Strengths and Weaknesses (Dement and Kleitman)
Using PEEL method (Point-Explanation-Example-Link)
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AS Level
Paper 1 Evaluation Essays
Strengths
- P – The study has high confidentiality
- E – Personal data of participants were not disclosed to the public
- E – For example, real names of participants were replaced with initials such as WD, KC
- L – The study followed the ethical guidelines
- P – The study collected quantitative data
- E – Quantitative data has lower chances of misinterpretation
- E – For example, the study found that 88% of 5-minutes REM dream period estimation were correct compared to 78% correct estimation for 15-minutes period
- L – Findings were easier to be analysed and compared so researches can draw more valid conclusions
- P – The study is highly objective
- E – This is due to the use of scientific tools
- E – For example, the use of EEG to detect brain waves and EOG to detect potential of contraction and relaxation of muscle around the eyes
- L – This reduces researcher bias because data is directly measurable and observable, and no additional interpretation needed
Weaknesses
- P – The study consists of a relatively small sample size
- E – Small sample will have lower generalizability due to variability of participants is limited as they might all have similar characteristics
- E – For example, the study only consisting of 9 participants, with only 5 being studied in detailed
- L – Findings are not representative of the target population
- P – The study lacks mundane realism
- E – The study being conducted in a sleep lab rather than the participants’ natural sleeping environment might not truly reflect humans real sleeping patterns
- E – For example, in real life participants do not sleep with EEG and EOG attached to their scalp and around the eyes
- L – Findings have lower ecological validity
- P – Participants might suffer from psychological harm
- E – This is due to being awoken several times during sleep
- E – For example, all participants were woken up at random times during the night by a loud doorbell sound to report their dreams into a voice recorder
- L – Participants might feel stress as they are unable to perform well during the day due to lack of sleep