THE DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH STRATEGY

INTRODUCTION

These are the characteristics of the descriptive

research strategy: It refers to the
Research Strategy approaches that can
• It is specifically focused on measuring a be used to gather
single set of variables as they exist information.
naturally. In other words, it means that
descriptive research strategy only
observes the state of one or more These are the
variables, it does not involve any methods to
manipulation or whatsoever. implement the
study. It involves the
• It is also not concerned with the topic such as:
relationship between variables. It other
words, this research strategy only cares • Within or
about the description of each variable Between
such as the state or their quality. Research Design Groups

• Focus on groups
• This strategy is useful in the early stages or individual
of research since it only focuses on the participants.
description of each variable. It can
dissect each construct quite effectively.
• The number of
variables that is
• The results from this research strategy needed to
can give us ideas about naturally measure.
occurring behavior. In other words, since
the nature of this strategy does not
involve any manipulation, it is extremely It is an exact step-
useful when trying to gain information Research by-step procedure
Procedure of a specific
about natural behavior since it would
not affect them. research study.
 Between Groups: Different groups for each
treatment.
Within Groups: Same group for all the
treatment.
There is a total of three (3) descriptive research
designs. These are:
It focuses on the description
of the behavior of a single or
more individuals as they
occur in natural settings.
Example:
Observational Jane Goodall’s famous
Research research on chimpanzees.
She documented their
behavior in their natural
environment which involves
social structure, mating
patterns, gender roles, family
structure, and how they care
about their offspring.
It focuses on the description
of the responses of
individuals to questions
about behavior and
attitudes.
Survey
Research Basically, it uses survey forms
to gather data from the
respondents regarding a
particular topic. It can be
through online, phone, or
face-to-face format.
Longitudinal Survey
Research: It involves
continuous analysis of the
preferences or behavior of
individuals using survey
forms.
Example: Continuous
observation of the eating
habits of teenagers in a
specific period of time
through survey forms to
ensure the reliability of the
information.
Cross-Sectional Survey
Research: It can either be
descriptive or analytical. It
focuses on gathering insights
from a target audience at a
particular time interval.
Example: Examining the
prevalence of an infectious
disease amongst a defined
population. Considering
ages, ethnicities,
geographical locations, and
social backgrounds. If there is
a particular population who
lives in a specific
geographical location is more
prone to this type of disease,
then there will be further
studies as to why it happens.
 It focuses on the description
of a single individual in great
detail.
Case Study
Research
Example: The case study on
Jeffrey Dahmer. An individual
who is said to have anti-social
personality disorder.
OBSERVATIONAL RESEARCH DESIGN
The researchers observe and record the behavior
of individuals for the purpose of describing it.
Example: Jane Goodall’s famous research on
chimpanzees. In her study, she documented the
behavior of chimpanzees which includes the way
they move in their natural environment which
involves social structure, mating patterns,
gender roles, family structure, and how they care
about their offspring.
BEHAVIORAL OBSERVATION
It refers to the process of observing a behavior
which involves direct observation and systematic
recording of behavior.
Example:
1. The observation done by the faculty head,
supervisor, or principal during a classroom
discussion.
2. Observing how dogs interact with strangers
near a food stall.
3. Watching how doves behave in a park.
However, regardless of its great features, it is still
prone to errors such as:
1. Natural behavior cannot be observed under
the presence of an observer or while they
are aware that they are being recorded since
it would cause what is called reactivity.
Reactivity: It refers to the manipulation of
behavior the subjects do whenever they are
aware of being observed by an observer which
poses issues with internal validity.
Example: Factory workers while being observed
by their supervisor would most likely exhibit
Hawthorne Effect during a study which involves
the idea whether a more ventilated and cooler
work environment would enhance the
performance of the employees.
In this experiment, the observer poses a threat
to the internal validity of the study since it is
possible that the development with the
performance of the employees is not really due
to the improvement in the environment but
rather due to the reactivity since the workers are
aware that they are being observed.
This issue can be dealt with by not letting them
know that they are being observed, which is only
ethical in public places. Second is to use
habituation.
Habituation: It refers to the process of letting the
subjects get used to the presence of the observer
in order to gradually reduce the chance of
reactivity during the observation.
An example of this is repeatedly exposing an
individual to a group of observers before the day
of a public speaking event so that the chance of
reactivity due to being observed would be less
likely to happen during the actual event.
2. The interpretation of the behavior requires
at least some subjective perspective of the
observer which raises the question of
reliability.
Example: Observation of a hunt between a lion
and a herd of zebras.
Speed of Lions: 80km/h (higher energy cost)
Speed of Zebras: 64km/h (higher agility = quick)
During a short period, chase, the lion would win
since it is significantly faster than the zebra.
However, since the zebra is more agile, it often
escapes from the predator due to the hunt being
too long for the stamina of the lion.
Therefore, we can conclude that the lion felt
exhausted which explains why it stopped chasing
the herd of zebras or maybe it only suddenly
became more interested in other prey that is
easier to hunt than its current target.
To address this problem with regards to
subjective interpretation, researchers usually
implement three (3) related devices to ensure
the objectivity of their behavioral observation.
1. Listing a well-defined category of behavior
(behavior categories). To determine which
set of behaviors we want to observe which
would be added with examples of each
category. This part is kind of similar to the
operational definition which includes the
meaning of the construct and how it is
measured.
2. Asking multiple observers (3) to assess the
inter-rater reliability. Three (3) raters is ideal
since by using 2 or any even number of raters
there would be issues with the balancing of
the ratings and if we would use odd numbers
higher than 3 there could be issues with the
resources since there would be too many
raters.
Inter-rater reliability: It refers to the type of
reliability gathered through the help of three (3)
raters. The reliability would be based on the
ratings they would make. Single test and
administration. Test administration.
However, it is still valid to use two (2) raters in
which the correlation between the ratings of the
two raters would be compared instead of (3).
 QUANTIFYING OBSERVATIONS
Behavioral observation also includes turning the
verbal results into numerical values in order to
understand it easier. There are three techniques
used for it to be accomplished.
1. Frequency Method: It involves the act of
counting how often a behavior occurred
during a fixed time observation period.
The first two techniques are suited for observing
specific behaviors but can lead to distorted
measurements in some situations.
Example: A dog that is staring at the barbeque
stall for 10 minutes would only have a score of 1
in a frequency method. However, a dog that
approached the customers 10 times during a
span of 10 minutes would have a score of 10 in a
frequency method.

