Table of Contents
What are the advantages and disadvantages of a laboratory experiment?
Laboratory Experiment
| Laboratory Experiment | |
| Advantages Controls extraneous variables Replication is more possible | Disadvantages May lack generalisability Low external validity demand characteristics Low mundane realism |
| Evaluation Although it is extremely reliable, there’s contributing factors in making it less reliable |
What are the disadvantages of laboratory experiments?
Disadvantages
- Demand characteristics – participants aware of experiment, may change behaviour.
- Artificial environment – low realism.
- May have low ecological validity – difficult to generalise to other situations.
- Experimenter effects – bias when experimenter’s expectations affect behaviour.
What is the main advantage of laboratory experiments?
Strength: It is easier to replicate (i.e. copy) a laboratory experiment. This is because a standardized procedure is used. Strength: They allow for precise control of extraneous and independent variables. This allows a cause and effect relationship to be established.
What’s the biggest disadvantage of a laboratory experiment?
A key drawback of conducting a lab experiment is that it is not typical to real life and lacks mundane realism. They are generally set in contrived environments, often strange to the participants taking part. Participants are often asked to perform unusual tasks not typical to day to day life.
What are the disadvantages of laboratory observation?
One disadvantage in a laboratory observation is that the behavior of the participant might not be the same was it would be in a natural setting. For example, I did not have the opportunity to drink water while I was being observed.
What is the disadvantage of laboratory research?
A disadvantage of laboratory experiments are demand characteristics. The participants may be aware that they are participating in an experiment and therefore may behave differently to how they would typically behave. This reduces the validity of the study.
What are the advantages of experiment?
List of Advantages of Experimental Research
- It gives researchers a high level of control.
- It allows researchers to utilize many variations.
- It can lead to excellent results.
- It can be used in different fields.
- It can lead to artificial situations.
- It can take a lot of time and money.
- It can be affected by errors.
What is a disadvantages of using laboratory experiments in sociological research?
Disadvantages of Laboratory Experiments Theoretical – They are small scale and thus unrepresentative. Ethical – Deception and lack of informed consent – it is often necessary to deceive subjects as to the true nature of the experiment so that they do not act differently. Links to the Hawthorne Effect.
What is a laboratory experiment?
Laboratory experiments are a research method by which researchers create controllable environments to test hypotheses. Although researchers conduct experiments in various settings, a laboratory provides the best control of manipulation conditions (i.e., tested variables), participants, and the environment.
What are the weaknesses of an experiment?
Strengths and weaknesses of experimental methods
| Strengths: | Weaknesses: |
|---|---|
| Tighter control of variables. Easier to comment on cause and effect. | Demand characteristics – participants aware of experiment, may change behaviour. |
| Relatively easy to replicate. | Artificial environment – low realism. |