Experiments

• Experiments= A means of testing a hypothesis.
• Who conducts experiments?

  • Scientists
  • Experiments are usually conducted by the 'natural sciences', such as chemistry, physics, biology etc. As sociologists it is unusual to use a laboratory.
• Types of experiments:

  • Laboratory
  • Field
  • The comparative method
• Laboratory

  "The experimental method"

  • A controlled environment in which to test a hypothesis.
  • When testing something there are two variables:
  • The Independent variable- the causal factor.
  • The dependent variable- the effect.
  • When testing something there are two groups:
  • The experimental group- the independent variable is given to this group according to the hypothesis being tested.
  • The control group- no independent variable is given to this group.
  • By changing only one variable it is possible to measure whether the thing you are testing is responsible for the effect you see; cause-and-effect.
• Laboratory

  • Highly reliable
  • The experiment can be replicated by other scientists who can reproduce the same results under the same conditions.
  • A highly objective method of research; detachment.
• • It is unusual for sociologists to use laboratory experiments for several reasons:
  • Practical issues
  • They only study the present; you cant control the past or future variavles.
  • Society is complex and not all variables can be controlled or identified.
  • Laboratory experiments typically use small sample sizes, making them less representative.
  • Ethical problems
  • Lack of informed consent
  • Deception - Milgram
  • Harm to the participants - Milgram
• Laboratory

  The Hawthorne Effect

  • A laboratory is not a natural environment and people will behave differently when they are aware they are part of an experiment; this reduces the validity of the data.
  • "right-answerism" and pleasing the researcher.
• Laboratory

  Free will

  • "The power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate"
  • "the ability to make decisions free from prior events or knowledge"
  • Interpretivists argue humans have free will and are not constrained by social forces.
  • Consciousness and choice affects our decision making; behaviour cannot simply be explained through 'cause-and-effect.'
  • The experimental method is not effective for studying society or people.
• Field= Occurs in the subject of study's natural environment or surroundings.
• Field

  • The participants in the study are usually unaware they are being studied - no Hawthorne Effect.
• Field

  The researcher manipulates the variables, one at a time, to observe how they affect the behaviour of the participants.

  • Example: Rosenhan (1973)
  • Twelve researchers presented themselves at a mental hospital in California, claiming to hear voices.
  • All twelve were admitted and diagnosed as 'schizophrenic'
  • Once inside, all twelve behaved normally and said the voices were gone; regardless, the staff in the hospital treated them the same.
  • Conclusion: the patient behaviour isn't determining staff behaviour, their labels of 'schizophrenia' is.
• The Comparative Method

  • Designed to find 'cause-and-effect' relationships between variables.
  • Carried out in the mind of the sociologist- a 'thought experiment'
• The Comparative Method

  How does it Work?

  1. Identify two groups which are alike in every set of variables except one, the one you are testing.
  2. Compare the two groups and see if there are differences between them. Any differences between them should be a result of the one variable which is different.
• The Comparative Method

  Example: Durkheim's "Suicide: A study of Sociology"

  • Hypothesis - 'lower levels of integration with society leads to higher rates of suicide.'
  • Catholics have higher levels of integration than Protestants, and therefore, Protestants should have higher rates of suicide.
  • Durkheim compared the suicide rates of both groups, which are similar in all other variables, and found his hypothesis to be confirmed.
• The Comparative Method

  Advantages

  • No ethical problems associated with it.
  • Completely genuine- not artificial.
  • Can be used to study events in the past.
• The Comparative Method

  Disadvantages

  • Even less control over variables than other methods, affecting the validity of the data.
  • Data may not always be available.