Research in Life-Span

Development

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

Research in Life-Span Development is
fascinating!
• The purpose of research is to test and refine features of theories
• Help develop applications that will help those who parent or work
with children and adolescents raise, counsel, and educate them more
effectively.
• Because some life-span development research is with human beings
and often, children, there are important ethical issues to consider.
• Life-span development research may be quantitative or qualitative.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under
CC BY-SA
CC BY
 What is the difference?
• Quantitative research is generally experimental in nature and
analyzes results with statistical procedures. This Photo by Unknown
Author is licensed under
CC BY-ND

• Qualitative research does not use statistics and may involve

naturalistic observation, surveys, or interviews. In this type of
research the researcher seeks to understand the lived experience of
the individual being studied. It is more time consuming and usually
has less subjects (co-participants) than quantitative research.
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under
CC BY-NC-ND
Conducting Research has many considerations
A researcher must consider and become proficient across these
areas:

• Methods for collecting data

• Research designs
• Time span of research
• Conducting ethical research
• Minimizing bias
In the following slides we will examine each of these
Methods of Collecting Data
Observation
• Laboratory: controlled setting where complex real-world factors are
removed
• Naturalistic observation: studies involving observing behavior in real-
world settings
Survey and interview
• Survey: administering a standard set of questions on a topic using
unbiased questions to obtain unambiguous answers
• Interview: individuals are directly asked to self-report.
Other Methods of Collecting Data
Standardized test: administered and scored utilizing uniform procedures
Case study: in-depth look at a single individual
Physiological measures
• Measure of hormones such as cortisol
• Neuroimaging or fMRI
• Electroencephalography
• Gene testing

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

3 Types of Research Design
Descriptive research: designed to observe and record behavior
Correlational research: describes the strength of the relationship between two or
more events or characteristics (but does not show cause).
Two or more events or characteristics are investigated, data is entered into a
Correlation coefficient formula and the strength of the relationship is calculated.
• Correlation coefficient: number based on statistical analysis that is used to describe the degree
of association between two variables
• Ranges from −1.00 to +1.00
• The higher the correlation coefficient (whether positive or negative), the stronger the
association between the two variables
Experimental research: Participants are randomly assigned to experimental and control groups
Example of Descriptive Research
• A researcher may set out to observe how altruistic or aggressive
people are toward each other.
• By itself, descriptive research does not discover the cause of a
behavior, but it can reveal important information about particular
behaviors and inform future research using more scientific methods.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

Possible Explanations of Correlational Data
• An observed correlation between two events cannot be used to conclude that
one event causes the second event. Other possibilities are that the second
event causes the first event or that a third event causes the correlation
between the first two events.
• Possible explanations for this observed correlation:
• Example Observed Correlation: as permissive parenting increases, children’s
self-control decreases
Possible Explanations of Correlational
Data
Other Research
Designs

Experimental research is designed to study causality.

• Experiment: one or more of the factors are
manipulated while all other factors are held
constant
• Independent and dependent variables
• Experimental and control groups

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

Principles of Experimental Research with example
Participants randomly assigned to experimental and control groups
Example: Does meditating while pregnant help newborns’ sleeping and breathing patterns?
• Independent variable: a factor that can be manipulated (may be a potential cause)
• Experimental group (meditation)
• Control group (no meditation)
• Dependent variable ( a factor that may change in an experiment in response to the
independent variable)
• Newborns’ breathing patterns
• Newborns’ sleeping patterns

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under

CC BY-NC-ND
What is meant by time span of research?
• Because research takes place across time and developmental
researchers have a special concern with the relationship of age and
some other variable, different approaches allow for different ways of
exploring this relationship.
• In addition consideration of cohort effects, (how people in different
generations may be different), may determine what type of research
takes place.
• Cross sectional – people of different ages are studied
• or, Longitudinal – the same group of people is studied over many
years
Methods of Time
Span of Research

• Cross-sectional approach: individuals of

different ages are compared at one time
• Longitudinal approach: same individuals are
studied over a period of time, usually several
years or more
• Cohort effects: due to a person’s time of birth,
era, or generation, rather than the person’s
actual age
 Cohort Descriptions
Generation Historical Period Reason for Label
Millennials Individuals born in 1980 First generation to come of age and
and later enter emerging adulthood (18 to 25
years of age) in the twenty-first century
(the new millennium). Two main
characteristics: (1) connection to
technology, and (2) ethnic diversity.
Generation X Individuals born Described as lacking an identity and
between savvy loners.
1965 and 1980
Baby Boomers Individuals born Label used because this generation
between represents the spike in the number of
1946 and 1964 babies born after World War II; the
largest generation ever to enter late
adulthood in the United
States.
Silent Individuals born Children of the Great Depression and
Generation between World War II; described as conformists
1928 and 1945 and civic minded.
Conducting Ethical Research
• Research conducted at universities, hospitals, or other research institutions must
present research proposals to an ethics committee so that no research that is
harmful to human beings will be conducted.
• APA (American Psychological Association) has developed ethics guidelines for its
members. These include:
1. Obtaining informed consent – participants have the right to now what will
happen and how data will be used before participating and may withdraw from
a study at any time.
2. Confidentiality- participants are assured that data will be kept confidential
3. Debriefing – participants are informed of purpose of study after the fact
4. Deception – any deception involved must not harm participants
Minimizing bias

• Researchers must be careful to avoid bias toward any particular group

of individuals when designing and conducting research.