👀 Observable
Categories must focus on behaviours that can be seen and recorded, not internal thoughts or feelings. For example, "frowning" rather than "feeling sad".
Designing Research » Categories of Behaviour
What you'll learn this session
Study time: 30 minutes
- How to identify and classify different categories of behaviour
- Methods for measuring and recording behaviour in psychological research
- Understanding behavioural categories: event sampling, time sampling and continuous recording
- How to design effective behavioural categories for research
- Practical applications of behavioural categories in psychological studies
Introduction to Categories of Behaviour
When psychologists conduct research, they need clear ways to observe and record what people do. This is where categories of behaviour come in. These are specific, observable actions that researchers can identify and count to collect data about how people behave in different situations.
Key Definitions:
- Categories of behaviour: Specific, observable actions that can be clearly identified and measured in psychological research.
- Operationalisation: The process of defining a variable so it can be measured in a clear, consistent way.
- Behavioural sampling: Methods used to record instances of behaviour during research.
Why Categories Matter
Imagine trying to study "aggression" without defining what counts as aggressive behaviour. One researcher might count only physical attacks, while another includes verbal insults. This would make their results impossible to compare! Clear behavioural categories solve this problem.
Creating Effective Behavioural Categories
Good behavioural categories need to be:
📝 Precise
Categories should be specific enough that different researchers would agree when they see the behaviour. "Hits another person" is clearer than "acts aggressively".
🔗 Mutually Exclusive
Each behaviour should fit into only one category. A person can't be "sitting quietly" and "walking around" at the same time.
🎙 Exhaustive
Your categories should cover all possible behaviours relevant to your research question, so no important data is missed.
Methods for Recording Behaviour
Once you've defined your behavioural categories, you need a system for recording when these behaviours occur. Psychologists use three main methods:
🕐 Time Sampling
Researchers observe at set time intervals (e.g., every 30 seconds) and record which behaviours are happening at that exact moment.
Example: Checking every 5 minutes to see if students are on-task or off-task in a classroom.
📊 Event Sampling
Researchers count how many times specific behaviours occur during the observation period.
Example: Counting how many times a child shares toys during a play session.
📹 Continuous Recording
Researchers record behaviours continuously throughout the observation period, noting when each behaviour starts and stops.
Example: Recording exactly how long a participant spends looking at different parts of an advertisement.
Comparing Sampling Methods
Advantages and Disadvantages
Each method has strengths and weaknesses that make it suitable for different research questions:
🕐 Time Sampling
Advantages:
- Easy to implement
- Less demanding for researchers
- Good for behaviours that last a while
Disadvantages:
- May miss brief behaviours
- Can't measure duration accurately
- May not capture rare but important events
📊 Event Sampling
Advantages:
- Captures frequency of specific behaviours
- Good for rare or brief behaviours
- Provides quantitative data
Disadvantages:
- Doesn't record duration
- Can be overwhelming if behaviours occur frequently
- May miss context of behaviours
Case Study Focus: Parten's Play Categories
In the 1930s, Mildred Parten created categories to study how children play. She defined six types of play:
- Unoccupied play: Child not playing, just observing
- Solitary play: Playing alone
- Onlooker play: Watching others play
- Parallel play: Playing beside, but not with, others
- Associative play: Playing with others without organisation
- Cooperative play: Organised play with others
These clear categories allowed researchers to observe and record children's social development through play behaviours.
Practical Example: Designing a Study
Let's imagine we want to study classroom participation. Here's how we might define our behavioural categories:
✍ Active Participation
- Raising hand to answer a question
- Asking a relevant question
- Contributing to group discussion
- Volunteering for demonstrations
😴 Non-Participation
- Looking out the window
- Using phone under desk
- Talking to peers about unrelated topics
- Head down on desk
For this study, event sampling might work best to count instances of participation, while time sampling could track overall engagement levels throughout the lesson.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
❌ Vague Categories
Poor example: "Student is being good"
Better example: "Student is following instructions within 5 seconds"
❌ Overlapping Categories
Poor example: Having "talking" and "asking questions" as separate categories (a question is also talking)
Better example: "Talking off-topic" and "Asking topic-related questions"
Ethics in Behavioural Observation
When designing research using behavioural categories, remember these ethical considerations:
- Informed consent: Participants should know they're being observed (except in public settings)
- Privacy: Don't record identifying information unless necessary
- Minimal disruption: Try not to change the natural behaviour you're studying
- Confidentiality: Keep all observation data secure
Real-World Applications
Behavioural categories aren't just for academic research! They're used in many real-world settings:
- Schools: Teachers track classroom behaviours to improve management techniques
- Therapy: Therapists monitor client progress by recording specific behaviours
- Sports: Coaches analyse player movements and decisions
- Marketing: Companies observe how customers interact with products
Summary: Key Points to Remember
When designing research using categories of behaviour:
- Make your categories clear, observable and non-overlapping
- Choose the right sampling method for your research question
- Consider practical limitations like time and number of observers
- Remember ethical guidelines for observational research
- Practice identifying and recording behaviours before starting your main study
By carefully designing your behavioural categories and recording methods, you can collect reliable data that will help answer your research questions accurately.
Log in to track your progress and mark lessons as complete!
Login NowDon't have an account? Sign up here.