A longitudinal study was chosen as this approach was considered essential to the examination o f change and development in response to learning opportunities in interviewing and problem-solving skills. Longitudinal studies have been criticised on the grounds o f inherent sampling weaknesses, because they normally have small sample sizes, and complete data may be impossible to gather as subjects may drop out due to a variety o f reasons. As a result they tend to be more time consuming than studies conducted on the basis of a one-off or cross-sectional research design. However, this approach is invaluable if you want to obtain information about the change that takes place in EPITs' skills, together with interrelated factors that may affect development at different stages (Van Dalen, 1973).
The relationship and development of open and closed questioning, number o f utterances, and accessible reasoning to written problem-analysis quality was assessed using two initial interviewing tasks conducted nine months apart. The interview situations were designed to be typical o f the type of case with which a qualified educational psychologist would be expected to be involved. Each participant undertook the initial interviews as if they were a fully qualified educational psychologist. The use of a standard case controlled for variation between participants, both within the interview situation itself and over time. Two female actors were employed, one played the role o f the Junior Schoolteacher at time 1, and the other at time 2.
The actors got into their parts by learning by rote the detailed case biography o f the problem situation (please refer to Appendix Two for a copy of the case biography).
The actors' consistency, knowledge and realism was further refined by conducting three- three hour rehearsal sessions, where the researcher played at being a range o f different interviewers, and provided feedback on the efficacy of the actors' performance. Selected parts of the training sessions were videoed, and given to the actor to watch and review
at home between sessions. The sessions were conducted about two weeks prior to each o f the data collection phases (time 1 - before training, and time 2 - near the completion o f training). The actors' consistency and accuracy of portrayal was further monitored by the researcher throughout the course of the 18 interviews conducted at time 1, and again at time 2 through an audio-visual link to the adjacent interview room. Brief feedback was given to the actor after each interview session. This feedback was used to keep the actor on task and motivated. All interview sessions were deemed adequate for research purposes.
To increase the face validity of the standard case used, all names were altered from time 1 to time 2, with the case being presented as if it were a different one to the participants. Employing a different actor at time two also enhanced the face validity of the interview task. It was assumed that any case familiarity effects would be equal for both groups and minimised by the time between interviews. Data, which will be presented, in later sections support this view.
4.3.2. Validation of the case biography
To enhance the face validity of the interview tasks, the problem situation was based upon a realistic compilation of several case histories written by the researcher. To check the validity o f the case scenario, four practising senior educational psychologists were contacted, and then sent a covering letter which asked them to read the case biography and, using Questionnaire D, rate it for realism, difficulty, complexity and familiarity. (See Appendix Two for a copy o f the covering letter and Questionnaire D.) An 8-point Likert-type scale was used for each variable, with 1 being "very realistic/ difficult/ complex/ familiar and 8 being not at all realistic/ difficult/ complex/ familiar". The questionnaire asked for their job title and the number of years' experience they had had as an educational psychologist.
The results obtained showed that the case was seen as very realistic (median = 1), and fam iliar (median = 1), having moderate difficulty (median = 4), and complexity (median = 4). All four respondents were experienced senior educational psychologists with between 10 and 20 years' experience (two with between 10 and 14 years and two with between 15 and 20 years). The results confirmed that the chosen case scenario.
which was used at time 1 and time 2, was perceived by experienced practitioners as being very realistic and familiar and of moderate difficulty and complexity.
4.3.3. Participants and setting
A group o f 10 EPITs was randomly selected fi*om a cohort of 16 enrolled in the one-year full-time Masters training programme at UCL. A second group of eight participants acted as a comparison group for study two. Initially ten people were contacted, however two declined to take part because of travel considerations. The comparison group (control group) consisted of people who had been interviewed for, and had been offered places on the same training programme as the EPIT group, but for various reasons (e.g., lack of fimding, personal circumstances) had not taken up the offer o f a training place. The only inducements offered to participants was discussion of the general research findings, feedback on their performance at the completion of the study, refreshments and reimbursement of travel expenses.
The participants conducted an initial interview with one female teacher, in a room set-up to model those typically used for interviewing. A mini-video camera and conference-level audio tape recorder were chosen so as to reduce the impact that recording may have had on the session. The video and audio equipment were managed by the researcher at the start and finish of each interview session.
4.3.4. Demographic inform ation on participants at time 1
The demographic information obtained from a Background Information Questionnaire (BI) (which will be described in the next section) was used to determine whether the two groups o f participants, were actually equivalent at the start of the research project. This was important in terms of evaluating whether any changes noted between the two groups (from time 1, to time 2), might not have been attributable to significant differences which existed between the groups before the study started.
Because of the relatively small sample size statistical analyses within this section used the Fisher Exact Probability Test. This is a non-parametric test suited for analysing information within small data sets. Where appropriate, before the data could be analysed some measures needed to be collapsed to form 2 X 2 tables. Because o f this it was not
possible to test the following categories; first degree type, first degree major, and "had observed an educational psychologist".
Statistical analyses indicated that there were no significant differences between the EPIT and control groups on six out of the seven characteristics selected for analyses. There were no significant differences between the groups on age(p = 0.41), gender(p = 0.07, but close to 0.05 significance level: this is not surprising given that the control group had three males, whilst the EPIT group had none), years o f teaching experience (p = 3^), post-graduate qualifications(p = Çi.19), years since gaining Graduate Basis fo r Registration (BPS) (p = 0.22), and counselling training {p= 0.79).
There was however a significant difference observed between the two groups on degree level(p = 0.02). This result showed that the EPIT group contained more people with Bachelor degrees awarded with a 2:i level o f honours, than the control group.
43.4.1, Summary
1. Age
O f the EPIT group: 20% (2) were aged under 26 years o f age, 70% (7) were aged between 26 to 35 years, no-one was aged between 36 and 45 years, and 10% (1) were aged 46 to 65 years. The figures for the control group showed that no-one was aged under 26 years of age, 75% (6) were aged between 26 and 35 years, 25% (2) were aged between 36 and 45 years, and no-one was aged 46 to 65 years.
2. Gender
O f the EPIT group 100% (10) were female. The figures for the control group show that 62% (5) were female and 37% (3) were male.