Observations on Observation

Observational Research• Casual every day observations

– Interesting – informative - important

• Scientific Observation– “Is made under precisely defined conditions, in a

systematic and objective manner, and with careful record-keeping.” p. 93 SZZ

– Use of constructs, avoid bias and have organized records

• Part of “descriptive methods” approach– Describe behavior fully and accurately– Which is difficult to do

Observational Research

• Researchers cannot observe– All of a person’s behavior– All people’s behavior

• Behavior is influenced by the situation • However, Researchers can observe

– Samples of individuals– Samples of behavior at particular times– Samples of different settings and conditions

Sampling Behavior

• Goal of samples– Representitive of

• Behaviors• People• Settings and conditions

• Example:– How many hours of television did you watch last

week?• Is this number representative of how much you typically

watch tv?• Is the average for the class representative of the number of

hours of tv watched by– all students on campus?– all college students?– all people?

Sampling Behavior

• Use data from a sample to represent the population– “Generalize” the findings from sample to population– Sample must be representative of the population

• External validity– “Validity” refers to “truthfulness.”– Extent to which a study’s findings may be used to

describe people, settings, conditions beyond those used in the study.

– Allows generalization from sample to population

Sampling Behavior• We can only generalize findings when the sample is

representative of the population.– Is the sample similar to the population?– Problem: We rarely know the characteristics of the population.

• Lots of psychology studies use college student samples. – Are college students representative of the larger population?– Most college students are “WEIRD”

• How do we obtain representative samples?

• External validity depends on how behavior is sampled.

• Two methods are– time sampling – situation sampling

• Researchers typically use a combination of both methods.

• The goal of both methods is to obtain a representative sample of behavior.

Sampling Behavior

Sampling Behavior

• Time Sampling: Researchers choose time intervals for making observations.– Systematic: Schedule observations to occur at a regular

time (e.g., first day of the week, each noon).• Why use this

– Random: Use some random means for identifying times for observations.

• Why use this

Sampling Behavior

• Time Sampling:– Time sampling is not used when researchers wish to

observe rare events (e.g., behavior following a hurricane).

– Event sampling is used for rare events (for example, the researcher travels to the site of a recent hurricane).

– See: “Seared in our memories” memory of terrorist attacks of September 11

Sampling Behavior

• Situation Sampling: Researchers choose different– Settings (locations) Quad, Parking Lot, Library, Office– Circumstances; alone, group, taking a test, hanging out– Conditions; hot, cold, time pressure, chilling & grilling

• Demonstrate external validity of findings when– Similar behavior across situations i.e. helping behavior– However, some behavior is situation specific

Sampling Behavior

• Situation Sampling– Within situations, researchers may use subject

sampling to observe some people in the setting (e.g., choose every 5th person to enter a store).

Observation: taking another look

• Observing behavior in natural settings is common in ethology

• Ethology Movement focused on instinctive behavior such as nest building and imprinting

• Also used in ethnography studies– for example Eibl-Eibesfeldt (more on this next time)

• Objective observation forms the basis for theory construction– For example observation of same-sex parenting in

nonhuman animals such as penguins

Importance of observational approach as part of descriptive methods in science

FIGURE 4.2 The children’s book, And Tango Makes Three (Richardson & Parnell, 2005) is based on the story of two male penguins that were observed fostering a penguin chick at Central Park Zoo. The American Library Association reports that this was the most frequently banned book in 2009.

Classification of Observational Methods

• Direct Observational– Observation without Intervention– Observation with Intervention

• Participant• Structured• Field

• Indirect Observational “Unobtrusive” (later alligator)– Physical Traces– Archival

• Observational methods can also be classified according to the methods for recording behavior.– Comprehensive record of behavior– Selected behaviors

© 2012 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Classification of Observational Methods

Observational Methods

Direct Observation Indirect (Unobtrusive) Observation

Observation without Intervention

Observation with

Intervention

Physical Traces Archival Records

Participant Observation

Structured Observation

FieldExperiment

Direct Observation without Intervention

• Naturalistic Observation:– Observation in natural setting – No attempt to intervene or change situation

• Jane Goodal observing chimpanzees in the jungle

• College students in the quad

• Teachers in the classroom

• Study happiness using Facebook entries

• Goals:– Describe behavior as it normally occurs such as aggression of

children on the school playground– examine relationships among naturally occurring variables.– to establish the external validity of laboratory findings

• Naturalistic observation is an alternative when ethical and moral considerations prevent experimental manipulation.– Aggressive behavior of children playing at school

Direct Observation with Intervention

• Most psychological research involves observation with intervention.– Increased control over observations

• Three methods in natural settings:– Participant observation

• Disguised• Undisguised

– Structured observation– Field experiment

Direct Observation with Intervention

• Participant Observation: Observer is an active participant in the natural setting he or she observes.– undisguised: people in the setting know they are being

observed which can produce reactivity• Anthropologists doing ethnographies• What can be done to reduce reactivity?

– disguised: people don’t know they are being observed• Will reduce reactivity but make it go away• What are the ethical concerns?

Direct Observation with Intervention

• Disguised participant observation helps control for reactivity, one of the main problems associated with observation.

– Reactivity occurs when people change their usual behavior because they know they are being observed.

• Participant observers may sometimes lose their objectivity by becoming too involved in the situation– Police academy training as an undisguised participant

• Participant observers may influence the behavior of people they are observing.

Direct Observation with Intervention

• Structured Observation: Researcher sets up (structures) a specific situation in order to observe people’s behavior. – Examples: clinical and developmental observations of

behavior, psychological testing– Structured observation is useful when behavior is

difficult to observe as it naturally occurs.– Problems can occur

• when observers don’t follow the same procedures across observations

• when important variables are not controlled.

Direct Observation with Intervention

• Structured Observation – Examples of structured observation:

– Simons and Levin (1998) studied “change blindness”• by structuring a situation in which they changed the person

who asked the participant directions to a campus building.• results indicated only about half of the people observed

noticed the change.

– Researchers often use confederates to create the structured situation such as “inattentional blindness”. (video example)

Direct Observation with Intervention

• Field Experiment: Researcher manipulates an independent variable in a natural setting and observes behavior (dependent variable).

– There must be two or more conditions to compare (independent variable).

• For example confederates cutting into a waiting line

– Researchers often use confederates to create these different conditions.

– Researchers attempt to have the most control in field experiments.