OBSERVATIONS

• WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF OBSERVATION?

  • participant
  • non-participant
  • covert
  • overt
  • naturalistic
  • controlled
• WHAT ARE PARTICIPANT OBSERVATIONS?

  researcher becomes part of observed group, joins in with activities
• WHAT ARE NON-PARTICIPANT OBSERVATIONS?

  researcher remains separate to observed group
• WHAT ARE COVERT OBSERVATIONS?

  observer not visible as a researcher to participant (unaware observation is taking place)
• WHAT ARE OVERT OBSERVATIONS?

  observer is usually visible to participant (aware they are being observed)
• WHAT ARE NATURALISTIC OBSERVATIONS?

  observing behaviour in a natural setting where everything has been left as it is
• WHAT ARE CONTROLLED OBSERVATIONS?

  some variables controlled by researcher, less natural, participants may be aware they are in a study
• WHAT OBSERVATION DID MEAD DO?

  • aggressive and nurturing behaviour in men and women in 3 tribes
  • gender roles
• WHAT OBSERVATION DID AINSWORTH DO?

  • interactions of infants with mothers during the 'strange situation'
• WHAT OBSERVATION DID BANDURA DO?

  • observed whether children imitated a model playing aggressively with a BoBo doll
• WHAT OBSERVATION DID MILGRAM DO?

  • observed people who thought they were administering electric shocks
• WHAT OBSERVATION DID ROSENHAN DO?

  • observed diagnosis of patients in a psychiatric hospital
• WHAT OBSERVATION DID SCHAFFER AND EMERSON DO?

  • observed 60 babies from birth
  • visited monthly for 1 year
  • interactions with carers were observed
• WHO DID A NATURALISTIC OBSERVATION?

  Mead
• WHO DID A CONTROLLED OBSERVATION?

  Ainsworth
• WHO DID A COVERT OBSERVATION?

  Bandura
• WHO DID AN OVERT OBSERVATION?

  Milgram
• WHO DID A PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION?

  Rosenhan
• WHO DID A NON-PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION?

  Schaffer and Emerson
• WHO DID THE GENDER ROLES OBSERVATION?

  Mead
• WHO DID THE STRANGE SITUATION OBSERVATION?

  Ainsworth
• WHO DID THE CHILDREN IMITATING OBSERVATION?

  Bandura
• WHO DID THE ELECTRIC SHOCK OBSERVATION?

  Milgram
• WHO DID THE DIAGNOSIS OF PATIENTS OBSERVATION?

  Rosenhan
• WHO DID THE BABIES INTERACTION WITH CARERS OBSERVATION?

  Schaffer and Emerson
• WHAT APPROACH WILL THE RESEARCHER TAKE IF THE BEHAVIOUR OF THE PARTICIPANTS MIGHT BE UNPREDICTABLE?

  unstructured
• WHAT IS THE UNSTRUCTURED APPROACH?

  record all behaviour, analyse and categorise after
• WHAT IS A STRUCTURED APPROACH?

  create behaviour checklist
• WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF OBSERVATIONAL SAMPLING TECHNIQUES?

  event, time
• WHAT IS EVENT SAMPLING?

  count number of times a behaviour occurs
• WHAT IS TIME SAMPLING?

  record whether a behaviour occurs at a particular period
• WHAT DO BEHAVIOURAL CATEGORIES MAKE THE OBSERVATION?

  more objective and reliable
• WHEN IS EVENT SAMPLING USEFUL?

  if target behaviour happens rarely
• WHEN IS TIME SAMPLING USEFUL?

  when trying to reduce the number of observations that need to be made/ trying to create a picture of behaviour over time
• WHAT SHOULD WE ANALYSE IN EVALUATIONS OF OBSERVATIONAL SAMPLING TECHNIQUES?

  • how easy to manage
  • appropriacy for recording ongoing behaviour
  • how representative
  • realistic or unrealistic picture
• HOW EASY IS EVENT SAMPLING TO MANAGE?

  more difficult
• HOW EASY IS TIME SAMPLING TO MANAGE?

  more easy
• HOW APPROPRIATE IS EVENT SAMPLING FOR RECORDING ONGOING BEHAVIOUR?

  least appropriate
• HOW APPROPRIATE IS TIME SAMPLING FOR RECORDING ONGOING BEHAVIOUR?

  most appropriate
• HOW REPRESENTATIVE IS TIME SAMPLING?

  least