Approaches to Research

Outline

• Introduction• Quantitative research vs. qualitative research• Research approach

1. Action research

2. Case study

3. The ethnographic style

4. Surveys

5. The experimental style

• Which approach?

Introduction

• One of the problems of reading about research methods and reading research reports is the terminology.

• Researchers use terms and jargon that may be incomprehensive to other people.

• Before considering the various stages of planning and conducing investigations, it may be helpful to consider the main features of certain well-established and well-reported styles of research.

Quantitative and qualitative research

• The terms ‘qualitative research’ and quantitative research’ are widely used and understood within the realms of social research.

• However, in the real world of social research, things do not fall neatly into the two categories. – In practice, the approaches are not mutually

exclusive. Social researchers rarely rely on one approach to the exclusion of the other.

– In theory, the distinction is too simplistic. – Strictly speaking, the distinction between ‘qualitative’

and ‘quantitative’ related to the treatment of data, rather than the research methods as such.

• The term implies a commitment to a particular set of assumptions about the nature of the social world being investigated and the appropriate way to investigate it.

Quantitative and qualitative research

• Quantitative researchers collect facts and study the relationship of one set of facts to another.

• They use techniques that are likely to produce quantified and, if possible, generalizable conclusions

• Qualitative researchers are more concerned to understand individuals’ perceptions of the world.

• They seek insight rather than statistical analysis. • They doubt whether social ‘facts’ exist and quest

ion whether a ‘scientific’ approach can be used when dealing with human beings.

• Words or numbers– Qualitative research tends to be associated

with words as the unit of analysis.– Quantitative research tends to be associated

with numbers as the unit of analysis.

• Description or analysis– Qualitative research tends to be associated

with description.– Quantitative research tends to be associated

with analysis.

• Small-scale or large-scale– Qualitative research tends to be associated

with small-scales studies.– Quantitative research tends to be associated

with large-scale studies.

• Holistic or specific– Qualitative research tends to be associated

with holistic perspective.– Quantitative research tends to be associated

with a specific focus.

• Research involvement or detachment– Qualitative research tends to be associated

with researcher involvement.– Quantitative researcher tends to be

associated with researcher detachment

• Emergent or predetermined research design– Qualitative research tends to be associated

with an emergent research design.– Quantitative research tends to be associated

with a predetermined research design.

• Classifying an approach as quantitative or qualitative, ethnographic, survey, action research or whatever, does not mean that once an approach has been selected, the researcher may not move from the methods normally associated with that style.

• Each approach has its strengths and weakness and each is particularly suitable for a particular context.

• The approach adopted and the methods of data collection selected will depend on the nature of the inquiry and the type of information required.

Research approach

• Action research

• Case study

• The ethnographic style

• Surveys

• The experimental style

• Narrative inquiry

1. Action research

• Definition: essentially an on-the-spot procedure designed to deal wit

h a concrete problem located in an immediate situation. This means that ideally, the step-by-step process is constantly monitored over varying periods of time and by a variety of mechanisms (questionnaires, diaries, interviews and case studies, for example) so that the ensuing feedback may be translated into modifications, adjustments, directional changes, redefinitions, as necessary, so as to bring about lasting benefits to the ongoing process itself rather than to some future occasion… (Cohen and Manion, 1994, p.192)

Suitable for what kind of researchers?

• The essentially practical, problem-solving nature of action research makes this approach attractive to practitioner-researchers (teachers, for example) who have identified a problem during the course of their work and see the merit of investigating it, and if possible, of improving practice.

Four defining characteristics of action research

1. Practical

2. Change

3. Cyclical process

4. Participation

1. Practical– It is aimed at dealing with real-world problems and iss

ues, typically at work and in organizational settings.– Action research rejects the concept of a two-stage pro

cess in which research is carried out first by researchers and then in a separate second stage the knowledge generated from the research is applied by practitioners. Instead, the two processes of research and action are integrated (Somekh, 1995, p.34).

2. Change and professional self-development– Both as a way of dealing with practical problems and

as a means of discovering more about phenomena, change is regarded as an integral part of research.

– Change is regarded as a valuable enhancer of knowledge

– But the scope of change introduced through action research will not be grand because the scale of the research is constrained by the need for the action researchers to focus on aspects of their own practice as they engage in that practice.

