Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

COMS 313 > Exam > Flashcards

Exam Flashcards

(62 cards)

Start Studying
1
Q

What 3 stages does research involve?

A

Planning
Data Collection
Analysis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Epistemology is concerned with…

A

how we know things

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is Positivism?

A

The belief that SCIENCE CAN UNCOVER THE TRUTH OR THE “WHAT” of social questions we might have about things observed often. Associated w/ natural sciences.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is Phenomenology?

A

To know the social world we MUST UNDERSTAND THE SOCIAL PROCESSES. Phenomenologists want to know HOW PEOPLE INTERPRET THEIR WORLD AND WHAT TO UNCOVER THE “HOW” of a social phenomenon.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What is a critical epistemological perspective?

A

A desire to UNDERSTAND THE STRUCTURAL RELATIONSHIPS AND CONTEXTS of a social phenomenon. Data is often HISTORICAL OR COMPARATIVE and answers the “WHY” of the phenomenon.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What is Ontology?

A

The study of what is real or the nature of being.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is Objectivism (Ontological Perspective)?

A

Organizations and phenomenon are said to EXIST BEYOND THE PEOPLE WHO INHABIT THEM. INDIVIDUALS HAVE NO ROLE in shaping the social world; they inhabit it and internalize its values, assumptions, and beliefs.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is Constructivism (Ontological Perspective)?

A

OPPOSITE of OBJECTIVISM. The social world is CONSTANTLY BEING CREATED BY INDIVIDUALS. The world is in a constant state of evolution and change.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What is empiricism versus social constuctivism?

A

Empiricism–> views reality as waiting to be discovered through research
Social Constructivism–> we cocreate reality as we discover it

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Qualitative research is…

A

related to people, to people data collection, observation, not numerical

  • Induction reasoning
  • avoids assumptions of what data might reveal
  • data informs the question as its collected
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Quantitative research is…

A
  • deductive reasoning (Identify relevant variables before data collection)
  • Question framed as a hypothesis, a conclusion that is either rejected or accepted
  • evaluates effect of an intervention
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Naturalism (Positivism)

Language of Qualitative

A

based on people’s perceptions, meanings, or lived experiences
ex. What will happen if we intervene with this

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Social Constructivism (Language of Qualitative)

A

deriving from how people represent or construct views of their world (rooted in language)
ex. How symbols can have connected meanings

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What are the benefits of Naturalistic Research?

A
  • representational simplicity and a formulaic task list (enter the setting, establish the rapport, record observations, present the findings)
  • participants are mere sources of data versus co-creators
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What is a benefit and problem of Constructivism (ethnomethodology)?

A

Benefit: Emphasizes the rhetorical and constructive aspects of knowledge
Problem: risks loosing sight of topic in the name of focusing on the process of its creation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is a model?

A

A framework for how we look at reality, basic elements and what reality is like
ex. functionalism, behaviourism, symbolic interactionism

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is a concept?

A

Clearly specified ideas deriving from a particular model and ways of looking at the world which are essential to defining a research problem
ex. social function, stimulus/ response, definition of the situation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What is a theory?

A

An arranged set of concepts to define and explain some phenomenon. Often used to explain, predict, or understand.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

The levels of analysis, beginning with model are…

A
  1. Model
  2. Concepts
  3. Theories
  4. Hypothesis
  5. Methodology
  6. Methods
  7. Findings
  8. Back to the hypothesis
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

What is a social problem?

A

General factors that affect and damage society, not usually researchable as they are too big and unwieldy

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

What is a research problem?

A

Definite or clear expression about an area of concern that points to the need for meaningful understanding and deliberate investigation
- DOES NOT STATE HOW TO DO SOMETHING

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

What is Historical sensitivity?

A

Understanding a social problem by understanding the history of the issue.
ex. Populations were controlled by force and we assume that we have more freedoms now. But through historical research you will find that surveillance, though not violent, is a form of control, and we have more of that now.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

What is Political Sensitivity?

A

It seeks to grasp the politics behind defining topics in particular ways. Seeks to question how official definitions of problems arise.
ex. Questioning the term “child abuse” in the late 1960s as a government definition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What is Contextual Sensitivity?

