Week y7, Quasi-experimental
and evaluation designs.
Lecture notes
- Studying naturally occurring events
- Measurement studies of behavior “in the field”
- Interviews or surveys
- Direct observation of behavior
- Retrospective designs
- Using existing (“archival”) data
- Measurement studies of behavior “in the field”
- Evaluate existing groups or program
- Single shot survey or measure
- Non-equivalent groups; comparing groups that are:
- Not randomly assigned
- Self-selected
- No blind
- Pre-existing
Lecture notes are here.
Readings
Continue
chapter 8. Read about a Consumer
Reports survey
used to evaluate
psychotherapy, and a very interesting field study of naturally
occring changes in baboon
culture. Finally, click the image for a short piece from Slate
Magazine on
using patterns of correlations to determine if having children direclty
causes mothers to earn less over their life times.
Discussion group Assignment
Click for a Word copy of Week 7 assignment).
Analyze a research design
For this assignment we want you to analyze a research study. For your paper you will cite at least two journal articles, at least one of which must be an empirical study, not a review or discussion paper. For discussion group this week take one of the empirical papers you will use for your paper and analyze it.
As a first step go to the Guide to Reading Journal Articles first. Then, answer the questions in the box in one typed page or so.
Participant Selection |
Participant Assignment |
Experimental Procedures |
Experimental Treatment or Manipulation |
Interpretation of Results |
Sample |
Group A |
Procedure
A |
Treatment |
Outcome |
Group B |
Procedure A |
No
treatment |
Outcome |
|
How did the researchers ensure
that the sample was representative
of the larger population? |
How were participants assigned to groups?...random assignment? matching? Did they ensure the groups started out exactly the same? Was there any self-selection or other bias? If there was bias, how should the groups have been assigned? |
How did they ensure equality
of procedures across groups -- what experimental controls
were present? |
What was the independent variable? Dependent variable? Were there any confounds of
the independent variable? |
Did the groups "really" differ
- was the difference statistically significant? What would it have meant if the groups were different, but: a) only by a very small amount, or; b) there was a confound? |
IIn case you cannot find an appropriate article for your paper, we have provided two articles, one on diary writing and the immune system and one on sunscreen use at the beach.
