RESEARCH IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

LECTURE NO: 2
What is Research?
Research is a systematic and scientific investigation to conclude facts and figures.
How social psychologists conduct their Research?
Social psychology research methods allow psychologists to get a better look at what causes
people to engage in certain behaviors in social situations. In order to empirically study social
behavior, psychologists rely on a number of different scientific methods to conduct research on
social psychology topics. These methods allow researchers to test hypotheses and theories and
look for relationships between different variables.
Why do people do the things they do? And why do they sometimes behave differently in groups?
These questions are of interest not only to social psychologists, but to teachers, public policy-
makers, healthcare administrators, or anyone who has ever watched a news story about a world
event and wondered, “Why do people act that way?”
Which type of research is best? This depends largely on the subject the researcher is exploring,
the resources available, and the theory or hypothesis being investigated.
If you asked most people if they would obey an authority figure even if it meant going against
their moral code or harming another individual, they would probably emphatically deny that they
would ever do such a thing. Yet Milgram's results revealed that 65 percent of participants would
hurt another person simply because they were told to do so by an authority figure.
It is important to utilize the scientific method to study psychological phenomena in an objective,
empirical, and analytical way.
While common sense might tell us that opposites attract, that birds of a feather flock together, or
that absence makes the heart grow fonder, psychologists can put such ideas to the test using
various research methods to determine if there is any real truth to such folk wisdom.
Descriptive Research:
Descriptive research is defined as a research method that describes the characteristics of the
population or phenomenon that is being studied. This methodology focuses more on the “what”
of the research subject rather than the “why” of the research subject.
In other words, descriptive research primarily focuses on describing the nature of a demographic
segment, without focusing on “why” a certain phenomenon occurs. In other words, it “describes”
the subject of the research, without covering “why” it happens.

Characteristics of Descriptive Research

It is called an observational research method because none of the variables that are part of the
research study are influenced in any capacity.
Some distinctive characteristics of descriptive research are:
Quantitative research: Descriptive research is a quantitative research method that attempts to
collect quantifiable information to be used for statistical analysis of the population sample. It is a
popular market research tool that allows to collect and describe the nature of the demographic
segment.
Uncontrolled variables: In descriptive research, none of the variables are influenced in any way.
This uses observational methods to conduct the research. Hence, the nature of the variables or
their behavior is not in the hands of the researcher.
Cross-sectional studies: Descriptive research is generally a cross-sectional study where different
sections belonging to the same group are studied.
Basis for further research: The data collected and analyzed from descriptive research can then
be further researched using different research techniques. The data also can help point towards
the types of research methods are to be used for the subsequent research.
Descriptive Research Methods
There are 3 distinctive methods to conduct descriptive research. They are:
1. Observational Method
The observational method is the most effective method to conduct descriptive research and both
quantitative observation and qualitative observation are used in this research method.
Quantitative observation is the objective collection of data which is primarily focused on
numbers and values – it suggests “associated to, of or depicted in terms of a quantity”. Results
of quantitative observation are derived using statistical and numerical analysis methods. It
implies observation of any entity that can be associated with a numeric value such as age, shape,
weight, volume, scale etc. For example, the researcher can track if current customers will refer
the brand by using a simple Net Promoter Score question.
Qualitative observation doesn’t involve measurements or numbers but instead just monitoring
characteristics. In this case the researcher observes the respondents from a distance. Since the
respondents are in a comfortable environment, the characteristics observed are natural and
effective. In descriptive research, the researcher can chose to be either a complete observer, an
observer as a participant, a participant as an observer or a complete participant. For example, in a
supermarket, a researcher can from afar monitor and track the selection and purchasing trends of
the customers. This offers a deeper insight into the purchasing experience of the customer.
2. Case Study Method
Case studies involve in-depth research and study of individuals or groups. Case studies lead to a
hypothesis and widen a further scope of studying a phenomenon. However, case studies should
not be used to determine cause and effect as they don’t have the capacity to make accurate
predictions because there could be a bias on the part of the researcher. The other reason why case
studies are not an accurate way of conducting descriptive research is because there could be an
atypical respondent in the research and describing them leads to poor generalizations and move
away from external validity.
Correlation Research
Social psychologists use correlational research to look for relationships between variables. For
example, social psychologists might carry out a correlational study looking at the relationship
between media violence and aggression. They might collect data on how many hours of
aggressive or violent television programs children watch each week and then gather data how on
aggressively the children act in lab situations or in naturalistic settings.
Conducting surveys, directly observing behaviors, or compiling research from earlier studies are
some of the methods used to gather data for correlational research. While this type of study can
help determine if two variables have a relationship, it does not allow researchers to determine if
one variable causes changes in another variable.
While the researcher in the previous example on media aggression and violence can use the
results of his study to determine if there might be a relationship between the two variables, he
cannot say definitively that watching television violence causes aggressive behavior.
Types of Correlational Research
Essentially there are three types of correlational research that have been identified:
1. Positive correlation: A positive correlation between two variables is when an increase in one
variable leads to an increase in the other variable and a decrease in one variable will see a
decrease in the other variable. For example, the amount of money a person has might positively
correlate with the number of cars he has.
2. Negative correlation: A negative correlation is quite literally the opposite of positive
correlation. This means, if there is an increase in one variable, the second variable will show a
decrease and vice versa.
For example, the level of being educated might negatively correlate with the crime rate when an
increase in one variable leads to a decrease in another and vice versa. This means if in some
ways the level of education in a country is improved, it can lead to lowering the crime rates.
Please note, that this doesn’t mean that lack of education leads to crimes. This means lack of
education and crime is believed to have a common reason: poverty.
3. No correlation: In this third type, two variables are not correlated. This means a change in
one variable may not necessarily see a change in the other variable. For example, being a
millionaire and happiness is not correlated. This means an increase in money doesn’t lead to
happiness.
When to use a correlational research design?
Correlational research is a type of descriptive research (as opposed to experimental research).
There are two main situations where you might choose to do correlational research.
1. You want to find out if there is a relationship between two variables, but you don’t expect
to find a causal relationship between them
You want to know if there is any correlation between the number of children people have and
which political party they vote for. You don’t think having more children causes people to vote
differently — it’s more likely that both are influenced by other variables such as age, religion,
ideology and socioeconomic status. But a strong correlation could be useful for making
predictions about voting patterns.