– The elements of change will not be in the order of a large-scale experiment such as changes in the bonus schemes of production workers at Ford’s car assembly plants.

– Action research tends to be localized and small-scale

– It usually focuses on change at the micro level.

• One of the most common kinds of change involved in action research is at the level of professional self-development.

• A person should want to improve practices and action research provides a way forward for the professional to achieve the improvement in practice.

3.Action research as a cyclical process

2. Critical reflection(identify problem, or evaluate changes

2. Critical reflection(identify problem, or evaluate changes

3.Research(systematic and rigorous enquiry)

3.Research(systematic and rigorous enquiry)

4.Strategic planning(Translate findings into action plan)

4.Strategic planning(Translate findings into action plan)

5. Action(Instigate change)

5. Action(Instigate change)

1. Professional practice1. Professional practice

• The crucial points about the cycle of inquiry in action research are – research feeds back directly into practice,

and – The process is ongoing

4. Participation in the research process– Conventionally, research is the province of

the expert and when the research is concluded, those involved might receive some feedback in the form of results from the research. They may, or may not, instigate changes on the basis of such findings.

– The act of doing research is separated from the act of making changes.

• Action research, by contrast, insist that practitioners must be participants, not just in the sense of taking part in the research but in the sense of being a partner in the research.

Advantages• It addresses practical problems in positive way, feeding the results

of research directly back into practice. • It directly address the knotty problem of the persistent failure of

research in the social sciences to make a difference in terms of bringing about actual improvements in practice.

• It has personal benefits for the practitioner, as it contributes to professional self-development.

• It should entail a continuous cycle of development and change via on-site research in the workplace, which has benefits for the organization to the extent that it is geared to improving practice and resolving problems.

• It involves participation in the research for practitioners. This can democratize the research process, depending on the nature of the partnership, and generally involves a greater appreciation of, the respect for, practitioner knowledge.

Disadvantages• Ownership of the research process becomes contestable within the

framework of the partnership relationship between practitioner and researcher.

• The necessary involvement of the practitioner limits the scope and scale of research. The ‘work-site’ approach affects the representativeness of the findings and extent to which generalization can be made on the basis of the results.

• The integration of research with practice limits the feasibility of exercising controls over factors of relevance to the research. The setting for the research generally does not allow for the variables to be manipulated or for controls to be put in place, because the research is conducted not alongside routine activity but actually as part of that activity.

• The nature of the research is constrained by what is permissible and ethical within the workplace setting.

Disadvantages

• Action research tends to involve an extra burden of work for the practitioners, particularly at the early stages before any benefits feed back into improved effectiveness.

• The action researcher is unlikely to be detached and impartial in his or her approach to the research. In this respect, action research stands in marked contrast to positivistic approaches. It is clearly geared to resolving problems which confront people in their routine, everyday (work) activity, and these people therefore have a vested interest in the findings.

Ethics in action research

• The development of work must remain visible and open to suggestions from others

• Permission must be obtained before making observation or examining documents produced for other purposes.

• Description of others’ work and points of views must be negotiated with those concerned before published.

• The researcher must accept responsibility for maintaining confidentiality.

(Winter, 1996, p.17)

Checklist for action researchWhen undertaking action research you should feel confident about answering ‘yes’ to the following questions:

1. Does the research project address a concrete issue of practical problem?2. Is there participation by the practitioner in all stages of the research

project?3. Have the grounds for the partnership between practitioner and any

outside expert been explicitly negotiated and agreed?4. Is the research part of a continuous cycle of development (rather than a

one-off project)?5. Is there a clear view of how the research findings will feed back directly

into practice?6. Has insider knowledge been acknowledged as having disadvantages as

well as advantages for the research?7. Is the research sufficiently small-scale to be combined with a routine

workload?8. Have ethical matters been taken into consideration?

2. Case study 個案調查法• The case-study approach is particularly appropriate for in

dividual researchers because it gives an opportunity for one aspect of a problem to be studied in some depth within a limited time scale.

• Case study, 原意是只對對特定格別被調查者的全面情況進行詳細調查了解的方法 .

