LECTURE

ELEMENTS OF
RESEARCH DESIGN
1
 1
OBSRVATION
Board area
THE RESEARCH PROCESS
of research
interest
identified

4
3 5 6 7
THEORETICAL
PROBLEM
FRAMEWORK GENERATION SCIENTIFIC DATA COLLECTION
DEFINITION
OF RESEARCH ANALYSIS AND
Research
HYPOTHESES DESIGN INTERPRETATION
problem
Variables clearly
delineated
identified and
labeled
2
8

PRELIMINARY DEDUCTION
DATA GATHERING Hypotheses
Interviewing substantiated?
Literature survey Research question
answered?

No Yes

9 10 11
Managerial
Report Report
Decision
Writing Presentation
Making

2
 THE RESEARCH DESIGN
A research design is a plan, structure and
strategy of investigation so conceived as
to obtain answers to research questions or
problems. The plan is the complete scheme
or program of the research. It includes an
outline of what the investigator will do
from writing the hypothesis and their
operational implication to the final
analysis of data.

3
 THE RESEARCH DESIGN
DETAILS OF STUDY MEASURMENT

Purpose of the Types of Extent of researcher Measurement

Study setting
study Investigation Interference and measures
Minimum: Studying events DATA
Operational ANALYSIS
Establishing: as they normally occur
definition
Exploration -Casual relationships Moderate: Minimum Contrived
items (measure) 1. Feel for data
Description -Correlations amount of interference
Scaling
Hypothesis testing -Group differences, Maximum: High degree Noncontrived
Categorizing
of control and artificial
Coding
settings
PROBLEM STATEMENT

2. Goodness or
data
Unit of analysis
Sampling Time Data-Collection
(Population to be
studied) design horizon method
Probability/ Observation
Individuals nonprobability One-Shot Interview
3. Hypotheses
Dyads (cross-sectional)
testing
Groups Sample Questionnaire
Organizations Size (n) Multishot
Machines (longitudinal) Physical
etc. measurement
Unobtrusive

4
 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
EXPLORATORY STUDY
An
An exploratory
exploratory study
study isis undertaken
undertaken when
when not
not
much
much isis known
known about
about thethe situation
situation in
in hand,
hand, or
or
no
no information
information isis available
available on on how
how similar
similar
problems
problems or or research
research issues
issues have
have been
been solved
solved in
in
the
the past.
past.
Exploratory
Exploratory studies
studies are
are also
also necessary
necessary when
when
some
some facts
facts are
are known,
known, but but more
more information
information
isis needed
needed forfor developing
developing aa viable
viable theoretical
theoretical
framework.
framework.
5
 DESCRIPTIVE STUDY
AA descriptive
descriptive study
study isis undertaken
undertaken inin order
order toto ascertain
ascertain and
and bebe
able
abletotodescribe
describethe
thecharacteristics
characteristicsof ofthe
thevariables
variablesof ofinterests
interests
in
in aa solution.
solution. For
For instance,
instance, aa study
study ofof aa class
class in
in terms
terms of
of the
the
percentage
percentage of of members
members who who are
are in
in their
their senior
senior and
and junior
junior
years,
years, sex
sex composition,
composition, age age groupings,
groupings, number
number of of semesters
semesters
left
left until
until graduation,
graduation, and and number
number of of business
business courses
courses taken,
taken,
can
canbebeconsidered
consideredas asdescriptive
descriptivein innature.
nature.
Example
Example
AA bank
bank manager
manager wants
wants toto have
have aa profile
profile of
of the
the individuals
individuals who
who have
have
loan
loan payments
payments outstanding
outstanding for for 66 months
months and
and more.
more. ItIt would
would include
include
details
details of of their
their average
average age,age, earnings,
earnings, nature
nature of of occupation,
occupation,
full-time/part-time
full-time/part-time employment
employment status,status, and
and the
the like.
like. This
This might
might help
help
him
him toto elicit
elicit further
further information
information or or decide
decide right
right away
away onon the
the types
types of
of
individuals
individualswho whoshould
shouldbe bemade
madeineligible
ineligiblefor
forloans
loansininthe
thefuture.
future.

