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CHAPTER 7 Observation

Research methods in clinical psychology: An introduction for students and practitioners Chris Barker, Nancy Pistrang, and Robert Elliott. CHAPTER 7 Observation. Advantages of observation. Direct, objective measure of behaviour Assesses behaviour in its context Examines sequence over time

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CHAPTER 7 Observation

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  1. Research methods in clinical psychology:An introduction for students and practitionersChris Barker, Nancy Pistrang, and Robert Elliott CHAPTER 7 Observation

  2. Advantages of observation • Direct, objective measure of behaviour • Assesses behaviour in its context • Examines sequence over time • Does not require participant's awareness of behaviour

  3. Disadvantages of observation • Potential reactivity • Only good for overt behaviours (but can observe “verbal behaviour”)

  4. Qualitative observation • Participant observation • Text-based methods

  5. Participant observation • Roots: ethnographic approach in anthropology • Researcher is “immersed” in setting • Systematic, usually unstructured, observation • Detailed records (“field notes”), generally from memory • “If it’s not written down, it never happened” • Examples: • Goffman (1961) “Asylums” • Taylor & Bogdan (1998)

  6. Participant observation (ctd.) • Methodological problems • reactivity • observer bias • Ethical issues • covert observation • witnessing illegal or immoral behaviour

  7. Text-based research • Close study of communication (written or spoken) • Many sources of text • Focus on structure of communication • underlying assumptions and meanings • Discourse analysis

  8. Discourse analysis • Several different versions (from sociology, linguistics, etc.) • British psychologists influenced by Potter and Wetherell's (1987) approach: • Works from detailed transcripts • Functionalist: what language does • “Discourse repertoire” • “Subject positioning” • Examples: • Madill & Barkham (1997) • Harper (1994)

  9. Quantitative observation:background • Behavioural observation: • eliminate inferences • Psychotherapy process research: • objective record of interaction • Content analysis: • mass media research

  10. Quantitative observation: methods • Narrative recording • qualitative record • Event recording • overall frequency data • Interval recording • frequency within intervals • Time sampling • record at specific times /ctd.

  11. Observation methods ctd. • Sequential act coding • code behaviours in order • Duration recording • record times taken • Global rating scales • overall judgement • Environmental measures • overall activity patterns

  12. Pragmatics of observation • Define behaviours • level of inference • Develop coding manual • Recruit and train raters • Check reliability • Code actual data • Continuously monitor reliability

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