Based on the case context, diagnose the error in the student's understanding of research designs. Explain why comparing these two occupational groups does not make the study an experiment, and identify the key feature that makes it a non-experimental correlational study instead.
Case context: A student researcher is reviewing Cacioppo and Petty's (1982) study on need for cognition. The student notes that the researchers compared the scores of two distinct groups (university professors and factory workers) and found a significant difference. The student concludes that because the researchers compared two groups to find a difference, they conducted an experiment with occupation as the manipulated independent variable.
Question: Based on the case context, diagnose the error in the student's understanding of research designs. Explain why comparing these two occupational groups does not make the study an experiment, and identify the key feature that makes it a non-experimental correlational study instead.
Sample answer: The student's error is assuming that comparing two groups automatically makes a study an experiment. In an experiment, the researcher must actively manipulate the independent variable and assign participants to different conditions. In this study, Cacioppo and Petty did not manipulate the participants' occupations or assign them to be professors or factory workers. Because they simply measured pre-existing occupational groups, the study is a non-experimental, correlational design.
Key points:
- Diagnoses the error that group comparison is not sufficient to define an experiment.
- Explains that the researchers did not manipulate the independent variable (occupation).
- States that participants were not randomly assigned to the groups by researchers.
- Identifies that the study measured pre-existing occupational groups, making it non-experimental.
Rubric: The response must explain that group comparison alone does not define an experiment, clarify that the researchers did not manipulate the occupation variable or assign participants, and define the study as non-experimental/correlational because it measured pre-existing groups.
0
1
Tags
KPU
Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
Related
In Cacioppo and Petty's (1982) correlational study, they validated the Need for Cognition Scale by comparing the scores of university professors with those of factory workers.
Cacioppo and Petty (1982) validated their 'Need for Cognition Scale' by comparing the scores of university professors with those of factory workers. Which of the following best explains why this study is categorized as a non-experimental, correlational design?
Cacioppo and Petty (1982) validated the Need for Cognition Scale by comparing university professors and factory workers. Match each component of their study to the methodological role it plays in this non-experimental design.
Analyze the methodological logic of the 'known-groups' validation strategy used by Cacioppo and Petty (1982). Arrange the following steps in the correct order to demonstrate how they used a non-experimental design to validate the scale.
In the 1982 study by John Cacioppo and Richard Petty, which two occupational groups were compared to validate the 'Need for Cognition' Scale?
Cacioppo and Petty's (1982) study is considered an experiment because the researchers compared the scores of two different groups.
When evaluating the methodological design of the Cacioppo and Petty (1982) study, a researcher would determine that the lack of _____ to the occupational groups is the primary reason the study is classified as non-experimental rather than experimental.
Cacioppo and Petty (1982) validated the Need for Cognition Scale using a non-experimental design. Match each methodological concept on the left to the specific way it is instantiated in their study.
When analyzing the internal structure of Cacioppo and Petty's (1982) study, a researcher would classify occupation (professor vs. factory worker) as a _____ variableāa pre-existing participant characteristic that sorts people into groups without any experimental manipulationāand would conclude that this feature is precisely why the design cannot support a causal claim about occupation's effect on need for cognition.
A research methods instructor asks students to critically evaluate the strength of construct validity evidence that Cacioppo and Petty's (1982) known-groups comparison provides for the Need for Cognition Scale. Arrange the following evaluative steps in the correct logical order.
Describe the 1982 study by John Cacioppo and Richard Petty that validated the Need for Cognition Scale. Specifically, identify the two participant groups they compared, the purpose of this comparison, and explain the methodological reason why this design is classified as non-experimental rather than experimental.
Based on the case context, diagnose the error in the student's understanding of research designs. Explain why comparing these two occupational groups does not make the study an experiment, and identify the key feature that makes it a non-experimental correlational study instead.
Apply the design logic of Cacioppo and Petty's (1982) validation study to a new scenario. If a researcher wants to validate a new scale measuring 'enjoyment of physical labor' using a non-experimental correlational design, how should they select and compare their participant groups without creating an experiment?