6
 HYPOTHESES STUDY
Studies
Studies that
that engage
engage in in hypotheses
hypotheses testing
testing usually
usually
explain
explain the
the nature
nature of of certain
certain relationships,
relationships, or or
establish
establish the
the differences
differences among
among groupsgroups or or the
the
independence
independence of
of two
two or
or more
more factors
factors in
in aa solution.
solution.

Example
Example
A
A marketing
marketing manager
manager wants
wants to to know,
know, the the sales
sales of
of the
the
company
company willwill increase,
increase, ifif he
he doubles
doubles thethe advertising
advertising
dollars.
dollars. Here,
Here, the the manager
manager wouldwould like
like to
to know
know thethe
nature
nature of
of the
the relationship
relationship that
that can
can bebe established
established
between
between advertising
advertising and and sales
sales by
by testing
testing the
the hypothesis:
hypothesis:
IfIf advertising
advertising isis increased,
increased, thenthen sales
sales will
will
also
also go
go up.
up. 7
 TYPES OF INVESTIGATION
CAUSAL VERSUS CORRELATIONAL

Causal study: The study in which the researcher wants to

delineate the cause of one or more problems is called a causal
study.
Correlational study: When the researcher is interested in
delineating the important variables associated with the problem,
the study is called a correlational study.
Example
Example
AAcausal
causalstudy
studyquestion:
question:
Does
Doessmoking
smokingcause
causecancer?
cancer?
AAcorrelational
correlationalstudy
studyquestion:
question:
Are
Aresmoking
smokingandandcancer
cancerrelated?
related?
OR
OR
Are
Are smoking,
smoking, drinking,
drinking, and
andchewing
chewingtobacco
tobaccoassociated
associatedwith
withcancer?
cancer? IfIfso,
so, which
whichofof
these
thesecontributes
contributesmost
mosttotothe
thevariance
varianceininthe
thedependent
dependentvariable?
variable?
8
 EXTENT OF RESEARCHER INTERFERENCE

The extent of interference by the researcher

with the normal flow of work at the
workplace has a direct bearing on whether
the study undertaken is causal or
correlational. A correlational study is
conducted in the natural environment of
the organization with minimum
interference by the researcher with the
normal flow of work.
9
STUDY SETTING: CONTRIVED AND NONCONTRIVED

Noncontrived
Noncontrived settings:
settings: IfIf organizational
organizational research
research
be
be done
done in
in the
the natural
natural environment
environment where where work
work
proceeds
proceeds normally,
normally, the the research
research isis in
in noncontrived
noncontrived
settings.
settings.
contrived
contrived settings:
settings: IfIf organizational
organizational research
research bebe
done
done in
in artificial
artificial environment
environment the the research
research isis in
in
contrived
contrived settings.
settings.
Correlational
Correlational studies
studies are are invariably
invariably conducted
conducted
in
in noncontrived
noncontrived settings,
settings, whereas
whereas most most rigorous
rigorous
causal
causal are
are done
done in in contrived
contrived lablab settings.
settings.
10
 CONTRIVED AND NONCONTRIVED SETTINGS

