Comparison of Research Methods
Comparison of Research Methods
Experimental methods, the questionnaire and observation methods
¢ñ. Experimental Method
Experimental method focuses on cause and effect. There are two kinds of experimental methods: true experimentation, which is often used in areas such as psychology, and quasi-experimentation, which is more popular in management research. However, the processes of manipulating, comparing, and looking for differences are at the heart of experimental logic, whether expressed in true experimental or quasi-experimental form. In experiments researchers try to keep all experimental variables constant except the independent variable, which is changed in a precise way while measuring the dependent variables.
Advantages of experimental method
1. Experiments are the only means by which cause and effect can be established. It has already been noted that an experiment differs from non-experimental methods in that it involves the deliberate manipulation of one variable, while trying to keep all other variables constant; thus it enables us to study cause and effect and allows us to draw conclusions with far more certainty than any non-experimental method. Sometimes the independent variable (IV) is thought of as the cause, and the dependent variable (DV) as the effect.
2. It allows for the precise control of variables, especially in laboratory conditions. The purpose of control is to enable the experimenter to isolate independent variables and to observe their effects on dependent variables. Precise control allows us to determine whether the IV is influencing the DV.
3. Experiments can be replicated. The more often an experiment is able to be repeated with identical results, the greater the likelihood the theory being tested is valid. The experimental method consists of standardized procedures and measures which allow it to be easily repeated.
4. An experiment yields quantitative data which can be analyzed statistically. These tests indicate the probably accuracy of the results.
5. It is cheaper to perform than other research methods.
Disadvantages of experimental method
1. Experiments are representative of real life. Most experiments are conducted in laboratories¡ªartificial environments where people perform unusual tasks. The artificiality of laboratories may distort reality. It is therefore difficult to make generalized conclusions from experiments because they often do not represent real life.
2. Precise control of variables greatly restricts the range of laboratory behavior. This problem, however, can be alleviated by a quasi-experimental research method performed in natural settings. This is not a true experimental method because of the inability to manipulate variables. It is possible, though, to compare two groups, the equivalent of an experimental and a control group. This method carries the added advantage that participants are unaware that they are part of an investigation.
3. A major difficulty with the experimental method is demand characteristics. Some of the confounding variables in a management experiment stem from the fact that management experiments involve social situations in which subjects and observers are active, not passive, individuals. Subjects may unintentionally attempt to decipher what experimenters hope to observe. Experimenters, too, have expectations about what their results will likely be. This expectation of experimenters affects [next page]