Intergroup relations describe the interactions between individuals from different social groups. In social psychology, intergroup relations have been a significant subject of study in the past years. However, there are substantial challenges that researchers face as they conduct their studies on this broad topic. Laboratory experimentation and field research are often used to study intergroup relations, and both have their unique challenges.
In laboratory experimentation, participant awareness bias is the most significant challenge that researchers face as they conduct the study (Fiske et al., 2010). In social psychology, researchers test their hypotheses and theories on adult human participants experienced in their social environment. Therefore, it is likely that the participants have already formed their own hypotheses and assumptions about the social behaviors that researchers want to study. This means that the participants’ prior knowledge about the research topic may influence their responses as they attempt to validate their theories (Fiske et al., 2010). Also, in laboratory experimentation, the participants are aware that they are part of a study and, therefore, may try to make sense of the research and consequently modify their responses to help the researcher confirm their hypotheses. In both situations, the data collected is unreliable as the participants were biased in their responses.
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In the field research, the bias in self-report data is a significant challenge that researchers face in their study. The approach depends on the opinions of individuals in the social context who are subjected to various data collection methods such as surveys. The accuracy of the self-reported data is unverifiable without the availability of other reference information. Social desirability factors may make participants engage in self-report bias (Arnold & Feldman, 1981). Therefore, in filed research, the validity of the self-reported data is questionable since it's challenging to verify the existence of bias in the reporting.
To reduce participant awareness biases in laboratory experimentation, the experimenter should not be informed about the research hypothesis (Fiske et al., 2010). This reduces the possibility of the experimenter informing the participants about the research hypothesis, thus mitigating participant awareness bias. Research has shown that participant bias increases when the experimenter is aware of the research hypothesis. To reduce bias in self-report data, as the researchers, I would avoid using leading questions in the questionnaires and surveys. I would also ensure that the difficult concepts are avoided or broken down to reduce ambiguity and ensure the participants understand their questions and avoid their own interpretation (Dodd-McCue, & Tartaglia, 2010). This will reduce response bias and improve the validity of the research data.
References
Arnold, H. J., & Feldman, D. C. (1981). Social desirability response bias in self-report choice situations. Academy of Management Journal , 24 (2), 377-385.
Dodd-McCue, D., & Tartaglia, A. (2010). Self-report response bias: Learning how to live with its diagnosis in chaplaincy research. Chaplaincy Today , 26 (1), 2-8.
Fiske, S. T., Gilbert, D. T., & Lindzey, G. (Eds.). (2010). Handbook of social psychology (Vol. 1). John Wiley & Sons.