1. FIELD STUDY: If various factors are examined in the natural

settings in which daily activities going on as normal with
minimal researcher interference, the study is field study
(noncontrived).
2. FIELD EXPERIMENT: If cause and effect relationships are
studied with some amount of researcher interference, but
still in the natural settings where work continues in the
normal environment, the study is field experiment
(contrived).
3. LAB EXPERIMENT: If the researcher explores cause and
effect relationship not only exercising a high degree of
control but in an artificial and deliberately created settings
(contrived).
11
 EXAMPLE OF
EXAMPLE OF FIELD
FIELD STUDY
STUDY
AA bank
bank manager
manager wants wants to to analyze
analyze the the relationship
relationship
between interest
between interest rates
rates and and bank
bank deposit
deposit patterns
patterns ofof
clients. She
clients. She tries
tries toto correlate
correlate the the two
two by by looking
looking atat
deposits into
deposits into different
different kindskinds of of accounts
accounts (such(such asas
savings, certificates
savings, certificates of of deposit,
deposit, andand interest-bearing
interest-bearing
checking accounts)
checking accounts) as as interest
interest rates
rates changed.
changed.
This isis aa field
This field study
study where
where the the bank
bank manager
manager has has merely
merely
taken the
taken the balances
balances in in various
various types
types ofof accounts
accounts and
and
correlated them
correlated them to to thethe changes
changes in in interest
interest rates.
rates.
Research here
Research here isis done
done in in aa noncontrived
noncontrived setting
setting with
with no
no
interference with
interference with thethe normal
normal work work routine.
routine.
12
 EXAMPLE OF
EXAMPLE OF FIELD
FIELD EXPERIMENT
EXPERIMENT
Thebank
The bankmanager
managernow nowwants
wantstotodetermine
determinethe thecause-and-effect
cause-and-effectrelationship
relationshipbetween
between
interestrate
interest rate and
andthe
theinducements
inducementsititoffers
offerstotoclients
clientstotosave
saveand
anddeposit
depositmoney
moneyininthe the
bank.She
bank. Sheselect
selectbranches
brancheswithin
withinaa60-mile
60-mileradiusradiusfor forthe
theexperiment.
experiment.For For11weekweekonly,
only,
sheadvertise
she advertisethe theannual
annualrate
ratefor
fornew
newcertificates
certificatesofofdeposit
depositreceived
receivedduring
duringthat thatweek
weekinin
thefollowing
the followingmanner:
manner:thetheinterest
interestrate
ratewould
wouldbe be9% 9%in inone
onebranch,
branch,8% 8%in inanother,
another,
and10%
and 10%in inthe
thethird.
third.InInthe
thefourth
fourthbranch,
branch,the theinterest
interestrate
rateremains
remainsunchanged
unchangedatat5%. 5%.
Withinthe
Within theweek,
week,sheshewould
wouldbe beable
abletotodetermine
determinethe theeffects,
effects,ififany,
any,ofofinterest
interestrates
ratesonon
depositmobilization.
deposit mobilization.
The above
The above would
would be be aa field
field experiment
experiment since since nothing
nothing butbut the
the interest
interest rate
rate in in
manipulated,with
manipulated, withall
allactivities
activitiesoccurring
occurringininthe thenormal
normaland andnatural
naturalwork
workenvironment.
environment.
Hopefully,all
Hopefully, allfour
fourbranches
brancheschosen
chosenwould
wouldbe bemoremoreororlesslesscompatible
compatibleininsize, size,number
number
ofofdepositors,
depositors,deposit
depositpatterns,
patterns,andandthe
thelike,
like,sosothatthatthe
theinterest
interestsavings
savingsrelationships
relationshipsare are
not influenced
not influenced by by some
some third
third factors.
factors. But
But itit isis possible
possible that
that some
some other
other factors
factors might
might
affectthe
affect thefindings.
findings.For
Forexample,
example,one oneofofthe
theareas
areasmay mayhave
havemore
moreretirees
retireeswhowhomany
manynot not
have additional
have additional disposable
disposable income
income that
that they
they could
could deposit,
deposit, despite
despite the
the attraction
attraction ofof aa
goodinterest
good interestrate.
rate.The
Thebanker
bankermay maynotnothave
havebeenbeenawareawareofofthis
thisfact
factwhile
whilesetting
settingupupthe
the
experiment.
experiment.
13
 EXAMPLE OF
EXAMPLE OF LAB
LAB EXPERIMENT
EXPERIMENT
Thebank
The bankmanager
managernow nowwants
wantstotoestablish
establishthe thecausal
causalconnection
connectionbetween
betweeninterest
interestrates
rates
and saving,
and saving, beyond
beyond aa doubt.doubt. Because
Because ofof this this sheshe wants
wants toto create
create an an artificial
artificial
environment and
environment and trace
trace the
the true
true cause
cause andand effect
effect relationship.
relationship. She She recruit
recruit 4040 students
students
whoare
who areall
allbusiness
businessmajors
majorsinintheir
theirfinal
finalyear
yearofofstudy
studyandandare
aremore
moreororlesslessofofthe
thesame
same
age. She
age. She splits
splits them
them into
into four
four groups
groups and and gives
gives each
each oneone ofof them
them amount
amount ofof $1,000,
$1,000,
whichthey
which theyarearetold
toldthey
theymight
mightutilize
utilizetotobuy
buytheir
theirneeds
needsororsave
savefor forthe
thefuture,
future,ororboth.
both.
She offers
She offers them
them an an incentive,
incentive, interest
interest onon what
what they
they save
save but
but manipulates
manipulates the the interest
interest
rates by
rates by offering
offering aa 6% 6% interest
interest rate
rate onon savings
savings for for group
group 1,1, 8% 8% forfor group
group 2,2, 9%
9% forfor
group3,3,and
group andkeeps
keepsthe theinterest
interestatatthethelowest
lowestraterateofof1%1%forforgroup
group4.4.
Herethe
Here themanager
managerhas hascreated
createdan anartificial
artificiallaboratory
laboratoryenvironment
environmentand andhas
hasmanipulated
manipulated
theinterest
the interestrates
ratesforforsavings.
savings.She Shehashasalso
alsochosen
chosensubjects
subjectswith
withsimilar
similarbackgrounds
backgroundsand and
exposuretotofinancial
exposure financialmatters
matters(business
(businessstudents).
students).IfIfthe thebanker
bankerfinds
findsthatthatthe
thesavings
savingsby by
the four
the four groups
groups increase
increase progressively,
progressively, keeping
keeping inin stepstep with
with the the increasing
increasing rates
rates ofof
interest, she
interest, she would
would be be able
able toto established
established aa causecause andand effect
effect relationship
relationship between
between
interestand
interest andthe
thedisposition
dispositiontotosave.save.
InInthis
thislab
labexperiment
experimentwith withthe thecontrived
contrivedsettings,
settings,the theresearcher
researcherinterference
interferencehas hasbeen
been
maximal, inasmuch
maximal, inasmuch as as the
the setting
setting isis difficult,
difficult, thethe independent
independent variable
variable hashas been
been
manipulated,and
manipulated, andmost
mostexternal
externalcontaminating
contaminatingfactors factorssuchsuchasasageageandandexperience
experiencehavehave
beencontrolled.
been controlled.
14
Decisionpoints
Decision pointsfor
forembarking
embarkingon
onan
anexperimental
experimentaldesign
design
Is tracing causal
effects necessary?

