Title: Descriptive Research | Introduction to Psychology
Headings: 
Descriptive Research
What you’ll learn to do: describe the strengths and weaknesses of descriptive, experimental, and correlational research
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Learning Objectives
Descriptive Research
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Case Studies
Link to Learning
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Naturalistic Observation
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Surveys
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Think It Over
Archival Research
Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Research
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Glossary

Content: Correlational research can find a relationship between two variables, but the only way a researcher can claim that the relationship between the variables is cause and effect is to perform an experiment. In experimental research, which will be discussed later in the text, there is a tremendous amount of control over variables of interest. While this is a powerful approach, experiments are often conducted in very artificial settings. This calls into question the validity of experimental findings with regard to how they would apply in real-world settings. In addition, many of the questions that psychologists would like to answer cannot be pursued through experimental research because of ethical concerns. The three main types of descriptive studies are case studies, naturalistic observation, and surveys. Try It
Open Assessments
Open Assessments
Open Assessments
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In 2011, the New York Times published a feature story on Krista and Tatiana Hogan, Canadian twin girls. These particular twins are unique because Krista and Tatiana are conjoined twins, connected at the head.