistencies in procedures occur...
 3 Methods of Observation with
Interaction continued...
• Field Experiments
– Observer manipulates IV’s in a natural setting to
determine effect on behavior
– Involves more control than other observational
research
– This will be discussed in more details in Research
Methods II- Experimental Methods
 Recording Behavior
• Determine whether you want to record a
comprehensive description of behavior or only
selected aspects/behaviors
– Depends on research questions/goals
– Depends on qualitative versus quantitative
research
 Qualitative Recording
• Narrative Records- write a description of
behavior, or use audio/visual recording
equipment
– Comprehensive record of behavior
– Scientist then classifies and organizes records after
observations have been made
 Quantitative Recording
• Measurement Scales
Scale Objective
Nominal Sort into discrete categories- eye contact, no
eye contact (presence or absence)

Ordinal Rank-order on single dimension- 1st, 2nd,

Ratio Specify distance between stim. on a given