Chapter 1: Introduction Flashcards
True or false: There is a system/right way to do research
True
True or false: Research is really about engagement and thinking critically about the world around us.
True
Research is intended to be ______.
applied to real life
9 steps of research:
1.) Choose a topic
2.) Review the literature
3.) Formulate the problem
4.) Develop the research question
5.) Choose and organize the research design
6.) Gather the data
7.) Analyze the data
8.) Interpret the data
9.) Communicate the findings
Purpose of a literature review
Surveys sources relevant to an issue and provides a critical evaluation of these works in relation to the current research problem being investigated.
The ____ in the literature review form the basis for future research
gaps
The strategies employed by a researcher to answer the research questions, such as analysis of historical records, participant observation, surveys, etc.
Research methods
The behavior and instruments used in performing research methods
Research techniques
Examples of research techniques
Note taking, recording behaviors, interviewing, recording, reference guides, measurement scales, etc.
The science of systematically answering a research question – the type of research approach, the methods, and the techniques used to answer the research questions
Research methodology
Ontology
The study, theory, or science of being.
Ontology is comprised of 2 aspects: _______ and _____
objectivism; subjectivism
Objectivism or subjectivism: Social entities exist externally to the social actors who are concerned with their existence
Objectivism
Objectivism or subjectivism: Social phenomena are created from the perceptions and actions of the social actors who are concerned with their existence
Subjectivism
Epistemology
The theory of knowledge; how do we know what is
Paradigm
A way of viewing the world, a set of ideas that is used to understand or explain something, often related to a specific subject
Tell me about the positivism paradigm
Objectivity, knowability, deductive logic
Society can and should be studied empirically and scientifically
Calls for a value-free sociology – no bias
Tell me about the interpretivist paradigm
researchers must understand the differences amongst humans as social actors
Conduct research among people, not objects
people like actors in a play
feelings and attitudes
Tell me about the social constructionism paradigm
truth is a varying, socially constructed, ever-changing notion – reality is created through our interactions and interpretations
Interested in how people socially agree/disagree about truth
Individualistic AND groups
Tell me about the critical paradigm
Focused on power, inequality, and social change
Social science can never be truly objective/value-free
Scientific investigation should be conducted with the express goal of seeking social change
Tell me about the postmodernism paradigm
No definite terms, boundaries, or absolute truth
Inductive or Deductive?
General –> Specific
Deductive
Inductive or Deductive?
Specific –> General
Inductive
3 steps of inductive approach:
1.) Gather data
2.) Look for patterns
3.) Develop theory
3 steps of deductive approach?
1.) Theorize/hypothesize
2.) Analyze data
3.) Hypothesis supported or not
Applied research makes a contribution by shaping ______
social life
____ research makes a contribution to sociological theories for knowledge, without having a specific application as a goal.
Basic
