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primary research methods Flashcards

1
Q

lab experiments strengths - theoretical

A

highly reliable
experimenter can control the conditions and specify the steps used to others can replicate the study

produces quantitative data so can be easily compared

lacks extrnal validity

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2
Q

lab experiments limitations - theoretical

A

lack external validity
findings may not represent behaviour in the world

the artificiality may encourage the Hawthorne effect - where the subjects react to being studies = invalid results

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3
Q

lab experiments - practical limitations

A

individuals are complex so its difficult to control all the variables that may influence what you’re studying

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4
Q

lab experiments - ethical limitations

A

informed consent
researcher needs to gain participants agreement to take part - having first explained to them the purpose of experiment
can be self-defeating as if they know purpose may act differently

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5
Q

lab experiment key features AO1 - control

A

controlled experiment in an artificial environment where variables can be controlled

experimenter takes a set of identical subjects and divides them into 2 groups
experimental - are exposed to independent variable
control group - aren’t exposed

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6
Q

lab experiment key features AO1 - cause and effect

A

the condition in both groups is measure before and after the experiment to identify whether independent variable had an effect

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7
Q

lab experiment 2 key features AO1

A

control

cause and effect

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8
Q

field experiment key features AO1

A

takes place in the subjects natural surrounding

those involved don’t know they’re being studied

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9
Q

field experiment strengths - theoretical

A

less artificial than lab experiments

they have more ecological validity

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10
Q

field experiment limitations - theoretical

A

less control over variables, so not as scientific and cannot be sure we’ve identified true cause

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11
Q

field experiments limitations - ethical

A

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

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12
Q

the comparative method

A

carried out only in the mind of the sociologist - ‘thought experiment’
not done on real people
to discover cause and effect

  1. identify 2 groups of people that are alike except for one variable
  2. Compare and see if this one difference between them has any effect
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13
Q

structured interviews Ao1

A

each interview conducted in same standardised way
close ended questions
produce quantitative data
questions read out and answers recorded by trained interviewer

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14
Q

structured interviews strengths - theoretical

A

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

positivists like
get quantitative data = easy to compare

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15
Q

structured interviews strength - practical

A

relatively quick and cheap to conduct = interviewer can get a large sample

suitable for gathering straight forward information

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16
Q

structured interviews weakness - practical

A

employing interviewers incurs a cost

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

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17
Q

structured interview weakness - ethical

A

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

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18
Q

structured interview weakness - theoretical

A

use close ended questions - forces interview to choose from a set of answers
if none of them fit it all affect the validity

preset questions give the interviewer no opportunity to follow up questions and gain a b better understanding - interpretivists:(

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19
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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20
Q

unstructured interviews strengths - theoretical

A

feminist Oakley
takes woman’s side and aims to give a voice to their experience and to free them form patriarchal oppression
as they’re more involved in their lives and experience - not detached

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21
Q

unstructured interview strengths - practical

A

the informality allows interviewer to develop a relationship - helps put interviewee at ease and encourage them to open up

unstructured = makes it easier to clarify answers and meanings
flexible = can explore what interviewer finds interesting

22
Q

unstructured interviews weaknesses - theoretical

A

positivists
not reliable
its not a standardised measuring instrument as each interviewer is unique
impossible for another researcher to replicate

23
Q

grounded theory

A

we would build and develop our hypothesis during the actual research based on the facts we discover

unstructured interviews are ideal for this as they allow us to ask any questions

24
Q

unstructured interview weakness - practical

A

employing interviewers can be expensive - have to have. background in sociology so they known when they’ve made a sociological point

too much data - makes analysis hard
take a long time

25
questionnaires Ao1
can be: closed-ended open-ended
26
questionnaires strengths - practical
relatively cheap to gather large mounts of information , don't need to recruit and train interviewers relatively quick to conduct compared to interviews no need to recruit and train interviewers
27
questionnaires strengths - theoretical
easy to gain geographically widespread data = increased representability and findings can be generalised to wider population positivists - questionnaires allow us to identify cause and effect easy to replicate - and for other researchers to gain same results
28
questionnaires limitations - theoretical
interpetivists reject questionnaires as they can't gain valid data we need to use methods that involve us closely with the people so we can gain the meaning of their actions lack f contact = can't clarify what the questions mean or their answers
29
questionnaires weakness - ethical
no way of stopping research if someone is upset or want to withdraw
30
questionnaires weakness - practical
questions may be misunderstood low response rates are an issue data is limited and brief as people are unlikely to fill out a long survey
31
how do you improve questionnaire response rate
offer incentives e.g chance to win a free trip AO3 answers may not be representative
32
what type of data do observations providee
qualitative data - interpretivists :)
33
participant observation AO1
can see what people would actually do in a situation researcher takes part in the group whilst observing it interpretivists favour it as a way of gaining insight into the actors' meanings
34
participant observation strength - practical
gives insight into their lives by putting ourselves in their place interpetivists like as its verstehen can be the only method for accessing and studying certain groups e.g deviant gangs will be suspicious of outsiders
35
participant observation weakness - practical
fieldwork is very time-consuming and produces a large about of qualitative data which is hard to analyse researcher needs to be trained to know what they're looking for
36
participant observation strength - theoretical
interpretivists produces valid data as they experience their lives first hand and get close to understand their meanings
37
participant observation limitation - theoretical
positivists unrepresentative of the wider population the group studied is usually very small unreliable and unscientific can't be replicated
38
participant observation limitation - ethical
difficult to ensure anonymity
39
nonparticipant observation AO1
the researcher observes the group but doesn't take part
40
non participant observations advantages - practical
there is limited risk of the researcher 'going native' and over-identifying, getting involved
41
non participant observations disadvantages - theoretical
Each observation will be subjective, and therefore the results cannot be repeated They generally use a small-scale research sample = unrepresentative - can't be generalised to wider population
42
overt observations (know you're being watched) advantages - ethical
Less ethical issues than covert because the participants know they’re being researched = can get consent
43
overt observations (know you're being watched) advantages - theoretical
Higher level of reliability than covert Allows researcher to use interview methods too = greater validity and types of data -
44
overt observations (know you're being watched) advantages - practical
Allows researcher to use interview methods too = greater validity and types of data - PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL
45
overt observations disadvantages - theoretical
Hawthorne effect - can effect the validity difficult to repeat usually a small sample size so can't be generalised = unrepresentative
46
overt observations disadvantages - practical
they can be relatively time consuming
47
covert observations advantages
there is no Hawthorne effect find out more in-depth detail
48
covert observations disadvantages - ethical
ethical issues - its immoral to deceive people - can't get consent
49
participant observation - getting in
making initial contact with the group may depend on factors such as personal skill, connection or chance then the researcher has to overcome the groups suspicion and win their trust - age, gender, class can be an obstacle to this researcher may have to adopt a particular role to fit in but must not disrupt the group's normal behaviour
50
participant observation - getting in - example of contact
FAIRHURST found herself hospitalised and used the opportunity to conduct a study on being a patient
51
participant observation - staying in
once in they're faced with problems: must be involved to understand fully but must also be detached to remain objective and unbiased if they stay too long the less strange the groups behaviour will appear and won't notice things they wold found noteworthy
52
participant observation - getting out
leaving a group that the researcher has become close to can be difficult and can be difficult re-entering their own world may find a loyalty to the group so prevents them from disclosing all information, for fear of harm to the group

sociology research methods (4 decks)

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