OBSERVATIONAL METHODS © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Compare quantitative and qualitative methods of describing behavior Describe naturalistic observation and discuss methodological issues such as participation and concealment © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Describe systematic observation and discuss methodological issues such as the use of equipment, reactivity, reliability, and sampling Describe the features of a case study Describe archival research and the sources of archival data: statistical records, survey archives, and written records © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Quantitative Focuses on specific behaviors that can be easily quantified Assigns numerical values to responses and measure Uses large samples Is subject to the data statistical analyses © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Qualitative Observational measures Focuses on behavior in natural settings Small groups and limited setting Describe or capture themes that emerge from the data Data are non-numerical and expressed in language and/or images © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Field Work or Field Observation Researchers make observations in a natural setting over a period of time, using a variety of techniques to collect information Used to describe and understand how people in a social or cultural setting live, work, and experience the setting Used to observe people involved with sports teams or other social settings, at work or animals in their natural habitat Scribner (1997) used naturalistic observations to identify how business decisions are made © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Description and Interpretation of Data Techniques include: - Observing, interviewing, and surveying documents Goals: - Describe setting, events, and persons - Analyze the categories that emerge - Researcher must interpret what occurred - Generate hypotheses that help explain the data - Write a final report of results - Needs accurate descriptions and objective interpretation © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Issues in Naturalistic Observation Participation Concealment Identifying the scope of the observation © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Strengths of Naturalistic Observation Useful in complex and novel settings Limitations of Naturalistic Observation Cannot be used to study all issues Less useful when studying well-defined hypotheses under precisely specific conditions Must constantly reanalyze and revise hypotheses © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Systematic observations: careful observation of specific behaviors in a particular setting Coding Systems Methodological Issues Equipment Reactivity Reliability Sampling © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Provides a Description of an Individual Psychobiography – a type of case study in which a researcher applies psychological theory to explain the life of an individual Valuable in Informing Us of Conditions that are Rare or Unusual © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Archival research involves using previously compiled information to answer research questions Statistical Records Survey Archives Written and Mass Communication Records Use of the General Social Survey (GSS) © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

 Content Analysis of Documents  Systematic analysis of existing documents  Requires coding system  Can address questions that can be addressed in no other ways  Limitations  Difficult to obtain  Cannot be sure of accuracy © 2012 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.