Chapter 4. Methods of Psychological Enquiry-II Textbook Solutions

NIOS Class 12 Psychology Chapter 4 Answers

INTEXT QUESTIONS 4.1

1. State whether the following statements are ‘True’ or ‘False.’

i) Participant observation has no involvement of the observer with the group to be observed. True/False

Ans: False 

ii) Surveys can be used for large-scale data collection. True/False

Ans: True 

iii) Qualitative research involves only numerical data. True/False

Ans: False

2. Match the following

i. Laboratory Observation	a. careful observation in real-life settings
ii. Naturalistic Observation	b. distant observation without any active participation in activities of the observed group.
iii. Non-participant Observation	c. controlled observation in artificial setting

Ans: i. c., ii. a., iii. b

INTEXT QUESTIONS 4.2

1. State whether the following statements are ‘True’ or ‘False.’

i. Structured interviews make comparative analysis impossible. True/False

Ans: True

ii. Case study technique involves brief information about a case. True/False

Ans: False

iii. An event can be a subject matter of case study analysis. True/False

Ans: True

iv. Unstructured interviews allow in-depth information. True/False

Ans: True

2. Answer which is the most appropriate interview approach (structured/ semistructured/ unstructured) in each of the following studies?

i. A researcher wants to compare the criterion of job satisfaction reported by managers and subordinates.

Ans: Structured

ii. A health worker wants to study the attitudes about importance of menstrual hygiene in teenage girls.

Ans: Semi-structured

iii. A psychologist wishes to understand coping experience of terminally ill patients.

Ans: Unstructured

iv. A researcher is interested to study the opinions of youngsters about the importance of social media in today’s world.

Ans: Semi-structured

INTEXT QUESTIONS 4.3

Fill in the blanks with suitable answers

1. Maintaining ____________ is an ethical principle that ensures that the results of the research are kept anonymous.

Ans: Confidentiality

2. Another ethical concern is to ensure that the participants have the _______ from the research.

Ans: Right to withdraw

3. Participants are also informed about the ________ and/or _______ involved in the study.

Ans: Risks and/or benefits

4. Deception is majorly used in research to prevent ____________ and ______ which can impact the responses of the participants.

Ans: Demand characteristics and socially desirable behaviour

5. The _____________and ___________ have provided an ethical framework for psychologists to be followed when conducting psychological research.

Ans: The British Psychological Society (BPS) and the American Psychological Association (APA)

TERMINAL QUESTIONS

1. What are cross-sectional and longitudinal methods of research?

Ans: 

• Cross sectional study is one in which data is collected from a population at a specific point of time. It is more commonly used by researchers than the longitudinal design as it is easier to conduct and yields quick results. This design becomes useful when the goal is to understand characteristics of a population at that particular point in time. For example, the academic performance of Class X students in Mathematics and Science.
• Longitudinal study, on the other hand, involves data collection from the same sample repeatedly over a period of time. Depending on the type of information required, longitudinal studies can extend from a few years to decades. This design becomes useful when the purpose of the study is to observe change and development in an individual or group over a time span.

2. How is the descriptive research different from experimental and correlational research?

Ans: Descriptive analysis describes what exists and tries to pave the ground for finding new facts. It includes gathering of data related to individuals, groups of individuals, events and situations and then organising, tabulating, depicting and describing the obtained data. As the name suggests, this approach is applied to describe variables rather than to test predicted relationships between variables. Its main objective is description. It does not make predictions and does not determine cause and effect.

3. Explain the different types of observation techniques along with their strengths & limitations?

Ans: Observation is a fundamental technique of data collection that refers to watching and listening to the behaviour of another person over time without manipulating and controlling it.

Types of Observation Method:

• i. Naturalistic/ field observation is a study where a researcher observes the subject in its natural environment.
• ii. Laboratory observation is one in which the researcher observes the subject in a controlled environment.
• iii. Participant observation is one in which the researcher is an integral part of the observation setting.
• iv. Non- participant observation is one in which the researcher adopts a distant perspective and observes an event or behaviour as an outsider without engaging with the group to be observed.

