Research Methods in Developmental Psychology

Introduction

• Developmental psychology explores what infants know and how they grow and change with age.
• Research techniques are used to study psychological phenomena in infants and children.
• Unique challenges exist in conducting research with infants and children.

Learning Objectives

• Describe research methods for studying infant and child development.
• Discuss research designs, strengths, and limitations.
• Understand challenges in conducting developmental research.

Research Methods

Involuntary or Obligatory Responses

• Infants have limited motor control; therefore, researchers assess involuntary responses.
• Habituation: Infants are shown a stimulus repeatedly until they get bored; then, a new stimulus is introduced to test their response.
• Dishabituation: Infants show increased interest in a new stimulus after habituation.

Voluntary Responses

• With age, children engage in voluntary responses.
• Recall Memory: Studied through behaviors like elicited imitation.
• Elicited Imitation: Infants are shown how a toy works and later tested on recall memory.

Psychophysiology

• Studies link behavior with biological changes.
• Event-related potentials (ERPs): Record brain activity to understand cognitive processes.

Parent-report Questionnaires

• Use surveys to gather information from parents about children’s behavior and development.
• Example: Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) to identify behavioral issues in children.

Interview Techniques

• Older children and adults can report thoughts and knowledge through verbal interviews.

Research Design

Longitudinal Research

• Examines behavior in the same individuals over time.
• Allows study of development and stability.
• Limitations: Expensive, risk of attrition, practice effects, and cohort effects.

Cross-sectional Research

• Examines behavior in different age groups at the same time.
• Cost-effective and quick data collection.
• Limitations: Shows age-related differences, not development.

Sequential Research Designs

• Combines elements of longitudinal and cross-sectional designs.
• Powerful in studying both age-related changes and cohort effects.

Challenges in Developmental Research

Ethical Concerns

• Infants and young children are vulnerable; special accommodations are needed.
• Parental informed consent and child assent are necessary.

Recruitment

• Challenges in recruiting infants and children, unlike university students.
• Strategies include using public records, recruitment agencies, and social media.

Attrition

• High dropout rates in studies with young children.
• Importance of short, engaging, and flexible study designs.

Conclusion

• Developmental psychology provides valuable insights into child development but requires careful methodological considerations.
• Future research can continue to explore intriguing questions regarding developmental changes.