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Based on the principle of clear and brief procedures, diagnose the underlying cause of the participants' behavior in the latter part of the study, and explain what adjustments the researcher should make to the design of the measurement procedure to prevent this issue.
Case context: A researcher is conducting a study on cognitive habits. They ask participants to complete a 90-minute questionnaire containing 200 items written in dense, academic jargon. During the analysis, the researcher notices that in the final third of the questionnaire, many participants selected the exact same response pattern, and several left comments expressing annoyance with the length of the study.
Question: Based on the principle of clear and brief procedures, diagnose the underlying cause of the participants' behavior in the latter part of the study, and explain what adjustments the researcher should make to the design of the measurement procedure to prevent this issue.
Sample answer: The participants are showing participant reactivity caused by fatigue and frustration from a measurement procedure that is too long (90 minutes, 200 items) and complex (dense academic jargon). This fatigue and frustration tempted them to respond carelessly (using a repetitive pattern) or show frustration (writing complaints). To prevent this, the researcher should apply the strategy of keeping procedures clear and brief by reducing the number of questionnaire items to make the task more efficient, and simplifying the terminology to make it easy to understand, thereby preventing the fatigue and frustration that drive this reactivity.
Key points:
- Diagnose the response behavior as participant reactivity.
- Identify the cause of reactivity as fatigue or frustration from the long and complex procedure.
- Explain that the reactivity manifested as careless responding or complaints.
- Propose making the procedure brief by reducing questionnaire items/time.
- Propose making the procedure clear by simplifying the jargon.
Rubric: The response must correctly diagnose that the participants' behavior is a form of participant reactivity resulting from fatigue and frustration caused by a long and complex protocol. The student must propose reducing the questionnaire length (making it brief) and simplifying the language (making it clear) to resolve the issue.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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