Chapter 12
Studying Patterns in the Natural
World: Observational Approaches
Scientific Versus Casual Observation
Types of Scientific Observation
Systematic Observation–Research in which an observer
records behavior as it naturally occurs, often in a
laboratory as an initial stage in research and prior to
development of a hypothesis.
Naturalistic Observation–Research in which an observer
records naturally occurring behavior without attempts at
interpretation or subjective evaluation.
Studying Natural Behaviors
Types of Naturalistic Observation
Particularistic Research–Investigation that focuses on a
single, specific question, often oriented toward a
practical issue
Universalistic Research–Investigation that addresses a
general question that extends beyond the specific time
and place of the research itself
Studying Natural Behaviors
• Ethology: Research involving the study of
behavior, usually of animals, in their natural
enviroment
• Evolutionary Psychology: A relatively new
branch of psychology focusing on human
behavior from an evolutionary perspective
Studying Natural Behavior
Perspectives in Interpreting Behavior
Anthropomorphism–The attribution of human
characteristics to nonhuman animals, such as calling an
animal “lonely.”
Theromorphism–The attempt to understand the
behavior of nonhuman animals by speculating about the
behavior within the context of the animal’s perspective.
Approaches to Observational Research
Practical Steps in Observational Research
Investigate approaches others have used.
Adopt methods that experts in the area regard as valid
Determine details of observation: who will be observed,
when will observations occur, where will observation take
place
Decide on sampling strategy
Train observers so that data collection is reliable
Approaches to Observational Research
Sampling Strategies
Continuous Real-Time Measurement–Measurement of
the duration of behaviors as they occur
Time-Point Sampling–Measurement of the occurrence of
a behavior by selecting specific points in time and
recording whether the behavior of interest is occurring at
that instant
Time-Interval Sampling–Measurement of behavior by
noting whether it has occurred within a specified time
interval or intervals
Approaches to Observational Learning
• Structured and Unstructured Observation
– Unstructured Observation: Approach to
observational research in which investigators
record many different behaviors as they occur
– Structured Observation: Approach to
observational research in which investigators
record a few well-defined behaviors
• Observational research is difficult because it
requires a lot of time and effort to capture
behaviors accurately. Practical issues usually
determine which approaches are used.
Sampling Issues in Observational
Research
• Number of Sampling Blocks
– Researchers have to decide how many blocks of
time are needed in order to get a valid picture of
behaviors of interest.
– A small number of blocks can lead to significant
inaccuracy in characterizing the behavior being
studied.
– Observational researchers often sample too few
blocks to give an accurate depiction of behaviors
because observational research is very time- and
labor-intensive.
Sampling Issues in Observational
Research
The degree to which samples showed deviations from the number of
instances of actual group activity. Greater error is associated with fewer
observations sampled. With only four observation periods, the estimates
were off by about 50 percent; with 30 observations, the error fell to about 13
percent.
Sampling Issues in Observational
Research
Methods of Sampling Events During Observational Research
Method
Result
Sampling at random times
Accurate depiction of how often a behavior
occurs
Observing only a specific behavior
in a specific setting
Possible error in estimation of occurrence of the
behavior because the behavior in a single setting
might not match occurrences in different
settings
Cluster sampling of behaviors in
which behaviors are observed in
lengthy clusters
Possible error in estimation of behaviors because
this approach leads to greater variability in
estimation of frequency of occurrence of the
behavior
One-zero sampling in which the
observer records whether a
behavior occurs or not and how
long it lasts if it does occur
Overestimation of how long behaviors last and
underestimation of how many times behaviors
occur
Ethological Observations in Clinical
Research
• Much clinical research involves randomized
clinical trials
• Ethological approaches can be useful, but they
require that the researcher spend more time
and effort in observing behaviors
– Troisi and Moles (1999) used an ethological
approach and discovered different patterns of
depression for women and men that would not
have been apparent with randomized clinical trials
or clinical rating scales.
Ethological Observations in Clinical
Research
Differences in level of assertion and submission by depressed men and
women compared to controls. The data were collected using an
ethological approach that allows coding of behaviors that are not easily
obtained with rating scales.
