Experimental research is one of the most important and common research approaches that researchers use to explore various phenomena, especially those with cause-effect kind of relationship. However, despite their popularity, experimental studies have various challenges that negatively affect them.
Some of the notable problems with experimental studies have to do with issues of reliability and internal validity. Reliability issues revolve around errors in measurement while internal validity problems encompass indecorous handling of experimental treatments. These problems lead to conflicts and inconsistencies in reported results. In collecting data errors such as random errors, human errors and systematic error can impact on the data collected. Certain specific kinds of error effect that affect validity include Hawthorne effect, John Henry effect, placebo effect, and rating effect. In addition, experimental studies face certain biases that prejudice the results. These include sampling biases, selection biases, performance biases, response biases, and measurement biases.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
To avoid these problems that can affect the quality of the research, researchers have to ensure that the results of the studies are reproducible. The means the different researcher conducting a similar study should be able to get similar results. Similarly, an analysis of the data used by and a different team should yield the same results. Reproducibility ensures transparency and thus creates confidence in the findings of a study. Peer review ensures other experts in the same field review and assesses a research study to determine its quality and validity. The peers also determine the reproducibility of the study. Together, reproducibility and peer reviews help to ensure that the research teams overcome the challenge that can affect experimental studies and thus provide accurate and quality findings and report.
Rationalism is important in science because it originates in a combination of logic and a unique kind of intuition. It facilitates discerning of the correctness of things or subjects without the need for deductions and a lot of observations. For instance, no amount of observation is required to qualify 1+1=2. Rationalism can also help avoid the problems of experimental studies.
In conclusion, experimental research is an important research approach, but it has several problems that must be addressed. The problems can be addressed through reproducibility and peer review as well as the input of rationalism.
