Introduction:

We understood that Psychologists use different procedure to

study the mental processes, behaviour & experiences. This
procedure of research is “the methods of enquiry in Psychology”.
Why do we need a Psychological Enquiry? – The answer is in
Goals of Psychological Enquiry:-
Goals of Psychological Enquiry
Any Scientific research, psychological enquiry has the following
goals:-
1. Description:- Describing a behaviour or phenomenon as
accurately as possible
2. Prediction:- If we can describe the form of behaviour, we
should be able to predict that under certain conditions this
particular behaviour may occur within a certain margin of error.
3. Explanation:- The third goal is to know the causal factors or
determinants of behaviour & to explain those factors accordingly.
4. Control of behaviour:- If you are able to explain why a
particular behaviour occurs, you can control that behaviour by
making changes in its antecedent conditions.
5. Application of knowledge:- The final goal of the scientific
enquiry is to bring out positive changes in the lives of people.
Once we know why we are doing the research & what are the
goals, it’s time to find out the characteristics of how we are going
to conduct those research, which includes 2 steps:-
Steps in Conducting Scientific Research
There are only two characteristics that we look while conducting a
scientific research: Objectivity & Systematic approach of
research.
a. Objectivity: - Objectivity refers to the fact that if two or more
persons independently study particular event, both of them, to a
great extent, should arrive at the same conclusions.
b. Systematic:- This is a step by step process of conducting a
research
Conceptualizing a problem

• It is the first step of conducting a scientific research

• The researcher selects a topic for study which is done on basis
of either review of past research, observations, personal
experience

Identification of problem

• It is the second step of scientific research

• Development of a tentative statement about the topic takes
place which is termed a hypothesis
• For example, “ greater is the amount of time spent by
children in playing violent video games, the greater is the
degree of impatience and anger developed by them”

Collection of data

• This step focuses on developing a research design or blueprint

of the entire study.
• Decisions are taken about the following
o Participants in the study
o Methods of study
 o Tools to be used in research
o Procedure for data collection

Drawing conclusions

• The next step of scientific research is to analyse data through

statistical procedures
• It can be achieved through measures of central tendency like
mean, median, mode and graphical presentations like pie
charts, bar diagram

Revising research conclusions

• The researcher revises the whole study and the hypothesis

being taken is analysed thoroughly to see whether it stands
true or not

method is of 6 types
Some Important Methods in Psychology
i. Observational Method
ii. Experimental Method
iii. Correlational Research
iv. Survey Research
v. Psychological Testing
vi. Case Study
i. Observational Method:
On a daily basis, we see a lot of things but observe only some.
This is one of the amazing ways to collect the behavioural data. A
Scientific observation differs from day to day observation in many
ways. These are:-
a. Selection – Psychologists do not observe all the behaviour that
they encounter. Rather, they select a particular behaviour for
observation.
b. Recording – Then they record the data to remember & for
others to take reference from these data.
c. Analysis of Data – And finally they analyse the data as per
their understanding, finding & requirements.
Types of Observation
i. Naturalistic vs Controlled Observation – if the environment of
observation is not manipulated it is Naturalistic Observation, If the
environment is manipulated as per to adjust the observation
under controlled condition it is controlled observation.
ii. Non-Participant vs Participant Observation – if you are
observing a person and he/she knows it, it is participant
observation. If he/she doesn’t know that they are being observed,
it is non-participant observation.
ii. Experimental Method:-
Experiments are generally conducted to establish cause-effect
relationship between two sets of events or variables in a
controlled setting. It is a carefully regulated procedure in which
changes are made in one factor, while its effect is studied on
another factor, while keeping other related factors constant.
The concept of Variable
What is Variable – Any event or stimulus which varies, that is, it
takes on different values (or changes) and can be measured is a
Variable. Variables are of two kinds:- Independent Variable &
Dependent Variable
a. Independent Variable: It is that variable which is manipulated
or altered or its strength varied by the researcher in the
experiment.
b. Dependent Variable: The variable on which the effect of
independent variable is observed is called dependent variable.
Thus, the independent variable is the cause, and dependent
variable is the effect in any experimental situation.
Experimental & Control Groups
a. Experimental Groups: An experimental group is a group in
which members of the group are exposed to independent variable
manipulation.
b. Control Groups: The control group is a comparison group that
is treated in every way like the experimental group except that the
manipulated variable is absent in it.
Control Techniques for relevant variables:-
1. Since the goal of an experiment is to minimise extraneous
variables, the best way to handle this problem is to eliminate them
from the experimental setting.
2. Elimination is not always possible. In such cases, effort should
be made to hold them constant
3. In this procedure the relevant variables in the two groups are
equated or are held constant by taking matched pairs across
conditions of the experiment
4. Counter-balancing technique is used to minimise the sequence
effect. Suppose there are two tasks to be given in an experiment.
Rather than giving the two tasks in the same sequence the
experimenter may interchange the order of the tasks.
5. Random assignment of participants to different groups
eliminates any potential systematic differences between groups.
Limitations of Experimental Method:-
1. The experiments have low external validity means it may
produce results that do not generalise well, or apply to real
situations.
2. It is not always feasible to study a particular problem
experimentally.
3. It is difficult to know and control all the relevant variables
Field Experiments & Quasi Experiments:- If a researcher wants
to have high generalisability or to conduct studies which are not
possible in laboratory settings, s/he may go to the field or the
natural setting where the particular phenomenon actually exists.
In other words, s/he may conduct a Field Experiment.
In the situation where many variables cannot be manipulated in
the laboratory settings. Like Earthquake effect on children, Quasi
Experimentation is adopted.

