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Question 1
Describe the methodological features of a naturalistic, overt observation.
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Question 2
Describe how ethical considerations can affect the procedure of an overt observation involving children.
[4]
Question 3
A class investigated differences in independence between children aged four and six. Using opportunity sampling, the class recruited six children from each age group at a nursery and observed them putting on their coats before outdoor play. Observers recorded each child as either “independent” or “not independent”, but did not agree in advance how to record verbal reminders or help from another child.
Explain the concept of measurement in relation to this observation.
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Question 4
A class used opportunity sampling to recruit eight children aged five and eight children aged eight to investigate age differences in asking adults for help. The younger children were observed during an unfamiliar construction activity, while the older children were observed during a familiar drawing activity with a different adult present. Observers recorded requests for help, and the class concluded that increasing age caused children to ask for help less often.
Apply the concept of causality to the class's conclusion.
[4]
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Question 5
Compare and contrast the advantages and disadvantages of naturalistic observation and a true experiment.
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Question 6
A class investigated how one child's ability to fasten a coat changed over four weeks. The child was recruited through an invitation to parents at a nursery, and the parent gave permission for participation. On the first occasion, the class watched the child before outdoor play and wrote a brief account, but did not specify what counted as completing the task or record the assistance provided.
Design a controlled, overt observation to investigate change in the child's coat-fastening behaviour over the four weeks.
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Question 7
Compare and contrast controlled observation and a questionnaire as methods for investigating a behaviour that changes across the lifespan, when the aim is to understand what people do rather than what they say they do.
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Question 8
A class investigated changes in children's participation in group play during their first month at a nursery. Four children were recruited after their parents responded to an invitation, and, with appropriate permission and the children's willing agreement, an observer recorded their usual play sessions openly without joining in. The observer expected participation to increase and used brief notes to classify behaviour as “joining in” or “not joining in”, sometimes deciding what these labels meant after a session.
Design a revised observation procedure that incorporates checks for unconscious bias.
[6]
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Question 9
Researchers investigated age differences in persistence when completing an unfamiliar practical task. They recruited 36 volunteers through advertisements at two hobby clubs: 18 adults aged 20–29 and 18 adults aged 65–74. The researchers described the project as an observation of approaches to everyday activities. Participants gave informed consent and were told that they could stop without giving a reason.
Each participant attended individually and received printed instructions for folding a paper container. The materials, instructions and room were the same for everyone. Younger adults attended evening sessions, while older adults attended morning sessions because these times matched their clubs’ usual meetings. Participants were allowed up to 15 minutes. No researcher demonstrated the task or offered assistance. An observer sat nearby without joining the activity, and a camera recorded participants’ hands and materials.
Before recording began, the researchers defined persistence as continuing to handle or fold the paper after an unsuccessful attempt. A pause lasting more than 20 seconds was recorded as stopping, even if the participant was reading the instructions. Observers knew participants’ ages and expected older adults to persist longer. A second observer independently examined recordings from six participants, but disagreements were resolved through discussion rather than retained in the report.
Older adults spent longer handling the paper and made more attempts on average. However, younger adults completed the container more often. Several older adults mentioned difficulty seeing the printed diagrams, while several younger adults reported previous experience of similar activities. These comments were noted but were not incorporated into the comparison. The researchers concluded that ageing increases persistence and recommended that their findings be used when planning activities for adults generally.
Discuss this study with reference to two or more of the following concepts: bias, causality, measurement, perspective.
[15]
Question 10
A researcher investigated how adolescents’ involvement in family decisions changed during their first year at secondary school. Ten families volunteered following an invitation circulated by a community youth centre. Each family included one adolescent aged 12–13. The researcher was a youth worker who already knew six of the adolescents. Family members gave informed consent, and the adolescents separately agreed to participate. Anyone could ask for a visit to end or for a record to be removed.
The researcher joined each family for an evening meal once a month for eight months. Families chose the dates and were asked to eat as usual. The researcher took part in conversation and wrote detailed notes immediately afterwards. No audio or video recordings were made because families did not want permanent recordings of private conversations. Before each visit, the researcher reviewed the previous account for that family.
