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Presentation on theme: "1.4 N ON - EXPERIMENTAL METHODS : QUALITATIVE R ESEARCH."— Presentation transcript:


2 L EARNING O BJECTIVES Describe non-experimental methods Outline important differences between experimental and non-experimental methods Explain ethical issues related to interview, observations and case studies.

3 Q UALITATIVE R ESEARCH M ETHODS Qualitative Researchers are interested in How people explain everyday experiences Occurs in a natural setting: How do people work in teams in the workplace? How do women experience the transition to motherhood How do college students adjust to independent living? Qualitative research is guided by one or more research questions. Inductive reasoning: This is an open approach. Where as hypothesizing is deductive reasoning. A claim that can be rejected or accepted.

4 I NDUCTIVE A PPROACH No defined variables Researchers gather information and assess what they have. Goal : to describe the meanings attributed to events by the research participants. (Not to find a cause and effect) Findings are more subjective

5 W AYS OF KNOWING E XPERIMENTAL VS. N ON - EXPERIMENTAL Hypothesis Variables Deductive approach Objective Quantitative data Cause & effect Statistical analysis Open research question No defined variables Inductive approach Subjective Qualitative Data Identify meanings/experience Interpretive analysis Experimental Non-experimental

6 T YPES OF N ON -E XPERIMENTAL M ETHODS Interviews Observations Case Studies

7 I NTERVIEW Most common way of gathering qualitative data Interviewing requires training and skill: Verbal skills Establish a positive relationship Interpret non-verbal cues React to unconscious signs. participant bias : participants respond the way they think is appropriate for the interview Social desirable bias: most people put their best face on – many won’t reveal the truth. Interviewer effects : age, sex ethnicity, of the interviewer that could interfere with the study

8 T YPES OF I NTERVIEWS Structured Interview Unstructured Interview Semi-structured interview ETHICS INVOLVED Informed consent Confidentiality Right to withdraw

9 U NSTRUCTURED I NTERVIEW The schedule and topic of the interview is the only established guideline Pros: Open ended questions, leads to interests and motivation of the interviewee. Cons: difficult to analyze.

10 S EMI - STRUCTURED INTERVIEW Preferred method: combines a set of questions, that permits for open response. Pros: there will be a number of closed questions that can be easily analyzed. Cons:

11 S TRUCTURED I NTERVIEW Questions are clearly established Order of questions are established Setting is highly controlled Pros – easy to analyze and compare Cons – may appear to be artificial

12 B E A RESEARCHER You have been commissioned to carry out research using interviews on one of the following issues: 1. Positive and negative experiences in CAS projects 2. What is it like to live in a foreign country 3. Teenagers and drug use and abuse 4. Prejudice in the classroom Choose one from the list and consider the following questions. 1. How would you carry out the research? 2. How would you obtain your sample? 3. What potential difficulties do you anticipate in carrying out your interview?

13 O BSERVATION Observations – describes behavior without trying to establish cause-and-effect relationship. Naturalistic Observations take place in a natural setting. Types of Observations Non-participant observations Participant observations

14 C HALLENGES TO CONDUCTING O BSERVATIONS It is not possible to record everything in the field. Research bias To overcome this: several observers can observe the same behavior and then compare results. Inter-observer reliability Participant observation The researcher is part of the group being observed Nonparticipant observation The researcher is not part of the group being observed

15 Covert observation : participants do not know they are being observed Overt observations participants know that the observer is a researcher

16 N ON -P ARTICIPANT O BSERVATION Can you think of any issues that might occur in data gathering as a result of non-participant observation? Demand characteristics? The Hawthorne Effect? Researcher bias?

17 P ARTICIPANT O BSERVATION The researcher becomes part of the group. The researcher experiences the situation with the group What are some issues “covert participant observers” must deal with? Recording information accurately Maintaining objectivity

18 P OINTS TO CONSIDER IN O BSERVATIONAL R ESEARCH 1. Is the observation structures or unstructured? 2. Is the observation covert or overt? 3. Does the observation take place in a natural or artificial setting?

19 E THICS OF O BSERVATIONAL R ESEARCH 1. Must have informed consent. 2. Debriefs the participants after the event 3. To carry out covert observations, proposal must be approved by ethics committee 1. Will the research provide information that will benefit others?

20 C OVERT PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION ROSENHAN 1973 ROSENHAN 1973 After reading and viewing the experiment: 1. What are the ethical issues involved in Rosenhan’s study? 2. Was the use of covert observations justified?

21 C ASE S TUDIES Case studies rely on real life data Behavior Feelings Experiences Thoughts Measurements may include: IQ Blood testing Survey data memory

22 A DVANTAGES OF C ASE S TUDY Allows for detail study/in-depth investigation. Example: brain damage and memory loss Twin separation and cognitive development Data Collection: Interviews Observations Surveys Questionnaires Physical exams Can you replicate a case study? No – therefore the reliability of your findings are said to be low.

23 E THICAL A SPECTS OF C ASE S TUDIES 1. Protecting the identities of the participants is vital. 2. Informed consent 3. No deception 4. Right to withdraw 5. Debriefing 6. Confidentiality

24 R ESEARCH IN P SYCHOLOGY PG. 37 Read the case: 1. Outline 2 ethical problems in this case 2. What could be the reason that Money continues to use this case as evidence of his theory of gender neutrality?


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