Research Methods in Psychology

Single-Case Research Designs

Single-Case Research Designs

▪ Idiographic rather than nomothetic

▪ Often used in clinical psychology and
neuropsychology
▪ Two major types
• Case study
• Single-case experimental designs
Case Study Method

▪ Intensive description and analysis of single

individual
▪ Clinical observations, self-report, archival
data (e.g., medical records)
• Typically report results of a treatment
▪ Major problem: lack of scientific control
• Simultaneous treatments, extraneous
variables
Case Study Method, continued

▪ Advantages
• Rich source of ideas for hypotheses
• Opportunity for clinical innovation
• Method for studying rare events
• Possible challenge to theoretical assumptions
• Tentative support for psychological theory
• Complement to nomothetic approach
Case Study Method, continued

▪ Disadvantages
• Difficult to draw cause-and-effect conclusions
(i.e., limited internal validity)
• Possible biases when interpreting outcomes
▪ Observer bias
▪ Biases in data collection (e.g., poor memory)
• Problem of generalizing findings from a single
individual (i.e., limited external validity)
Case Study Method, continued

▪ Points to remember about case studies

• Anecdotal evidence and “testimonials” are not
scientific.
▪ Anecdotal evidence is evidence based only on
personal observation, collected in a casual or non-
systematic manner
▪ Anecdotal evidence can be in the form of a shared
experience or a narrative that makes a point. A
neighbor's experience with their doctor, their
review of a school, or a three star online rating of a
hotel stay are all examples of anecdotal evidence.
Case Study Method, continued
▪ Points to remember about case studies
• Research reports in popular press and media are not
necessarily based on good science.
• People want to believe treatments described in
testimonials will work for them, but they often don’t.
• Better research: single-case experiments
Single-Case Experimental Designs
▪ Based on B.F. Skinner’s approach called applied behavior
analysis
• Greater scientific control
▪ Critical feature: independent variable
• Treatment and Control (baseline stage)
▪ Compare treatment and baseline conditions
▪ Monitor behavior continuously
▪ Search for discontinuity in behavior following implementation of
treatment
 Single-Case Designs, continued

▪ Baseline Baseline Projected future

responses
• Describe 15

behavior before
treatment 10

• Predict future
5
behavior (with no
treatment)
0
• Average of 1 5 10
Days
baseline
 Single-Subject Designs, continued
Baseline Treatment
Compared to baseline, 15

behavior decreases after

treatment is implemented.
10

This suggests treatment

was effective but some 5

other factor may have

occurred at the same time 0
as treatment to change 1 5 10 15 20
Days
behavior.
ABAB Design: Baseline (A) and
Treatment (B) Conditions are Contrasted
Illustration of a A B A B
15
treatment effect
▪ Frequency of behavior
10
decreases during
treatment (B)
▪ Reverses when treatment 5
is withdrawn (2nd A)
▪ Reverses again during
treatment (2nd B) 0

▪ “Reversal design”
1 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Days
ABAB Design, continued

Illustration of 15
A B A B

no reversal
▪ Frequency of behavior 10
does not reverse when
treatment is withdrawn
(2nd A) 5

▪ Difficult to determine
whether treatment was 0

effective 1 5 10 15 20
Days
25 30 35 40
ABAB Design, continued

▪ Methodological issues
• If behavior does not reverse to baseline levels
when treatment is withdrawn, researchers
cannot conclude treatment caused the initial
behavior change.
• Alternative causal inferences are possible.
ABAB Design, continued

▪ Possible causal inferences

• A variable other than treatment may have
caused behavior to change.
• Treatment may have promoted change, but
some other variable (e.g., positive attention)
may cause behavior change to persist.
• Some behaviors may be expected not to
change once improved (e.g., new skills are
learned, but not un-learned).
ABAB Design, continued

▪ Ethical issues
• Is it ethical to remove a treatment that
appears to be beneficial?
▪ Are there times when the second baseline (A)
should not be implemented?
• Ethical dilemma
▪ Goal of understanding causes of behavior change
▪ Goal of creating change and improving human
condition
Multiple-Baselines Design

▪ Solves ethical dilemma of ABAB design

• Treatment (B) not removed
▪ Procedure
• Establish several baselines
• Implement treatment in one baseline at a time
• Compare behavior in treatment and baseline
stages
▪ Establish multiple baselines across
situations, behaviors, or individuals.
Multiple-Baselines Design, continued

▪ Interpretation
• If treatment is effective
▪ Behavior changes when treatment is implemented.
▪ Behavior does not change in remaining baselines.
▪ Behavior changes only when treatment is
implemented.
▪ Behavior changes directly after the introduction of
treatment.
Multiple-Baselines Design, continued

▪ Example
▪ A behavioral intervention is used to help manage
the behavior of a problem child in the classroom.
▪ The child does not stay at her desk, blurts out
questions without raising her hand, does not
remain quiet during “quiet times,” and exhibits
other behaviors that disrupt the class.
▪ The treatment is to administer a positive reinforcer,
such as a token that can be exchanged for candy
or small toys, to reward desirable behavior in a
multiple-baseline across behaviors design.
 Multiple-Baselines Design, continued

▪ Multiple-baselines 9

across behaviors 8

• 1st behavior: leaving 7

desk 6
• 1st 2 days: baseline

Frequency
5
observations
4
• Implement treatment
3
(tokens) on Day 3
2
• Note behavior
1
improvement
(decreased frequency) 0
1 3 5 7 9
Days
Multiple-Baselines Design, continued

• 2nd behavior: blurts out 10

questions without
raising her hand 8

• 1st 5 days: baseline

Frequency
6
observations
• Implement treatment 4
on Day 6
• Behavior improves 2

(decrease in
0
frequency) 1 3 5 7 9
Days
 Multiple-Baselines Design, continued
▪ 3rd behavior: not quiet 12
during quiet times
10
▪ 1st 7 days: baseline
observations 8
▪ Implement treatment on

Frequency
6
Day 8
▪ Behavior improves 4
(decrease in frequency)
2

0
1 3 5 7 9
Days
Multiple-Baselines Design, continued

▪ Frequently asked questions

• How many baselines are needed?
▪ Minimum of 2, recommend 3 or 4
• What if behavior changes before treatment?
▪ Hard to interpret cause for behavior change
▪ Analyze situation to see if treatment effects
generalized
• What if treatment generalizes to other
behaviors, situations, or individuals?
▪ Modify research design if generalization is possible
Problems with All Single-Case Designs

▪ Baseline records
• Unstable: Extreme variability in behavior
▪ Difficult to detect clear discontinuity in behavior
following treatment
▪ Try to control variability or wait for baseline
behavior to stabilize
• Increasing or decreasing trends
▪ Effects of treatment will be hard to interpret
▪ Trends: Interpretation depends on desired
direction of treatment effects
Problems, continued

▪ External validity
• Will treatment effects observed for one
individual generalize to others?
• Reasons why external validity may not be
limited
▪ Treatments are often powerful
▪ Multiple-baseline designs demonstrate generality
of treatment effects
▪ Group treatments can be used to demonstrate
effectiveness of treatment across individuals