• 原出於心理學和醫學中個別案例和病史的研究 , 即蒐集研究對象個人的家庭情況 , 社會地位 , 教育影響 個人職業經歷 事業成就 健康條件等歷史資料 , 並從中探究被調查者個性心理特徵或健康狀況的行程發展過程

• 後來社會學引用此種研究方法 就不僅限於個人 , 而擴而廣之把一個團體 , 一個組織 , 一個社區當做個案 . 如對一貧民窟社區 一學校 一醫院的全面性的調查 .

Case Study

• Characteristics of the case-study approach– Spotlight on one instance– In-depth study– Focus on relationships and processes– Natural setting– Multiple sources and multiple methods

• Spotlight on one instance: 專注於單一個案– The defining characteristic of the case study approach

is its focus just one instance of the thing that is to be investigated.

– There may be insights to be gained from looking at the individual case that can have wider implications and, importantly, that would not have come to light through the use of a research strategy that tried to cover a large number of instances. 能發掘使用大量案例不易發現的實質或重點

– The aim is to illuminate the general by looking at the particular.

• In-depth study 深度研究細節– What a case study can do that a survey norm

ally cannot is to study things in details.– When a researcher takes the strategic decisio

n to devote all his or her efforts to researching just one instance, there is obviously far greater opportunity to delve into things in more detail and discover things that might not have become apparent through more superficial research.

• Focus on relationships and processes 探究複雜的關係和過程– Relationships and processes within social settings ten

d to be interconnected and interrelated. To understand one thing it is necessary to understand many others, and crucially, how the various parts are linked. 探討各個環節如何相關

– The case study approach works well here because it offers more chance than the survey approach of going into sufficient detail to unravel the complexities of a given situation.

• Natural setting 自然情境– The case is a naturally occurring phenomeno

n. It exists prior to the research project and may continues to exist once the research has finished. It is not like an experiment where the research design is dedicated to imposing controls on variables so that the impact of a specific ingredient can be measured.

• Multiple sources and multiple methods– One of the strengths of the case study

approach is that is allows and encourages to use a variety of sources, a variety of types of data and a variety of research methods as part of the investigation.

– Observation, document collection, questionnaires, and interviews can all be combined for investigating the relationships and processes that are of interest.

Case studies focus on one instance (or a few instances) of a particular phenomenon with a view to providing an in-depth account of events, relationship, experiences or processes occurring in that particular instance.

Case study research characteristically emphasizes

Depth of study rather than Breadth of study

The particular rather than The general

Relationships/processes

rather than Outcomes and end-products

Holistic view rather than Isolated factors

Natural settings rather than Artificial situations

Multiple sources rather than One research method

The selection of cases

Advantages

1.The main benefit of using a case study is that the focus on one or a few instances allows the researcher to deal with the subtleties and intricacies of complex social situations. In particular, it enables the researcher to grapple with relationships and social processes in a way that is denied to the survey approach. The analysis is holistic rather than based on isolated factors. 針對單一個案可探討其隱微細緻之複雜社會現象

2. The case study approach allows the use of a variety of research methods. More than this, it more or less encourages the use of multiple methods in order to capture the complex reality under scrutiny. 可使用多種研究法

3. In parallel with the use of multiple methods, the case study approach fosters the use of multiple sources of data. This, in turn, facilitates the validation of data through triangulation.

4. The case study approach is particularly suitable where the researcher has little control over events. Because the approach is concerned with investigating phenomena as they naturally occur, there is no pressure on the researcher to impose controls or to change circumstances. 研究自然發生的現象 無需加入控制變項

5. The case study approach can fit in well with the needs of small-scale research through concentrating effort on one research site (or just a few sites).

6. Theory-building and theory-testing research can both use the case study approach to good effect.

優點• 個案調查能分析細緻深入 除通過文獻調查

蒐集資料 還可以對案主的動態資料作較長時間的搜集 掌握整個過程來龍去脈 避免做出空泛的結論

• 針對一個案主 可以環繞與案主相關的主題詳細調查

• 調查方法靈活多樣 可以運用當面訪談 參與觀察 座談會等直接調察法 也可用閱讀文獻 郵寄問卷等間接調查法

Disadvantages

1. The point at which the case study approach is most vulnerable to criticism is in relation to the credibility of generalizations made form its findings. The case study researcher needs to be particularly careful to allay suspicions and to demonstrate the extent to which the case is similar to, or contrasts with, others of its type. 單一個案的發現難以推論總體或致用於其他案件 .

