DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH METHODS

Lawrence R. Gordon

Psychology Research Methods I

Descriptive Methods... Observational research

• Watch

Survey research• Ask

Case studies• Get to know individuals well (watch, ask)

Archival research• Get to know existing info well (seek, ask)

Observational Research Basic types

– Naturalistic (everyday environments)– Participant (join the group!) When Prophecy Fails

Degree of structure (Granby zoo project)

Issues• absence of control• observer bias• subject reactivity• ethics: informed consent, privacy

Parenting of Language-learning Children

Hart, B. and Risley, T. R. (1992) 40 families observed in home 1 hour monthly

for 2.5 years, including time before, during, and after kids learned to talk

10 parenting variables in 3 factors– absolute amount of parenting per hour– parents’ social interaction with kids– contentative quality of utterances to kids

1st and 3rd strongly related to SES of family and the subsequent IQ of the kid

Survey Research Types:

• Interviews• Written surveys• Telephone (NEW - internet)

Issues• sampling• response bias (social desirability/self-presentation)

• Item content/context» Ambiguity

» Say too much (“double-barreled”)

» Leading questions

• ethics -- flawed surveys may affect people’s lives

Child Victimization Boney-McCoy & Finkelhor (1995) Psychosocial Sequelae of Violent Victimization in a

National Youth Sample– Telephone sample youth 10-16 yrs old. -- 1042 boys and 958 girls.

Comparable to US Census statistics.

– Area probability samples -- random digit dialing. Spoke with primary caretaker, then the child with most recent birthday. RATES: 88% of adults, 82% of kids! Interview 30-60 m with kid!

Results:– 40% (50% of M, 33% of F) reported 1 of 7 categories of

violence happened to them in past year. Tended to have multiples, if any.

– Used to look at PTSD symptomology, sadness, trouble with a teacher. Victimized more problems than nonvictimized. Sexual most! Longgggggg discussion!

– “substantial mental health morbidity in the general child and adolescent population is associated with victimization”!!!

Case Studies In-depth analysis of a single case:

• Person (case history)• Single event (rare, historic) -- TMI, Challenger• Generic event -- weddings, commencements,

bathrooms!

Most common in clinical workPros

• informative, lots of detail• can deal with small populations• good starting point for empirical questions

Cons• external validity (replication can help)• potential for experimenter bias• may be retrospective

Little Hans

Little boy treated by Sigmund Freud in Germany

Mother brought him in due to phobia of horses that boy said came from a nightmare

Freud interpreted this as manifestation of unresolved Oedipal complex

Used as example of latent content of dreams, fear/conflict of Oedipal complex

And now……a little bathroomhumour!

The Bathroom, Kira, 1976 Center for Housing & Environmental Studies at

Cornell. An ergonomist. The book contains elements of surveys and

observation as well (and probably archives too!) Strong preoccupation with bathroom privacy, esp. in

America - “lounge, restroom, powder room.” Architecturally a quest for privacy, but very poorly designed, especially the “throne,” which ignores our physiology and sanitation.

Looks at functions (many!) and elements of design related to each. Even consulted to NASA when astronauts complained.

Book widely acclaimed and universally ignored!

Archival Research

Public or private records, publications, data sets, letters, ads, etc.

Content analysis an important tool in qualitative analysis often used here.

Comments• Much data available (esp. with web and new

movements to archive raw data publicly)• Can supplement and strengthen other research• May not have the variables you want• Potential experimenter bias a “biggie”

Genius and Madness? Weisberg, 1994 Test of Kraepelin’s hypothesis that

mania increases creativity Looked at life of composer Schumann

• Suicide at 46 by self-starvation• All material reconstructed from written records

by him or about him

Creativity: # recordings of piece each year Output : # compositions produced each year Conclusion: Mania affected output but not

“creativity.”

Content analysis Systematic organization of qualitative

information into predetermined categories

Issues– requires solid operational definitions– need to train coders– need to show interrater reliability– time consuming– no manipulation of IV– potential for experimenter bias and other

confounds

Content analysis (cont.)

Advantages– cheap, portable– often more convenient (don’t need to

schedule sessions with participants)– easy to replicate

Mating Preferences Buss (1989) looked at mating

preferences in 10,047 people in 33 countries, and found– females valued resource acquisition more

than males did in preferred mates– males valued reproductive capacity more

than females did in preferred mates But, lots of overlap in distributions Both males and females preferred

kindness/understanding and intelligence

Content analysis on Personal Ads From “Seven Days”, Dec. 1, 1999 Coded all ads for

– “women seeking men”– “men seeking women”

Categories for mate preferences– “resource acquisition”

• successful, professional, financially secure

– “reproductive capacity”• attractive, pretty, beautiful, gorgeous, fit, slim

Personal Ad Results

“Women seeking men” (n = 28)– 3 (11%) desired resource acquisition traits– 4 (14%) desired reproductive capacity

traits “Men seeking women” (n = 54)

– 3 (6%) desired resource acquisition traits– 18 (33%) desired reproductive capacity

traits

Preferences by Sex

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Successful Attractive

Per

cent Females

Males

Remember that first day questionnaire? It wasn’t a content analysis, but we have the data, so...

1

3

5

7

9

11

13Ra

nks (

1 to

13)

FemalesMales