Eval

• Strength

  RELIABILITY

  • High standardisation: using a computer to control timings --> replicable

   

  VALIDITY

  • Double-blind procedure: neither Ps nor Es know -> avoid experimenter effects or demand characteristics, expectations didn't influence behavior

   

  • Quantitative data: %distance, allowed for comparision --> objective
• Weakness

  • Deception: Ps deceived in choosing a room for a meeting discussing personal topic that didn't take place --> may caused P to feel anxious about future meeting -> psychological harm

  Lack validity

  • Self-report: Ps may exaggerate empathy due to social desirability bias

   

  • Lack generalisability: only M Ps from same university

   

  • Lack ecological validity: computer based, lab setting -> no intense feelings of discomfort than that of real life situation -> not reflective of real life
• Application

  • Improve social behaviour:
  • oxytocin slightly increased preferred social distance
  • oxytocin may not be suitable for social deficit disorders (autism spectrum) and may actually strengthen social biases
• Issues & debates

   Individual:

  • Only high empathy people had increased preference for closer distances, not low

  Situational:

  • oxytocin levels increase in many situations (socialising, playing with pets) -> preferred interpersonal distance could be affected by environmental factors that increase oxytocin
  • Oxytocin resulted in predictable behaviorial outcomes - situations that result in oxytocin release (socialisation) could influence social behaviors
• Link to assumption

  People have preferred interpersonal differences for different tyes of people -> behaviour is influenced by the presence of others