Observational Studies and Coding

  Observational Studies and Codin" rel="nofollow">ing In Chapter 7, you read about naturalistic research methods. This type of research is designed to help the researcher understand behavior in" rel="nofollow">in the settin" rel="nofollow">ing in" rel="nofollow">in which it occurs naturally, rather than in" rel="nofollow">in a laboratory or other controlled settin" rel="nofollow">ing. Naturalistic research is appealin" rel="nofollow">ing because it simulates reality. However, it is challengin" rel="nofollow">ing because the researcher has limited control over the participants and the settin" rel="nofollow">ings. Observational research is one of the common types of naturalistic designs. As a researcher, you might hide your identity and blend in" rel="nofollow">in with the natural environment. In this case, you would be an unacknowledged observer in" rel="nofollow">in the study. When appropriate, you also may let participants know, usually after you have conducted your observations, about the study and reveal your identity. In this case, you would be an acknowledged observer in" rel="nofollow">in the study. In both cases, it is a challenge to measure and record the behavior you are studyin" rel="nofollow">ing because the participants are usually movin" rel="nofollow">ing constantly, and/or are scattered about, thus makin" rel="nofollow">ing it difficult to record every behavioral occurrence under observation. Sin" rel="nofollow">ince you are observin" rel="nofollow">ing behavior and not usin" rel="nofollow">ing surveys or other means to collect data from your participants, you need to clearly identify the behavior you are studyin" rel="nofollow">ing and use a codin" rel="nofollow">ing sheet to track the observed behavior. In this Discussion, you develop an idea for a hypothetical observational study and create a codin" rel="nofollow">ing sheet you could use to record your observations. To prepare: Read Chapter 7 in" rel="nofollow">in your course text. Review the codin" rel="nofollow">ing form example in" rel="nofollow">in Figure 7.1 on page 138 of your course text. Choose a settin" rel="nofollow">ing where you would enjoy observin" rel="nofollow">ing behavior. It might be someplace you go everyday (like the grocery store) or it might be a place you would like to go (such as a city park). Create a codin" rel="nofollow">ing form for a hypothetical observational study of the settin" rel="nofollow">ing your selected. Use the codin" rel="nofollow">ing sheet in" rel="nofollow">in the course text as an example, but create somethin" rel="nofollow">ing that is entirely your own. Note: This is a hypothetical study. You are creatin" rel="nofollow">ing a codin" rel="nofollow">ing form but not conductin" rel="nofollow">ing the actual observation study (because you would need to obtain" rel="nofollow">in IRB approval first). Prepare to upload your codin" rel="nofollow">ing form as an attachment (in" rel="nofollow">in .doc or .rtf format) to your postin" rel="nofollow">ing. With these thoughts in" rel="nofollow">in min" rel="nofollow">ind: Post by Day 3: The topic of your hypothetical observational study. This should also be in" rel="nofollow">in the “Subject” field of your post this week (e.g., Child Playground Behavior). In the main" rel="nofollow">in body of your post, provide background in" rel="nofollow">information on your hypothetical observational study, in" rel="nofollow">includin" rel="nofollow">ing the settin" rel="nofollow">ing, why you are in" rel="nofollow">interested in" rel="nofollow">in this study, and what you hope to learn. Explain" rel="nofollow">in whether you would be an acknowledged or unacknowledged observer and why. Describe the types of behavior and the episodes you in" rel="nofollow">included on your codin" rel="nofollow">ing form. Upload the codin" rel="nofollow">ing form you created as an attached document (.doc or .rtf format). Note: Be sure to support your postin" rel="nofollow">ings and responses with specific references to the Learnin" rel="nofollow">ing Resources. Required Resources Readin" rel="nofollow">ings Stangor, C. (2015). Research methods for the behavioral sciences (5th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learnin" rel="nofollow">ing. Chapter 7, “Naturalistic Methods” Chapter 14, “Quasi-Experimental Research Designs”