• Introduction to Psychological Research
Psychological research applies the scientific method to ask questions about the world. It gathers empirical evidence (data) to verify theories, which can be quantitative (numbers) or qualitative (words/images).
The 7 Steps of Research
Research is not random; it follows a specific cycle :
- Selecting the Topic: Choosing a broad area of interest .
- Focusing on the Question: Narrowing down to a specific research question and reviewing past literature.
- Designing the Study: Planning the method, tools, and techniques for data collection.
- Collecting Data: Gathering information scientifically.
- Analyzing Data: Manipulating data to find patterns.
- Interpreting Data: Finding meaning in the results.
- Informing Others: Writing a report to share findings.
Note: These steps are interactive and may not always follow a strict linear order.
• Types of Research
Researchers classify studies based on their purpose and time frame.
| Feature | Basic Research | Applied Research |
| Goal | Advance theoretical frameworks and fundamental knowledge. | Solve practical, real-world problems. |
| Nature | Guided by strict scientific rules; rigorous. | Guided by utility; solutions for immediate use. |
| Application | Long-term; benefits may take decades to appear. | Short-term; often used in policy, health, or education. |
➥ Types of Applied Research:
- Evaluation Research: Assesses the effectiveness of a program or policy (e.g., “Did the free lunch program improve attendance?”).
- Action Research: Participants are actively engaged; focuses on empowerment and fighting oppression/injustice.
- Social Impact Assessment (SIA): Forecasts the potential future consequences of a planned intervention or policy.
➥ Cross-Sectional vs. Longitudinal Research
- Cross-Sectional: Compares different groups (e.g., 5-year-olds vs. 8-year-olds) at a single point in time. It is like a snapshot. Disadvantage: Cannot show change over time or causal relationships.
- Longitudinal: Measures the same individuals on multiple occasions over time . Advantage: Directly tracks individual change and development. Disadvantage: Expensive and time-consuming.
• Goals of Psychological Research
Why do we do research? Usually for three main reasons:
- Exploration: To familiarize oneself with a new topic, generate new ideas, and assess feasibility for future studies.
- Description: To provide a highly accurate picture of events, verify past data, or classify new data.
- Explanation: To test predictions, link issues to general principles, and determine why something happens (cause and effect).
• Research Paradigms (The Core Topic)
A paradigm is a worldview or a set of basic beliefs that guides the researcher. Every paradigm answers three questions:
- Ontology: What is the nature of reality?
- Epistemology: What is the relationship between the knower (researcher) and the known (knowledge)?
- Methodology: How can we find out what we believe in?
➥ A. Positivism & Post-Positivism
- View of Reality: Reality consists of “immutable facts” that exist independently of us. It is objective.
- Goal: To explain behavior using general laws (Nomothetic approach).
- Key Concepts:
- Replication: Repeating a study to see if results are the same. If results replicate, it advances scientific knowledge.
- Deduction: Starting with a general law/theory and testing it in specific cases.
- Objectivity: The researcher must remain unbiased and detached.
- Post-Positivism: Challenges the idea of complete objectivity. It argues that a researcher’s background influences observations, so we can only know reality imperfectly. They often use mixed methods (triangulation) to correct for errors.
➥ B. Interpretive-Constructivist Paradigm
- View of Reality: Reality is socially constructed. It is based on people’s opinions, beliefs, and perceptions rather than hard facts.
- Goal: To understand how individuals construct their social world (Idiographic approach, focusing on the specific).
- Key Concepts:
- Verstehen: “Empathetic understanding” trying to see the world from the participant’s viewpoint.
- Voluntarism: People have free will and create meaning.
- Sub-types:
- Phenomenology: Focuses on the “lived experience” of humans. How do we make sense of our perceptions?
- Social Constructivism: Knowledge is constructed through social processes (language, interaction) and is historically/culturally specific.
➥ C. Critical Approach
- View of Reality: Combines objective and subjective views. Reality has multiple layers: a surface level of “illusion/myth” and a deeper level of “real” objective reality (often power structures).
- Goal: To uncover injustice, critique society, and empower weaker people. Research is a moral-political activity.
- Focus: It aims to peel away the surface illusions to reveal the underlying structures of oppression.
➥ D. Participatory Research Paradigm
- Core Belief: Challenges the idea that the researcher is the expert. Ordinary people are recognized as researchers of their own lives.
- Process: Collaborative. Participants are active partners or “co-researchers” in the study.
- Goal: Knowledge is for action to improve the lives of the participants and address power inequalities.
• Quantitative vs. Qualitative Traditions
Though complementary, they differ in design and logic.
- Quantitative (Positivist):
- Logic: Linear path. Starts with a hypothesis \rightarrow Collects Data \rightarrow Tests Hypothesis.
- Data: “Hard data” (Numbers).
- Focus: Narrowing down a specific question before starting.
- Qualitative (Interpretive/Critical):
- Logic: Non-linear/Cyclical path. A spiral of collecting data \rightarrow analyzing \rightarrow collecting more.
- Data: “Soft data” (Words, images, symbols).
- Focus: Questions can be vague initially and narrow down during the study.
• Standards of Good Research
Good research follows the Scientific Method, which assumes:
- Reliance on empirical (observable) evidence.
- Commitment to objective and verifiable deliberations.
- Results are open to criticism and replication.
- Reflexivity: The researcher actively reflects on how their own beliefs and position influence the research process (common in qualitative research).