Initially, the researcher recorded examples of adolescents suggesting plans, disagreeing with adults or explaining preferences. After the third month, repeated disagreement was sometimes described as ‘confident participation’ and sometimes as ‘disruption’, depending on the surrounding conversation. The researcher kept a diary examining how their own upbringing, which emphasized agreement with adults, might influence these descriptions. A colleague reviewed selected anonymous extracts and proposed alternative interpretations, but did not attend the meals or see the complete records.
Later accounts contained more examples of adolescents expressing preferences and explaining their suggestions. Parents also increasingly invited adolescents to speak directly to the researcher. Some families reported that they deliberately discussed upcoming decisions during the visits. The researcher interpreted the overall pattern as increasing independence during adolescence, while acknowledging that the visits themselves had become a familiar family event. The final report included contrasting examples from families whose patterns appeared stable.
Discuss this study with reference to two or more of the following concepts: bias, perspective, measurement, change.
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Question 11
A researcher investigated continuity and change in one adult’s participation in a community garden following retirement. A garden coordinator circulated an invitation to members who were about to retire, and one 64-year-old volunteer agreed to take part. The researcher observed the participant during weekly gardening sessions for two months before retirement and six months afterwards. The participant knew the purpose of the study and could decline observation on any visit.
The researcher worked alongside garden members, recording brief notes during breaks and expanding them afterwards. All regular members agreed that interactions involving them could be described anonymously. Visitors who had not agreed were excluded from the notes. The researcher recorded activities started without invitation, offers to help another member and time spent working alone. Notes also described weather, available tasks and who attended each session.
Initially, the researcher treated working alone as evidence of difficulty adjusting to retirement. However, the participant asked why this interpretation had been made, explaining that solitary gardening was often an enjoyable choice. The researcher retained the original notes but reconsidered their interpretation. A second researcher examined the full anonymous record and highlighted occasions that did not fit a simple pattern of increasing social involvement. The report explained these disagreements and included detailed descriptions of the garden and its membership.
After retirement, the participant attended more sessions and initiated more activities overall. However, activities initiated per session varied considerably, and time working alone did not steadily decrease. A new greenhouse opened during the observation period, and the participant became responsible for maintaining its seedlings. Two sessions were not observed because the participant requested privacy. The researchers concluded that retirement involved both continuity and change in this case, and suggested that readers consider similarities between this setting and other community groups before applying the findings elsewhere.
Discuss this study with reference to two or more of the following concepts: change, perspective, measurement, responsibility.
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Question 12
Researchers investigated whether supportive behaviour following an unsuccessful sporting attempt differed between younger and older adolescents. They observed an outdoor skate park on six Saturday afternoons. The site was freely accessible, and its manager gave permission for the research. Visitors were not told about the study because the researchers believed that awareness would encourage unusually helpful behaviour. No names, photographs or audio recordings were collected.
Two researchers sat outside the activity area and did not interact with visitors. They recorded occasions when a skater fell or abandoned an attempted movement and another person responded within 30 seconds. Responses were categorized as practical assistance, encouraging speech, laughter or no visible response. Laughter was always classified as unsupportive. The observers estimated whether each person responding was aged 11–13 or 16–18; people whose age seemed uncertain were excluded. The same individuals could appear in the records on different afternoons.
The researchers practised using their categories during an initial visit. During the main observations, they watched different sections of the park, so they did not independently record the same incidents. They did not document whether people were friends, whether a fall caused injury or whether encouragement occurred after the 30-second period. They agreed that emergency services would be contacted if someone appeared seriously injured, but no such incident occurred.
Older-looking adolescents were recorded giving practical assistance and encouraging speech more often than younger-looking adolescents. Younger-looking adolescents were more often recorded laughing. Older visitors also tended to gather near the beginner area, where falls were frequent. The researchers concluded that growing older causes adolescents to become more supportive. They proposed that the park display a summary describing younger adolescents as needing additional guidance. Visitors were not subsequently informed that their behaviour had been recorded.
Discuss this study with reference to two or more of the following concepts: responsibility, measurement, bias, causality.
[15]
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