In: Psychology
A longitudinal study is basically a observation method in which information is collected repeatedly. This information is collected repeatedly over a perod of time. This study is an observation research which can be extended over a years or decades. Basically a longitudinal study is a reaserch design which involves same varibles.It uses a longitudinal data. Although it is the type of observation study which can also be categorize as longitudinal randomized experiments. This studies are more accurate because they make observing changes and can be applied in various field. Also longitudinal studies observe the various states of world without manipulation. But it may be possible that they detect experiments lesser than casual relationships. However at the individual level they have more power than cross sectional studies because of repeated observation. The disadvantage that they are very expensive and more time consuming.