Quantitative research method

Question 1

What are the practical issues in quantitative research methods?

Answer 1

Time and money, personal skills/characteristics of the researchers, research opportunity.

Question 2

What are the ethical issues in quantitative research methods?

Answer 2

Informed consent, vulnerable groups, potential harmful effects.

Question 3

What are the theoretical issues in quantitative research methods?

Answer 3

Reliability, validity, representativeness.

Question 4

What type of data do interpretivists prefer?

Answer 4

Qualitative data, such as unstructured interviews, participant observation, and analysis of public documents.

Question 5

What type of data do positivists prefer?

Answer 5

Quantitative data in numerical or statistical form, based on natural sciences.

Question 6

What are key features of lab experiments?

Answer 6

Controls, experimental/control group, cause and effect, small samples, Hawthorne effect.

Question 7

What are the practical issues of lab experiments?

Answer 7

Lab experiments can only study closed systems, not suitable for social phenomena.

Question 8

What are the ethical issues of lab experiments?

Answer 8

Lack of informed consent, potential harm may be justified if results show great social benefits.

Question 9

What are the theoretical issues of lab experiments?

Answer 9

High reliability and replicability due to controlled conditions.

Question 10

What is a limitation of lab experiments regarding representativeness?

Answer 10

Lack of representativeness due to small sample size, cannot generalize to the public.

Question 11

What is a limitation of lab experiments regarding internal validity?

Answer 11

Lab experiments are often artificial, which may lower the validity of subjects’ behavior.

Question 12

What are key features of field experiments?

Answer 12

Takes place in natural environments, subjects do not know they are part of an experiment.

Question 13

What is an example of a field experiment?

Answer 13

Rosenthal and Jacobsen tested whether teachers’ expectations could impact pupils’ achievement.

Question 14

What are the practical issues of field experiments?

Answer 14

High time and money costs, difficulty accessing vulnerable groups.

Question 15

What are the ethical issues of field experiments?

Answer 15

Lack of informed consent, potential psychological harm.

Question 16

What are the theoretical issues of field experiments?

Answer 16

High ecological validity but low reliability/replicability due to less control over variables.

Question 17

What is the comparative method?

Answer 17

Reanalyzing secondary data that has already been collected.

Question 18

What are the strengths of the comparative method?

Answer 18

Avoids artificiality, can study past events, avoids ethical problems of harm.

Question 19

What are the weaknesses of the comparative method?

Answer 19

Less control over extraneous variables.

Question 20

What are key features of questionnaires?

Answer 20

Close-ended and open-ended questions, can be conducted in person or online.

Question 21

What are the practical issues of questionnaires?

Answer 21

Quick and cheap, easy to quantify data, may require incentives, limited detail.

Question 22

What are the ethical issues of questionnaires?

Answer 22

Potential psychological/emotional harm depending on questions asked.

Question 23

What are the theoretical issues of questionnaires?

Answer 23

Low representativeness and validity, high reliability.

Question 24

What is an example of a study using questionnaires?

Answer 24

Hifes study sent 10,000 questionnaires with a response rate of 9.5%.

Question 25

What are key features of structured interviews?

Answer 25

Standardized questions with the same wording/tone/order for all subjects.

Question 26

What are the practical issues of structured interviews?

Answer 26

Can cover large amounts of people, results are quantifiable, training is cheap.

Question 27

What are the ethical issues of structured interviews?

Answer 27

Closed-ended questions may avoid psychological harm, often informed consent is obtained.

Question 28

What are the theoretical issues of structured interviews?

Answer 28

High reliability, low validity, high representativeness.

Question 29

What do feminists argue about structured interviews and questionnaires?

Answer 29

They reflect exploitative gender relationships and the researcher takes an active role while the subject is passive.

Question 30

What are key features of official statistics?

Answer 30

A form of quantitative secondary data, usually collected by governments.

Question 31

What are the practical issues of official statistics?

Answer 31

Cheap and easy source of data, may be hard to find specific statistics.

Question 32

What are the theoretical issues of official statistics?

Answer 32

High representativeness and reliability, but interpretivists argue they lack validity.

Question 33

What do interpretivists distinguish between in official statistics?

Answer 33

Soft statistics (decisions made by agencies) and hard statistics (registration data).

Question 34

What do Marxists argue about official statistics?

Answer 34

They serve the interests of capitalism and distort reality to maintain power.

Question 35

What do feminists argue about official statistics?

Answer 35

They reflect a patriarchal model of research and undermine women's economic contributions.