The main advantages of the analytical research method is that it requires many different sources of information to carry it out

Experts suggest that one of the main advantages of the analytical research method is that it requires many different sources of information to carry it out. The researcher's job, therefore, is to compare the data provided by all of them and try to find common ground.

Thanks to this procedure, scientists can discard all those data that could be wrong or on which more evidence would be needed. At the same time, it is possible to find the points that the different investigations have in common, thus finding the elements that are most likely to be true.

They make possible the creation of new experiments and theories

We have already seen that, through the analytical method of investigation, the phenomena studied are broken down into their most fundamental parts. One of the results of this type of analysis is that new data and theories are obtained that allow scientific work to continue.

Thus, once the basic components of a phenomenon have been found, it is much easier to carry out research that allows studying them in greater depth.

At the same time, the topic being worked on is better understood, so scientists can modify existing theories based on new results.

All this makes the analytical research method very useful for generating new data, even though this alone is not one of its main functions.

Requires a large amount of previous data

Possibly the biggest disadvantage of the analytical method is that it cannot be carried out in most situations, because it requires a tremendous amount of prior information on a subject before it can be studied in this way. Therefore, it is generally only used in subjects for which we already have enough evidence.

However, even in cases where the lack of data makes it impossible to draw solid conclusions, the analytical method makes it possible to detect gaps in our knowledge on a subject. In this way, scientists can more easily decide what new research to carry out.

Examples

The analytical method is used in a large number of different disciplines; but in general, it is more common in those that deal with complex phenomena and that are not easy to observe directly, such as psychology or nutrition.

In this section, we will see a real example of an analytical study that will help you better understand what this research method consists of.

A meta-analysis on violence and video games

In their study "Effects of violent video games on aggressive behavior, aggressive cognition, aggressive affect, physiological arousal, and pro-social behavior: A meta-analytic review of the scientific literature," published in the journal  Psychological Science,  Anderson and Bushman wanted to study the available data on the relationship between video games and violence.

In their literary review, the authors realized that more than half a century of research on the effects of exposure to violent series and movies has yielded the following results:

• Even a brief exposure to violence in the media produces significant increases in the frequency of aggressive behavior.
• Children who are repeatedly exposed to signs of violence are more likely to become aggressive adults.

However, there is insufficient data on whether video games cause a similar effect. The authors attempted to answer two questions through their meta-analysis: Are violent video games associated with increased aggression? And, if this is true, how would this process work?

To collect all possible data on this topic, the scientists examined more than 35 research articles on topics such as video games, violence, hostility, and prosocial or helping behaviors. In total, more than 50 independent samples were collected, with more than 4,000 participants.

Results of the investigation

The meta-analysis showed that there seems to be a direct relationship between exposure to violent video games and some factors such as aggressive behaviors, violent thoughts, or aggressive feelings. Although the cause of this relationship is unknown, the results seem to indicate that it exists.

However, due to the limitations of this research method, we cannot affirm that exposure to violent video games is the cause of the increase in the frequency of aggressive behavior. We know that both elements occur at the same time, but there could be another one known as a "strange variable".

A  strange variable is a factor that affects both the elements that you want to relate in a scientific investigation, and that for various reasons has not been taken into account. The only type of research with which it can be stated that there are no strange variables is experimental.

In this case, it is possible for example that children exposed to violent video games play with them because their environment is full of aggression. In this way, they would seek to reproduce what they see around them both playing these types of games and aggressively behaving in turn.