Major Research Designs And Methods Psychology Essay

Major Research Designs And Methods Psychology Essay Since time immemorial, Sociologists have been using different designs and research methods to examine society and social behaviour. Most sociological research involves  field work typically designed to depict the characteristics of a population as fully as possible. The designs and methods have proved utilitarian in studying the behaviour and relationships among groups of people and institutions and how their characteristics are shaped by these relationships. It analyses how society changes and how it maintains stability, looking into both unanimity and conflict among different social groups. Sociologys subject matter comprises of social procedures such as, deviance, identity development, socialization and social institutions, including work, religion, family. Major research designs The three most popular social research  designs are discussed below- CROSS SECTIONAL: It is also known as transversal studies,  cross-sectional analyses and  prevalence study. Cross sectional research involves the study of a number of individuals varying in age but have the same attribute or characteristic of interest at a single point of time. It forms a class of  research methods  that necessitate observation of all of a population, or a representative subset, at one specific point in time. They differ from  case-control studies  in that they aim to provide data on the entire population under study, whereas case-control studies typically include only individuals with a specific characteristic, with a sample, often a tiny minority, of the rest of the population. Cross-sectional studies are descriptive studies (neither longitudinal nor experimental). Unlike case-control studies, they can be used to describe, not only the  Odds ratio, but also  absolute risks and  relative risks  from  prevalences.  They may be used to describe some feature of the population, such as  prevalence  of an illness, or they may support inferences of cause and effect.  Longitudinal studies  differ from both in making a series of observations more than once on members of the study population over a period of time. Longitudinal, in which scientists study the same individuals or society repeatedly over a specified period of time. A  longitudinal study  is a  correlation  research study that involves repeated observations of the same variables over long periods of time often many decades. It is a type of observation study. Longitudinal studies are often used in psychology to study developmental trends across the life span, and in sociology  to study life events throughout lifetimes or generations. The reason for this is that unlike  cross-sectional, in which different individuals with same characteristics are compared,[1]  longitudinal studies track the same people, and therefore the differences observed in those people are less likely to be the result of cultural differences across generations. Because of this benefit, longitudinal studies make observing changes more accurate, and they are applied in various other fields. In medicine, the design is used to uncover predictors of ce rtain diseases. In advertising, the design is used to identify the changes that advertising has produced in the attitudes and behaviours of those within the target audience who have seen the advertising campaign. Cross-sequential, in which scientists test individuals in a cross-sectional sample more than once over a specified period of time Six of the most popular sociological research  methods  (procedures) are the  case study, survey, observational, correlation, experimental,  and  cross-cultural methods, as well as working with information already available. Cross sequential studies combine both longitudinal and cross sectional methods in an attempt to both shorten the length of the research and minimize developmental assumptions Research methods Five of the most popular methods which help in sociological research are- Case study Survey Observational Experimental Cross-cultural CASE STUDY METHOD: In  case study research, a research worker analyses a person or small group of individuals with a strange situation or condition. Case studies are usually clinical in scope. The researcher (often a clinical sociologist) sometimes applies self-report measures to gather quantitative data on the field. A comprehensive examination, including a long-term follow-up, can last months or years. The advantage of case study is that, it obtains meaningful information about individuals or groups. The disadvantage is, it is only applicable to individuals with alike characteristics instead of the general population. SURVEY RESEARCH METHOD: It is the most common method by which researchers gather their data. This type of research method  involves face-to-face interviewing or administering  questionnaires, or written surveys, in which interviewer meets with his subject to ask them questions. The investigator examines the data acquired from surveys to know about similarities, differences, and current trend. The researcher then makes predictions about the subjects being studied. Its positive side includes acquiring information from a large number of responders, conducting interviews according to respondents convenience, and obtaining data as tattily as possible. Its negative side includes biased volunteer or interviewer and distortion. Distortion occurs when the subjects are not honest with the investigator. OBSERVATIONAL METHOD: It is also called field research, is a basic of sociology. Observational research involves directly noticing subjects behaviour, either in a laboratory (called laboratory observation) or in a natural environment (called  naturalistic observation). Observational research ensures the investigator that subjects will share totally honest accounts of the experiences, take the study seriously, learn to remember, do not feel embarrassed. Observation studies are of two types- Participant Observation and Non-Participant Observation. In participant the investigator gets an opportunity to be a part of the group he is studying and might even live with them. This must not influence the behaviour or attitude of the people they are studying. In nonparticipant observation, the research worker analyses a group of individual but does not otherwise interact with them. EXPERIMENTAL METHOD: This research method  tries to ascertain  how  and  why  something happens. Experimental research tests the way of how one variable  affects the other. There are various factors that can affect the resultant of any type of experimental research. One is discovering random samples and representative of the universe being analysed. Another is bias  experimenter, in which the investigators prospects about what should or should not occur in the study shake the results. Still some other is ascertaining for  immaterial variables, such as noise level or room temperature, which may intervene with the conclusions of the experiment. Only when researcher cautiously controls for immaterial variables can she or he draw sensible conclusions about the results of specific variables on other. The major plus point of this method is that the experimenter can be reasonably sure of a cause-and-effect relationship. Most experiments take place in the laboratory, which ma y be a room with a unidirectional mirror, but some experiments occur in the field, or in a natural environment. CROSS-CULTURAL METHOD: This method involves the study of values, folkways, norms, attitudes, mores, customs, and practices necessitate knowledge of other societies and cultures. This research is designed to discover variations across people from different culture experience and background. Most cross-cultural research involves direct observation, survey, and  participant observation  methods of research. In participant observation the investigator gets an opportunity to be a part of the subjects community he is studying and might even live with them. The positive aspect of this method of research is that the information obtained is considered within the social, political, economical, and religious systems of that community. The study also demonstrates that Western cultural standards are not necessarily practised by other societies. What may be acceptable or normal for one group may be unacceptable or abnormal for another. Conclusion The important types of sociological research include cross cultural, surveys, experiments, the use of existing data and observational studies. Surveys are the most common of all as it allows the researcher for gathering much information on subjects or respondents that is relatively trivial. The conclusion of surveys that use random samples can be generalized to the population that the sample represents. An observational study is also common and allows us to acquire in-depth knowledge of a small group of individual. Because the samples of these analyses are not random, the outcome cannot necessarily be generalized to a population. Experiments are very less common in sociology. When field experiments are conducted in sociology, they can yield valuable information because of their experimental design.