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REFLECTION PAPER: RESEARCH IN CHILD AND ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT

From the modules on Research in Child and Adolescent Development, I realized that teachers
can be both a user and producers of developmental research. Teachers and policymakers can
utilize research to their advantage when making decisions that will benefit students and their
families. At the same time, teachers may write their own study of a child’s and adolescent’s
development based on their day-to-day interactions with them and the phenomenon that arises in
the teaching-and-learning process.

I also learned the following:

Steps to Scientific Method According to Dewey:

1. Identify and define the problem.
2. Determine the hypothesis.
3. Collect and analyze data.
4. Formulate conclusions.
5. Apply conclusions to the original hypothesis.
Hypothesis – the tentative answer to the research problem. Also referred to as “educated
guess”.
Experimental research – research problem is concerned with determining the cause of an effect
or a phenomenon.
Descriptive research – research problem is concerned with describing data and characteristics
about the subjects or phenomenon you are studying.
Research Designs:
1) Case Study – an in-depth look at an individual.
a) Strength – it provides information about an individual’s fears, hopes, fantasies, traumatic
experiences, upbringing, family relationships, health, and anything that helps a
psychologist understand that person’s development.
b) weaknesses – need to exercise caution when generalizing from the information.
2) Correlational Study – a research design that determines associations.
a) Strengths – Useful because the more strongly two events are correlated, the more we can
predict one from the other.
b) Weaknesses – because correlation research does not involve manipulation of factors, it is
not a dependable way to isolate causes.
3) Experimental - a research design that determines cause-and-effect relationships. The
experimental method involves manipulating one variable to determine if changes in one
variable cause changes in another variable.
a) Strength – the only true reliable method of establishing cause and effect.
b) Weaknesses – Experimental research is limited to what is observable, testable, and
manipulable. Hawthorne effect – subject may change their behavior or respond in a
specific manner simply because of awareness of being observed.
4) Naturalistic Observation – a research design that focuses on children’s experience in
natural settings.
a) Strength – One of the advantages of this type of research is that it allows the researchers
to directly observe the subject in a natural setting.
b) Weaknesses – it can be difficult to determine the exact cause of a behavior and the
experimenter cannot control outside variables.
5) Longitudinal – this research design studies and follows through a single group over a period
of time. The same individuals are studied over a period of time, usually several years or
more.
a) Strength – allows them to record and monitor developmental trends.
b) Weaknesses – expensive and time-consuming.
6) Cross-sectional – a research strategy in which individuals of different ages are compared at
one time.
a) Strength – allows them to record and monitor developmental trends without waiting for
the subject to grow up or become older.
b) Weaknesses – it gives no information about how individuals change or about the stability
of their characteristics.
7) Sequential – this is the combined cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches to learn about
life-span development.
a) Strength – allows them to record and monitor developmental trends.
b) Weaknesses – it is complex, expensive, and time-consuming.
8) Action Research – it is a reflective process of progressive problem-solving led by
individuals working with others in teams or as part of a “community practice” to improve the
way they address issues and solve problems.
a) Strength – appropriate in a particular setting when the purpose of the study is “to create
changes and gain information on processes and outcome of the strategies used”.
b) Weaknesses – Typically takes place in one organization only at a particular time and
could not be interpreted within different organizations in the same way.

Data Gathering Techniques

1. Observation – can be made in either lab or natural settings.
2. Physiological Measures – certain indicators of children’s development such as, among
others, heart rate, hormonal levels, bone growth, body weight, and brain activity are
measured.
3. Standardized – these are prepared tests that assess an individual’s performance in
different domains.
4. Interviews and Questionnaires – involve asking the participants to provide information
about themselves based on the interview or questionnaire given by the researcher.
5. Life-History Records – these are the records of information about a lifetime chronology
of events and activities. They often involve a combination of data records on education,
work, family, and residence.
Data Privacy Act of 2012 (R.A. 10173) – the law passed “to protect the fundamental human
right of privacy of communication while ensuring free flow of information to promote
innovation and growth”. The law states that the collection of personal data “must be a declared,
specified, and legitimate purpose and that… consent is required prior to the collection of all
personal data.”

Research Abstract – this is a brief summary that appears at the beginning of the article.
a. Title
b. Researcher/s
c. Date of Research
d. Introduction – introduces the problem or issue that is being studied. It includes a concise
review of research relevant to the topic, theoretical ties, and one or more hypotheses to be
tested.
e. Methods – consists of a clear description of the subjects evaluated in the study, the
measures used and the procedures that were followed.
f. Findings/Results of the Study – reports the analysis of the data collected.
g. Conclusions and Recommendations – state the author’s answers to the specific problems
of the study and suggestions on the next steps based on the findings and conclusions of
the study.
h. References – these include bibliographic information for each source cited in the research
report.