2. Unwarranted though it may be, case studies are often perceived as producing ‘soft’ data. The approach gets accused of lacking the degree of rigor expected of social science research. This tends to go alongside the view of case study research as focusing on processes rather than measurable end-products, as relying on qualitative data and interpretive methods rather than quantitative data and statistical procedures. 獲得較 ‘軟性’ 的質性資料 , 重過程 , 而非可測量的結果 .

3. On the technical side, the boundaries of the case can prove difficult to define in an absolute and clear-cut fashion. This poses difficulties in terms of deciding what sources of data to incorporate in the case study and which to exclude. 個案的範圍難以界定

4. Negotiating access to case study can be a demanding part of the research process. Research can flounder if permission is withheld or withdrawn. In case studies, access to documents, people and settings can generate ethical problems in terms of things like confidentiality. 尋求途徑可能有所困難

5. It is hard for case study researchers to achieve their aim of investigating situations as they naturally occur without any effect arising from their presence. Because case study research tends to involve protracted involvement over a period of time, there is the possibility that the presence of the research can lead to the observer effect. Those being researched might behave differently from normal owing to the knowledge that they are ‘under the microscope’ and being observed in some way. 在觀察員位於現場時 , 被觀察者可能有異於平常的表現 .

• 個案調查一般限於質性分析 , 定量分析較少 得出的結論也缺乏很強的說明力 以個案調查的質性結論也無法推論總體 .

• 對調查人員的專業要求較高 無豐富經驗 很難在雜亂無章的大量原始資料中理出頭緒

3. The ethnographic style (fieldwork research 田野研究 )

• The term ethnography ( 民族誌學 ) literally means a description of peoples or cultures.

• It has its origins as a research strategy in the works of the early social anthropologist ( 人類學 ), whose aim was to provide a detailed and permanent account of the cultures and lives of small, isolated tribes. 原是人類學裡一研究策略

• They developed an approach which depended heavily on observation and, in some case, complete or partial integration into the society being studied. 觀察 融入

• This approach is no longer limited to anthropological studies and has been effectively used in a good many studies of small groups.

• Ethnography, based on the early anthropological origins of the term and on subsequent developments by influential classics in the field has the following characteristics:

1. It requires the researcher to spend time in the filed among the people whose lives and culture are being studied. The ethnographer needs to share in the lives rather than observe from a position of detachment. 研究者長時與研究對象相處

Extended fieldwork allows for a journey of discovery in which the explanations for what is being witnesses emerge over a period of time.

2. Routine and normal aspects of everyday life are regarded as worthy of consideration as research data. The mundane and the ordinary parts of social life are just as valid as the special events and ceremonies which can all too easily capture our attention. 日常生活細節和重要節慶一樣 都值得觀察

3. There is special attention given to the way the people being studied see their world. Quite distinct from the researcher’s analysis of the situation, the ethnographer is generally concerned to find out how the members of the group/culture being studied understand things, the meanings they attach to happenings, the way they perceive their reality. 了解被研究者的觀點和視野

4. There is an emphasis on the need to look at the interlinkages between various features of the culture and to avoid isolating facets of the culture from the wider context within which it exists. Ethnography generally prefers a holistic approach which stresses processes, relationships, connections and interdependency among the component parts. 了解文化裡各面象的相關之處

• One of the first conditions of acceptable ethnographic work certainly is that it should deal with the totality of all social, cultural and psychological aspects of the community, for they are so interwoven that not one can be understood without taking into consideration all the others.

• ㄧ個團體社會文化心理因素要一起考慮了解 因為這些因素彼此連結相關

4. There is some acknowledgement that the ethnographer’s final account of the culture or group being studied in more than just a description—it is a construction. It is not a direct ‘reproduction’, a literal photograph of the situation. It is, rather, a crafted construction which employs particular writing skills and which inevitable owes something to the ethnographer’s own experiences.

對某一文化的不只是單純描述 , 而是一個 ‘建構’ . 它不只是一個紀錄或複製 , 而是被研究者個人的寫作技巧和個人經驗所影響的’建構’ .

