Dr. Marcus developed a study examining verbal arguments in movie theaters. His research protocol and coding systems specified that trained observers were only supposed to observe theater goers for a specific period. The trained observers were supposed to observe whether a verbal argument did or did not occur for 15 minutes and then not observe for 10 minutes and then observe again for 15 minutes and so on until the movie ended. This would be an example of:
A) continuous recording.
B) duration recording.
C) interval recording.
D) frequency-count recording.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This is an example of interval recording because the observers are recording whether a behavior (verbal argument) occurs or does not occur during specific intervals (15 minutes of observation followed by 10 minutes of not observing). Continuous recording would involve continuous observation without breaks, duration recording would involve measuring how long a behavior lasts, and frequency-count recording would involve counting the number of times a behavior occurs.

Dr Marcus Developed a Study Examining Verbal Arguments in Movie