Strengths of Observation Method

• Since it is mostly done in real-life settings, it helps in generalising the findings.
• A large amount of data gets collected within a short amount of time. This means a large sample can be obtained, resulting in the findings being represented and having the ability to be generalised to a large population.
• Can be used to explore new areas and to generate novel ideas.

Limitations of Observation Method

• The researcher needs to be trained to be able to recognise aspects of a situation that are psychologically significant and worth further attention.
• It is susceptible to observer bias, i.e. subjective bias of the observer can impact the findings.

4. Discuss the case study method of research in detail.

Ans: Case study method in descriptive research involves a detailed study of a single case, typically over an extended period of time. It can involve naturalistic observations and include psychological testing, interviews, diaries, archival data, etc. These are often intensive, detailed histories of people’s lives or descriptive accounts of important aspects.

Main Characteristics of the Case Study

• a. Descriptive- The data collected in case studies constitute descriptions of psychological processes and events, and of contexts in which they occurred (qualitative data)..
• b. Narrowly focused- A case study that typically offers a description of only a single individual, and sometimes about groups. 
• c. Combines objective and subjective data- The researcher may combine objective and subjective data.

Strengths of Case Study Method

• Can gather extensive information, both qualitative and quantitative.
• Helps in providing insight into phenomena or experience which can’t be gained otherwise.

Limitations of Case Study Method

• Since only one case is involved, generalisation to the rest of the population is extremely limited.
• Can be very time-consuming
• Due to the extensive and prolonged engagement of the researcher, their beliefs, opinions and biases can influence findings.
• Replication of findings is not possible.

5. Differentiate between the different formats of interviews.

Ans: There are three different formats of interviews: structured, semi-structured and unstructured.

• i. Structured interviews
  • These consist of a series of pre-determined questions that all interviewees answer in the same order. 
  • Data analysis usually tends to be more straightforward because researchers can compare and contrast different answers given to the same questions. 
  • Structured interview is a way of trying to ensure comparability across the sample. 
  • The questions in a structured interview may be phrased in such a way that a limited range of responses is elicited. 
• ii. Unstructured interviews
  • Here questions are not prepared prior to the interview, and data collection is conducted informally. 
  • The interviewer approaches the interview to discuss a limited number of topics, sometimes as few as one or two, and frames successive questions according to the interviewee’s previous response. 
• iii. Semi-structured interviews
  • These contain the components of both structured and unstructured interviews. 
  • In semi-structured interviews, the interviewer prepares a set of the same questions to be answered by all interviewees. 
  • At the same time, additional questions might be asked during interviews to clarify and/or further expand certain issues. 
  • The interviewer also has the freedom to probe the interviewee to elaborate on the original response or to follow a line of inquiry introduced by the interviewee.

6. List the various ethical concerns in Psychological research.

Ans: Some of the ethical concerns are:

• i. Protection from harm- Perhaps the most important ethical principle is that during the course of research, participants should be protected from harm, psychological or otherwise. Researchers must ensure that the physical conditions in which the research is being carried out are not detrimental to the physical well-being of the participants.
• ii. Right to Withdraw- Another ethical concern is to ensure that the participants have the right to withdraw from the research. It does not involve just informing them that they can leave the study at any time, but also informing them that they have the right to withdraw their results from the study at any time.
• iii. Confidentiality- Maintaining confidentiality is an ethical principle that ensures that the results of the research are kept anonymous and confidential. Further access to the research and participant information should be safeguarded against any form of misuse. Ideally, no one should be able to identify the participants from the results.
• iv. Informed Consent- For any research to be ethical, the researcher must have gained informed consent from the participants. The ‘informed’ part of this ethical principle is the most important part, wherein the participants are made aware of the nature of the study and their rights in the present research. They are also informed about the risks and/or benefits involved in the study. 
• v. Deception- Some studies require that the participants are not informed about the real purpose of the study beforehand, for example Milgram’s (1963) experiment on obedience, where the participants were made to believe that they are giving electrical shock to the fellow participants (who were actually confederates), when in reality there was no electrical shock involved. This experiment was conducted to study obedience towards authority figures. 
• vi. Debriefing- Debriefing is conducted with the participants after the study has taken place. It is done to ensure that the participants are aware of the intent of the study and also about how the collected data will be used. It has several aims. 

