Experiment method,its advantages and disadvantages

Subject  > Social Science Essays

All sociological researchers make use of the data collected to test their hypotheses, but the way and methods used differ from one sociological study to another. There are four general techniques, the case study, the experiment, the observational study and the survey. An experiment is a scientific method in which data are collected to be tested to prove a hypothesis using either independent variables in a closed environment or dependent variables in an opened environment. There are two types of experiment, the laboratory experiment that is as its name suggests conducted in laboratory and the field experiment conducted in a natural environment. The advocates of positivism support the use of experiment due to its many advantages. Karl Popper for example, believed ...

... experiment, as well. For example, certain preconceptions may dictate the course of the research and affect the behavior of the subjects. The researcher does bring bias to experimentation, but bias does not limit an ability to be reflective. An ethical researcher thinks critically about results and reports those results after careful reflection. Concerns over bias can be leveled against any research method. The subject matter of sociology, human being has consciousness, feelings and emotion. To study human behavior with accuracy is not possible. When a human population is involved, experimental research becomes concerned if behavior can be predicted or studied with validity. Rationalizing human behavior through the process of experimentation, when a researcher is conducting the

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