While doing research, it is up to the experimenter to determine the best research method to fully explore his or her chosen topic. In order to do so, a researcher must know what the advantages and disadvantages are in each type of study

Question

Define the correlational method and the experimental method and then discuss at least one advantage and one disadvantage of each method of research.
What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The correlational method measures the degree to which two or more variables are related or associated. The experimental method is where researchers systematically manipulate an independent variable to determine if it causes a difference in a dependent variable. One advantage of correlation is that it can measure associations among variables, even for variables that we cannot ethically manipulate. The main disadvantage of correlational research is that correlations alone cannot prove a causation. A major advantage of the experimental method is that experiments, if conducted properly, can demonstrate cause-and-effect relationships. A disadvantage is that it is sometimes unethical or impractical to conduct experiments on certain variables.