Chapter 2 Flashcards
How did Park and Ogburn approach sociological research differently? In what ways did each sociologist influence researchers today?
Park was interested in developing theories, relating directly to lives of people through evidence of their lives (ethics, religion, journalism, and propaganda). Ogburn said sociology needs to become a science; need to “discover new knowledge”
What are the seven steps in the research process?
- Defining the Research Problem; 2. Reviewing the Literature; 3. Formulating a Hypotheses; 4. Selecting a Research Design; 5. Carrying out the research; 6. Interpreting results; 7. Reporting research findings.
what is ethnography
a qualitative research method where a researcher immerses themselves in a particular community or group to observe and understand their behaviors, interactions, and cultural practices from their own perspective, often through participant observation and in-depth interviews, to gain a deep understanding of their social dynamics and shared culture
what are measures of central tendency
mean, median, mode, and midrange
what are correlation coefficients
a statistical measure that indicates the strength and direction of a linear relationship between two variables
what are degree of dispersal
the extent to which data points within a set are spread out or distributed
What are the main advantages and limitations of ethnography as a research methodns?
+ Explains how studied people understand their own behavior
- only small groups can be studied
- depends on researcher’s skill
- different researchers may draw different conclusio
Contrast the two types of questions commonly used in surveys?
Standardized or fixed choice questions are easy to count and compare, yet difficult to compare statistically. Open ended questions provide more detailed information, but difficult to compare statistically.
What is a random sample?
A random sample is chosen so that every member of the population has the same probability of being included, to ensure that a population is represented accurately.
Discuss the main strengths of experiments?
+ have control of experiment conditions
+ able to isolate specific causes
what is community based participatory research
a collaborative research approach where community members actively partner with researchers as equals to identify, understand, and address health issues within their community
what is empirical investigation
any study whose conclusions are exclusively derived from concrete, verifiable evidence
How are the ethical dilemmas that social scientists face different from those that other researchers encounter in the physical or biological sciences?
The question of exploitation arises more in field studies than in statistical studies. Are social scientists benefitting at their subjects’ expense
Why should sociologists be concerned about the exploitation of the people that they study?
Humans are self-aware beings that have a sense of purpose in what they do—and they’re living things.