A

Recognizing that apparently uniform institutions like “family” or “media” can take on a variety of different contexts. Move beyond the common sense stereotypes of qualitative research. Anchored in the idea that we socially construct meaning and it is not universal, it is anti- essentialist.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
What are the four levels of measurement for survey questions?
Nominal, Ordinal, Interval, Ratio
26
What are nominal questions?
- NON ORDERED - No Quantitive value or order - Places participants into categories Ex. yes/no, gender, ethnicity, geography
27
What are ordinal questions?
- Depicts order, but not difference between each variable - Magnitude and identity ex. poor, fair, good, excellent questions or to what extent do you agree
28
What are interval questions?
- Numerical scale where order and difference between variables are known - Familiar, constant, and computable difference between variables - Magnitude, identity, and equal variables between points ex. Likert scale for temperature, IQ tests, self- reported depression level
29
What is a ratio question?
- Variable measurement scale with order of variables and known difference between variables - Assumes the variables have an option for 0 Ex. height and weight brackets Ex2. A. below 20 years B. 21-30 years C. 31- 40 years
30
What is ethnographic research?
- putting yourself in the middle of a social phenomenon - involves the ethnographer participating overtly or covertly in people's daily lives for an extended period of time, watching what happens, listening to what is said, asking questions... - modern day concerned w/ mundane activities
31
What are the key points of ethnography?
- Participant Observation (Ethnographers are STORYTELLERS) - You are the primary research instrument - Modern sees the world as interpretive - Thick description - Cultural Script - MORE INDUCTIVE than deductive - develop further questions through research process
32
What are the benefits of well executed ethnography?
- Understand the MEANING for participants - Understand the particular CONTEXT within which the participant acts and the influences - Identify UNANTICIPATED PHENOMENA - UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESS by which events and actions take place - Develop CAUSAL RELATIONSHIPS
33
What is a covert observer position?
The observer states they are an ordinary, legitimate member of the group
34
What is an overt observer position?
The purpose of the research and procedures explained to the people being studied.
35
Marginal Native
?
36
What are the challenges of ethnography?
- Must consider initial responses of people and gain trust - Impression Management - Awareness of Consequences of non-negotiable characteristics - Marginality/ Marginal Native - Deciding when to leave the field
37
What is visual analysis?
An analysis of visual artifacts that are located within a sociological and cultural context.
38
What is visuality?
Seeing things in a social and cultural context and appreciating the socially constructed nature of what and how we see. - Open to change overtime
39
What is a connection between ethnography and visual analysis?
Early documentaries recorded the lives of others and power was with the film maker, the "ethnographer"/ This helped maintain the separation.
40
What is psychoanalytic theory? (Visual analysis)
- Analyzing and deconstructing specific scenes in films to extrapolate meaning from the mise en scene - Focuses on AUDIENCE AND REPRESENTATION, emphasizes sexuality, desire, subjectivity ex. Mulvey's research on the "male gaze"
41
What is content analysis? (Visual analysis)
Texts reflect social processes and construct perceptions and identify trends over time and space - Used frequently with television, start of project Ex. research on representation of women in soap operas
42
What is semiotic analysis? (Visual analysis)
- relies more on researcher interpretation than on objective and generalisability - an image is derived from its interrelation to other images - Decoding/ Encoding
43
What is the main difference between semiotic and content analysis?
Semiotic has no method and is mostly theory which means it has very few guidelines for employing it. Semiotic relies on researcher subjectivity and is interpretive vs content analysis which is generalizable and objective
44
What is discourse analysis? (Visual analysis)
Interested in the intention of image producers as well as the multiple readings made up of consumers. HOW AUDIENCE IS READING THOSE MESSAGES Ex. TV show as artifact and forums to understand how people are talking about it
45
What is Memory Work? (Visual Analysis)
- roots in photo elicitation but is used to encourage autobiographical reconstruction - more emotional and flexible responses
46
What ethical considerations have to be made when analyzing visual images?
- confidentiality, anonymity and consent are complicated when using photos - copyright issues
47
What is the definition of discourse analysis?
Method for studying the use of language in social contexts. - Language is an object of inquiry, it does not simply reflect reality, it constructs terms that help us understand social reality
48
What is the definition of discourse?
- as single utterance or speech act - a systemic ordering of language - Hall "a group of statements which provide a language for talking about, or representing, a particular kind of knowledge about a topic"
49
What is Critical Discourse Analysis?
- concerned with the SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONTEXT of discourse - based on the view that language is not only conditioned by these contexts but HELPS CONSTITUTE THEM ex. "expert" languages (imbalance of power b/w doctor and patient b/c of medical discourse
50
CDA researchers might ask _____ and see language as ___.
"How are ideologies reproduced through language and texts?" see language as crucial to the ways that power is reproduced, legitimated, and exercised within social relations and institutions
51
What are the core themes and techniques of discourse analysis?
- Defining the research problem - Selecting and approaching data - Coding and analyzing data - Presenting the analysis It is hard to formalize a discourse analysis method b/c it is so data driven, different theories can be used
52
What are the perspectives that determine how a researcher is defining an issue (discourse analysis)?
For an example of immigration, - Policy: compare other countries policies - Identity: opinion pieces talking about immigration identity, interviews with immigrants - Media representations: global vs US news broadcasts - Public attitudes: read forum comments, comments on posts
53
What is content analysis?
- quantitative method for studying textual data | - analyses text in terms of the presence and frequency of specific terms, narratives, or concepts
54
What are three features of content analysis?
- high degree of validity and reliability - clear empirical evidence that can be replicated and generalized - one of the most objective methods
55
You can delimit a sample for context evaluation by ___ and it should aim to produce a sample that is ___, ___, and ___.
- setting time limits | - relevant, representative, manageable
56
What is a Keyword-in-context (KWIC) display?
Using a computer, produces an output displaying and counting all contexts in which a word appears within a text.
57
A KWIC approach or an initial reading conducted by a computer allows for researcher bias to be minimized by grounding in ___ content of the texts rather than ___ content.
manifest (the content as it has been written by producer), latent (as its been read by researcher)
58
What is comparative keyword analysis? (CKA)
2 texts of interest are compared with each other rather than with a reference corpus
59
What are collocates?
Words that occur together with a higher frequency that would be expected by chance alone.
60
What is a mutual information score (MI)?
adjusts for the phenomenon of common words appearing as collocates (and, the, or). Indicates which collocates co-occur more often than chance.
61
Data collection is associated with ____ methods?
Structured, just collecting data that can be generalized and quanitifiable
62
Data generation is associated with ____ interviews?
- qualitative, researcher is co-producer - idealist (social constructivist) approach - interviews are analysed for what and how

COMS 313 (1 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions