Observational Research In Musical Instruments

Studying a problem can be accomplished in two ways – experimental research and observational research, and there are advantages and disadvantages to each. In regards to the speculation concerning what creates a genius (inherent genetic advantages or intense practice at a young age), this paper will discuss the validity behind the nurturing explanation and the creation of an experiment to help prove it.
First, there are various pros and cons to the types of research that can be applied. Concerning experimental research, some advantages relate to the increased control over the independent variables of the experiment. This creates a stricter testing environment, and so the results tend to be better and repeatable, so as to more confidently validate or discredit results. By manipulation of the variables, a cause and effect relationship can also be found (Advantages). However, sometimes ethics can get in the way of experimentation and it might not be feasible. Also, due to the sometimes-strict nature of these experiments, the results might not correlate well to real-world applications. Human error can also harm the experimental results as well as the observational research results. Other …show more content…
This research will be conducted on the topic of learning to play a musical instrument – specifically the violin. In regards to the advantages of experimental research, a stricter environment will work well because it will allow all students to be on the same level at all times, preventing students from practicing extra or not enough. A disadvantage to this is that it might hamper creativity or suppress learning, depending on the aptitudes of some students. Observational research could counter this problem because the students will be allowed to practice whenever they want – though some that are not self-motivated might suffer the consequences as