Advantages of ethnography

1. Direct observation. As a research strategy it is based on direct observation via fieldwork, rather than relying second hand data or statement made by research subjects.

2. Empirical. It is essentially grounded in empirical research involving direct contact with relevant people and places.

• 3. Links with theory. It can be used as a means for developing theory, and it can also be used for testing theories.

• 4. Detailed data. It provides data which are relatively rich in depth and detail. Potentially, it can deal with intricate and subtle realities.

• 5. Holistic. Ethnography aspires to holistic explanations which focuses on processes and relationships that lie behind the surface events. It puts things in context rather than abstracting specific aspects in isolation.

• 6. Contrast and comparison. There is an element of contrast and comparison built into ethnographic research in the way the distinct culture of events being studied are ‘anthropologically strange’—different from other cultures or events which the researcher and his or her audience to some degree share. 被研究的文化被視為和研究者本身的文化相異

• The most popular development of ethnography in recent times has been its applications to lifestyles, understandings and beliefs within ‘our own’ society.

• Ethnography thrives on being able to compare and contrast lifestyles, understandings and beliefs within a society, rather than between societies.

• In recent times, attention has been refocused on to more routine, mainstream aspects of social life –for example, life in classroom or life on a building site. 近年來 民族誌學研究法被用於暸解研究者本身社會裡的各個層面或階級 包含檢視主流社會價值和生活 .

• 7. ‘Actor’s perceptions’. Ethnographic research is particularly well suited to dealing with the way members of a culture see events—as seen through their eyes. It describes and explored the ‘actors’ perceptions’. 經由實做

• 者的眼睛視界了解事物 .• 8. Self-awareness. It has an open and explicit a

wareness of the role of the researcher’s self in the choice of topic, process or research and construction of the findings/conclusions. It acknowledge the inherent reflexivity of social knowledge.

• Putting the researcher’s ‘self’ into ethnographic research

• In ethnographical studies, the researcher’s identity, values and beliefs become part of the equation –a built-in component that cannot be eliminated as an influence on the end-product findings of the project.

• The researcher needs to reflect upon the way that background factors that associated with personal experiences, personal beliefs and social values may have shaped the way that events and cultures were interpreted.

• There needs to be a public account of the self which explores the role of the researcher’s self.

• It is necessary to include in the methodology section, and possibly in the preface or introduction , some information about the self and its perceived influence.– I begin with myself, the some reflections on my life and research

career which seem relevant to my current thoughts and actions.– I was born in the 1930s. My father was a bricklayer by trade…– After the war, I passed the eleven plus and went to the grammar

school…– My own experiences, background and personality dispose me to

wards principles of freedom, equality and justice as they are understood in moderate left-wing politics. I am fascinated by the struggle of human agency against the forces of structure and society. I have empathy for those labeled as ‘deviants’ or ‘delinquents’, and an interest in the circumstances that produce such actions and reactions…

(Woods, 1996, 1-9)

• 9. Ecological validity. It is strong in terms of ecological validity, to the extent that the act of researching should have relatively little impact on the setting –retaining things in their ‘natural’ form. 不破壞事物現象原有之風貌 .

Disadvantages of ethnography

• Tension within the approach. – Naturalism vs. Reflexivity– Ethnographies generally attempt to accommodate an internal co

ntradiction between (a) ‘realist’ aspirations to provide full and detailed descriptions of events or cultures as they naturally exist , and (b) a ‘relativist’ awareness of the reflexive nature of social knowledge and the inevitable influence of the researcher’s self on the whole research.

– Depending on how this tension is accommodated and the degree to which the ethnography adopts a ‘realist’ or a ‘relativist’ position, certain other weaknesses can exist.

• 客觀詳實紀錄描述 vs. 個人介入反思

• Stand-alone descriptions. Ethnographic research has the potential to produce an array of ‘picture’ which coexist, but which tend to remain as separate, isolated stories. 所觀察或紀錄各項資料 可能只流於獨立分開的故事 無法找到共通相關點

• Story-telling. There is the potential to provide detailed descriptive accounts at the expense of developing an analytic insight or contributing to a theoretical position. The story-telling can become the sole purpose, leaving a research product which is atheoretical, non-analytic and non-critical.

