The document discusses two alternative methods to laboratory experiments in sociology: field experiments and the comparative method. The comparative method is designed to discover cause-and-effect relationships and is sometimes called a thought experiment. Rosenthal & Jacobson used a field experiment to study the effects of teacher expectations on student achievement. The comparative method has advantages over laboratory experiments in that it avoids artificiality, can study past events, and does not harm or deceive subjects. Durkheim used the comparative method in his study of suicide rates.