iii. Correlational Research

In psychological research, we often wish to determine the
relationship between two variables for prediction purposes. For
example, you may be interested in knowing whether “the amount
of study time” is related to the “student’s academic achievement”.
The strength and direction of the relationship between the two
variables is represented by a number, known as correlation
coefficient. Its value can range from +1.0 through 0.0 to –1.0
We often wish to determine the relationship between two
variables for prediction purposes. Here we try to find out the
relationship between the two variables to determine whether they
are associated, or not. The strength & direction of the relationship
between the two variables is represented by number known as
Correlation coefficient. Its value ranges from +1.0 through 0.0 to -
1.0.
Correlation could be of three types: Positive, Negative &
Zero.
Positive Correlation: It indicates that as the value of one
variable (X) increases, the value of the other variable (Y) will also
increase & vice versa. X Y example study hour increases study
score will also increase
Negative Correlation: It indicates that as the value of one
variable (X) increases, the value of the other variable (Y) will
decrease & vice versa. X Y example study hours increase activity
hours will decrease
Zero Correlation: It is possible that sometimes no correlation
may exist between the two variables, this is called Zero
Correlation. This indicates that no significant relationship exists
between two variables or the two variables are unrelated.
iv. Survey Research
A survey research is basically a method of collecting data through
various means of survey like Personal Interviews, Questionnaires
& Telephonic Surveys. Let’s understand these methods in detail.
a. Personal Interviews:-
A personal Interview is a method of asking questions from
Individual or group to obtain the relevant data. Generally one
person sit across other person either face to face or through video
call& one person (generally called interviewer) asks certain
questions to another person (interviewee or respondent)
There can be two broad types of interviews -
i. Structured or Standardised: A structured interview is one
where the questions in the schedule are written clearly in a
particular sequence. The interviewer has little or no liberty to
make changes in the wordings of the questions or the order in
which they are to be asked.
Type of Questions asked – Close ended questions (like MCQ’s or
Yes/No)
ii. Unstructured or non-standardised: in an unstructured
interview the interviewer has the flexibility to take decisions about
the questions to be asked, the wording of the questions, and the
sequence in which questions are to be asked.
Type of Questions asked – Open ended questions (like Subjective
questions)
An interview may have the following combinations of
participants in an interview situation are-
i. Individual to Individual: One Interviewer interviews another
person
ii. Individual to group: One interviewer interviews a group of
persons.
iii. Group to Individuals: One group of interviewers interview one
person.
iv. Group to Group: One group of interviewers interviews another
group of interviewees.
Interviewing is a skill which requires proper training. A good
interviewer knows how to makethe respondent at ease and get
the optimal answer. S/he remains sensitive to the way a person
responds and, if needed, probes for more information. If the
respondent gives vague answers, the interviewer may try to get
specific and concrete answers.
Benefits of Personal Interviews:-
i. The interview method helps in obtaining in-depth information.
ii. It is flexible & adaptable to individual situations, and can often
be used when no other method is possible or adequate.
iii. It can be used even with children, and non-literate persons.
iv. An interviewer can know whether the respondent understands
the questions, and can repeat or paraphrase questions.
Limitations of Personal Interviews:-
i. Interviews require time. Often getting information from one
person may take an hour or more which is not cost effective.
b. Questionnaires:-
The questionnaire is the most common, simple, versatile, and
low-cost self-report method of collecting information.
It consists of a predetermined set of questions.
The respondent has to read the questions and mark the
answers on paper rather than respond verbally to the interviewer.
They are in some ways like highly structured interviews.
Generally there are two types of questions used in
questionnaire: Open-ended & Closed-ended.
With Open-ended questions, the respondent is free to write
whatever answers s/he considers appropriate.
In Closed-ended type, the questions and their probable
answers are given & the respondent is required to select the
correct answer.
Closed-ended questions responses are like yes/No, True/False,
multiple choice or rating scales (3 point, 5 point, 7 point, 11 point,
etc).
Questionnaires can be filled either in pen & paper or through E-
mail like Google forms.
c. Telephone Surveys:-
Surveys are conducted through telephone, via mobile phones
SMS, apps, etc.
Benefits of Telephone Surveys:-
i. The telephone survey helps in reducing time.
Limitations of Telephone Surveys:-
i. The respondents don’t know the interviewer; the technique is
fraught with uncooperativeness, reluctance, and superficial
answers by the respondents.