Example: The dog approached the

customers of a barbeque stall seven Frequency Timespan
times already during a 10-minute period
which indicates that it is hungry and
asking for some food. Dog 1 10 minutes
(stare)
2. Duration Period: It involves recording
how long a subject is engaged with a
specific behavior during a fixed time Dog 10 10 minutes
observation period. (approach)

Example: The dog has been staring at

the barbeque that is being cooked for
over 10-minutes already which indicates
that it is interested in the food. Duration Timespan

3. Interval Method: It involves observing

whether a behavior occurs at a time with Dog 10 minutes 10 minutes
the presence of interval. (stare)

Example: During a 1 hour allotted time

for observation, the researchers divided Dog 30 seconds (per 10 minutes
it into 6 parts in which the observation is (approach) approach)
done on the first 2 hours and last 2 hours
with a 2-hour interval in between.
In other words, there are specific behaviors that
are not really designed to be measured by the
first two methods regardless of their useful
nature when it comes to measuring some
particular behavior. This is where the interval
 method comes in to solve this problem since it 3. Individual Sampling: It focuses on observing only
uses both methods to maintain the balance. single participant during each interval period. It lets
the observer focus on a single individual at a time.

Frequency Duration Time

CONTENT ANALYSIS AND ARCHIVAL RESEARCH

Dog 1 10 mins 10
(stare) mins
Content Analysis refers to the process of
measuring behaviors or events in books, movies,
or other media. In other words, it uses the
Dog 10 30 secs 10
method of behavioral observation to measure
(approach) mins
the occurrence of specific events in literature,
movies, television programs, or similar media
that present replicas of behavior.

Example: Measuring the demographic

SAMPLING OBSERVATIONS (consumer) of the manga called Jujutsu Kaisen. It
would involve how many members of each age
group support the said product.
When a situation is complex to rate during an
active interaction. There are two solutions that
can be considered. Archival Research involves looking at historical
records to measure behaviors or events that
1. Recording for later use.
occurred in the past.
2. Record a sample of behavior rather than
every single detail. Example: Measuring the psychopathic
tendencies of Jeffrey Dahmer based on his
official records.
The first step in the process of sampling
observation is to divide the period into series of
time intervals. Then the process would be
consisting of one of the following three
procedures:

