Methods of Enquiry in Psychology

Activity . A NALYSIS OF D ATA In the earlier section, we discussed different methods for collecting information. After data are collected, the next job of the researcher is to draw conclusions. This requires analysis of from a respondent on the basis of a question.

If you want to know how a mother feels about the loss of her child, you will need to hear her story to understand how her experience is organised and what meaning she has given to her suffering. Any attempt at its quantification will not enable you to get at the principles of organising such experiences. Psychologists have developed various qualitative methods to analyse such data. One of them is Narrative Analysis.

Also data are not always available in the form of scores. When the researcher uses the method of participant observation or unstructured interview, the data are generally in a descriptive form—in participants’ own words, field notes taken by the researchers, photographs, interview responses noted by the researcher or taped/video-recorded, informal talks, etc. These type of data cannot be converted into scores or subjected to statistical analysis. Rather, the researcher uses the technique of content analysis to find out thematic categories and build those categories taking examples from the data.

It is more descriptive in nature. It must be understood that quantitative and qualitative methods are not contradictory; rather, they are complementary to each other. In order to understand a phenomenon in its totality, a suitable combination of both methods is warranted. L IMITATIONS OF P SYCHOLOGICAL E NQUIRY The advantages and limitations of each method have been discussed earlier.

In this section, you will read some general problems faced by psychological measurement. . Lack of True Zero Point : In physical sciences measurements do start from zero. For example, if you want to measure the length of the table, you can measure it starting from zero and can say it is ' long.

Psychological measurements do not have a true zero point. For example, no person in this world has zero intelligence. All of us have some degree of intelligence. What psychologists do is that they arbitrarily decide a point as zero point and proceed further.

As a result, whatever scores we get in psychological studies, are not absolute in nature; rather, they have relative value. In some of the studies ranks are used as scores. For example, on the basis of marks obtained in some test, the teacher arranges the students in an order — , , , , … , and so on. The problem in such type of assessment is that the difference between first and second rank holders may not be the same as is the difference between the second and third rank holders.

Out of , the first rank holder might score , the second , and the third . As you can see, the difference between the first and the second rank holders is not the same as is the case between second and third rank holders. This also illustrates the relative nature of the psychological measurement. .

Relative Nature of Psychological Tools : Psychological tests are developed keeping in view the salient features of a particular context. For example, a test developed for urban students may contain items that demand familiarity with the stimuli available in the urban setting— multistoried buildings, airplanes, metro railway, etc. Such a test is not suitable for use with children living in tribal areas who would be more at ease with items that describe their flora and fauna. Similarly, a test developed in the Western countries may or may not be applicable in the Indian context.

Such tests need to be properly modified and adapted keeping in view the characteristics of the context in which they are to be used. . Subjective Interpretation of Qualitative Data : Data from qualitative studies are largely subjective since they involve interpretation on the part of the researcher as well as the person providing data. The interpretations may vary from one individual to the other.

It is, therefore, often suggested that in case of qualitative studies, the field work should be done by more than one investigator, who at the end of the day should discuss their observations and arrive at an agreement before finally giving it a meaning. In fact, one is better off, if the respondents too are involved in such meaning-making process. E THICAL I SSUES As you know, psychological research is concerned with human behaviour, the researcher is expected to follow certain ethics (or moral principles) while conducting the studies. These principles are: respect for persons’ privacy and choice to participate in the study , beneficence or protecting the participants in the study from any harm , and justice or sharing the benefits of research with all participants .

Some of the important aspects of these ethical principles are described as follows. . Voluntary Participation : This principle states that the persons on whom you want to conduct the study should have the choice to decide whether to participate or not to participate in the study. The participants should have the freedom to decide about their participation without any coercion or excessive inducement, and the freedom to withdraw from the research without penalty, once it has begun.

. Informed Consent : It is essential that the participants in a study should understand what will happen to them during the study. The principle of informed consent states that potential participants must receive this information before data from them are collected, so that they make an informed decision about participation in the study. In some of the psychological experiments, electric shock is given to the participants during the experiment.

Still in some cases obnoxious (e.g., harmful or unpleasant) stimuli are presented. They may at times be required to give some private information, which is generally not shared with others. In some studies, the technique of deception is used in which the participants are given instructions to think or imagine in certain ways and are given false information or feedback about their performance (for example, you are very intelligent, you are incompetent). It is, therefore, important that the participants are explained the nature of the study before its actual commencement.

. Debriefing : Once the study is over, the participants are provided with necessary information to complete their understanding of research. This is particularly important if deception has been used in the study. Debriefing ensures that participants leave the study in the same physical and mental state as when they entered.

It should offer reassurance to the participants. The researcher should make efforts to remove any anxiety or other adverse effects that participants may have felt as a result of being deceived in the course of the study. . Sharing the Results of the Study : In psychological research, after collecting information from the participants, we come back to our places of work, analyse the data and draw conclusions.

It is obligatory for the researcher to go back to the participants and share the results of the study with them. When you go for data collection, the participants develop certain expectations from you. One of the expectations is that you will tell them about their behaviour that you have investigated in the study. As a researcher, it is our moral duty to go back to the participants.

This exercise has two advantages. One, you fulfil the expectations of the participants. Second, the participants may tell you their opinion about the results, which sometimes may help you develop new insights. .

Confidentiality of Data Source : The participants in a study have the right to privacy. The researcher must safeguard