Ex post facto research Introduction When translated literally, ex post facto means from what is done afterwards.

In the context of social and educational research the phrase means after the fact or retrospectively and refers to those studies which investigate possible cause-and-effect relationships by observing an existing condition or state of affairs and searching back in time for plausible causal factors. In effect, researchers ask themselves what factors seem to be associated with certain occurrences, or conditions, or aspects of behaviour. Ex post facto Research, then, is a method of teasing out possible antecedents of events that have happened and cannot, therefore, be engineered or manipulated by the investigator. The following example will illustrate the basic idea.

Imagine a situation in which there has been a dramatic increase in the number of fatal road accidents in a particular locality. An expert is called in to investigate. Naturally, there is no way in which she can study the actual accidents because they have happened; nor can she turn to technology for a video replay of the incidents. What she can do, however, is attempt a reconstruction by studying the statistics, examining the accident spots, and taking note of the statements given by victims and witnesses. In this way the expert will be in a position to identify possible determinants of the accidents. These may include excessive speed, poor road conditions, careless driving, frustration, inefficient vehicles, the effects of drugs or alcohol and so on. On the basis of her examination, she can formulate hypotheses as to the likely causes and submit them to the appropriate authority in the form of recommendations. These may include improving road conditions, or lowering the speed limit, or increasing police surveillance, for instance. The point of interest to us is that in identifying the causes retrospectively, the expert adopts an ex post facto perspective.

Kerlinger (1970) has defined ex post facto research more formally as that in which the independent variable or variables have already occurred and in which the researcher starts with the observation of a dependent variable or variables. She then studies the independent variable or variables in retrospect for their possible relationship to, and effects on, the dependent variable or variables. The researcher is thus examining retrospectively the effects of a naturally occurring event on a subsequent outcome with a view to establishing a causal link between them. Interestingly, some instances of ex post facto designs correspond to experimental research in reverse, for instead of taking groups that are equivalent and subjecting them to different treatments so as to bring about differences in the dependent variables to be measured, an ex post facto experiment begins with groups that are already different in some respect and searches in retrospect for the factor that brought about the difference. Indeed Spector (1993:42) suggests that ex post facto research is a procedure that is intended to transform a non-experimental research design into a pseudo-experimental form.

Two kinds of design may be identified in ex post facto research

1. co-relational study or causal research Causal Research, as explained by DJS Research Ltd. Causal Research explores the effect of one thing on another and more specifically, the effect of one variable on another. The research is used to measure what impact a specific change will have on existing norms and allows market researchers to predict hypothetical scenarios upon which a company can base its business plan. For example, if a clothing company currently sells blue denim jeans, causal research can measure the impact of the company changing the product design to the colour white. Following the research, company bosses will be able to decide whether changing the colour of the jeans to white would be profitable. To summarise, causal research is a way of seeing how actions now will affect a business in the future.

2. criterion group study or causal-comparative research.

Ex Post Facto Research Method "Ex post facto means formulated, enacted, or operating retroactively. When translated literally, ex post facto means from what is done afterwards. In social and educational research, the phrase means: after the fact. Ex post facto research method refers to those studies which investigate possible cause-and-effect relationships by observing an existing condition or state of affairs and looking back in time for valid causal factors. The ex post facto research method is a method of one using statistics and alternative ways to figure out an event. One would not be able to study actual events because they have already happened. Go to for further detailed information." Ex Post Facto(Causal-Comparative)Research Explores possible causes and effects The independent variable is not manipulated, it has already been applied Focuses first on the effect, then attempts to determine what caused the observed effect. Characteristics of Ex Post Facto Research

There is a control or comparison group Intact groups are used The treatment is not manipulated, it has already occurred.

EX POST FACTO - Term used to designate action taken to change the effect given to a set of circumstances. This action relates back to a prior time and places this new effect upon the same set of circumstances existing at that time.

EX POST FACTO RESEARCH Definition Literally,

ex post facto means from what is doneafterwards. In the context of educational research, this phrasemeans after the fact or retrospectively and refers to those studies which investigate possible cause-and-effect relationship by observing an existing condition or state of affairs and searchingback in time for plausable causal factors.E x post facto research is a method of teasing out possible antecedents of events that happened and cannot, because of thiseffect, be engineered or manipulated by the investigator. Moreformally, it can be defined as a research in which the independentvariable or variables have already occurred and the researcherstarts with observation of a dependent variable or variables. In this case, the researcher then studies the independent variable or variables in retrospect for their possible relationship to, and effects on, the dependent variable or variables. Thus, the researcher is examining retrospectively the effects of naturally occurring event on a subsequent outcome with a view to establishing a causal link between them. Kinds of Design in Ex Post Facto Research There are two kinds of design in ex post facto research, they are:1. Corelational study ( causal research) is concerned withidentifying the antecedents of a present condition. The basic design is: This design has three possible interpretations: a. that the variable X has caused Ob. that the variable O has caused X,orc. that some third unidentified, and therefore unmeasured,variable has caused X and O2. Criterion group study (causal comparative research) isconcerned with the attempts to discover possible causes for phenomenon being studied by comparing the subjects in which the variable is present with similar subjects in whom it is absent. This approach is seen as bridging the gap between descriptiveresearch method on the one hand and true experimentalresearch on the other hand. The basic design of this study is: X

Characteristic of Ex Post Facto Research 1. data are collected after the presume cause or causes haveoccurred2. in contrast with true experimental research, in EPF the manipulation control and randomisation of the independent variable is not possible The advantages of EPF are (1) it is appropriate when the more powerful experiment method is not possible; (2) it can yield useful information concerning the nature of phenomena; (3) improvement in statistical technique and general methodology have made this design is more defensible; (4) it is appropriate when simple cause-and-effect relationship are being explored; (5) the method can give a sense of direction and provide a fruitful source of hypothesis thatcan be tested by the more rigorous experimental methodsubsequently.

SOURCES http://plato.acadiau.ca/courses/psyc/mcleod/2023Research/ex-post.htm http://www.scribd.com/doc/40013325/Ex-Post-Facto-Research#open_download http://www.scribd.com/doc/50112610/EX-POST-FACTO http://www.scribd.com/doc/43953896/Ex-Post-Facto-Research http://www.marketresearchworld.net/index.php? option=com_content&task=view&id=799&Itemid=64