Yes Do not undertake an

No
and if experimental design study

Internal validity is Generalizability is Both internal validity and

more important than more important than external validity are
external validity internal validity. important.

Engage in a lab Engage in a field First do a Lab experiment,

experiment. experiment. then, a FIELD experiment.

Are there cost

constraints?

Yes No

Engage in a simpler Engage in a more

experimental design. sophisticated design.

15
 UNITS OF
UNITS OF ANALYSIS
ANALYSIS
The unit of analysis refers to the level of aggregation (bunch) of the data collected during the
subsequent data analysis stage.

If the problem statement focuses on how to rates levels of employees in general, then we are
interested in individuals employees in the organization and would have to find out what we can do
to raise their motivation. Here the unit of analysis is the individual.

If the researcher is interested in studying two-person interactions, then several two-person groups,
also known as dyads.

If the problem statement is related to group effectiveness, then the unit of analysis would be at the
group level.

If we compare different departments in the organization, then the data analysis will be done at the
departmental level.

If we compare different organizations, then the data analysis will be done at the organizational
level.

If we compare the different cities of any country, then the data analysis will be at the city level.

If we compare the different countries, then the data analysis will be at the country level. etc.etc.

16
 TIME HORIZON
TIME HORIZON
One Shot or Cross-Sectional Studies
If data are gathered just once, perhaps over a period of days or weeks or
months, in order to answer a research question. are called one-shot or cross-
sectional studies.

EXAMPLES
1. Data were collected from stock brokers between April and June of last year
to study their concerns in a turbulent (beyond control) stock market. Data with
respect to this particular research had not been collected before, nor will they
be collected again from them for this research.

2. A drug company desirous of investing in research for a new obesity

(reduction) pill conducted a survey among obese people to see how many of
them would be interested in trying the new pill. This is a one-shot or cross-
sectional study to assess the likely demand for the new product.