1. Time Sampling: It involves a series of observe-

record-observe-record, which lets the researcher
record details while not being pressured by the time
constraints.
2. Event Sampling: It involves focusing on a specific
behavior on each interval. It lets the observer focus
on a single behavior during a single period of time.
TYPES OF OBSERVATIONS AND EXAMPLES
1. Naturalistic Observation: Observing
behaviors in natural environment
without any intervention. It is also STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF
known as non-participant observation. OBSERVATIONAL RESEARCH
It has a high internal validity since it is
studied in a natural setting without
intervention. Design Strengths Weakness
es
Additionally, it is also used to examine
behaviors that are not ethically Behaviors Time-
accessible such as issues with using observed in the consuming
violence to induce discipline. real world.
Potential
One of its limitations is that it needs to Useful for non- for
have a long period of time for the manipulated observer
process of observation due to the Naturalistic behaviors. influence
natural setting of the observation. Observation
Second is that there should be a careful Actual Potential
action done by the researcher to avoid behaviors for
any effects on the natural behavior. observed and subjective
recorded. interpretat
ion.
2. Participant Observation: It involves
actually interacting with the subjects When natural Time-
while observing their behavior. It allows observation is consuming
researchers to record behaviors that impossible.
occur in an unnatural and unethical Potential
setting that are not usually accessible Get for loss of
such as occult studies. information objectivity
Participant not accessible
Limitations of this study include issues Observation otherwise. Increased
with time consumption, researchers chance of
could possibly alter the behavior of their Participant observer
subjects. gives unique influence.
perspective.

3. Contrived Observation: It is also known Do not have to

as structured observation. It involves Contrived wait for Less
developing an environment which would Observation behaviors to natural
trigger the behavior to occur instead of occur,
waiting for it to happen naturally. It is
often done in laboratory research.
 LIST OF RESEARCH DESIGNS THAT ALLOWS THE
SURVEY RESEARCH DESIGN
USE OF SURVEY

It refers to the research design that uses 1. Experimental Research Design

surveys to obtain a description of a 2. Correlational Research Design
particular group of individuals. In other 3. Non-Experimental Research Design
words, a study that uses surveys simply
for descriptive purposes is classified
SURVEY RESEARCH PRESENCE OF
survey research design. It includes the
DESIGN SURVEY IN OTHER
implementation of survey forms in order
RESEARCH DESIGNS
to conduct a self-report study regarding
attitudes, opinions, personal
characteristics, and behaviors.
If the survey is used If the survey is used
simply for descriptive for other purposes
purposes, then it such as for
Surveys can be used to obtain scores for
would be called quantitative research.
a variety of different research designs, it
survey research
is often conducted to obtain a
design.
description of a particular group of
individuals. In other words, even without
using this research design researchers
are still allowed to implement the use of The main idea behind this method is that there
surveys to gather data for their study. would be no need for the researcher to observe
and record the behavior directly since there are
Example: The implementation of surveys some of it that are quite hard to observe maybe
on our experimental research during due to time consumption or schedule of the
Experimental Psychology. occurrence of the behavior.

• Preferences with food (No need to wait for

them to eat).

• How much of their time they spend on social

media on a daily basis (No need to watch
them surf on the internet from the beginning
until the end).
The goal of survey research design is to
obtain an accurate picture of the
individuals being studied. In other
words, it only seeks to gather accurate
information regarding the individuals
being studied such as their eating habits,
nighttime routine, etc.
FOUR ISSUES THAT MUST BE
ADDRESSED FOR THE RESULTS TO BE
ACCURATE AND MEANINGFUL
1. Survey questions must be developed.
There needs to be a time specifically prepared for
the process of question development.

Example: The researchers can use

surveys to investigate internet use at a
local high school. The questions may
include how much time they spend on
using the internet, which activities they
prefer to do while surfing on the
internet, and many more.
It can also be used by companies to
obtain more accurate descriptions of
their customers in order for them to
know more about their customers.
2. The questions must be assembled and
organized to produce a well-constructed
survey.
Just like when it comes to making a test, a survey
needs to be constructed properly in a manner
that it is really focused on determining what it
intends to tackle.
3. A selection process must be developed to
determine who exactly will participate in the
survey and who will not.

There should be a proper selection process to

Example: During the process of availing
determine who are the participants and who will
insurance in which you would have to tell
not take part in the survey.
them various amounts of information
such as your occupation, income, from
whom did you heard about their
4. Researchers must determine how surveys
company, etc. They would do this so that
will be administered.
they could possibly promote their other
services or offers to you based on your
There should be a decision as to how it
personal information.
would be administered, would it be through
the internet or in person? Will we recite the
questions to them, or will we just use printed
questionnaire?
 TYPE OF QUESTIONS participants who would have a different
approach to understanding the question which
The use of proper type of questions matters a lot
would affect the quality of the information that
when it comes to data gathering. There are some
would be gathered from them.
that are designed to be answered by only two
responses such as yes or no, agree or disagree.
On the other hand, there are questions who
Example: If you asked them their opinion about
focuses on determining the frequency of the
their school in which some might tell you not to
occurrence of a behavior. Some are even
consider enrolling in their school or may
allowing the respondents to freely express
promote their school which are somehow
themselves without any selected response.
different from what you asked them.
Each type has its own individual strengths and
weaknesses and is designed to obtain specific
information. The second disadvantage of open-ended
questions is that answers are often difficult to
summarize or analyze with conventional
OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS statistical methods.

