Reflection Paper 2 1

Module 3: Reflection Paper 2

Juliann MacNicoll
Pacific Oaks College
HD 315: The Art of Observation
Terry Stone
5/24/17
Reflection Paper 2 1

Most people think of ethics as recognizing right and wrong. We often learn all of this at

home, school, and other social settings. While we learn the difference between right and wrong

during our childhood development, moral development stretches throughout life and is passed on

within stages of growth. As researchers, theres an ethical concern towards being unbiased in

recording observations. We need to be aware of the differences between interpretation and

observation because making the wrong judgement can interfere with our study.

Observation and interpretation are two of the important techniques of gathering

information in any experiment where inferences are made and hypothesis are checked for their

accuracies (Difference Between, 2012). Observation is described as recording what you see and

reporting as it is and not adding any opinion. One example would be the Doll Test in Brown v.

Board of Education, which was created in the 1940s by psychologists, Kenneth and Mamie

Clark. They designed experiments to study the psychological effects of segregation on African-

American children. This involved using four dolls that were all identical besides color. Children

were asked a series of questions such as which doll is the good doll, the smart doll, and the pretty

doll to test their racial perceptions. Most of the light skinned dolls were looked more positively,

while the dark skinned dolls were viewed negatively. The Supreme Court cited Clarks 1950

paper in its Brown decision and acknowledged it in the following passage: To separate African-

American children from others of similar age and qualifications solely because of their race

generates a feeling of inferiority as their status in the community that may affect their hearts and

minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone. This study is still used today and shockingly still

has similar test results even though weve progressed through racial rights. This is a good

example on how judging and giving your own thoughts can influence observations.
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Interpretation is another way of generating and gathering information in a useful way to

conclude in an experiment. This requires observation, but only means making sense of what one

sees but adding ones opinion, remark or judgement to the observation. Some observations are

enough themselves and they do not require evidence or explanation on the part of the person

conducting the experiment. An example of making an interpretation would be watching a child

get pushed down by another child in a classroom. The child that pushed the other child has a

history of being physical with other kids, so his behavior may be from shadowing his father at

home who is physically abusive to his mom. Interpretations are attempts to provide explanations

or meanings of something observed.

In order to distinguish the difference between making observations and interpretations

may include taking notes on what I know prior to observing and then later on after the

observation compare the notes that I made before observing and the notes I made while I was

observing. Also keeping an open mind and trying not to influence them into your work.

One example of when a bias impacted an observation was when I was observing my two

younger cousins that are both highly autistic. It was after school and they both had behavioral

therapists over. The youngest brother, who often is physical and very verbal was upset that his

therapist did not allow him to play the board game and this lead to him having a huge melt down

throughout the whole session. Before my aunt got home from work, I witnessed him throwing

objects, screaming and punching his therapist all in anger due to her not allowing to play the

game. Eventually, I find out that she did not allow him to play the game because they had to do

some reading and the book that they had to read for whatever reason, he flips out and loses his

mind whenever that specific book is mentioned. Prior to that, I thought she wouldnt allow him

to play the game because he wasnt playing fair with his other teammates and was getting
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impatient. Once my aunt got home, his therapist explained what happened and why he was

behaving that way and it all started because of the book they had to read. According to my aunt,

she said that whenever the book is mentioned he acts that way, so she and his behavioral

therapists agreed to take it out of the behavioral plan.

In the book The Power of Observation, gives personal experiences from professionals

that observed children and how the way they approached observations changed them in personal

and professional levels. When you observe, you slow down, listen more carefully, and pause to

reflect before stepping in to offer direction or help. You see and respond to who a child is and

what a child needs. Observing helps you build relationships by revealing the uniqueness of every

child, including the childs temperament, strengths, personality, work style, and preferred mode

of expression (Jablon, pg. 11). Observation helps us with also clearing out biases and also

teaches ourselves who we are.

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References
CNN. (201). Study: White and black children biased toward lighter skin. Retrieved on May 23,
2017 from http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/05/13/doll.study/
Difference Between. (2012). Difference between observation and interpretation. Retrieved on
May 23, 2017 from http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-observation-
and-vs-interpretation/
Jablon, J. R., Dombro, A. L., & Dichtelmiller, M. L. (2007). The power of observation (2nd ed.).
Washington, DC: Teaching Strategies.