1. Participants Observational data collected from participants who took part in the large scale randomised controlled evaluation of the Incredible Years Toddler Programme, funded by the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG), will be used for this proposed project. 50 videos will initially be randomly selected for coding from a larger sample of 221 videos across all time points of baseline, 6 and 12-month follow ups. Objective To establish whether outcome differences exist when comparing two different methods of observation, live or taped. Comparisons will be made using a complex coding system, the Dyadic Parent Child Interaction Coding System (DPICS; Robinson & Eyberg, 1981), and two observers with high inter-rater reliability to ensure we have full confidence in our results. Comparing the Qualitative Ratings of Live & Taped Mother-Child Interactions Comparing the Qualitative Ratings of Live & Taped Mother-Child Interactions Nicole Gridley School of Psychology, Bangor University Dr. Tracey Bywater, Professor Judy Hutchings & Dr. Karen Jones Background Observation has been used extensively as a tool for research behaviour for the last 70 years. However, during recent years the increase of modern technology, such as videotapes and audiotapes, has meant that use of live coding in the research field is being reduced. As observation is the ‘gold standard’ of behaviour assessment, and provides a moment-to-moment representation of behaviour alongside self-report it is important that we assess different methods for research outcomes and implications. Past research indicates several advantages & limitations of using video over live observations. Video is a permanent data resource that can be revisited several times by numerous observers. Additionally, video allows the researcher to attain distance from the participant in order to reduce participant reactivity. Yet live coding ensures full accessibility to the research environment and may lead to the capturing of more information. Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System (DPICS) DPICS is an observational measure of parent/child interaction that is well validated and used extensively in research. Figures 1 & 2 demonstrate results obtained from live observations from the Toddler study in the Questioning and Reflective Questioning subcategories. Questioning is a comment expressed in question form. It gives an account of objects or people in the situation occurring during the interaction. Reflective Questioning expresses in question form the child’s verbalisation immediately preceding it. The ultimate question is will these findings differ when coding the taped version of these data? Method Fifty half-hour taped observations will be coded by two observers, to ensure intra-observer reliability, using the DPICS system. Each half hour tape is divided into six 5- minute sections of continuous recording. DPICS is a 38- parent-child observational coding system that assists in the assessment of the quality of parent-child interaction. The totals derived from this coding will then be analysed in comparison to the totals derived from live observations of the same mother-child interaction to establish any differences. Hypotheses Differences may exist between the two methods of observation with regards to the frequencies of behaviour captured. Contact: Nicole Gridley Email: psp80b@bangor.ac.uk. Tel. (01248) 383758psp80b@bangor.ac.uk Visit our websites: www.incredibleyearswales.co.uk http://incrediblehttp://incredible-years-wales-research.bangor.ac.uk