Chat with AIExam 8: Making Empirical Observations: Firsthand Observation
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the participant observation technique?
(37) 
VerifiedParticipant observation offers the advantages of a natural setting, the opportunity to observe people for lengthy periods of time so that interaction and changes in behavior may be studied, and a degree of accuracy or completeness impossible with documents or recall data such as that obtained in surveys. This technique will allow you to know and understand what happened at these events far better than reading official minutes or transcripts. However, there are some noteworthy limitations to the method as well. The main problem with direct, participant observation as a method of empirical research for political scientists is that many significant instances of political behavior are not accessible for observation. For example, the privacy of the voter in the voting booth is legally protected, US Supreme Court conferences are not open to anyone but the justices themselves, political consultants and bureaucrats do not usually wish to have political scientists privy to their discussions and decisions, and most White House conversations and deliberations are carefully guarded. Another disadvantage of participant observation is lack of control over the environment. A researcher may be unable to isolate individual factors and observe their effect on behavior. Participant observation is also limited by the small number of cases that are usually involved. Unstructured participant observation also has been criticized as invalid and biased. A researcher may selectively perceive behaviors, noting some, ignoring others. The interpretation of behaviors may reflect the personality and culture of the observer rather than the meaning attributed to them by the observed themselves. Moreover, the presence of the observer may alter the behavior of the observed no matter how skillfully the observer attempts to become accepted as a nonthreatening part of the community.
In _________ observation, the investigator's presence is hidden or undisclosed and his or her intentions are disguised.
(39) VerifiedC
________ data is data used by a researcher who did not personally collect the data.
(43) VerifiedB
A(n) ___________ measure is created by the deposition and accumulation of materials.
(38) Why does direct observation typically lead to a qualitative rather than quantitative use of the data?
(36) The term ________ is typically used to refer to open-ended and wide-ranging, rather than structured, observation in a natural setting like a home or office building, a community, a city, or even a country or region. In field studies, researchers typically ask questions of the people they are observing, thus field studies also involve collection of interview data.
(38) In _________ observation, the investigator looks for and systematically records the incidence of specific behaviors.
(41) In ___________ observation, all behavior is considered relevant, at least at first, and recorded.
(34) In ________ observation, those being observed are aware of the investigator's presence and intentions.
(41) Which term below best describes the effect of the data collection itself on the phenomena being measured?
(45) ________ data is data recorded and used by the researcher making the observations.
(31) ____________ is an immersive research design where the researcher tries to learn about cultural constrictions.
(38) What are the advantages and disadvantages of observation in a laboratory setting?
(34) A(n) ________ measure is created by selective wear on some material.
(30) Please define the principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice and explain why they are important.
(38) Compared to other research designs the risk of harm to subjects in observational studies are
(35) __________ is the immersion in the place and lives of people under study.
(39) 
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