7. What are the different strengths and limitations of case study method?

Ans: Strengths of Case Study Method

• Can gather extensive information, both qualitative and quantitative.
• Helps in providing insight into phenomena or experience which can’t be gained otherwise.

Limitations of Case Study Method

• Since only one case is involved, generalisation to the rest of the population is extremely limited.
• Can be very time-consuming
• Due to the extensive and prolonged engagement of the researcher, their beliefs, opinions and biases can influence findings.
• Replication of findings is not possible.

8. Compare different primary ways to conduct qualitative interviews on the basis of modalities.

Ans: There are three primary ways to conduct qualitative interviews on the basis of modalities- Face-to-face, telephone, and web interviews. 

• Face to face: Here, the researcher and respondent meet together. These are very labour-intensive, but can be the best way of collecting high-quality data. They are preferable when the subject matter is very sensitive, if the questions are very complex or if the interview is likely to be lengthy. Interviewing skills are dealt with in more detail later in this module.
• Telephone: This can be used where a face-to-face interview is not possible, and may be appropriate where the topic is not sensitive and non-verbal behaviour is less important. Telephone conferencing may enable focus groups, but there are major problems in ‘turn-taking’ and ensuring all are able to participate. Video conferencing adds a further dimension to this kind of distance interviewing.
• Web Interviews: The Internet provides opportunities through chat rooms for interviewing, and is a growing method of conducting in-depth interviews. There are clearly major problems in establishing rapport, and non-verbal behaviour will be missed entirely. However, some research suggests that respondents may be willing to be more open about personal matters in this kind of format. Issues of the authenticity of identity may also be an issue. Methods of using the web include e-mail interviews, bulletin boards and interactive websites. Chat rooms can be used to simulate focus groups.

9. What are the types of questions that are included in the questionnaire under survey method?

Ans: Questionnaires-Typically, a questionnaire is a paper-and-pencil instrument that is administered to the respondents. Certain types of questions that are included in the questionnaire are:

• Open-ended questions: Open-ended items are useful when researchers do not know how participants might respond or when they want to avoid influencing their responses, and when in-depth information is required. Open-ended responses are mostly qualitative in nature.
• Close-ended questions: Close-ended questions are used when researchers have a good idea of the different responses that participants might make, and the respondent has to choose from the given options. They are more quantitative in nature.
• Rating questions: A rating question is used to find out how survey-takers would rate something. It’s quite useful to gauge people’s opinions across the board.
• Multiple choice questions: Such questions provide multiple response options for the respondents to choose from.

10. Observational method is used to study the different categories of behaviour. Identify the different categories of behaviour.

Ans: Observational method can be used to study the following categories of behaviour:

• Nonverbal behaviour: focuses on body language, including eye movements, facial expressions, body postures, gestures, etc.
• Linguistic behaviour: focuses on speech content
• Extra linguistic behaviour: focuses on any behaviour that accompanies speech, such as tone, intensity, pitch, volume, etc.

11. What are the main characteristics of the case study?

Ans: Main Characteristics of the Case Study

• a. Descriptive- The data collected in case studies constitute descriptions of psychological processes and events, and of contexts in which they occurred (qualitative data).
• b. Narrowly focused- A case study that typically offers a description of only a single individual, and sometimes about groups. 
• c. Combines objective and subjective data- The researcher may combine objective and subjective data.

Additional Study Materials

• NIOS Class 12 Psychology Syllabus Bifurcation
• NIOS Class 12 Sample Question Paper
• Understanding Psychology Textbook Solutions
• Bases of Human Behaviour Textbook Solutions
• Methods of Psychological Enquiry-I Textbook Solutions