 Quantitative research (experimental method)  Qualitative research (non-experimental method)  What’s the difference?  When to use which?

 - empirical / numbers - questionnaires and labs - reliability - validity - replicability - generalizability - Cause and effect relationship  Calculation of statistics  Can all sorts of behaviour be quantified?

 Gather information about the ‘qualities’ or characteristics of what is being studied  Gives an insight into psychological processes  Use interviews, observation, case studies, etc

 Can help to answer “why? & how?” questions: - How do Vietnamese women view domestic violence? - Why do teenagers join street gangs?  Interpret & analyze data

 The research method depends upon the problem being studied, the investigator’s objectives and ethical principles  Choose what you want to study then choose how  Not the other way around

 Combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods  Benefit: more complete picture of the behaviour studied

 Quantitative research take a deductive approach - Begins with theory then form hypothesis - test the hypothesis against empirical evidence - accept or reject hypothesis - general idea correct or incorrect?

 Qualitative research take a inductive approach - Detective work - Begins with specific things (e.g: observation) then form theory.  They first gather data, then see what these could mean. - - Use research question instead of a hypothesis (open-ended instead of a claim) - Usually focus on one concept or idea. - Usually pertain to the actions or perceptions of participants

 Interviews  Observation  Case studies

 Allows for a deeper understanding and reveal personal experience  Structured interview  Unstructured interview  Semi-structured interview

 Controlled method  Tight interview schedule  List of exact questions  a “spoken” questionnaire  Easy to analyze and compare data

 Loose interview schedule  Topic and time stated  Questions made up as it goes  Easier for participant to “open up” and reveal interesting data  Difficult to analyze the data

 Mostly used  A set of close and open questions  the answer can be more open than in a structured interview

 Positive relationship  Be very aware of interviewer effects (non verbal behaviour and signs which affects the interviewee)  An interview is a private thing so there’s  A risk for participant bias  A risk for social desirability bias  Sensitive information might be revealed so remember the ethics  Be a researcher on p. 32: teenagers and drug use and abuse

 Describe behaviour without referring to a cause and effect relationship  Naturalistic observation - To observe behaviour as it occurs in a natural setting - Jane Goodall and African chimpanzees - Often used to study children to learn about cooperation, aggression and problem solvingJane Goodall and African chimpanzees

 Researcher sees what s/he wants to see  Solve with many observers, if all sees the same thing = inter-observer reliability

 Participant observation - Researcher takes part in the group - Overt or covert - gains a close and intimate familiarity with a given group (e.g The Ku Klux Klan) - difficult balance between observation and participation  Non-participant observation - not being part of the group - Can do it overt or covert - researcher bias might occur  Covert observation - to avoid reactivity

 Ordinary code of ethics apply with informed consent, etc  Special permission to carry out covert observation  Public places mostly considered ok  Read Rosenhan’s study (1973) on page 34-35

 Not a research method but an approach  In-depth analysis of an individual, group or event  Gives a deep insight into unique phenomena or behaviour  Data collected through interviews, observation, psychological tests, etc.  One case in detail from many angles instead of 2000  &feature=related Genie &feature=related  Example: Read Money’s study (1974) on p. 37