17
 Multishot or Longitudinal Studies
If the researcher might want to study people or phenomena at
more than one point in time in order to answer the research
question or when data on the dependent variable are gathered
at two or more points in time to answer the research question,
the studies are called longitudinal studies.

For instance, the researcher might want to study employees’

behavior before and after a change in the top management, so as
to know what effects the change accomplished. Here, because
data are gathered at two different points in time, the study is not
cross-sectional or of the one-shot kind, but is carried
longitudinally across a period of time.

EXAMPLE
One could study the sales volume of a product before and after an advertisement, and
provided other environmental changes have not impacted on the results, one could
attribute the increase in the sales volume, if any, to the advertisement. If there is no
increase in sales, one could conclude that either the advertisement is ineffective or it
will take a longer time to take effect.
18
 EXERCISE
In the following scenarios indicate how the researcher should proceed
in each case, that is, determine the following, give reason also:

1. The purpose of study,

2. The type of investigation,
3. The extent of researcher interference,
4. The study settings,
5. The time horizon for the study,
6. The unit of analysis.

• Scenario A
Ms. Joyce Lynn, the owner of small business (a women’s dress
boutique), has invited a consultant to tell her how business is different
from similar small businesses within a 60-mile radius with respect to
use of the most modern computer technology, sales volume, profit
margin, and staff training.

19
 EXERCISE
• Scenario B
Mr. pall Hodge, the owner of several
restaurants on the East Coast, is concerned
about the wide differences in their profit
margins. He would like to try some incentive
plans for increasing the efficiency levels of
those restaurants that lag behind. But
before he actually does this, he would like to
be assured that the idea would work. He
asks a researcher to help him on this issue.

20
EXPERIMENTAL
DESIGN

21
 CONTROLLING OF CONTAMINATING FACTORS

When we
When we postulate
postulate cause-and-effect
cause-and-effect
relationships between
relationships between twotwo variables
variables X X and
and
Y, itit isis possible
Y, possible that
that some
some other
other factor,
factor, says
says
A, might
A, might also also influence
influence thethe dependent
dependent
variable Y.
variable Y. In
In such
such aa case,
case, itit will
will not
not bebe
possible to
possible to determine
determine thethe extent
extent to to which
which Y Y
occurred only
occurred only because
because of of X,
X, since
since we
we do do
not know
not know how how much
much of of the
the total
total variation
variation
of Y
of Y was was caused
caused by by the
the presence
presence of of the
the
other factor
other factor A.
A.
22
 EXAMPLE OF
EXAMPLE OF CONTROL
CONTROL
Forinstance,
For instance,aaHuman
HumanResource
ResourceDevelopment
Developmentmanager managermight
might
arrangefor
arrange forspecial
specialtraining
trainingtotoaaset
setof
ofnewly
newlyrecruited
recruited
secretariesin
secretaries increating
creatingweb
webpages,
pages,However,
However,some someof ofthe
thenew
new
secretariesmight
secretaries mightfunction
functionmore
moreeffectively
effectivelythanthanothers,
others,mainly
mainly
orpartly
or partlybecause
becausethey
theyhave
havehad
hadprevious
previousintermittent
intermittent
experiencewith
experience withthe
theweb.
web.InInthis
thiscase,
case,the
themanager
managercannot
cannotprove
prove
thatthe
that thespecial
specialtraining
trainingalone
alonecaused
causedgreater
greatereffectiveness,
effectiveness,
sincethe
since theprevious
previousintermittent
intermittentexperience
experienceof ofsome
somesecretaries
secretaries
withthe
with theweb
webisisaacontaminating
contaminatingfactor.
factor.IfIfthe
thetrue
trueeffect
effectof
ofthe
the
trainingon
training onlearning
learningisisto
tobe
beassessed,
assessed,then
thenthe thelearners’
learners’previous
previous
experiencehas
experience hastotobe
becontrolled.
controlled.This
Thismight
mightbe bedone
donebybynot
not
includingin
including inthe
theexperiment
experimentthosethosewhowhoalready
alreadyhave havehad
hadsome
some
experiencewith
experience withthe
theweb.
web.This
Thisisiswhat
whatwewemeanmeanwhenwhenwe wesay
saywe
we
haveto
have tocontrol
controlthe
thecontaminating
contaminatingfactors.
factors.

