Responding to a question of Laura Valvatne concerning the question you ask in a Piagetian conservation test, Michael Caruso wrote:
> I always thought the question was "Do the glasses have the same amount, or > does one have more than the other?" for the original comparison of the > identical glasses, and "Do the glasses still have the same amount, or does > one have more than the other?" for the comparison of the different glasses. > This is what I tell my students, but I'm not 100% sure where I got that > from. > I'll second that. Sometimes the question asks "Does one have more or less" but the choice "or have the same amount" is always given. Not all published experiments bother to tell you exactly what they asked (which bugs me), but some do. Browsing through the literature should confirm this. Checking a Piaget sourcebook will likely confirm that the Master himself asked the question that way (at home, can't check). I recall a bit of research on the difference the form of the question makes. One study apparently asked _college_ kids questions of the type "Do you weigh more standing up or sitting down"? An impressive proportion chose one of those two alternatives; when the "or the same" option was included, far fewer did. But no study of conservation of children would ask the question that way. (can provide reference tomorrow--just ask) -Stephen ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Stephen Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470 Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661 Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Lennoxville, QC J1M 1Z7 Canada Department web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy Check out TIPS listserv for teachers of psychology at: http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