• 可能會變成只說故事 缺乏分析理論和批判層面

• Reliability. There is a potential weakness of poor reliability and little prospect of generalizing from the ethnographic account of the culture or event. 可靠度低

• Ethics. There is also a greater potential than with most other approaches to face ethical problems associated with intrusions upon privacy and with gaining informed consent from research subjects. 侵犯隱私的道德問題

• Access. Ethnographic research can pose particularly acute difficulties of gaining access to setting, access which avoids disrupting the naturalness of the setting. 不易獲得門路

• Insider knowledge, rather than being a straight advantage, can also cause a ‘blind spot’, obscuring a vision of ‘the obvious’. 易發生主觀偏差 對依主題太多了解 可能反而看不到明顯的事實

4. Surveys

• The word ‘survey’ means to view comprehensively and in detail. 廣泛並詳實地認識

• In another sense it refers specifically to the act of ‘obtaining data for mapping. 原意是指 : 獲得資料以製作地圖

• The principles have been used to good effect on mapping out the social world as well as the physical world.

• Survey have emerged in the later parts of the 20th century as one of the most popular approaches to social research.

• Such social survey share with their physical counterparts some crucial characteristics:

1. Wide and inclusive coverage. Implicit in the notion of ‘survey’ is the idea that the research should have a wide coverage—a breadth of view. A survey should take a panoramic view and ‘take it all in’. 全面的 廣泛的視野

• 2. At a specific point in time. The purpose of mapping surveys is generally to ‘brings things up to date’, and so is it with the notion of social surveys. Surveys usually relate to the present state of affairs and involve an attempt to provide a snapshot of how things are at the specific time at which the data are collected. 在蒐集資料時的某一時間點 事物現象之狀態

• 3. Empirical research. In the sense ‘to survey’ carries with it the meaning ‘to look’, survey inevitably brings with it the idea of empirical research. It involves the idea of getting out of the chair, going out of the office and purposefully seeking the necessary information ‘out there’. 實證研究 實際蒐集分析

• The survey approach is a research strategy, not a research method. Many methods can be incorporated in the use of a social survey. 是一個策略 而非方法

• Researchers who adopt the strategy are able to use a whole range of methods within the strategy: questionnaire, interviews, documents and observation. 許多方法都可再使用此一策略時使用 如問卷 訪談 文獻 觀察等

• In essence, surveys are about a particular approach, an approach in which there is empirical research pertaining to a given point in time which aims to incorporate as wide and as inclusive data as possible.

Advantages of surveys

• 1. Empirical data. The emphasis tends to be on producing data based on real-world observation. The research has involved an active attempt by the researcher to go out and look and to search. The search is purposeful and structured. Survey research tends to focus on data more than theory —although, of course, good survey research is not entirely devoid of theory. It is a matter of emphasis. 實證資料 重資料甚於理論

• 2. Wide and inclusive coverage. Surveys are easily associated with large-scale research covering many people and events. Its breadth of coverage means that it is more likely than some other approaches to get data based on a representative sample. The findings form good survey research score well when it comes to generalizability. 廣泛全面 可普遍化

• 3.Surveys led themselves to quantitative data. The survey approach lends itself to being used with particular methods, such as the postal questionnaire, which can generate large volumes of quantitative data that can be subject to statistical analysis. 產生定量性資料 可供述數據分析

• 4. Costs and time. Surveys are not necessarily cheap but, relative to strategies such as experiments and ethnography, they can produce a mountain of data in a short time for a fairly low cost. The cost are perhaps more predictable. 花費較便宜且可預測 在短十間內可得大量資料

Disadvantages of surveys

• 1. Tendency to empiricism. A users of the survey approach can become obsessed with the data to the exclusion of an adequate account of the implications of those data for relevant issues, problems or theories. There is a danger that the ‘data are left to speak for themselves’. The significance of the data can become neglected. 可能太重資料 忽略相關理論

• 2. Detail and depth of the data. The data produced with the use of methods such as the postal questionnaire, are likely to lack much by way of detail or depth on the topic being investigated. 缺乏深度

• 3. Accuracy and honesty of responses. The emphasis on wide and inclusive coverage limits the degree to which the research can check on the accuracy and honesty of the responses. 無法確定回答的精確性和誠實度

5. The experimental style 實驗法

• The idea of an experiment tends to be linked with white-coated scientists working in a laboratory.