Source: Troisa, A., & Moles, A. (1999). Gender differences in depression: An ethological study of nonverbal behavior during
interviews. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 33, 243-250. Reprinted with permission from Elsevier Science.
The Human Side of Observational
Research
Ethics
– Observation of public behaviors are considered
acceptable without review by an Institutional Review
Board
– Sometimes the definition of “public” versus “private”
is not straightforward
– Humphreys (1975) observed anonymous sexual
behavior, which is normally private, that occurred in a
public restroom between anonymous individuals,
which, by its very nature, one could argue is public
The Human Side of Observational
Research
Ethical Issues Concerning the Relationship Between Observer and Participant in
Observational Research
Researcher Interacts
with People Being
Observed
Researcher Does Not Interact with People
Being Observed
People Know
They Are Being
Observed
Ethical considerations
are minimal as long as
those being observed
are aware of the nature
of the research.
Ethical consideration may be minimal if
behavior is public. If behaviors are normally
considered private, there may be ethical
issues, depending on whether those being
observed have given consent.
People Do Not
Know They Are
Being Observed
The researcher might
be invading privacy of
the group, deceiving
them, and putting them
at psychological risk.
Ethical considerations may be minimal if
behavior is public. Because people do not
know they are being observed, they may
engage in private behaviors, raising potential
ethical issues.
The Human Side of Observational
Research
• Subject Reactivity: The tendency of people
being observed to act differently than normal
as a result of knowledge of the observation. It
is hard to determine when it will occur.
– Some research on families (Jacob et al., 1994)
discovered little subject reactivity when family
discussions were tape recorded
– Some research on adolescents (Pepler & Craig,
1995) revealed that the adolescents changed their
behaviors when they knew they were being
recorded
The Human Side of Observational
Research
• Observer Effects
– Observer Bias: The tendency on the part of
observers to bring their biases and predispositions
to the recording of data, a process that may be
unintentional
– Observer Drift: The unintentional tendency on the
part of an observer to change criteria for
recording behavior over time
• You can monitor the possibility of observer drift by
monitoring interobserver reliability, how well two
observers agree in their coding.
The Human Side of Observational
Research
Ways to Minimize Observer Drift
Using well-defined, objective criteria
Systematic training of observers
Retraining observers periodically
Monitoring interobserver reliability
Changing pairs of observers to the same people do not
always collect data together
Controversy: Public Versus Private Sex
• The Tea Room Trade (Humphreys, 1975)
– Men frequented a restroom in a park in order to
engage in anonymous homosexual sex
– The men would rely on a lookout to tell them if
anybody was approaching
– The researcher kept notes on what behaviors
occurred, used a false story to obtain names and
addresses of the men, and went to their homes to
interview them for a supposed marketing
interview several months later.
Controversy: Public Versus Private Sex
Ethical Issues
“The research was unethical”
“The research was ethical”
Sex is a private matter and the researcher
invaded privacy.
The sexual activity was in a public area
between any two men who happened to
show up, so it was not private.
The researcher deceived the men when
he said he would act as a lookout.
The researcher did act as a lookout and
warned the men of people approaching
when it happened; he was even arrested
while acting as a lookout.
The researcher lied to the police about
license plate numbers to get addresses of
the men. This is deception.
The police gave the researcher the
information without questioning the false
story, indicating that giving the names
was not a big issue. Besides, the false
story protected the men’s identities.
The researcher exposed the men to
possible legal prosecution, potential
physical harm, and potential psychological
harm.
The researcher kept all records in a safedeposit box in another state so the
authorities could not gain access to the
information.
Controversy: Public Versus Private Sex
• There are other ethical concerns about which
you could argue.
• Although most IRBs would probably not
approve this research, you could make logical
arguments that the research was not
unethical.
• There were no IRBs when Humphreys
conducted the research, so he cannot be
faulted for failing to gain approval.
Controversy: Public Versus Private Sex
• What were the results?
• When Humphreys analyzed his data, he found
that the men known to have engaged in this
behavior were no different in a lot of ways
than men not known to have done this—age,
marital status, education, occupation, etc.