AO1 - Behaviour Categories and Sampling

• When deciding what type of observation to use, operationalised behaviour categories also need to be created, which means being specific about what you are observing (1) to make the behaviour more measurable. (1)
• Behaviour categories are used/improve observations because:

  1. Provide a clear focus for the observation - observers know exactly what behaviours they are looking for
  2. Allows for more objective research/data recording as the behaviour observed is clearly measurable and therefore less prone to bias
  3. Allows observers to tally the behaviour in groups, therefore the results can be compared to check for consistency to see if the observation is reliable
  4. Provides data that is easier to analyse as it provides quantitative/numerical data through tallies
• How a psychologist would observe behaviour:

  1. Observer would record the behaviour on a video recording or watch each behaviour in person
  2. Create a tally chart to record the behaviour which includes their observable operationalised behaviour categories
  3. Tally when a relevant behaviour is shown
  4. Link to AO2
• For example:

  Behaviour category - Aggressive behaviour

  Operationalised behaviour category - Kicking, punching, swearing
• Event sampling: The observer decides on specific events (behaviour categories) relevant to the investigation. These relevant events (behaviour categories) are recorded every time they happen within a set period of time. For example, when observing aggression at a football match, recording a tally every single time they see an aggressive act occur within the full time period (90 minutes).
• Time sampling: Tallying behaviours in a set time interval e.g. every two minutes. To explain in more detail, recording what behaviour is shown at every two minute time interval, over a one hour period e.g. this would mean the researcher would tally 30 behaviours within the hour.