• In the natural sciences, the point of conducting an experiment is to isolate individual factors and observe their effect in detail. The purpose is to discover new relationships or properties associated with the materials being investigated, or to test existing theories.

• 實驗法是藉以實驗的程序以發現因果關係或比較各個變項之結果的方法 . 它不但解釋’是什麼’ , 還回答 ‘為什麼’ .

• 實驗一詞指造成某一變項或控制某一情況 , 以觀察兩個以上變數之共變個過程 . 藉有此程序以發現因果關係或比較各項變遷之結果

• 實驗的要點 就是隔離個別因素 觀察反應 發現新關係 新特質 或測試理論 .

• 將研究團體分為兩個同質的團體 , 一為控制組 (Controlled group), 一為實驗組 (Experiment group), 然後對實驗組到入某一實驗情境 , 觀察其變化 , 並比較此一團體與控制組的差異 , 以判斷因果關係

實驗法的原則• 在實驗法的設計 , 研究者企圖了解的是 :• 1. 當一變項 (X) 改變時 , 另一變項 (Y)

是否也會改變 .• 2. 是否是僅有變項 (X) 的改變 , 才能促進

變項 (Y) 的改變 .

• 藉著操控 (X) 變項以了解 (Y) 變項的改變情行 . 例如 : 薪資 (X) 的增加 , 是否會造成 工作效能 (Y) 的提升 .

實驗組 實驗前測驗 接受刺激的影響 實驗後測驗 前後測驗的差別

控制組 實驗前測驗 沒有刺激的影響 實驗後測驗 控制測驗不同於實驗組

Three points that lie at the heart of conducting an experiment

• Control. Experiments involve the manipulation of circumstances. The researcher need to identify factor which are significant and then introduce them to or exclude them form the situation so that their effect can be observed. 控制環境 確認重要因素 導入或隔離因素以觀察其效果

• The identification of causal factors. The introduction or exclusion of factors to or from the situation enables the researcher to pinpoint which factor actually causes the observed outcome to occur. 確認導致效果的因素為何

• Observation and measurement. Experiments rely on precise and detailed observation of outcomes and changes that occur following the introduction or exclusion of potentially relevant factors. They also involve close attention to the measurement of what is observed. 精確觀察測量

Experimental design occurs when the subject (people or social systems) and conditions (events or situation) to be studied are manipulated by the investigator)

(Spector, 1981, p.7)

Advantages of experiments

• 1. Repeatable 詳實紀錄過程和變項 可由其他研究者重複檢驗

• 2. Precision 精準測量• 3. Convenience 研究者在熟悉的研究室工

作 且不需到外 節省旅行時間和花費

Disadvantages of experiments

• 1. Deception and ethics 使用研究法時 須考慮到到道德因素 如果有控制組 不同組別是否因對待不同 將經歷不同的優勢或劣勢 .

有時研究的成敗在於受試者不知其研究目的 , 這也牽涉到欺騙的問題 .

• 2. Artificial setting 實驗情境不同於真實情境 (real-world situation)

• 3. Representativeness of the research subjects. Researchers need to be sure the experimental group and the control group constitute a ‘matched pair’. They need to be closely matched in terms of those features which are relevant to the experiment and to the broader population form which the research subjects are drawn. This can be difficult to achieve.必須確定控制組和實驗組其他條件都相同 /似

• 4. Control of the relevant variables. 要能夠控制變素是實驗的重點 實驗者必須確定這個變素是能被控制的 , 此外 , 是否合乎道德性 ?

• 5. 社會現像大半是人類行為 , 而與心理狀態 , 特別是情緒有關 , 更不易加以控制來研究 .

Which approach?

• Classifying an approach as ethnographic, qualitative, experimental, or whatever does not mean once an approach has been selected, the researcher may not move from the methods normally associated with the styles.

• Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of each approach is likely to help you to select the most appropriate methodology for the task in hand. 了解每一策略的優勢和缺點 才能選擇最適合手上任務的策略 .