Chapter 2 - Sociological Research 2.2

Question 1

Primary source data collection include…

Answer 1

survey, participant observation, ethnography, case study, unobtrusive observations,
experiment, and secondary data analysis

Question 2

Secondary data analysis

Answer 2

use of existing sources

Question 3

Survey

Answer 3

collects data from subjects who respond to a series of questions about
behaviors and opinions

Question 4

What are some ways to conduct surveys?

Answer 4

Through a questionnaire or an interview

Question 5

Why can a survey be good?

Answer 5

1. allows individuals a level of anonymity in
   which they can express personal ideas.
2. Surveys gather different types
   of information from people
3. at some level, discover how people feel, think, and act

Question 6

Why can a survey be bad?

Answer 6

not great at capturing the ways people really behave in social
situations

Question 7

Population

Answer 7

people who are the focus of a study

Question 8

Sample

Answer 8

a small sector of the population (people of focus)

Question 9

Random sample

Answer 9

every person in a population has the same chance of being chosen for the study

Question 10

Instrument

Answer 10

a means of gathering the information

Question 11

Close-ended questions

Answer 11

yes-or-no or multiple-choice questions, allowing subjects to choose possible responses
to each question

Question 12

Open-ended questions

Answer 12

require short essay responses

Question 13

What can open-ended questions convey?

Answer 13

convey participants’ personal religious beliefs, political
views, goals, or morals

Question 14

Interview

Answer 14

one-on-one conversation between the researcher and the subject

Question 15

What’s good about interviews?

Answer 15

a researcher can ask for
clarification, spend more time on a subtopic, or ask additional questions. In an interview, a subject will ideally
feel free to open up and answer questions that are often complex.

Question 16

What is important to do as a researcher for interviews?

Answer 16

To NOT steer or prompt the subject to respond in a specific way

Question 17

Field research

Answer 17

gathering primary data from a
natural environment. A researcher can observe or interact w/ people & gather data

Question 18

What is the purpose of a field research

Answer 18

To observe specific behaviors in a setting + optimal for observing how & why people think & behave a certain way

Question 19

What is bad about field study?

Answer 19

may struggle to narrow down cause and effect when there are so many
variables floating around in a natural environment
+
small sample size does not allow causal relationship (cause + effect)

Question 20

A field study can only identify a…

Answer 20

correlation, not a cause & effect

Question 21

Participant observation

Answer 21

researchers join people and
participate in a group’s routine activities for the purpose of observing them within that context

Question 22

The questions first brought up in field research undergoes…

Answer 22

changes as patterns emerge and it becomes more specific & can lead to hypothesis and how to analyze data

Question 23

Covert

Answer 23

hidden

Question 24

Overt

Answer 24

Visible

Question 25

Why is covert participant observation good?

Answer 25

allows the researcher access to authentic, natural behaviors of a group’s members.

Question 26

What is challenging about a covert participant observation? What is its cons?

Answer 26

gaining access to a setting without disrupting the pattern of others’ behavior // end results are often descriptive or interpretive due to qualitative data

Question 27

Ethnography

Answer 27

immersion of the researcher in the natural setting of an entire social community using participant observation TO observe and experience their everyday life and culture

Question 28

What is the purpose of ethnography?

Answer 28

focuses on how subjects view their own social standing and how they understand themselves in relation to a social group

Question 29

Basic ethnographic research principles on...

Answer 29

focusing intentionally on everyday concrete social relationships

Question 30

Institutional ethnography is considered a...

Answer 30

feminist-inspired approach to social analysis

Question 31

Case study

Answer 31

in-depth analysis of a SPECIFIC single event, situation, or individual

Question 32

Examples of case study

Answer 32

study a single case of a foster child, drug lord, cancer patient, criminal, or rape victim.

Question 33

Major criticism of case studies

Answer 33

does not provide enough evidence to form a generalized conclusion

Question 34

What is good about case studies

Answer 34

offer in depth info on a specific topic

Question 35

Oxana Malaya Case Study

Answer 35

A Ukrainian "feral" girl who acted like a dog due to severe parental neglect. Introduced back to society and learned basic human behaviors, but never full socialized.

Question 36

Experiment

Answer 36

investigate relationships to test a hypothesis—a scientific approach