quiz 2 Flashcards
concepts
idea or mental representations of things, they are categories for the organization of ideas and observations
conceptualization
is the process of defining the concepts that one employs in one’s research - specifying the meaning of something for research
operationalization
is the process of determining how one will measure a concept through one’s research
nomothetic explanations
what are the three criteria of causation
involve attributions of cause and effect, expressed in terms of general laws and principles
- typically quantitative
- correlation
- time order
- non-spuriousness
idiographic explanation
involve a rich description of a person or group and seek to explain the particular
typically qualitative
- not meant to apply to persons or groups who were not part of the study
reliability
- what are its three different meanings
concerned with the consistency of measures
1. stability over time
2. internal reliability
3. inter-observer consistency.
reliability
(stability over time)
whether the results of a measure fluctuate as time progresses assuming that what is being measured is not changing
- can be measured using the test-retest method
- it is extremely difficult to quantify stability over time because of the number of factors that may come into play over the passage of time
reliability
(internal consistency)
whether multiple measures that are administered in one sitting are consistent
reliability
(inter-observer consistency)
all observers should classify behaviour or attitudes in the same way
- two researchers looking at the same study should agree
measurement validity
and the four kinds
concerned with whether one is measuring what one wants to measure
1. face validity
2. concurrent validity
3. construct validity
4. convergent validity
explain face validity
established if at first glance the measure appears to be valid
explain concurrent validity
established if the measure correlates with some criterion thought to be relevant to the concept
a lack of correlation brings some doubt onto the validity (correctness) of the original measure
construct validity
established if the concepts relate to each other in the way that is consistent with the researcher’s theory - confirmed by seeing that the results match what would be predicted given the theory
convergent validity
established if a measure of a concept correlates with a second measure of the concept that uses a different measurement technique
what are the levels of measurement
nominal
ordinal
interval
ratio
nominal
a variable comprised of categories that cannot be ranked
ordinal
a variable whose categories can be ranked in order but the distance between the categories is not equal or known across the range
interval
a variable for which the intervals between categories are identical and quantifiable
ratio
an interval variable with a true zero point
units of analysis
the things that are the object of a study’s attention (individuals, organizations or groups, social artifacts
unit of observation
the kinds of objects from which evidence is collected
in the research example how did they measure school quality
average of percent on standardized testing
in the research example how did they measure ethnic composition
by schools through official data
in the research example how did they measure poverty
how many students are eligible for free lunch
what is the unit of analysis in the research example
schools
what is the unit of observation in research example
individuals
in the research example, what was the result comparing race and testing
reading and math- white, Asian, native/other, Hispanic, black (highest to lowest grades)
- vertical mosaic
what demonstrates a vertical mosaic in the research example
school quality by racial composition
poverty level makes a BIG difference in
school quality
the impact of location on quality depends on
the level of poverty in the school district
what type of location has the most poverty
inner city
most racial/ethnic disparities are linked not so much to racial composition of schools as to their ______ ___ _______
levels of poverty
what races are concentrated in the two high poverty schools of the research
Hispanic, Native, black
how are porverty and school quality related
inversely
which variables mattered at the end of the study
race and poverty
- not location
what kind of research design did the study follow
positivist
- quantitative
-cross-sectional
-logical
-operationalization
-levels of measurement
- reliability and validity
- typologies
what approach was used throughout the study
deductive
- the construction of typology was done inductively
what where the control, independent, and dependent variables in the study
- poverty/location
- race
- ranking on test
which variable had debatable validity
school ranking (does test grades really measure quality)
when creating the typology what was the independent and dependent variables
type of school independent
school quality- dependent
what is unobtrusive method
use of existing statistics provided
(researchers had no impact)
primary goal of quantatitive researchers
measurement
establishing causality (internal validity)
generalization
replication
external validity. what controls this?
achieved if results of a study can be generalized beyond research context affected by research design picked
what are the three main reasons for the attention given to measurement
- can detect fine differences
- can define a consistent yardstick for such distinctions
- basis for correlation analysis
indicator
something employed to measure a concept can refer to anything but mainly indirect measure used when no direct measure is available
what is the likert scale
measure the intensity of feelings about a particular topic
multiple indicators allow for
factor analysis and cluster analysis
factor analysis
- Factor analysis provides an indication of the extent to which (a) multiple measures really are measuring a single concept as opposed to more than one concept; and (b) individual items are measuring the concept in question.
cluster analysis
Cluster analysis allows researchers to determine whether people or other units of study can be grouped together on the basis of shared characteristic
coding three principles
- categories must not overlap
- must be exhaustive
- clear rules about how codes are applied
reliability is concerned with
consistency of measures
1. stability over time
2. internal
3. inter-observer consistancy
internal reliability
- The key issue here is whether multiple measures that are administered in one sitting are consistent—in other words, whether respondents’ scores on any one indicator tend to be related to their scores on the other indicators.
face validity
- Appears to reflect the content of the concept In question
- Concurrent validity
- The researcher can also seek to gauge the concurrent validity of the measure by examining a criterion relevant to the concept in question at about the same time as the measure of interest is administered
which test for stability over time
test-retest
The criticism that quantitative research’s reliance on instruments and procedures produces a disjuncture between research and everyday life relates to the question of
external validity.