Field Experiment

Sometimes, when conducting research, a laboratory setting isn't the best option for investigating a phenomenon. Whilst lab experiments offer a lot of control, they are artificial and do not truly represent the real world, which causes issues with ecological validity. This is where field experiments come in.

Both laboratory and field experiments manipulate a variable to see if it can be controlled and affect the dependent variable. Also, both are valid forms of experimentation.

Real-life environment, freepik.com/rawpixel

Field Experiment Definition

As we have established above, a field experiment is a research method where the independent variable is manipulated, and the dependent variable is measured in a real-world setting.

How are Field Experiments Carried Out?

Field experiments are usually designed and used in psychology when researchers want to observe participants in their natural environment, but the phenomenon is not naturally occurring. Therefore, the researcher must manipulate the investigated variables to measure the outcome. This is the key variable.

Field Experiments in Psychology

The procedure of field experiments in psychology is the following:

1. Identify a research question, variables, and hypotheses
2. Recruit participants
3. Carry out the experiment
4. Analyse data and report results

An Example of a Field Experiment in Social Psychology

Hofling (1966) conducted a field experiment to investigate obedience in nurses. The study involved 22 nurses working in a psychiatric hospital on a night shift. During their shift, a doctor, who was actually the researcher, called the nurses and asked them to urgently administer 20mg of a drug to a patient (double the maximum dosage).

• The doctor/researcher told the nurses that he would authorise the administration of the medication later.

The purpose of the research was to identify if people were obedient to authoritative figures. Overall, multiple rules would have been broken if the nurses had obeyed the order. The results showed that 95 percent of nurses obeyed the order, despite breaking the rules. Only one questioned the doctor.

The Hofling study is an example of a field experiment. It was carried out in a natural setting, and the researcher manipulated the situation (instructed nurses to administer high-dosage of medication). After carrying out the experiment, they analysed the data and measured the outcome (whether nurses complied with authoritative figures' instructions).

Doctors and nurses, freepik.com/pch.vector

What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Field Experiments?

Just like any type of research, field experiments have certain advantages and disadvantages that have to be taken into consideration before opting for this research method.

Advantages

Some of the advantages of field experiments include the following:

• The results are more likely to reflect real-life in comparison to laboratory research. This is because the research design has high ecological validity.
• There is less likelihood of demand characteristics and the Hawthorne Effect influencing the participant's behaviour. This increases the validityof the findings.

  Hawthorne effect is when people adjust their behaviour because they know they are being observed.

• It is high in mundane realismin comparison to lab research.

  Mundane realism is when an experiment is similar to a real- setting. Therefore, the research has high external validity.

• It is an appropriate research design to use when carrying out research on a large scale that cannot be carried out in artificial settings.

  A field experiment would be an appropriate research design to use when investigating children's behaviour changes at school. More specifically, to compare their behaviours around their usual and a substitute teacher.

• It can establish causal relationships because researchers manipulate a variable and measure its effect. However, certain issues might arise when establishing changes certain variables cause in another variable. We will address these issues in the next paragraph.

Besides these advantages, researchers should be aware of some disadvantages listed below.

Disadvantages

The disadvantages of field experiments are the following:

• Researchers have less control over extraneous/confounding variables, which reduces the confidence in establishing causal relationships.
• It is difficult to replicate the research, making it hard to determine the reliability of the results found.
• This experimental method has a high chance of collecting a biased sample.
• It may be difficult to record data accurately with so many variables present. Overall, field experiments have less control.
• Potential ethical issues of field experiments include: difficulty getting informed consent, and the researcher may need to deceive participants.