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sociology research methods > primary research methods > Flashcards

primary research methods Flashcards

1
Q

lab experiments strengths - theoretical

A

highly reliable - THEORETICAL
can easily identify cause and effect relationships - THEORETICAL

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2
Q

lab experiments limitations - theoretical

A

artificiality - artificial environment and it unlikely results can be transferred to the real world - THEORETICAL

Hawthorne effect - knowledge you’re in an environment can change behaviour - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

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3
Q

lab experiments limitations - ethical

A

Consent - they usually involve deception, which means obtaining consent can be difficult - ETHICAL

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4
Q

field experiment strengths

A

less artificial than lab experiments because they have more ecological validity - THEORETICAL

people don’t know they’re in an experiment = no Hawthorne effect - THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL

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5
Q

field experiment limitations - theoretical

A

less control over variables, so not as scientific - THEORETICAL

have limited application as very few situations that can be adapted to become field experiments - THEORETICAL

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6
Q

field experiments limitations - ethical

A

do not gain consent of those involved as this would change behaviour - ETHICAL

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7
Q

structured interviews

A

follow a list of pre-set questions
quantitative data - positivists :)
close-ended questions

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8
Q

structured interviews strengths - theoretical

A

reliable because they use a fixed set of questions so it can be easily repeated by another interviewer - THEORETICAL

relatively quick to conduct = interviewer can get a large sample - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

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9
Q

structured interviews strength - practical

A

relatively quick to conduct = interviewer can get a large sample - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

cheapest form of interview - PRACTICAL

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10
Q

structured interviews weaknesses

A

lack validity because the questions and responses are already predetermined so may not fit with what the interviewee actually thinks - THEORETICAL

not useful for many situations (e.g sensitive subjective topics) - PRACTICAL AND ETHICAL

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11
Q

structured interviews weakness - practical

A

employing interviewers incurs a cost - PRACTICAL

not useful for many situations (e.g sensitive subjective topics) - PRACTICAL AND ETHICAL

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12
Q

structured interview weakness - ethical

A

not useful for many situations (e.g sensitive subjective topics) - PRACTICAL AND ETHICAL

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13
Q

unstructured interviews

A

ask open-ended questions - no fixed set of questions
qualitative data - interpretivists :)
free flowing so similar to a natural conversation

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14
Q

unstructured interviews strengths - theoretical

A

because they are informal participants may be more likely to ‘open up’ - THEORETICAL

interviewers can add questions in to explore specific answers further - THEORETICAL

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15
Q

unstructured interview strengths - practical

A

because questions aren’t fixed there’s less chance o ideas being imposed - ETHICAL AND PRACTICAL

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16
Q

unstructured interview strengths - ethical

A

because questions aren’t fixed there’s less chance o ideas being imposed - ETHICAL AND PRACTICAL

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17
Q

unstructured interviews weaknesses

A

not reliable - THEORETICAL

too much data- PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

not always relevant - THEORETICAL

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18
Q

unstructured interview weakness - practical

A

employing interviewers can be expensive - PRACTICAL

too much data- PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

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19
Q

questionnaires

A

a set list of questions asked in the same way every time
usually self-completion
closed questions = quantitative data - positivists :)

20
Q

questionnaires strengths - practical

A

relatively cheap compared to interviews - PRACTICAL

relatively quick to conduct compared to interviews - PRACTICAL

21
Q

questionnaires strengths - theoretical

A

obtain quantitative data (easy to compare) - THEORETICAL

22
Q

questionnaires weaknesses

A

obtain quantitative data (lacks detail) - THEORETICAL

response rate can be low - THEORETICAL

23
Q

questionnaires weakness - ethical

A

no way of stopping research if someone is upset - ETHICAL

24
Q

questionnaires weakness - practical

A

questions may be understood - PRACTICAL

25
Q

how do you improve questionnaire response rate

A

offer incentives e.g chance to win a free trip
AO3 answers may not be representative

26
Q

what type of data do observations providee

A

qualitative data - interpretivists :)

27
Q

participant observation advantages - theoretical

A

groups are observed in a natural authentic setting so the data is more likely to be a true account of the groups behaviour - THEORETICAL

dat generated is rich in detail and offers insight into social behaviour - THEORETICAL

28
Q

participant observation disadvantages - theoretical

A

being open ended and subjective research there is no fixed procedure or standardised system of measurement and cannot be replicated - THEORETICAL

most participant observations investigate small-scale groups that are not representative of the wider population - THEORETICAL

the Hawthorne effect - due to how the observer I likely to affect the group’s behaviour and the researcher is at risk of ‘going native’ meaning the researcher over-identifies with the group - THEORETICAL

29
Q

participant observation disadvantages - practical

A

there are issues with getting into the group staying in the group and/ or leaving the group - PRACTICAL

30
Q

particpant observations - ethical

A

Its difficult to ensure anonymity of participants - ETHICAL

31
Q

non participant observations advantages - practical

A

there I limited risk of the researcher ‘going native’ and over-identifying, getting involved - PRACTICAL

32
Q

non participant observations disadvantages - theoretical

A

Each observation will be subjective, and therefore the results cannot be repeated - THEORETICAL

They generally use a small-scale research sample - THEORETICAL

33
Q

overt observations (know you’re being watched) advantages - ethical

A

Less ethical issues than covert because the participants know they’re being researched - ETHICAL

The observer can openly take note - ETHICAL

Allows researcher to use interview methods too = greater validity and types of data - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

34
Q

overt observations (know you’re being watched) advantages - theoretical

A

Higher level of reliability than covert - THEORETICAL

Allows researcher to use interview methods too = greater validity and types of data - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

35
Q

overt observations (know you’re being watched) advantages - practical

A

Allows researcher to use interview methods too = greater validity and types of data - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL

36
Q

overt observations disadvantages - theoretical

A

Hawthorne effect - THEORETICAL

difficult to repeat - THEORETICAL

usually a small sample size - THEORETICAL

37
Q

overt observations disadvantages - practical

A

they can be relatively time consuming - PRACTICAL

38
Q

covert observations advantages

A

there is no Hawthorne effect - THEORETICAL

find out more in-depth detail - THEORETICAL

39
Q

covert observations disadvantages - ethical

A

ethical issues - its immoral to deceive people - ETHICAL

40
Q

covert observations disadvantages - practical

A

researcher has to gain trust an d acceptance (this may be time consuming) - PRACTICAL

41
Q

Getting in - making contact (1)

A

making initial contact may depend on personal skill, connections and chance

e.g FAIRHURST found herself hospitalised and used the opportunity to conduct a study on being a patient

42
Q

getting in - acceptance (2)

A

to gain entry researcher will have to gain trust and acceptance

e.g JOHN HOWARD GRIFFIN was a white man who used medication to change his skin colour and pass as black - travelled around South America experiencing first hand racism

43
Q

getting in - the observer’s roles

A

the researchers role should:
not disrupt the group’s normal patterns
offer a good vantage point from which to make observations

44
Q

staying in - going native

A

by over-identifying with the group the researcher become biased
when this happens they’ve stopped being an observer and become a member of the group

on the other hand, the researcher might preserve they detachment so was to avoid bias, but by remaining detached the risk not understanding the events they observe

problem - more time spent with the group the less strange its ways appear

45
Q

getting out

A

if the researcher haas spent a long time involved with a group they may find their loyalty prevents them from including everything in their studies - to prevent the group harm

re-entering ones normal world can also be difficult

sociology research methods (3 decks)

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