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Sociology Research Methods > Booklet 1 > Flashcards

Booklet 1 Flashcards

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Sociology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What is research methodology?

A
  • a set of principles used to conduct research to gather evidence to support a theory
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2
Q

What is primary data?

A
  • information collected by sociologists for their own research using experiments, observations or social surveys
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3
Q

What are examples of primary data? [2]

A
  • notes from experiments
  • notes from observations
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4
Q

What is secondary data?

A
  • information collected or created by someone else which sociologists can also use in their research
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5
Q

What are examples of secondary data? [4]

A
  • historical documents
  • official statistics
  • a diary
  • OFSTED reports
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6
Q

What is quantitative data?

A
  • a type of data that involves use of data
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7
Q

What are examples of quantitative data? [4]

A
  • official statistics
  • percentage of marriages ending in divorce
  • number of people who are unemployed
  • OFTED reports
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8
Q

What is qualitative data?

A
  • a type of data that relies on descriptions (eg thoughts, feelings, opinions) and are detailed
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9
Q

What are examples of qualitative data? [4]

A
  • documents
  • interview transcripts
  • diaries
  • opinion polls
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10
Q

What are practical issues?

A
  • the difficulties to carry out the research in a non stressful manner
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11
Q

What are ethical issues?

A
  • moral issues of right and wrong
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12
Q

What are theoretical issues?

A
  • the methodological strengths and limitations of the research
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13
Q

How does the requirements of funding bodies influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • affects the scale of the research, the methods used and the choice of topic
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14
Q

How does personal skills and characteristics influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • the investigators gender, ethnicity, age etc can influence their ability to conduct the research effectively
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15
Q

How does the subject matter influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this refers to how well the researcher knows the subject being studied, which could influence how much data is collected and whether the research gets funded
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16
Q

How does research opportunity influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this can determine whether research can take place or not as it refers to the likelihood that there will be a way to study a particular topic/social group
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17
Q

How does access influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this refers to whether an individual will be able to get into an institution or social group to conduct their research
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18
Q

How does informed consent influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • it is expected that the researcher attempts to gain to participants permission to study them and if possible, tell them about what they are investigating
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19
Q

How does confidentiality and privacy influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • researchers must keep the participants identity a secret to help prevent any possible negative effects
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20
Q

How does protection from harm influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • researchers need to be aware of the possible effects of their work on those they study and try to minimise any harm
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21
Q

How do vulnerable groups influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • special care must be taken where participants are particularly vulnerable (eg due to age or disability)
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22
Q

How does covert research influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this is where the researcher’s identity and their purpose are hidden from the people being studied. this is sometimes the only way to study groups but it can result in deception and guilty knowledge
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23
Q

How does validity influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this refers to the extent to which the method measures what it’s supposed to and whether the data is an accurate picture of the behaviour being studied
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24
Q

How does reliability influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this refers to the extent to which the method can be replicated and produce consistent results
  • quantitive methods
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25
Q

How does representativeness influence the choice of research methods?

A
  • this refers to whether the people we study are a typical cross section of the group we are interested in
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26
Q

What are methodological perspectives?

A
  • they have ideas about how we should study society
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27
Q

What is positivism? [8]

A
  • quantitative data, objectivity, reliability, representativeness, cause and effect, structured methods, laboratory experiments, official statistics
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28
Q

Why do positivists prefer quantitative data? [5]

A
  • society should be studied like a science
  • society can be studied objectively which means without bias (eg scientifically)
  • they collect quantitative data to uncover patterns and trends
  • they believe we can establish social facts
  • prefer research methods which are structured and likely to produce data that is reliable and representative of the population
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29
Q

What is interpretivism? [7]

A
  • qualitative data, subjectivity, validity, unstructured methods, observations, surveys, documents
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30
Q

Why do interpretivists prefer qualitative data? [5]

A
  • sociology shouldn’t be treated like a science it is it’s own subject
  • society should be studied subjectively which means we should use our biases
  • they collect qualitative data to uncover social meanings behind people’s actions
  • they believe we can gain verstehen in order to understand social meaning of behaviour
  • prefer research methods that are unstructured and likely to produce data that is valid
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31
Q

What is verstehen and how is it achieved?

A
  • when the researcher gains an empathetic understanding or insight into the participants point of view
  • only achievable through qualitative methods
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32
Q

What is an aim?

A
  • what the study intends to achieve
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33
Q

What is a hypothesis?

A
  • states which direction the study will go
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34
Q

Which methodological perspective prefers aims and why?

A
  • interpretivists
  • verstehen, subjective, unstructured
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35
Q

Which methodological perspective prefers hypotheses and why?

A
  • positivists
  • objective, structured, highlights patterns and trends
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36
Q

What does operationalising concepts mean?

A
  • converting a sociological concept such as social class or educational achievement into something which can be objectively measured
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37
Q

How do you operationalise ‘social class’

A
  • how much money they make in a year
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38
Q

What are questionnaires also known as? [2]

A
  • surveys or self completion reports
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39
Q

Why do we use questionnaires?

A
  • to find out about people’s beliefs, attitudes and opinions
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40
Q

What types of questions are used in questionnaires? [2]

A

open ended and closed ended

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41
Q

What are closed ended questions?

A
  • types of questions that provide participants with a limited choice and force them to select from a list of possible answers such as yes and no or use rating scales to express preferences
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42
Q

What is an example of a closed ended question?

A
  • do you want to go to college?
43
Q

What are open ended questions?

A
  • types of questions that invite people to describe in their own words what they think or feel about a particular topic
  • open ended questions allow researchers to collect qualitative data
44
Q

What is an example of an open ended question?

A
  • why do you want to go to college?
45
Q

What is a strength of closed ended questions?

A
  • allow collection of quantitative data which can be statistically analysed and used for objective comparison between ppts so findings are likely to be more reliable
46
Q

What is a limitation of closed ended questions?

A
  • use of predetermined choices means that ppts may not feel that their desired response is available to choose an answer that is not entirely representing their view which reduces the validity of findings
47
Q

What is a strength of open ended questions?

A
  • allow collection bc of detailed qualitative data which can help us understand reasons behind people’s beliefs and attitudes so findings are likely to be more valid
48
Q

What is a limitation of open ended questions?

A
  • qualitative data is unique to individuals so difficult to statistically analyse and compare between individuals/groups so may be less useful for drawing conclusions
49
Q

What is schofields research using questionnaires about? What is the problem with it?

A
  • schofield conducted research about sexual behaviour of teenagers
  • when asked a question ‘are you a virgin?’ one participant answered ‘no not yet’
  • this answer makes the research invalid as the answer does not make sense
50
Q

What is hite’s research using questionnaires about? What is the problem with it?

A
  • hite conducted a study about ‘love, passion and emotional violence’
  • she sent out 100,000 questionnaires asking people about their sexual activities and only received 4.5% responses
  • this means the research is not representative
51
Q

What is dewson’s research using questionnaires about? What is the strengths of it?

A
  • dewson posted nearly 4000 questionnaires to institutions around the country to investigate factors that influence the decisions of WC students when considering university
  • these were self completion, pre coded questionnaires
  • the research is highly representative, reliable and time efficient
52
Q

Why are practical advantages an advantage of questionnaires? [2]

A
  • quick and cheap way of gathering large amounts of data from a large number of people…
  • quantitative data (closed questions) can be easily analysed and compared between groups to identify trends and patterns
53
Q

Why is reliability an advantage of questionnaires?

A
  • reliable methods as the same questions can be used by another researcher to check consistency of finding
54
Q

Why is hypothesis testing an advantage of questionnaires?

A
55
Q

Why is detachment and objectivity an advantage of questionnaires?

A
  • questionnaires are favoured by positivists as a detached and unbiased method, since participants are less likely to be influenced by researchers so produce truthful responses
56
Q

Why is representativeness an advantage of questionnaires?

A
  • results are likely to be representative of the target population as they allow collection of large number of people simultaneously (generalisibility)
57
Q

Why is the avoidance of ethical issues an advantage of questionnaires?

A
  • researchers can gain informed consent easily as participants are under no obligation to answer the questions
  • pilot studies can help ensure that questions asked are not intrusive or too sensitive to ensure protection from harm
58
Q

Why are practical advantages a disadvantage if questionnaires?

A
  • researchers sometimes need to include incentives to encourage participants to complete questionnaires (e.g. prize draw entry, free pens, etc) which adds to the cost of running a survey
  • low response rates as there may not be a way of checking that everyone who was given a questionnaire actually completes it and returns it to the researchers
59
Q

Why are low response rates a disadvantage of questionnaires?

A
  • low response rates can be a big issue especially for postal questionnaires
  • hite sent out 100,000 questionnaires and only 4.5% were returned
60
Q

Why is inflexibility a disadvantage of questionnaires?

A
  • the data collected from questionnaires can be limited and superficial as participants would not want to spend long time completing questionnaires
  • questionnaires can be inflexible as only set questions are asked, preventing researchers to find out any additional information from participants (low validity)
61
Q

Why are questionnaires as a snapshot a disadvantage of questionnaires? [2]

A
  • the answers from the participant only reflect their attitudes, views and circumstances at one particular moment in time (when the fill out the questionnaire)
  • they do not capture the way people’s attitudes and values change
62
Q

Why is detachment a disadvantage of questionnaires? [2]

A
  • cicourel
  • questionnaires lack verstehen as there is no researcher and participant contact (especially in postal questionnaires) so the researcher cannot gain empathy and understanding
  • no clarity on questions or answers
63
Q

Why is lying, forgetting and right answerism a disadvantage of questionnaires? [2]

A
  • participants may not understand the questions, forget the information or be unwilling to provide truthful answers (low validity)
  • right answerism is a form of social desirability bias, where the participant feels like there is a “right answer” to the question, even if it’s not the correct one
64
Q

Why is imposing the researchers meanings a disadvantage of questionnaires?

A
  • researchers choose questions they want answering, not respondents
  • closed questions mean answers have to be ‘modified’
  • open ended questions means long answers are interpreted differently by the researcher
  • Interpretivists reject questionnaires as they may impose researchers’ values leading to social desirable answers
65
Q

Why are interviews used in sociological interviews?

A
  • to find out about people’s beliefs, attitudes and opinions
66
Q

What do interviews involve?

A
  • the use of open and closed ended questions
  • ppts respond to these questions verbally rather than in writing like in questionnaires
  • can be carried out in person or over the phone
67
Q

What are structured / formal interviews?

A
  • where the interviewer will use a pre set list of questions and use a standardised way of asking the participants in the same order, wording and manner
68
Q

Why is practical advantages an advantage of structured interviews?

A
  • quick and cheap way of gathering a large group of people
  • collects quantitative data
69
Q

Why is response rate an advantage of structured interviews?

A
  • people are not pressured to answer the questionnaire which avoids ethical issues
70
Q

Why is replicability and reliability an advantage of structured interviews?

A
  • high in reliability as it’s easy to replicate the research in the exact same way because the questions are standardised and pre set
71
Q

Why are validity problems a disadvantage of structured interviews?

A
  • usually use closed ended questions which gives little freedom for the ppt to explain answers / clarify misunderstandings
  • this lowers the validity
72
Q

Why is inflexibility and snapshots a disadvantage of structured interviews?

A
  • question schedule is written in advance (inflexible)
  • fails to capture the dynamic nature of social life
73
Q

Why are feminist criticisms a disadvantage of structured interviews?

A
  • patriarchal and evidence of ‘malestream sociology’ (graham)
  • usually a make interviewer in control
74
Q

What should an interviewer avoid doing in an interview and why? [2]

A
  • slang and informal language: could confuse the ppt as slang is different in different countries
  • offensive / too personal questions: could run the risk of physical or emotional harm to ppts
75
Q

What should an interviewer do before an interview and why?

A
  • ensure the questions are crystal clear so we don’t waste the ppt’s time asking irrelevant questions
76
Q

What are unstructured / informal interviews?

A
  • more guided by conversation
  • interviewer may vary the questions depending on the ppt’s responses
77
Q

What are unstructured interviews also called?

A
  • discovery interviews
78
Q

Why is rapport and sensitivity an advantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • if the researcher can create a rapport (working relationship) with the ppt, the ppt may trust the research and share more detailed responses
  • it also allows the researcher to investigate sensitive topics such as domestic violence as the ppt feels more comfortable with the interviewer to open up
  • this is a strength because the interviewer can gain more detailed information (qualitative data)
79
Q

Why are interviewee’s views an advantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • the interviewee can express their views freely and it allows them to speak openly about their thoughts, feelings and opinion regarding the topic
  • this is a strength because the interviewer can gain more detailed information (qualitative data)
80
Q

Why is checking understanding an advantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • if the interviewee uses language or phrases that the interviewer doesn’t understand or gives an ambiguous answer (unclear) the interviewer can clarity what they mean by asking follow up questions
  • this means that the study will be higher in validity
81
Q

Why is flexibility to explore new topics an advantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • as the participant and the interviewer are engaging in a discussion led interview, it will allow the interviewer to ask about other areas or talk about other points that the participant raises during their interview
  • this is a strength because the interviewer can gain more detailed information (qualitative data)
82
Q

Why are practical advantages a disadvantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • unstructured interviews are time consuming and require highly skilled interviewers to ensure that it’s conducted properly
  • this is a limitation as there will be a lower reliability as the interviewer may not be able to gather every single piece of information given
83
Q

Why is response rate a disadvantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • as these interviews are time consuming, it might be harder to get ppts to take part in the research
  • other methods such as questionnaires or structured interviews may have a better response rate
  • this means that it will be harder to generalise
84
Q

Why is replicability and reliability a disadvantage of unstructured interviews?

A
  • as the discussions are unique and informal in nature, this means that it is almost impossible to repeat the same interview with other ppts and achieve similar results
  • less representative
85
Q

What are semi structured interviews?

A
  • the researcher is likely to use the same set of questions but can also ask additional questions where it may be relevant
86
Q

What is a practical advantage of semi structured interviews?

A
  • they are quicker than unstructured interviews and require less training
87
Q

What is an ethical advantage of semi structured interviews?

A
  • easy to gain informed consent
88
Q

What is a theoretical advantage of semi structured interviews?

A
  • follow up questions to closed questions allow the researcher to gain quantitative and qualitative data
89
Q

What is a practical disadvantage of semi structured interviews? [2]

A
  • aren’t as easy to conduct as structured interviews
  • open ended questions take more time
90
Q

What is an ethical disadvantage of semi structured interviews?

A
  • harder to investigate more sensitive questions
91
Q

What is a theoretical disadvantage of semi structured interviews?

A
  • less ppts can be interviewed meaning the findings can’t be generalised as much as structured interviews
92
Q

What are group interviews?

A
  • where a number of people are being asked questions at the same time and their individual responses are recorded by the researcher
93
Q

What is a practical advantage of group interviews?

A
  • saves time as you interview the entire sample together
94
Q

What is an ethical advantage of group interviews?

A
  • all ppts can give their consent and are aware that they are taking part in an interview so no deception is necessary
95
Q

What is a theoretical advantage of group interviews? [2]

A
  • it is closer to normal social life than structured interviews so participants may be more relaxed and give more valid answers
  • ppts can build on eachothers answers to produce richer and more reflective data
96
Q

What is a practical disadvantage of group interviews? [2]

A
  • one individual may dominate the discussion, limiting others from contributing
  • depends on the researchers ability to keep the group focused on the discussion topic
97
Q

What is an ethical disadvantage of group interviews?

A
  • with a large number of ppts it is more difficult to ensure anonymity as the ppts may know eachother which links to peer pressure etc
98
Q

What is a theoretical disadvantage of group interviews? [2]

A
  • peers may be influenced to conform and may not say what they really feel (peer pressure) which lowers the validity
  • very difficult to analyse the findings as there are many views from may different peoples
99
Q

Why are leading questions a disadvantage of interviews in general?

A
  • interviewers could accidentally or intentionally ask questions that will lead the ppts to give a specific answer (eg what do you love about SJR college?)
100
Q

Why are power and status differences a disadvantage of interviews in general?

A
  • some ppts may struggle to be fully honest with the interviewer depending on how they perceive them (eg school pupils may perceive an adult as an authority figure so may not tell the truth)
101
Q

Why are ethical issues and sensitive subjects a disadvantage of interviews in general?

A
  • although some interview methods are better than others, great care just be taken to interview vulnerable groups such as victims and we run the risk of asking questions that are too personal or triggering
102
Q

Semi-structured interviews (skelton and francis)

A
  • investigating gender as a factor in primary pupil teacher relationships
  • conducted semi structured interviews along with non participants observations looking at teacher and pupil perceptions of whether gender matching made a difference to male achievement
  • conducted in 51 different year 3 primary schools in london
  • asked pupils about who the admire in popular culture and daily lives, views of their teacher and opinions on gender and teaching
  • consent form from parents were given
  • pupils were free to choose not to participate
  • there was a concern phrasing questions in ways that children found difficult and the interview schedule was designed in consultation with teachers and piloted with children to ensure maximum clarity
103
Q

Structured interviews (young and wilmott)

A
  • carried out structured interviews into the extended family in east london on 933 people
  • interviewers hired due to so many people
  • formal and standardised
  • questions we’re precise and factual with limited range of alternative answers
  • asked about age, job, religion, birthplace and the whereabouts of parents and wider family members / last contact with them
  • at few points in the interview the interviewer wrote a short and simple reply
  • each interview took 10-30 mins to complete
104
Q

Group interviews (paul willis)

A
  • ‘learning to labour’ research
  • ethnographic study of twelve WC ‘lads’ from a high school in Birmingham between 1972-1975
  • spent 18 months with the group observing and taking about behaviour and attitudes towards education and future career aspirations following their transition from school to work
  • allowed the boys to talk freely in their own words about the way they viewed school, teachers and work

Sociology Research Methods (1 decks)

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