Observing Behaviors. Good morning, everyone. Today we will look at how to observe behavior in research. Perhaps you would say it is easy and there is nothing extraordinary. Yes, you may be right. All of us observe behavior every day. For example, when traveling in another country, we can avoid embarrassment by observing how people behave in that culture. And failing to be observing while walking or driving can be life-threatening. We learn by observing people's behavior. Researchers too rely on their observations to learn about behavior, but there are differences. For instance, when we observe casually, we may not be aware of factors that bias our observations, and, and when we rarely keep formal records of our observations. Instead, we rely on our memory of events. Observations in research on the other hand are made under precisely defined conditions, that is, in a systematic and objective manner, and with careful record keeping. Then how are we going to conduct observations in our research studies, and what do we need to do in order to make a scientific and objective observation?