Experimental vs.

Causal-Comparative
Studies
Topic 3
 Experimental Study
 Study where treatments are given to observe their
effects
 Treatments – input or stimulus given by the researcher
 Not useful when a study would be physically, ethically,
legally, or financially impossible
 Demographics
 Used to define groups in a study
 People with similar background characteristics such as
socioeconomic status
 Causal-Comparison Study
 Non-experimental study
 Also called ex post facto study
 Characteristics of the study
 Observe and describe a current condition
 Look to the past to identify possible causes
 No treatment given
 More potential pitfalls – need to select comparison
groups carefully
 Types of
Nonexperimental
Research
Topic 4
 Nonexperimental Studies
 Purpose is to  Causal-Comparative
observe/measure Research
 Researcher does not try to  Survey
change participants in any
way  Census
 Case Study
 Longitudinal Research
 Correlational Research

 Research Methods
 Causal-Comparative
Research
 Look to the past for causes of a current condition
 Interested in the causality, but an experiment is not
possible
 Survey
 Also known as a poll
 Describes the attitudes, beliefs and behaviors of a
population

 Uses a sample or portion of the population being

studied

 With a good sample, generalizations about the

population may be drawn
 Census
 Just like a survey, but all individuals in the population
participate instead of using a sample
 Case Study
 Usually only one participant
 Often used in clinical psychology
 Focus on thorough knowledge of an individual over a
period of time

 In-depth questioning occurs

 Longitudinal Research
 A study over a long period of time to trace
developmental trends
 Correlational Research
 Researchers study the degree of a relationship of
quantitative variables

 Example: college admissions test and GPAs

 “Did those with high admissions scores tend to earn high
GPAs?”
 Research Methods
 Quantitative
 Qualitative
 Historical
 Quantitative Research
 Data is easy to quantify or put a number to
 Allows for statistical analysis
 Qualitative Research
 Data is gathered through open-ended interviews
 Analyzed through major and minor themes in
responses

 Uses semi-structured interviews

 Core list of questions
 Deviating follow-up questions
 Historical Research
 To understand the past
 Use facts and dates to understand the dynamics of
human history

 Driven by theories and hypotheses

 Hypotheses are evaluated using collected data
 Both qualitative and quantitative methods are used
 Will not be a focus of this text 