RESEARCH TECHNIQUES - U2, Apuntes de Psicología

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RESEARCH TECHNIQUES - UNIT 2

SCIENTIFIC KNWOLEDGE

COMMON KNOWLEDGE

• Does not provide evidence
• Everyday life language
• Accumulates information
• Static
• Correct interpretations and reviews of the scientific findings?

SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE

• Provides evidence on the phenomena
• Specialized language
• Contrasts different sources of information on reality
• Dynamic
• When established can become common knowledge (+ need to move on)

PSEUDONCIENCE (everything else which is not science)

• No self-correction
• No peer-review (vs. science: scrutiny before and after publishing – replication)
• Emphasis on confirmation of results
• Use of anecdotal evidence + inference beyond what is present in the data
• Ad hoc hypotheses are explanations
• Expects skeptics to prove, rather than proving themselves
• Does not relate the ideas to scientific knowledge
• Does not mark the conditions in which the regularities hold SCIENTIFIC METHOD

FEATURES

• Empiricism: all knowledge is based on experience.
  • Not means that is comes from experiments
  • Not all studies are experiments
• Skepticism and peer-review
  • The only way to know what I’m saying is true is that the all people who’s “listening” to me agree, if they don’t agree it won’t be true.
• Parsimony
  • This is the idea that we haven’t to do things more complicated that they are. We should do things simple because in this way they’re easy to manage
• Serendipity
  • Discover something you weren’t looking for, so that means you’re in a different you’re wrong
• Replication: laws
  • A law is something that is general, are things that are repeated
  • You have to repeat things to see that something is true and it almost always happens (cause- effect) AIMS

Describe: label, classify

• Explain: why?
• Predict (probabilistically; considering causality criteria)

Understand

VERIFICATION: deductive approach

When we find in a sentence IF what follows is the independent variable and when we find THEN we find the dependent variable. If fertilizer is given to a plant then the plant’s height will be taller.

• Here we find a specific relation cause – effect Dependent it can be different values Independent it can or can’t be, it depends on me. I can manipulate this one. A HYPOTHESIS FINISH WITH A DOT because it’s no a question!!

DEDUCTION OF HYPOTHESIS:EXAMPLE

1. Evidence (reference)
2. Logic and deduction
3. Formal statement
   • Zoom in specific elements of the problem RESEARCH PROBLEM

• Origin : theoretical implications, rival theories, literature review (gap), solve specific problems (the participant)
• Bibliographic review: solid basis beyond preconceptions done (e.g. retrospective memory and self-report measures) vs. to do (e.g. prospective memory and more objective measures)
• Includes information on methodology
• Formulate a specific question (e.g. Are there difference between smokers and non-smokers I how many planned tasks they remember to perfom?)
• Feasible to study

Hypothesis validated?

Sampling, measurement, interpretation

Logical deduction

From the theory we make aHypothesisTheory hypothesis and check it by samples

• Clear: to guide and communicate
• Relevant: public funds RESEARCH AIMS
• Basic research: more abstract terms, subjacent causes
• Self-enhancement study: implicity vs. explicit self-image
• Hefferman and Moss study: relation between smoking and memory?
• Skore et al study: musical training and brain activation
• Applied research: solution to practical problems, short terms
• Next step VARIABLES. Definitions
• Conceptual definition
• Operative definition
• In a questionnaire we have questions in which each question used to represent an area of the main case ■ Deconstruct concept into dimensions
• Measurement of prospective memory failure: sum of scores Classifications
• Substantive criterion:
• Theoretical: stimulus, organismic, response …..

Procedure: selection (inc./excl.) ….

Methodological criterion:

• Dependent (specially in experiments)
• Independent (specially in experiments)
• Intervening: extraneous vs. confounding vs. mediating or moderanting ■ Extraneuos: ■ Confounding: 2 variables are presented at the same time in which we don’t know which one causes the answer we’re studying.

SO FAR

General Characteristics steps Inductions and deductions

Specific Research problem Hypothesis Variables Participants and sampling Theories and models NEW General Qualitative and quantitative Methodological strategies Validity: internal and external IVDV Research designs

Bibliographic search

Attributive Vs. Active

MAIN

• Counter- balancin g:
• Balancing:
• Ramdom:

METHODOLOGICAL STRATEGIES AND VALIDITY

• Validity : referred to the degree in which the data are valuable
• Internal validity – the degree to which the conclusions reflect the actual relationship between the variables. Necessary for external validity.
• Affected by :
  • Confounding factors
  • Participant variance (incl. history and maturation)
  • Measurement bias (testing + instrumentation)
  • Small samples + selection bias + selective dropout
• External validity - generalization to other participants, moments, settings (and instruments). The latter aspect includes ecological validity: representativeness of measurement conditions. RESEARCH DESIGNS: CLASSIFICATION General planning schemes (what, how, when, who to study…in order to ensure validity; has influence on analysis)
• According to the amount of internal control (e.g. assignment to conditions): experimental or nonexperimental (non-equivalent)
• According to number of measurement times: cross-sectional (vs. repeated measures) vs. longitudinal
• According to the number of units of analysis: independent groups or matched groups (or repeated measures).