23
 CONTROLLINGTHE
CONTROLLING THECONTAMINATING
CONTAMINATINGEXOGENOUS
EXOGENOUSOR
OR
“NUISANCE”VARIABLES
“NUISANCE” VARIABLES

Matching Groups
One way of controlling the contaminating or “nuisance” variables
is to match the various groups by picking the confounding
characteristics and deliberately spreading them across groups.

Randomization
In randomization, the process by which individuals are drawn
(i.e., everybody has a known and equal chance of being drawn)
and their assignment to any particular group (each individual
could be assigned to any one of the groups set up ) are both
random.

24
 INTERNAL VALIDITY
Internal validity refers to the confidence we place in the cause-
and-effect relationship with in the lab settings.

EXTERNAL VALIDITY
To what extent would the result found in the lab
setting be transferable or generalizable to the actual
organizational or field settings? In other words, if we
do find a cause-and-effect relationship after
conducting a lab experiment, can we then
confidently say that the same cause-and-effect
relationship will also hold true in the organizational
setting?
25
 FACTORS AFFECTING INTERNAL VALIDITY
History Effects
Certain events or factors that would have an impact on the independent variable-
dependent variable relationship might unexpectedly occur while the experiment is
in progress, and this history of events would confound the cause-and-effect
relationship between the two variables, thus affecting the internal validity.

Time: t1 t2 t3

Independent variable Dependent variable

Sales promotion Sales

Dairy
farmers’ advertisement

Uncontrolled variable

26
 Maturation Effects
Cause-and-effect inferences can also be contaminated by the
effects of the passage of time—another uncontrollable variable.
Such contamination is called Maturation effects.

Time: t1 t2 t3

Independent variable Dependent variable

Enhanced Efficiency
technology Increase

Gaining experience and

doing the job faster

Uncontrolled variable

27
 Testing Effects
Frequently, to test the effect of a treatment, subjects are given
what is called a pretest (say, a short questionnaire eliciting their
feelings and attitudes). That is, first a measure of the dependent
variable is taken (the pretest), then the treatment given, and after
that a second test, called the posttest, administered. The
difference between the posttest and the pretest scores is then
attributed to the treatment. However, the very fact that
respondents were exposed to the pretest might influence
their responses on the posttest, which would adversely
impact on internal validity.
Instrumentations Effects
Instrumentation effects are yet another source of threat to
internal validity. These might arise because of a change in the
measuring instrument between pretest, and posttest, and not
because of the treatment’s differential impact at the end.

28
 Selection Bias Effects
The threat to internal validity could also
come from improper or unmatched
selection of subjects for the experimental
and control groups.
Mortality
Another confounding factor on the cause-
and-effect relationship is the mortality or
attrition of the members in the
experimental or control group or both, as
the experiment progresses.
29
 Statistical Regression
The effect of statistical regression are brought about
when the members chosen for the experimental group
have extreme scores on the dependent variable to begin
with. We know from the law of probability that those
with very low scores on a variable have a greater
probability of showing improvement and scoring closer
to the mean on the posttest after being exposed to the
treatment. This phenomenon of low scores tending to
closer to the mean is known as “regression towards the
mean” (statistical regression). Likewise, those with
very high abilities would also have a greater tendency
to regress towards the mean-they will score lower on
the posttest than on the pretest.

30
 TYPES OF EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNS

Pretest and Posttest Experimental Group Design

An experimental group (without a control group) may be given a pretest
exposed to a treatment, and then given a posttest to measure the effects of the
treatment. Where O refers to some process of observation or measurement, X
represents the exposure of a group to an experimental treatment, and the X
and Os in the row are applied to the same specific group. Here, the effects of
the treatment can be obtained by measuring the difference between the
posttest and the pretest (O2-O1). Note, however, that testing and
instrumentation effects might contaminate the internal validity. If the
experiment is extended over a period of time, history and maturation effects
may also confound the results.

