Revisit and Respond 3.5
Explain the difference between external validity and ecological validity.
Where Research Takes Place
A discussion of external and ecological validity leads naturally to the categories describing where and how research takes place, including laboratory research, field study, field experiment, virtual environments, and survey research. These types of research differ in the degree of control that is possible, on the one hand, and the degree of realism of the situation being investigated, on the other.
Laboratory Research
Laboratory research is defined as research that is conducted in a highly controlled environment, typically with random assignment to condition, to enable the researcher to make causal statements. Such research may, in fact, take place in a laboratory specifically designed for such research, which is more likely to be the case in neuroscience but also occurs in the social and behavioral sciences. A more widely used term to refer to what is meant by laboratory research is experimental research. The essence of this concept is the high degree of control over all variables, including those that are not the focus of manipulation; this degree of control allows the researcher to make inferences about causality.
Laboratory research: Research conducted in a highly controlled environment, typically with random assignment to condition, to enable the researcher to make causal statements.
Field study: Examination of variables in natural settings without the manipulation of variables.
Field experiment: Research that takes place in natural settings and manipulates variables, unlike a field study.
Field Study
A field study is the examination of variables in natural settings without the manipulation of variables. Ann Devlin’s (1980) research on housing for older persons would be an example of a field study in which she was still able to look at group differences. No variables were manipulated; nevertheless, she was able to use housing type (high rise vs. garden apartment) and location in the city (three sites) as quasi-independent variables to examine how these variables were related to satisfaction and dissatisfaction with housing among older people.
Field Experiment
Like a field study, a field experiment takes place in natural settings. Unlike the field study, a field experiment manipulates variables. Ultimately, the field experiment lacks the extent of control available in the lab, but every effort is taken to approximate that control. An example of a field experiment where more control might be possible is research in education settings, where you might have students receive different versions of instructions (by random assignment) to the same exam. You have manipulated a variable (the instructions), but the students in the classroom otherwise are in a setting that is natural and where most aspects of the setting (the instructor, the room, the exam content itself) remain controlled.
Another example of a field experiment in the world beyond the classroom is a study by Wesley Schultz et al. (2016). In this study, the focus was water conservation (in California) and the extent to which that could be influenced (measured by water usage as the dependent variable) by receiving environmental messages (Web based or postal) in people with different levels of personal norms about conserving water. There were seven conditions in the study, with three different kinds of messages that were delivered to residents: (1) descriptive norm—your water use compared with that of similar others in the neighborhood; (2) descriptive norm + injunctive—your water use and neighborhood norms again plus social approval (happy face; below neighborhood norm use of water) or disapproval (sad face; above neighborhood norm use of water) on the feedback; and (3) only information—water conservation tips. The message types were delivered in either of two forms (postal or Web based); that gives us six conditions so far. One randomized control received no information about the study (the seventh condition). In this study participants were clearly in their natural environments, their homes (in San Diego), but there was a fairly elaborate experimental manipulation to investigate how water conservation might be impacted by different kinds of feedback.
Virtual Environments
Virtual environments are typically laboratory environments that combine the control of the experiment with the naturalism of the field. This naturalism is created through virtual means. One definition of a virtual environment is “synthetic sensory information that leads to perceptions of environments and their contexts as if they were not synthetic. An immersive virtual environment (IVE) is one that perceptually surrounds an individual” (Blascovich et al., 2002, p. 105). Virtual environments are used in a range of research topics, from clinical psychology (e.g., to deal with phobias) to architecture (e.g., to test wayfinding systems for buildings; see Figure 3.8 from Slone et al., 2015). In the research of Edward Slone et al. (2015), the authors hypothesized that the complexity of the floor plan would affect spatial orientation and wayfinding skills. It did. There were more errors, and reaching the target destination took longer when participants were working with the more complex of the two floor plans.
Virtual environments: Synthetic environments that combine the control of the laboratory with the naturalism of the field; often use immersive approaches.
Survey research: Type of correlational research; employs written questionnaires and/or personal interviews to assess views of a sample of respondents from a population.
Survey Research
Survey research is a type of correlational research widely used in the social sciences, especially sociology (Sanders & Pinhey, 1983); it employs written questionnaires and/or personal interviews to assess views (e.g., attitudes and beliefs) of a sample of respondents from a population.
Figure 3.8 Example of Floor Plans Used in Virtual Environment Research
Source: Reprinted with permission from Slone et al., 2015, Figure 1, page 1031.
Neuman (2007, p. 167) notes that the following can be asked about in survey research: behavior, attitudes/beliefs/opinions, characteristics, expectations, self-classification, and knowledge. Selecting a sample that is representative of the population (see Chapter 11) is particularly important. A classic example would be an opinion poll where attitudes, beliefs, and even expected actions (e.g., choice for president) are surveyed. Another example would be the U.S. decennial Census, which is required by the U.S. Constitution. The American Community Survey (ACS), part of the Census, is sent to a small percentage of U.S. residents every year (on a rotating basis) to obtain more detailed socioeconomic data, including housing (e.g., whether people own or rent), about the U.S. population (https://www.census.gov/history/www/programs/demographic/american_community_survey.html). Internationally, a widely used measure is the European Social Survey (ESS), a cross-national survey of more than 30 nations. Begun in 2001, the ESS reflects information collected every 2 years from face-to-face interviews of newly selected cross-national samples. Among the goals of the ESS is to “chart stability and change in social structure, conditions and attitudes in Europe” (https://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/about/). The data from the ESS are free of charge to users.
A survey is also a label used to describe a series of questions, often standardized,