Wize University Psychology Textbook > Research Methods in Psychology
Methods of Studying Daily Life & Online Behaviour
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Methods of Studying Daily Life & Online Behaviour
Research conducted in psychology labs does not always reflect real-world behaviour or thoughts. Example: when asked to report how many hours they spent studying, students often unintentionally inflate the numbers.
Experience-sampling methods (or diary methods/ecological momentary assessment) prompt people to record what they are thinking or doing at particular moments.
There are many ways of studying daily behaviour/thoughts:
- Sending survey questions about location, thoughts, feelings, or behaviours to participants' phones several times a day over a period of time
- Naturalistic observation by taking snippets of audio from participants' days and analyzing what is happening during the clips
- Time-lapse photography in public spaces
- Analysis of garbage/recycling
- Ambulatory physiological monitoring - measuring physiological reactions like blood pressure as people go about their day
- Analyzing online behaviour in blogs, forums, emails, social media, etc.
Practice: Methods of Studying Daily Life & Online Behaviour
Rosalind wants to conduct a study looking at how many hours participants spend on social media. Which method is likely to give the most accurate results?