Chapter 13: Descriptive Research

Descriptive research

•Measure variables as they exist naturally

•Describe individual variables (not the relations between them)

Description of descriptive resarch

•Useful for preliminary research

•Capture naturally occurring behavior

Naturally occurring behavior tends to generalize beyond the lab

Observational Research

Observing and recording behavior as it naturally occurs without influencing subjects; used to describe behavior

Inter-rater reliability 

The level of agreement between multiple observers to ensure observations are consistent and reliable

Key principles of observation

Researcher must not influence behavior; subjects are often habituated to the researcher’s presence to ensure natural behavior

Measurement in observational research 

Observations can be subjective, so researchers use predefined behavior categories to guide recording

Duration method

Measures how long a behavior lasts:

ex: A researcher observes a student and records how long they stay focused on studying without getting distracted.

Frequency method

Count how many times a behavior occurs

ex: A researcher counts how many times a soccer player checks over their shoulder during a game.

Interval method

Record whether a behavior occurs during set time intervals

ex: Every 30 seconds, a researcher checks if a child is on-task in class

Time sampling

Observe for one specific times, pause and record during the next interval

ex: A researcher observes a classroom for 5 minutes every hour instead of all day.

Individual sampling

Observe different individuals, one individual at a time

ex: In a group of 10 students, the researcher watches only one student for 5 minutes, then switches to another

Event sampling

Observe different behaviors only when a specific event happens

ex: A researcher studies aggression and only records behavior when a conflict occurs between players

Contrived observation

Observe and record behavior in an artificial situation designed to elicit behavior

ex: A researcher sets up a situation where two kids must share one toy to see how they behave.

Naturalistic observation

Observe and record behavior in a natural setting

Participant observation

Engage with participants to observe and record behavior

Observational Research: Strengths

•Observe and record actual behavior

•High external validity

Observational Research: Weaknesses

•Time-consuming

•Potential for observer influence

•Subjective measurement

•Behavior is described rather than explained

Survey Research

•Uses survey results for descriptive purposes

•Attitudes, opinions, personal characteristics, and behaviors

•Obtain accurate picture of the people being studied

Open-ended questions

Allows participants to respond in their own words

Open-ended questions: Advantages

Few restrictions

Open-ended questions: Disadvantages

•Open to interpretation

•Difficult to analyze

Restricted questions

Presents participants with a limited number of response options

Restricted questions: Advantages

Easy to analyze and summarize

Restricted questions: Disadvantages

Response options may be inadequate

Likert or Likert-type scale

1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree)

Rating-scale questions

Participants select a numerical value on a predetermined scale

Rating-scale questions: Advantages

•Easy to analyze and summarize

•(Generally) easy for participants to understand and answer

Rating-scale questions: Disadvantages

Scoring somewhat arbitrary

Internet surveys

Use a digital medium to host and distribute survey to participants

Internet surveys: Advantages

•Cheap and efficient

•Lots of data from lots of people

•Data are (mostly) entered and coded automatically

Internet surveys: Disadvantages

•Participants are self-selected and may not represent the population

Mail survey

Physically mail the survey to a large group of participants

Mail survey: Advantages

•Convenient(?) and non-threatening(?)

Mail survey: Disadvantages

•Very expensive and time-consuming

•Manually enter data into computer for analysis

•Low response rates (10% – 20%)

•Participants are self-selected and may not represent the population

Telephone survey

Distribute survey to participants by telephone (the talking kind)

Telephone survey: Advantages

•Can be conducted from home or office(?)

•Participants might be more attentive? Maybe?

Telephone survey: Disadvantages

•Very time-consuming

•Researcher can influence responses

•Participants are self-selected and may not represent the population

In-person survey

Participants complete the survey in the lab

In-person survey: Advantages

•Participants are generally attentive and undistracted

In-person survey: Disadvantages

•Limited to people in physical vicinity

•Time-consuming

•Researcher can influence responses

•…participants are self-selected and may not represent the population

Case study

•Deep and detailed description of a single person

•May involve an intervention or treatment

•Most commonly used in clinical psychology

Case study: Strengths

•Identify new variables (and hypotheses) for future research

•Can be more convincing and memorable than other types of research

Case study: Limitations

•Does not explain behavior (lacks internal validity)

•Behavior may not generalize to other people (lacks external validity)