A controlled observation was designed to compare the cooperative and sharing behaviours of primary school children who regularly attend after-school drama clubs and those who do not. The sample consisted of 80 children aged six, who were observed individually. Half of the children attended a drama club and the other half did not.
The observation took place in a dedicated creative workshop room equipped with a fixed set of popular craft materials. In the room, three other children (acting as confederates) and one supervising assistant were present. Their behaviour was not recorded.
Each child participant was brought into the room by their class teacher. The teacher then left the room. Each child participant's sharing behaviour was observed covertly for eight minutes through a one-way mirror.
The observation was conducted in a controlled environment and a standardised script was used by the assistant when the children arrived.
Explain why the researchers used a controlled observation and a standardised script in this study.
Practise AQA A Level Psychology Observational techniques with exam-style questions for A Level Psychology. 30 questions, matched to the AQA A Level Psychology (7182) specification and written in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.