ii. Clear data of respondents is not available in terms of age,
gender, income levels, education levels, etc.
Advantages of Survey Method:
i. Information can be gathered quickly and efficiently from
thousands of persons.
ii. Since surveys can be conducted quickly, public opinions on
new issues can be obtained almost as soon as the issues arise.
Limitations of Survey Method:
i. People may give inaccurate information because of memory
lapses or they may not want to let the researcher know what they
really believe about a particular issue.
ii. People sometimes offer responses they think the researcher
wants to hear.
v. Psychological Testing
Assessment of individual differences has remained one of the
important concerns of psychology from the very beginning.
 Psychologists have constructed different types of tests for
assessment of various human characteristics, such as
intelligence, aptitude, personality, interest, attitudes, values,
educational achievement, etc.
These tests are used for various purposes, such as personnel
selection, placement, training,
guidance, diagnosis, etc., in multiple contexts including
educational institutions, guidance clinics, industries, defence
establishments, and so forth.
A Psychological test is a standardised and objective instrument
which is used to assess an individual’s standing in relation to
others on some mental or behavioural characteristics.
Objectivity - Objectivity refers to the fact that if two or more
researchers administer a psychological test on the same group of
people, both of them would come up with more or less the same
values for each person in the group.
Standardised - The construction of a test is a systematic &
standard process and involves certain steps. It involves detailed
analysis of items, and estimating reliability, validity, and norms of
the whole test.
o Reliability -. Reliability of the test refers to the consistency of
scores obtained by an individual on the same test on two different
occasions.
Test-retest reliability – It is computed by finding out co-
efficient of correlation between the two sets of scores on the
same set of persons.
 Split-half reliability – It gives an indication about the degree of
internal consistency of the test.
o Validity - Validity refers to the question: “Does the test measure
what it claims to measure”?
o Norms - norm is the normal or average performance of the
group. This helps us in comparing the performance of an
individual student with others of the same group.
Types of Tests – Tests are classified on three basis –
Language, mode of administration & difficulty
level.
o Language – Verbal, Non-Verbal & Performance test
Verbal – Literacy is required for taking verbal tests as the items
have to be written in some language.
NonVerbal Tests – In this items are made of symbols or
pictures.
Performance Tests – It require movement of objects from the
respective places
in a particular order.
o Mode of Administration – Psychological tests are divided
into individual or group tests.
Individual Test – An individual test is administered by the
researcher to one person at a time.
Group Test – A group tests cab be administered to large
number of persons at the same time.
o Difficulty level – Psychological tests are also classified into
speed & power tests
Speed test – There is a time limit within which the test taker is
required to answer all the items.
Power test – It assesses the underlying ability of the individuals
by allowing them sufficient time. i.e; these test don’t have any
time limit. It is generally observed or arranged in increasing order
of difficulty.
vi. Case Study:
In this method, the emphasis is given on in-depth study of a
particular case. The case can be an
i. Individual
ii. a small group of individuals having some commonality among
them (Like Rabindranath Tagore),
iii. Institutions (poorly or successfully functioning school or a
corporate office)
iv. Specific Events (Children exposed to devastation by tsunami,
war or pollution)
A case study employs multiple methods for collecting
information, such as interview, observation & psychological tests
from a variety of respondents who in some way or the other might
be associated with the case & can provide useful information.
A case study is a valuable research tool in the field of clinical
psychology and human development.
Freud’s Psychoanalytic theory or Piaget cognitive development
theory was emerged from case study method.
 Things to be cautious of:-
o The problem of validity in a single case study is quite
challenging.
o It is recommended that the information should be collected
using multiple strategies from different sources of information by a
number of investigators.
o Careful planning of data collection is also very necessary.
3) Analysis of Data:
once we have identified the problem & collected the data through
different methods stated above, not is the time to analyse these
data through 2 different methods: Quantitative & Qualitative
Quantitative Method:-
Any data which can be quantified in numbers or in scaled form is
Quantitative method (like 1, 2, 3.. or total of all numbers or mean,
median, & mode)
Qualitative Method:
Any data which cannot be quantified in numbers & are in
descriptive form is Qualitative data like interviews, taped/video
recorded, informal talks, etc. These type of data cannot be
converted into scores or subjected to statistical analysis.