Final answer:
To test the hypothesis that 'Child abuse will always hurt child development,' Longitudinal Research is the best approach. It allows researchers to track changes over time and assess the individual variability in development, providing a comprehensive understanding of the long-term effects of child abuse. Option D.
Step-by-step explanation:
To test the hypothesis that "Child abuse will always hurt child development," the most appropriate research method would be Longitudinal Research (D). This approach involves following a group of research participants over an extended period.
It allows researchers to observe the long-term effects of child abuse on physical, mental, and emotional well-being and to track developmental changes or patterns in the individuals affected.
Since hypothetical statements like "always have a negative effect" imply observing outcomes over a duration, longitudinal studies are well-suited to address this comprehensively, and ethically it's not feasible to use an experimental approach.
Longitudinal research can reveal both the direct impact of child abuse and its indirect consequences on cognitive and social difficulties, as well as subsequent behaviors, such as poor academic performance, teen pregnancy, and drug abuse.
It is also valuable for assessing variations amongst individuals, as not all children who experience abuse will have the same outcomes. This provides a more nuanced understanding of developmental trajectories post-abuse.
Other methods, such as Experimental Research (A), Observational Research (B), and Correlational Research (C), have their advantages but fall short of capturing the full picture over time.
For example, correlational research could detect if there's an association between child abuse and negative developmental outcomes, but it wouldn't account for changes over time or individual variability in development.
Hence, the right answer is option D.