Example: If they answered specifically their

It only introduces a topic and allows the responses would be hard to group together for
respondents to respond in their own words. statistical measurements.
Similar to constructed response format.

In order to avoid this, researchers could classify

Examples: them into two spectrums only, generally positive
or generally negative.

1. What is your opinion about the recent

actions of President Marcos in which he
went to a concert using the Presidential
helicopter? The third disadvantage is that respondents may
be limited by their willingness to respond with
2. As a woman, how would you feel if your the questions since they are allowed to freely
partner offered you a 299-peso engagement answer the questions, they may see it as an
ring? opportunity to only respond to it very shortly. It
is also possible for them to be limited by their
ability to express themselves.
The primary advantage of an open-ended
question is that it allows an individual to be
flexible in choosing their answers. It allows
them to become more open with their thoughts
and opinions. However, it could also become a
disadvantage since there may be some
 Additionally, it is also possible to obtain
quantitative information using this type of
question.

RESTRICTED QUESTIONS
Example:

1. How often does Jigo manage to attend his

A restricted question presents the participant first subject in a week?
with a limited number of response alternatives
which restricts them in terms of response a. Once
possibilities. It is similar to multiple-choice b. Twice
questions and also same with the selected- c. Three times
response format. d. Never

Examples: Finally, there can also be a combination between

restricted questions and open-ended questions.
1. Which among your psychology instructors is
the prettiest?

Example:
a. Ma’am Aring
b. Ma’am Jasmine 1. Which of the following is your favorite
c. Ma’am Ave fastfood?
d. Ma’am Barraca
a. Jollibee
b. Mc Donald’s
Due to these responses being limited it is easier c. KFC
for them to analyze and summarize. Most of the d. Other (please specify)
time the data are tabulated and reported as
percentage or proportions of participants
selecting each alternative.
 RATING SCALE QUESTIONS ISSUES WITH RATING SCALE QUESTIONS

It focuses on requiring the participants to

respond by selecting numerical value on a
1. Response Set: The participants use the
predetermined scale. It is often called the Likert
same response on every or almost all of
Scale. An example of this is the Graphic Rating
the questions. It may be possible that
Scale.
even them they are not completely able
It is designed to simulate the two ends of to answer themselves about how they
spectrum from the lowest up to the highest. feel about the question or maybe they
There is no exact category for a rating scale. only want to finish it quickly.
However, researchers commonly use 5 to 10
Additionally, it is also possible that the
numerical values.
participants are using agree on most of
Reasons include: the items except on those they
completely disagree. In order to avoid
1. Participants tend to avoid the two highest
this, it is recommended that there
ends of the scale which somehow reduces
should be a mixture of negative and
the scale with 2 responses.
positive statements on a scale or include
2. Participants have trouble discriminating
alternate phrasing of the item.
among more than 9 or 10 different levels.
The more responses the scale offers the
higher the tendency for them to have issues
Example:
with their decision when it comes to rating.
• Today’s teenagers are rude and
disrespectful.

Later in the series, an alternate item

might be:

• Today’s teenagers are polite and

courteous.

The idea here is to force the participants to go

back and forth on each side of the scale so that
they will not fall into a single response set for
answering the questions.
There is no rule for labeling the categories.
Typically, the opposite extremes are
identified with verbal labels called anchors
that establish the endpoint of the scale. On
the other hand, the middle part is labeled as
neutral response. However, labeling
categories is optional.
The primary advantage of rating scale questions
is that it produces numerical values that can be
treated as measurements from an interval scale.
Each response would be added to obtain the
score.
A secondary advantage of rating scale questions
is tat participants usually find them easy to
understand and easy to answer. Since there is
wide range of possible responses they are not
forced to respond only using yes or no and they
are also not forced to construct their own
response.

Example:

1 = strongly disagree Additionally, it is also easy to scan and answer

the items after a brief introduction. Which makes
2 = disagree
it ideal for collecting a lot of data on a variety of
3 = neutral different topics in a single, relatively efficient
survey.
4 = agree

5 = strongly agree

Total scores:

All 1 in a 5-item scale would have a total score of

5. On the other hand, all 5 in a 5-item scale would
have a total score of 25.

This way we compare each individual, group

them, and label them based on their scores.