Group Pretest score Treatment Posttest Score

Experimental group O1 X O2
Treatment effect = (O2-O1)

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 Posttests Only with Experimental and Control Groups
Some experimental designs are set up with an experimental and a control
group, the former alone being exposed to a treatment and not the latter. The
effects of the treatment are studied by assessing the difference in the
outcomes-that is, the posttest scores of the experimental and control groups.
Here is a case where the testing effects have been avoided because there is
no pretest, only a posttest. however, to make sure that the two groups are
matched for all the possible contaminating “nuisance” (unwanted) variables.
Otherwise, the true effects of the treatment cannot be determined by merely
looking at the difference in the posttest scores of the two groups.
Randomization would take care of this problem.
There are at least two possible threats to validity in this design. If the two
groups are not matched or randomly assigned, selection biases could
contaminate the results. Mortality (the drop out individuals from groups) can
also confound the results,

Group Treatment Outcome

Experimental group X O1
Control group O2
Treatment effect = (O2-O1)
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 Pretest and Posttest Experimental and Control Group Designs
Two groups-one experimental and the other control-are both exposed to the
pretest and the posttest. The only difference between the two groups is that the
former is exposed to a treatment whereas the latter is not. Measuring the
difference between the differences in the post-and pretest scores of the two
groups would give the net effects of the treatment. Both groups have been
exposed to both the pre-and posttests, and both groups have been randomized;
thus we could expect that the history maturation, testing, and instrumentation
effects have been controlled. This is so due to the fact that whatever happened
with the experimental group (e.g., maturation, history, testing, and
instrumentation) also happened with the control group, and in measuring the net
effects (the difference in the differences between the pre-and posttest scores) we
have controlled these contaminating factors. Through the process of
randomization, we have also controlled the effects of selection biases and
statistical regression. Mortality could, however, pose a problem in this design. In
experiments that take several weeks, as in the case of assessing the impact of
training on skills development, or measuring the impact of technology
advancement on effectiveness, some of the subjects in the experimental group
may drop out before the end of the experiment. It is possible that those who drop
out are in some way different from those who stay on until the end and take the
posttest. If so, mortality could offer a plausible (apparently valid) rival
explanation for the difference between O2 and O1.

33
Pretest and
Pretest and posttest
posttest experimental
experimental and
and control
control group
group

Group Pretest Treatment Posttest

Experimental group O1 X O2
Control group
O3 O4
Treatment effect = [(O2-O1) - (O4-O3)]

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 SOLOMON FOUR GROUP DESIGN

To gain more confidence in internal validity in experimental

design, it is advisable to set up two experimental groups and
two control groups for the experiment. One experimental
group and one control group can be given both the pretest
and the posttest. The other two groups will be given only the
posttest. Here the effects of the treatment can be calculated
in several different ways. To the extent that we come up with
almost the same results in each of the different calculations,
we can attribute the effects to the treatment. This increases
the internal validity of the results of the experimental design.
This design, known as the Solomon four-group design, is
perhaps the most comprehensive and the one with the least
number of problems with internal validity.

35
 SOLOMON FOUR
SOLOMON FOUR GROUP
GROUP DESIGN
DESIGN MODEL
MODEL
.
Group Pretest Treatment Posttest
1. Experimental O1 X O2
2. Control O3 O4
3. Experimental X
O5
4. Control
O6
Treatment effect (E) could be judged by:
E= (O2-O1)
E= (O2-O4)
E= (O5-O6)
E= (O5-O3)
E= [(O2-O1) - (O4-O3)]
If all Es are similar, the cause-and-effect relationship is highly valid.

36
 Solomon Four-Group Design and Threats to Internal Validity
Let us examine how the threats to internal validity are
taken care of in the Solomon four-group design. It is
important to note that subjects have been randomly
selected and randomly assigned to groups. This removes
the statistical regression and selection biases. Group 2,
the control group that was exposed to both the pre-and
posttest, helps us to see whether or not history,
maturation, testing, instrumentation, regression, or
mortality threaten internal validity. If scores O 3 and O4
(pre-and posttest scores of group 2) remain the same, then
it is established that neither history, nor maturation, nor
testing, nor instrumentation, nor statistical regression, nor
mortality has had an impact. In other words, these have
had no impact at all.
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 THANK YOU
FOR YOUR
CONCENTRATION

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