Chapter 2; Applying Sociological Research Methods Flashcards
concept
an abstract idea expressed as a word or phase
variable
a categorical concept for properties of people or entites that can differ and change
deductive reasoning
starts with theories and follows a top-down approach that ends with research findings
inductive reasoning
data driven, bottom-up, starts with observations and ends with a theory
What are the 5 main purposes of Sociological research
explore, describe, explain, evaluate an area of interest, or help empower a disadvantaged social group
the 4 Es and 1 D
exploratory research
helps us understand more about an area that is not well established, What is it like to be x group of people? What is x social phenomenon like?
descriptive research
used to note features/characteristics of a group, event, activity, or situation
explanatory research
used to clarify aspects of a social phenomenon so that we can understand the effects it does or doesn’t have
evaluation research
used to asses the need for/ effectiveness of a social program. Includes needs assesment: asks what the nature of the problem is and what resources are needed to fix it, and program evalution: evaluates whether a program is working as intended
what is empowerment research and what kinds of research does it include?
used to improve conditions within a particular social setting or group in society, includes:
action research: generates knowledge about an area of interest to bring about social change
participatory action research: places emphasis on the target group and stakeholders, viewing issues as resting within a community and therefore can be solved with input from the community and active collaboration with the stakeholders
Indigenous storywork
ethical approach to researching indigenous people based on the 7 principles of respect, responsibility, reciprocity, reverence, holism, interrelatedness, and synergy
4 Rs and HIS
what the the steps for conducting sociological research
- research question
- literature review
- narrowed focus
- research design
- data collection
- data analysis
- draw conclusions
- report findings
rape literally needs radical destruction don’t do rape
1.research question
what interests you?
2.Literature review
What is already known about the topic? important for identifying central concepts and framing a research question in the most relevant theoretical context
3.narrowed focus
How can you transform your research interest into a study? This step includes operationalization: process of defining variables in a precise manner that is measurable
4.research design
a detailed outline of all the proposed components of a study. should identify research interest, proposed components of a study, and how data collection will take place.
5.data collection
how will you collect your data? ex. interviews, surveys
6.data analysis
**compilation of observations into a format that helps us learn more about the problem.
Depends on what research methods were used, ex. transcription: recording all the answers in an interview and indexing/coding: identifying common themes. Then statistically software can be used to compute correlation coefficients that quantify linear relationships between variables
7.draw conclusions
What does the data tell you? Sociological research doesn’t always prove something so much as it helps us better understand it
8.report findings
How can you share the findings? Research projects conclude with a dissemination of findings, ex. presenting findings at academic conferences, write articles to publish in peer reviewed journals
what is reliability and how do researchers show it?
the consistency of a measure; to show reliability 2 different researchers should come up with the same definition of a variable
validity
how well the measure represents what it claims to/intended concept
hypothesis
a testable research statement that includes at least 2 variables
how do qualitative approaches differ in methods?
use broader questions and therefore don’t operationalize variables/ test specific hypotheses
nuremberg code
1st set of directives for human experimentation; detailed importance of
1.obtaining prior consent,
2.protecting participants from harm, and
3.acknowledging subjects right to end participation
Philip Zimbardo’s experiment
college student prison study