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
Tri-council policy statement
official policy for research conducted with human participants in Canada
3 main principles for the TCPS
- Respect for persons: participants can choose if/how they are involved and consent must be freely give with the knowledge that it can be withdrawn at any time. Debriefing: the disclosure of all details in cases where participants can’t be told all the info ahead of; is mandatory.
2.Concern for welfare: must also consider broader social, economic, cultural, and historical issues. - justice: people with be treated fairly, equitable, and with respect
anonymity
when a researcher can’t link any individual response to a participant
confidentiality
participants should not be identifiable to the public
what are the 2 main approaches to research?
qualitative and quantitative
What are Qualitative research methods, what kind of reasoning do they use, what kind data do they use, and what is the goal?
uses inductive reasoning and data in the form of words or images; goal is to better understand the nature (quality) of some phenomenon. Include interviews, observations, focus groups, and document analysis.
What are Quantitative research methods, what kind of reasoning do they use, what are they used for, and what kind of data do they use?
uses deductive reasoning and numerical data; used to test hypothesis and measure (quantify) social phenomenon. Need replicability, reliability, and validity (consistent measures across time and researchers). Include test-repeat and statistical measures.
grounded theory
qualitative; a systematic strategy for moving from observations to general conclusions about discourse, actions, interactions, and practices
what must qualitative approaches demonstrate and how is it demonstrated?
they must demonstrate rigour; this is done through triangulation, credibility, and audit trails
rigour
trustworthiness of the research project and data collected
triangulation
the use of multiple data-gathering techniques within the same study, ex. participant observation, interviews, and focus groups
credibility
akin to validity; the degree to which the findings accurately represent the reality the participants experienced
audit trails
transparent, verifiable, detailed documents outlining how research decisions were made and how conclusions were reached
what is an experiment, what kind of research is it used for, and what theorizing is it based off?
a deductive research method for testing a hypothesis through the use of a controlled environment, manipulation of an independent variable, a control group and random assignment. Can infer causality from experiements.
Used for carrying out explanatory research and based on positivist theorizing.
independent variable
presumed cause/ manipulated variable
control group
participants that are not exposed to the independent variable
dependent variable
the outcome/ variable that is measured
field experiments
experimental designs constructed in real-life settings where the variables of interest occur naturally
what is a survey and what are the strengths and weaknesses of surveys?
quantitative research method for gathering info using a questionnaire
strengths: high response rate, rich detailed information, relationship among many variables
limitations: low validity, respondent accuracy
questionnaire
form with close-ended questions, participants choose from a list of answers
respondents
people who consent to take surveys, be interviewed, or participate in a focus group
representative sample
a small group that closely resembles the population of interest
random selection
every person in the population has an equal chance of being selected
sample of convenience
used when a representative sample isn’t available
standardized interview
follows a set format of predetermined questions with no additional questions or clarification allowed
what are unstandardized/qualitative interviews and what kind of theorizing do they rely on?
also called qualitative interviews; no set format, relys on interpretive theorizing because the emphasis is placed on how respondents perceive their own experiences
semi-standardized interviews
mix of standardized and unstanderdized interviews; allow for some clarification and flexibility in the order/wording of questions
focus group
6-10 people who share a trait relevant to the topic of interest are interviewed by a moderator, can be based on interpretive or critical theorizing
what is archival analysis/ secondary analysis of existing dating and what purposes is it used for?
research method used to examine info on a topic that was collected for unrelated purposes can be quantitative to be used for descriptive purposes or qualitative for exploratory purposes
secondary data
content created for purposes other than research
what is content analysis and what kind of technique is it?
secondary analysis technique for systematically examining messages contained in text or portrayed in images
what is discourse analysis and what the different types?
method used to analyze language and how it shapes social life, includes;
conversational analysis: transcribed conversations
narrative analysis: oral messages
media discourse: messages within images from a specific genres
historical analysis: examining/interpreting historical forms of data to better understand the past and its relationship with the present
HNM Card
What is Ethnography and what is it used for?
broad term for various forms of fieldwork designed to describe everyday behaviour in natural settings; used to learn more about a group or asses a social problem with the goal of change
Ethnographer
social scientist who uses multiple methods over time in order to gather info about a group while participating in that group
systematic observation
naturalistic, when a researcher observers a group to see how often a social phenomenon occurs
non-participant observation
when a researcher systematically observes a group but doesn’t interact with that group (non-participant observation)
participant observation
researcher collects systematic observations while taking part in group activities
what are multiple method approaches and what kind of research are they used for?
use more than one data collection technique; evaluation research, action research and ethnographic research use multiple methods
EERA
single-case design
case study research that focuses on only 1 person, organization, event, or program
convergent design
uses at least 1 qualitative and 1 quantitave method at the same time in order to compare different perspectives
