CHAPTER 13 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH STRATEGIES

Observational Research Foundations Potential Problems 1.Presence of the researcher may influence participants Solutions 1. Conceal researcher 2. Habituation: involves repeated exposure until the observer’s presence no longer affects behavior

Observational Research Foundations Potential Problems 2. There is room for subjective interpretations of behaviors Solutions • Good operational definition • Trained observers • Use multiple observers * Inter-rater reliability

Observational Research Foundations Quantifying Observations • Converting a behavior into a numerical score Methods 1. Frequency • Count the number of behaviors

2. Duration • Measure the duration of a behavior 3. Interval Method • Interval = timeframe • Count frequency within timeframe

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the different types of observational research?

Survey Research Types of Questions

Overall: The types of questions you ask should serve your research interests

Survey Research Writing Questions: Important Guidelines 1. Questions must ask about only ONE behavior

1. What are your thoughts and feelings about capital punishment?

2. Questions must not be leading

2. Why do you think Northern California is better than Southern California?

3. Questions must not be ambiguous

3. I tend to use stereotypes in situations where they are potentially applicable. Yes No

Survey Research Types of Questions 1. Open-Ended Qs • Introduces a topic and allows participants to respond in their own words

Survey Research Types of Questions Examples What do you think about the current availability of food on this campus? What is the most important factors in choosing a college or university? What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? How many times do you brush your teeth in a day?

Survey Research Types of Questions Advantages • Reveal true thoughts or opinions Disadvantages • Misinterpretations of Q, get responses that are incomparable • Difficult to analyze results with statistics

Survey Research Types of Questions 2. Restricted Questions • Limited number of responses presented • Good for nominal data, count data

Survey Research Types of Questions Examples 1. If the election were held today, which of the following candidates would receive your vote? Mrs. Lin Chun Mrs. Nunez Mr. Smith

2. During a typical week, how often do you eat at a fast food restaurant? Not at all Once Twice Three times Four times or more

Survey Research Types of Questions 3. Please indicate your race African American European American Latino American Asian American Other____________

Survey Research Types of Questions 3. Rating Scale Questions • Participants select a numerical value on a predetermined scale

Survey Research Types of Questions 1. Likert Scale • A scale in which responses are numbered and anchored to a specific value • Always include an anchor: what the number means • Generally use 5-10 options • May want to include reverse scored questions (for comprehension)

Survey Research Types of Questions I think it is important to vote 1 = s. agree 2 = agree 3 = neutral 4 = disagree 5 = s. disagree

My assessment of cheating is that it is 1 = very wrong 2 = wrong 3 = somewhat wrong 4 = morally neutral 5 = somewhat moral 6 = moral 7 = very moral

Survey Research Types of Questions 2. Semantic Differential Scale • Selects pairs of bipolar adjectives • Asks participants to identify the location between the two adjectives • Anchor each response with a number

Example How do you feel right now? Happy_ _ _ _ _ _Sad 1 2 3 4 5 6 Angry_ _ _ _ _ _Calm 1 2 3 4 5 6

Survey Research Types of Questions Advantages • Use many different types of adjectives in one survey • More accurately capture people’s emotions

Survey Research Guidelines For Constructing A Survey Guidelines 1. Demographics information should come at the end 2. Sensitive questions should be placed in the middle of the survey 3. Topics should be groups 4. Easy to read, language that is understandable