BIBLIOGRAPHIC SEARCH: OBJECTIVES

For all professionals:

• Keep knowledge up to date
• Evidence for and against existent therapies
• New therapies
• Contrast your own thoughts:
• Commonly shared?
• Who says so and on what basis?
• Look for primary sources:
• Scepticism about re-interpretations: X says that Y said that…
• Critical thinking about For searchers:
• Identify and define better the research problem, according what is known what is not known.
• Justify the research: how is it new and different from what has been done previously (empirical research)
• Asses feasibility of the research proposed (what resources are usually required vs. currently available)
• Identify relevant variables that have to be defined conceptually and operatively measured
• Guide the research via hypothesis stemming from theories and previous findings Introduction to a scientific article

Instrument for collecting data – operativization

• How to proceed to ensure/ improve validity

How to organize data: table and figs

• How to analyse data: statistical indices and tests

How to give meaning to the results

• Integrate current results with previous findings: convergence and divergence generalization

UNIT 3

TOPIC 3. RECORDING TECHNIQUES

3.1. OBSERVATION

WHERE

Research process

• Methodological strategies TYPES
• According to the degree of interaction observer-observed (incl. reactivity) PROCESS OF MAKING THE OBS INSTRUMENT SISTEMATIC

Steps

Leading to

• E and me requirements
• Fuzziness
• Core and plasticity

methodresultsdiscussion Decisions Coding scheme (category system)

Challenges

• Molar vs. molecular (response levels) RECORDING TECHNIQUES IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS
• Research problem: theory gap, rival theories, contradictory findings, lack of findings, curiosity
• Specific aim: feasible for a single study
• Define population, behaviour, situation, etc. of interest
• Choose a way of gathering information: the recording technique (a.k.a research techniques or instrument)
• Gather information
• Organize and give meaning to the information
• Contrast information gathered with the aim with previous information
• Consider the directions for the future research
• In the same study, several techniques of the same type can be used ok
• In the same study, different types of research techniques can be used: complement observation with a questionnaire on opinions, beliefs; complement questionnaire with an in-depth interviewok
• Different studies may use different recording techniques for studying the same variable of interest mind the interpretation
• Different studies may use different instances if the same type of instrument comparable? OBSERVATIONAL RECORDING TECHNIQUES
• Can be part of:
• Quantitative methodology and experimental methodological strategy: ■ Emphasis on observable behaviors, which are provoked and take place in a controlled environment ■ Observational instruments are usually pre-existing
• Quantitative methology and observational methodological strategy: ■ Emphasis on ecological validity: observable behaviors, which are spontaneous, taking place in their natural context ■ May be necessary to create new instruments
• Quantitative methodology: ■ Emphasis on observable behaviors and the interpretation of the participants in interviews (emic approach) ■ Observational instruments are created ad hoc or only informal notes are taken IS x COLLABORATING ENOUGH WITH THE TEAM?
• (Hidden) camera(s) possible? Is an external observer acceptable? Is an internal observer objective?
• All people/behaviors observable from location?
• Define types of collaborations behaviour:definition according to context of the meeting (is humor/break necessary?) and according to knowledge expected?
• Define types of not collaborative behavior
• Define irrelevant behavior (e.g. eating)
• How much unobservable inference can you handle? (molar vs molecular)
• Etic categories vs. emic (what did you mean?)
• Count frequencies (times)
• Take the final product into account (group) vs individual

• Presence depends on: human/animal participant, age of the participants, characteristics of the participants, behaviour observed
• Not considered in experimental research
• XX TYPES OF OBSERVATION AND REACTIVITY
• Non-participant observation: less reactivity less information
• Ex.: hidden camera in class to observe sings of motivation
• Participant observation: less reactivity after habituation less objectivity.
• Ex.: informed consent and no contact vs. researcher mentoring a student in a specific course
• Participant-observation: more information less objectivity. The observer is someone internal not external
• Ex.: a classmate is converted into observer
• Self-observation: more information about private behaviors; reactivity less objectivity.
• Ex.: the teacher studying his/her behaviour OBSERVATION AND SCIENCE
• Ex.: academic studies in education context; the psychological effects of disasters
• Decisions on:
• Participants (and their sampling)
• Moments (and their sampling)
• Behaviors
• Type of observation
• Observer and training in using the instrument in the context
• Data quality control
• Data analysis: frequency, duration, intensity, transitions…
• EXAMPLE: Observation in education
• Aim: improve participation in the sessions through the type of activities proposed by the teacher
• Participants: university students clustered into groups – sample the groups and different courses
• Moments: random sampling of sessions + within – sessions (beginning, end?)
• Behavior: participation (frequencies, rating scales); need to define
• How to observe: after all said direct
• Observe: teacher, needs less trainingparticipation-observation OR hidden camera +teacher viewing the video recordingnonparticipant

• Reactivity: should be minimal

CODING SCHEME /CATEGORY SYSTEM

• Exhaustive categories
• Mutually exclusive
• Keep in mind the core and the plasticity of categories in the definitions
• Deal with the categories’ fuzziness in the examples and counterexamples

RESPONSE LEVELS Simple levels (molecular):

• Verbal
• Nonverbal
  • Facial expressions
  • Gestures
  • Body position
• Vocal
• Proxemic: distance and movement Complex levels (molar)
• A combination of response levels (as in the previous examples)