Methods of Enquiry in Psychology: Goals

Description

 Description requires recording of a particular behaviour and describing it

accurately so as to attain a comprehensive understanding of the same
 For example, morning habits may have a diverse range of behaviors like reading
positive literature,meditation, exercise,journaling etc.

Prediction

 It is the second goal of psychological enquiry 

 Here we attempt to understand the relationship between the behaviour we are
describing with the other types of behaviour.

Explanation

 It is the third goal of psychological enquiry

 It attempts to explain the causal factors of behaviour and attain understanding of
the conditions in which the behavior occurs or not.

Control

 It is the fourth goal of psychological inquiry

 It focuses on three things
o Making a particular behavior happen
o Reducing it
o Enhancing it

Application 

 It is the fifth goal of psychological enquiry

 focuses on bringing out a positive change in people’s lives 

Steps in Conducting a Scientific Research

Conceptualizing a problem

 It is the first step of conducting a scientific research

 The researcher selects a topic for study which is done on basis of either review
of past research, observations, personal experience

Identification of problem

 It is the second step of scientific research

  Development of tentative statement about the topic takes place which termed as
hypothesis
 For example, “ greater is the amount of time spent by children in playing violent
video games, greater is the degree of impatience and anger developed by them”

Collection of data

 This step focuses on developing a research design or blueprint of the entire

study.
 Decisions are taken about the following 
o Participants in the study
o Methods of study
o Tools to be used in research
o Procedure for data collection

Drawing conclusions

 The next step of scientific research is to analyse data through statistical

procedures
 It can be achieved through  measures of central tendency like
mean,median,mode and graphical presentations like pie chart,bar diagram

Revising research conclusions

 The researcher revises the whole study and the hypothesis being taken is
analysed thoroughly to see that whether it stands true or not 

Nature of Psychological Data

Demographic information

It includes personal information like name,age,gender,education,occupation etc.

Physical information

Includes information about ecological conditions,housing conditions,size of

rooms,facilities available at home,in the neighbourhood,in the school etc.

Psychological information

Information focuses on areas like intelligence,personality ,interests etc.

Different Methods of Enquiry in Psychology

Observation 

 It is a very powerful method of psychological enquiry

 It involves selection of  a particular behavior , recording the selected behavior
using symbols,photographs and analysis of the recorded behavior

Merits 

 enables the researcher to study people and their behavior.

 Can provide in-depth information about behavior to be observed

Demerits

 It is time consuming
 It can be labour intensive at times
 Poor method for establishing cause and effect relationship.              

Experimental method

 Experiments are generally conducted to establish cause and effect relationship

between two or more variables in a controlled setting.
 Independent variables are manipulated and its effects are measured on the
dependent variable.

Merits

 Optimal method for establishing cause and effect relationship between two or
more variables
 The extraneous variables can be controlled thus, no scope of alternative
explanation

Demerits

 Experimenter’s bias may affect the

 The authenticity of the experiment

Correlational research 

 The strength and direction of the relationship between two variables is

represented by a number,termed as correlation coefficient
 Its value may range from +1.0 through 0.0 to -1.0

Merits
  Correlation helps in prediction between the given variables
 Can examine issues that cannot be studied ethically or practically in experiments

Demerits

 Fails to establish cause and effect relationship between variables

 Survey research

 It came into existence to study opinions, attitudes, and social facts by use of
techniques such as questionnaires, interviews, etc.

Merits

 A properly selected representative sample may yield accurate result

 It is flexible and adaptable to individual situations
  Information can be gathered quickly and efficiently

Demerits

 Unrepresentative  samples may yield misleading results

 Interviewer bias and social desirability bias may distort the findings
 Inaccurate information may be obtained at times

Case study

 It is an in depth study of a particular case.

 It employs multiple methods for collecting information such as
interview,observation and psychological tests from a variety of respondents who
is someway or the other might be associated with the case and can provide
useful information.

Merits

 Provides rich descriptive information

 Helps in an in-depth study of a rare phenomenon.

Demerits

 Fails to establish a cause and effect relationship 

 It may be subject to the biases of the researcher.

Psychological Testing
  A psychological test is a standardized and objective instrument that is used to
assess an individual’s standing in relation to others on some mental or behavioral
characteristics
 The construction of a test is a systematic process and involves certain steps. It
involves detailed analysis of items and estimation of their reliability, validity, and
norms.
o Reliability refers to the consistency of scores obtained by an individual on
the same test on two different occasions
o Validity refers to the question, “does the test measure what it claims to
measure?”
o Norms help in making a test standardised. Norm is referred to as the
average performance of the group.

Analysis of Data
Quantitative Method

Psychological tests, interviews, questionnaires contain a series of close ended

questions and the probable response of these questions are given in a scaled manner
and that clearly illustrates the strength and magnitude of response.

Qualitative Method

Human experiences are very complex. This complexity is lost when one elicits
information from a respondent on the basis of a question. 

Limitations in Methods of Enquiry in Psychology

Lack of true zero point

Psychological measurements lack an absolute zero point.

For example, even after scoring zero on a vocabulary test, it can’t be said that the
respondent has zero knowledge of vocabulary.

Relative nature of psychological tools

The nature of psychological tools is relative not absolute and they are developed
keeping in view the important features of a particular context.

Subjective interpretation of qualitative data

The interpretation of the qualitative data used in the research is characterized by

subjective interpretation which means that it varies from individual to individual.
Ethical Issues with Methods of Enquiry in Psychology
Informed consent

The principle of informed consent states that potential participants must understand
what will happen in the  experiment and to them during study so that they are able to
make an informed decision about the participation in study.

Confidentiality of data source

Participants of the study have the right to privacy and the researcher must safeguard
the privacy of the participants by keeping the information provided by them confidential.

Voluntary participation

As per this principle the participants must have the freedom to  decide whether to
participate in the study or not.

Debriefing 

Once the study is over, the participants are provided with the necessary information to
complete their understanding of the research. The researcher should make efforts to
remove any sort of anxiety which may have taken place as a result of the experiment