An Exploration of Research Designs and Methods

I would like to begin this essay by discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the three Developmental Research Designs; Longitudinal, Cross-Sectional and Sequential. In a study using the Longitudinal Research Design, researchers have the advantage of studying the same set of subjects over the same period of time, in doing this they are able to track changes in the test subjects and using the information collected they can differentiate between changes that are individual versus changes that are universal to all participants. There are drawbacks to this type of research design as well. When you do anything over a long period of time, you risk losing elements that can affect your outcomes in a negative manner, because clinical research is voluntary, participants can change their minds and withdraw from the study, relocate to an area not covered by a testing site or have circumstances that have nothing to do with the study that cause them to be disqualified or unable to participate. There are other risks to the results obtained from this type of research that include patients either consciously or unconsciously modifying their behavior and responses, knowing that you are being observed will cause many people to behave abnormally. Another risk with this type of study is known as cohort effects; individuals living at a certain time are influenced by the ideals and events if that particular time thus making the results only valid in that time period or to those who experienced those events. In a Cross-Section research study, the participants are different, but studied during the same length of time. This makes it easier for researchers to isolate age related changes during the study by studying the different age groups for the same results at varying ages. This design is not without its drawbacks, it does not provide individual results because the results must be reported in age ranges and this design is also subject to cohort effects, results for each age group...