RASEARCH DESIGNS
Experimental design, as we know, are setup to examine possible cause and effect of relationships among variables, in contrast to correlational studies, which examine the relationships among variables without necessarily trying to establish if one variable causes another. Experimental design fall into two categories: experimental done in an artificial or contrived environment, known as lab experiment, and those done in the natural environment in which activities regularly take place known as the field experiment.
THE LAB EXPERIMENT:
As stated earlier, when a cause-and-effect relationship between an independent variables and dependent variable of interest is to be clearly established, then all other variables that might contaminate or confound the relationship have to be tightly controlled. In other words, the possible effects of other variables on the dependent variable have to be accounted for in some ways, so that the actually cause effects of the investigated independent variable on the dependent variable can be determined. It is also necessary to manipulate the independent variable so that the extent of its causal effects can be established. The controls and manipulations are best done in an artificial setting (the laboratory), where the causal effects can be tested. When controls and manipulations are introduced to establish cause-and -effect relationships in an artificial setting, we have laboratory designs, also known as lab experiments.
THE FIELD EXPERIMENT:
A field experiment, as the name implies, is an experiment done in the natural environment in which work goes on as usual, but treatments are given to one or more groups. Thus in the field experiment, even though it may not be possible to control all the nuisance variables because members cannot be either randomly assigned to groups, or matched, the treatment can still be manipulated. Control groups could also be set up in the field experiment. The experiment and the control groups in the field experiment could be made up of the people working at several plants within a certain radius, or from different shift in the same plant, or in some other ways. If there are three different shifts in production plant, for instance, and the effects of the piece-rate system are to be studied, one of the shift can be used as the control group, and the two other shift given two different treatments or the same treatment—that is, different piece-rates the same piece-rate. Any cause –and –effect relationship found under these conditions would have wider generalizability to other similar production setting; even though we may not be sure to what extent the piece-rates alone were the cause of the increase in productivity, because some of the other confounding variables could not be controlled.
TYPES OF EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNS
Quasi-experimental design
Pre-test and post-test experimental group design
True experimental design
Solomon four-group design
Ex post facto designs
ETHICAL ISSUES IN EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN RESEARCH
It is appropriate at this juncture to briefly discuss a few of the many ethical issues involve in doing research, some of which are particularly relevant to conducting lab experiment. The following are practices are considered unethical:
1. Putting pressure on individuals to participate in experiments through coercion, or applying social pressure.
2. Giving mental task and asking demeaning questions diminish their self-respect.
3. Deceiving subject by deliberately misleading them as to the true purpose of the research.
4. Exposing participants to mental and physical stress.
5. Not allowing subject to withdraw from the research when they want to.
6. Using the research results to disadvantage the participants, or for the purpose not to their liking.
7. Exposing respondents to hazardous and unsafe environments.
8. Not debriefing the participants fully accurately after the experiment is over.
9. Not preserving the privacy and confidentiality of the information given by the participants.
10. Withholding benefits from control groups.
SIMULATION:
An alternative to lab and field experiment currently being used in business research is simulation. Simulation uses are model-building techniques to determine the effects of changes, and computer-based simulation is becoming popular in business research. A simulation can be thought of as an experiment conducted in a specially created setting that very closely represent the natural environment in which activities are usually carried on. In that sense, simulation lies somewhere between a lab and a field experiment, insofar as the environment is artificially created but not far different from reality.However, before using experimental design in research study, it is essential to consider whether they are necessary at all, and if so, at what level of sophistication. This is because experimental designs call for special effort and varying degrees of interference with the natural flow activities.
Experimental design, as we know, are setup to examine possible cause and effect of relationships among variables, in contrast to correlational studies, which examine the relationships among variables without necessarily trying to establish if one variable causes another. Experimental design fall into two categories: experimental done in an artificial or contrived environment, known as lab experiment, and those done in the natural environment in which activities regularly take place known as the field experiment.
THE LAB EXPERIMENT:
As stated earlier, when a cause-and-effect relationship between an independent variables and dependent variable of interest is to be clearly established, then all other variables that might contaminate or confound the relationship have to be tightly controlled. In other words, the possible effects of other variables on the dependent variable have to be accounted for in some ways, so that the actually cause effects of the investigated independent variable on the dependent variable can be determined. It is also necessary to manipulate the independent variable so that the extent of its causal effects can be established. The controls and manipulations are best done in an artificial setting (the laboratory), where the causal effects can be tested. When controls and manipulations are introduced to establish cause-and -effect relationships in an artificial setting, we have laboratory designs, also known as lab experiments.
THE FIELD EXPERIMENT:
A field experiment, as the name implies, is an experiment done in the natural environment in which work goes on as usual, but treatments are given to one or more groups. Thus in the field experiment, even though it may not be possible to control all the nuisance variables because members cannot be either randomly assigned to groups, or matched, the treatment can still be manipulated. Control groups could also be set up in the field experiment. The experiment and the control groups in the field experiment could be made up of the people working at several plants within a certain radius, or from different shift in the same plant, or in some other ways. If there are three different shifts in production plant, for instance, and the effects of the piece-rate system are to be studied, one of the shift can be used as the control group, and the two other shift given two different treatments or the same treatment—that is, different piece-rates the same piece-rate. Any cause –and –effect relationship found under these conditions would have wider generalizability to other similar production setting; even though we may not be sure to what extent the piece-rates alone were the cause of the increase in productivity, because some of the other confounding variables could not be controlled.
TYPES OF EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNS
Quasi-experimental design
Pre-test and post-test experimental group design
True experimental design
Solomon four-group design
Ex post facto designs
ETHICAL ISSUES IN EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN RESEARCH
It is appropriate at this juncture to briefly discuss a few of the many ethical issues involve in doing research, some of which are particularly relevant to conducting lab experiment. The following are practices are considered unethical:
1. Putting pressure on individuals to participate in experiments through coercion, or applying social pressure.
2. Giving mental task and asking demeaning questions diminish their self-respect.
3. Deceiving subject by deliberately misleading them as to the true purpose of the research.
4. Exposing participants to mental and physical stress.
5. Not allowing subject to withdraw from the research when they want to.
6. Using the research results to disadvantage the participants, or for the purpose not to their liking.
7. Exposing respondents to hazardous and unsafe environments.
8. Not debriefing the participants fully accurately after the experiment is over.
9. Not preserving the privacy and confidentiality of the information given by the participants.
10. Withholding benefits from control groups.
SIMULATION:
An alternative to lab and field experiment currently being used in business research is simulation. Simulation uses are model-building techniques to determine the effects of changes, and computer-based simulation is becoming popular in business research. A simulation can be thought of as an experiment conducted in a specially created setting that very closely represent the natural environment in which activities are usually carried on. In that sense, simulation lies somewhere between a lab and a field experiment, insofar as the environment is artificially created but not far different from reality.However, before using experimental design in research study, it is essential to consider whether they are necessary at all, and if so, at what level of sophistication. This is because experimental designs call for special effort and varying degrees of interference with the natural flow activities.
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