2. You think there is a causal relationship between two variables, but it is impractical or
unethical to conduct experimental research that manipulates one of the variables.
You hypothesize that passive smoking causes asthma in children. You can’t do an experiment to
test the hypothesis — it would be unethical to deliberately expose some children to passive
smoking. But you can do a correlational study to find out if children whose parents smoke are
more likely to have asthma than children whose parents don’t smoke.

How to do correlational research?

There are many different methods you can use in correlational research. To test your hypothesis,
you will statistically analyze quantitative data. Correlations can be strong or weak.
The most common data collection methods for this type of research include surveys,
observations and archival data. Academic research often combines various methods. It’s
important to carefully choose and plan your methods to ensure the reliability and validity of your
results.
 Surveys
A simple way to research the relationship between variables is through surveys and
questionnaires. You can conduct surveys online, by mail, by phone, or in person. You ask
respondents questions related to the variables you are interested in, and then statistically analyze
the responses.
 Quick and flexible
 Responses may not always be honest or accurate
Example
To find out if there is a relationship between vegetarianism and income, you send out a
questionnaire about diet to a sample of people from different income brackets. You statistically
analyze the responses to determine whether vegetarians generally have higher incomes.
 Naturalistic observation
This is a type of field research, where you gather data about a behaviour or phenomenon in its
natural environment without intervening.
This method often involves recording, counting, describing and categorizing actions and events.
Naturalistic observation can include both qualitative and quantitative elements, but to find
correlation, you focus on data that can be analyzed quantitatively (e.g. frequencies, durations,
scales and amounts).
 Eliminates researcher influence and respondent inaccuracy that might affect the variables
 Can be time-consuming and unpredictable
Example
To find out if there is a correlation between gender and class participation, you observe college
seminars, note the frequency and duration of students’ contributions, and categorize them based
on gender. You statistically analyze the data to determine whether men are more likely to speak
up in class than women.
 Archival data
Instead of collecting original data, you can also use data that has already been collected for a
different purpose, such as official records, polls, or previous studies.
 Allows access to large amounts of data to observe changes over time or space
 The data may be unreliable or incomplete
Example
To find out if working hours are related to mental health, you use official national statistics,
health records and scientific studies from several different countries to find data on average
working hours and rates of mental illness. You statistically analyze the data to see if countries
that work fewer hours have better mental health outcomes.
Note: It’s important to remember that correlation does not imply causation. Just because you
find a correlation between two things doesn’t mean that one of them causes the other.
Experimental Research
Experimental research is the key to uncovering causal relationships between variables. In
experimental research, the experimenter randomly assigns participants to one of two groups:
The Control Group: The control group receives no treatment and serves as a baseline.
The Experimental Group: Researchers manipulate the levels of some independent variable in
the experimental group and then measure the effects. Because researchers are able to control the
independent variables, experimental research can be used to find causal relationships between
variables
So if psychologists wanted to establish a causal relationship between media violence and
aggressive behavior, they would want to design an experiment to test this hypothesis. If
the hypothesis was that playing violent video games causes players to respond more aggressively
in social situations, they would want to randomly assign participants to two groups. The control
group would play a non-violent video game for a predetermined period of time while the
experimental group would play a violent game for the same period of time.
Afterward, the participants would be placed in a situation where they would play a game against
another opponent. In this game, they could either respond aggressively or non-aggressively. The
researchers would then collect data on how often people utilized aggressive responses in this
situation and then compare this information with whether these individuals were in the control or
experimental group.
Experimental research attempts to determine how and why something happens. Experimental
research tests the way in which an independent variable (the factor that the scientist
manipulates) affects a dependent variable (the factor that the scientist observes).
A number of factors can affect the outcome of any type of experimental research. One is finding
samples that are random and representative of the population being studied. Another
is experimenter bias, in which the researcher's expectations about what should or should not
happen in the study sway the results. Still another is controlling for extraneous variables, such
as room temperature or noise level, that may interfere with the results of the experiment. Only
when the experimenter carefully controls for extraneous variables can she or he draw valid
conclusions about the effects of specific variables on other variables.
Types of Experimental Research Design
There are three primary types of experimental research design:
Pre-experimental research design
True experimental research design
Quasi-experimental research design
The different types of experimental research design are based on the how the researcher
classifies the subjects according to various conditions and groups.
1. Pre-Experimental Research Design: This is the simplest form of experimental research
design. A group, or various groups, are kept under observation after factors are considered for
cause and effect. It is usually conducted to understand whether further investigation needs to be
carried out on the target group/s, due to which it is considered to be cost-effective.
2. True Experimental Research Design: True experimental research is the most accurate form
of experimental research design as it relies on statistical analysis to prove or disprove a
hypothesis. It is the only type of Experimental Design that can establish a cause-effect
relationship within a group/s. In a true experiment, there are three factors which need to
be satisfied:
  Control Group (Group of participants for research that are familiar to the Experimental
group but experimental research rules do not apply to them.) and Experimental Group
(Research participants on whom experimental research rules do apply.)
 Variable which can be manipulated by the researcher
 Random distribution
 This experimental research method is commonly implemented in physical sciences.

3. Quasi Experimental Research Design

Like a true experiment, a quasi-experimental design aims to establish a cause-and-effect
relationship between an independent and dependent variable. However, unlike a true experiment,
a quasi-experiment does not rely on random assignment. Instead, subjects are assigned to groups
based on non-random criteria.

Quasi-experimental design is a useful tool in situations where true experiments cannot be used
for ethical or practical reasons.

Advantages of Experimental Research

 Researchers have a stronger hold over variables to obtain desired results.
 Subject or industry is not a criterion for experimental research due to which any industry
can implement it for research purposes.
 Results are extremely specific.
 Once the results are analyzed, they can be applied to various other similar aspects.
 Cause and effect of a hypothesis can be derived so that researchers can analyze greater
details.
 Experimental research can be used in association with other research methods.
Bias in Research
Researcher bias
Researcher bias occurs when the researcher’s beliefs or expectations influence the research
design or data collection process. Researcher bias can be deliberate (such as claiming that an
intervention worked even if it didn’t) or unconscious (such as letting personal feelings,
stereotypes, or assumptions influence research questions).
The unconscious form of researcher bias is associated with the Pygmalion effect (or Rosenthal
effect), where the researcher’s high expectations (e.g., that patients assigned to a treatment group
will succeed) lead to better performance and better outcomes.
Suppose you want to study the effects of alcohol on young adults. If you are already convinced
that alcohol causes young people to behave in a reckless way, this may influence how you phrase
your survey questions. Instead of being neutral and non-judgmental, they run the risk of
reflecting your preconceived notions around alcohol consumption. As a result, your survey will
be biased.
Response bias
Response bias is a general term used to describe a number of different situations where
respondents tend to provide inaccurate or false answers to self-report questions, such as those
asked on surveys or in structured interviews.
This happens because when people are asked a question (e.g., during an interview),
they integrate multiple sources of information to generate their responses. Because of that, any
aspect of a research study may potentially bias a respondent. Examples include the phrasing of
questions in surveys, how participants perceive the researcher, or the desire of the participant to
please the researcher and to provide socially desirable responses.
Response bias also occurs in experimental medical research. When outcomes are based on
patients’ reports, a placebo effect can occur. Here, patients report an improvement despite
having received a placebo, not an active medical treatment.
Example: Response bias
You are researching factors associated with cheating among college students.
While interviewing a student, you ask them:
“Do you think it’s okay to cheat on an exam?”
Since cheating is generally regarded as a bad thing, the word itself is negatively charged. Here,
the student may feel the need to hide their true feelings, conforming to what is considered most
socially acceptable—that cheating is not okay.
Social desirability bias
Social desirability bias is the tendency of participants to give responses that they believe will be
viewed favorably by the researcher or other participants. It often affects studies that focus on
sensitive topics, such as alcohol consumption or sexual behavior.
Example: Social desirability bias You are designing an employee well-being program for a
technology start-up. You want to gauge employees’ interest in various activities and components
that could be included in this program.
You are conducting face-to-face semi-structured interviews with a number of employees from
different departments. When asked whether they would be interested in a smoking cessation
program, there was widespread enthusiasm for the idea.
However, when you leave the building at the end of the day, you run into a few members of the
interview group smoking outside. You overhear them saying how they don’t like the idea of the
smoking cessation program, but they felt they couldn’t really say it because smoking is
considered a bad habit in this day and age.
Note that while social desirability and demand characteristics may sound similar, there is a key
difference between them. Social desirability is about conforming to social norms, while demand
characteristics revolve around the purpose of the research.