RESEARCH METHODS Flashcards
What are the key points of positivism?
Influenced by the natural sciences
Have adapted and applied the ideas that plants, chemicals and animals behave in a predictable ways to human behaviour, therefore we should treat people as objects whose behaviour can be directly observed, measured and counted in the same way as natural phenomenons
There are social forces or laws (Durkheim calls them ‘social facts’) that shape and determine the social actions of people
These laws are the product of the organisation of society
Free will, individualism, and the ability to make choices is less influential than society’s ability to shape human behaviour
Individual’s are the ‘puppets of society’
Functionalism, Marxism and feminism are positivist theories as they believe the individual is less important than the social structure
Why has positivism been influential on research methods?
Most sociologists believe that remaining objective and adopting a scientific approach is vital in sociological research (The British Sociological Association implicitly encourage quantitative research)
2. The government, when funding sociological research, tend to favour quantitative research as it allows generalisations
3. Science has a great status in society and is still perceived as a source of much human progress
What are positivist views on patterns and trends?
They believe that whole groups of people behave in very patterned or similar ways as a result of the social structure
Trends in human behaviour can clearly be measured and catalogued, and is also predictable
Positivists take a ‘macro’ approach to society, in that they’re mainly concerned with examining the relationships between different parts of the social structure to work out their effects on individual behaviour
What are positivist views on sociology as a science?
Positivists argue that sociologists should adopt the logic and methods of the natural sciences in their exploration of how the social structures shapes people’s behaviours and actions
Known as the ‘hypothetical-deductive approach’
These observations about the world lead to positivists coming up with hypotheses or conjectures, which are informed guesses about how and why the social situation they observed has come about
They then test the hypothesis by collecting data or evidence, through a scientific survey
What are positivist views on research methods?
They argue that sociological research methods used to test hypotheses should exhibit the following ideal features in order to be considered scientific:
Should follow systematic and logical procedures
Should be reliable (repeat and get same results)
Should be objective and value free (personal views should not effect results)
Should be representative (sample should reflect target population)
Should be generalisable (can safely conclude that the results can be applied to the wider population)
Keen on quantitative data (easier to compare and establish correlations)
Should be valid (research findings give a true picture to what is being studied)
What was Durkheim’s study on suicide?
He investigated suicide using the positivist scientific approach, by studying 19th century suicide statistics in Europe and found 3 trends:
1. Suicide rates remained constant and predictable
2. The number remained constant between societies
3. The number remained constant between social groups within the same society
He concluded that the rates of suicide were not the result of using free will, but instead suicide is a social fact shaped by the nature of society the individuals belong in
The main type of suicide found was ‘egoisitic’, which was caused by too much individualism
Religion played a major role in whether individual were sufficiently integrated into society or not
Catholics sense of community was much stronger than protestant, therefore had a stronger sense of belonging
Protestants were more likely to kill themselves than Catholics because they didn’t provide as much protection against suicide
Their failure to establish a strong sense of community led to people believing they were superior to the group, resulting in egoism and suicidal actions
What are the key points of interpretivism?
Reject the positivist view that human behaviour is determined and shaped by social structure, and that behaviour is predictable
Instead, they argue that people are active creators of their own destinies
They believe that society is socially constructed in that it is the product of two processes:
People choose to come together and interact in social groups
What makes an interaction or event ‘social’ is that all those who take part give it the same meaning
Weber is the main interpretivist as he argues that we must not regard people simply as helpless puppets, instead we need to acknowledge that society is a social construct in that it is the net sum of all social interactions and the meanings that underpin them
Wha is verstehen?
Interpretivist sociologists argue that if we want to explain social actions, we have to first understand them in a way that the participant does
We must learn to see them world from their standpoint, and develop empathetic understanding
What are interpretivist views on research methods?
See validity as more important than objectivity and reliability
A focus on reliability can result in researcher imposition, where it only focuses on what the sociologist thinks and neglects what the research subject really thinks
They claim their research is valid in a number of ways:
It is ethnographic (involve the insertion of the researcher into the situation to understand society and culture)
They create a rapport with the participant to give a true picture of their lives
They establish verstehen to understand the true feelings of the participant
They prefer qualitative research as it allows for more detail
Prefer primary research methods, especially unstructured interviews as they have a naturalistic conversational style
What is reflexivity for interpretivists?
Some interpretivist sociologists have attempted to counter positivist criticisms by keeping diaries that document the trials and tribulations of every stage of the research
This is known as reflexivity as it is a form of self-evaluation to try and improve their researcH
What was Atkinson’s Coroners and suicide study?
He critiques Durkheim’s positivist study from the interpretivist view
Durkheim failed to appreciate that the statistics are socially constructed because they are due to interactions between the victim, their family and friends, and a coroner whose function is to interpret how people have died and apply a label for cause of death
When it comes to suicide, if the coroner suspects intent to die, they will look for clues such as suicide notes and how the person did
Argued that catholics had a lower rate of suicide due to having closer relationships with the coroners, and therefore being able to cover them up
Supports that interactions between people is involved in statistics, and they aren’t as simple as they seem
What are controlled observations?
Likely to be carried out in a laboratory/controlled setting
The researcher decides where the observation will take place, at what time, with which participants, in what circumstances and uses a standardised procedure
Participants are randomly allocated to each independent variable group
What are the strengths of controlled observations?
Easily replicated by other researchers using the same method - reliable
The data is easier and quicker to analyse as it is quantitative - less time consuming
Large sample can be obtained as quick method, making results more representative
What are the weaknesses of controlled observations?
Lack validity due to Hawthorne effect/demand characteristics and lack ecological validity as situation may not reflect a real life situation
What are naturalistic observations?
Involves studying spontaneous behaviour of participants in natural surroundings
The researcher simply records what they see in whatever way they can
What are the strengths of naturalistic observations?
Greater ecological validity as observes behaviour in natural setting
Often reveals behaviour not seen before
No researcher manipulation of behaviour so more valid
What are the weaknesses of naturalistic observations?
Often conducted on a micro scale and may lack a representative sample
Less reliable as other variables cannot be controlled
Researcher needs to be trained to be able to recognise aspects of a situation that are significant and worth further attention
No manipulation of variables so a cause and effect relationship cannot be established
What are participant observations?
A variant of natural observations but the researcher joins in and becomes a part of the group they are studying to get a deeper insight into the situation
Overt - the group being studied are aware they are being observed
Covert - the group being studied doesn’t know they are being observed (‘undercover’)
What are the strengths of participant observations?
Take place in natural settings, which should mean the respondents act more naturally making it more valid
If covert, then less chance for the Hawthorne effect
It’s flexible and allows the researcher to enter the situation with an open mind
Interpretivists prefer this method because it is respondent led, and therefore allows them to speak for themselves and establishes ‘verstehen’
What are the weaknesses of participant observations?
Can be difficult to get time/privacy for recording the behaviour, especially with covert (have to wait until they’re on their own and rely on memory which may not be accurate)
If the researcher becomes too involved they may lose objectivity and become bias
Participants are deceived if covert, which has ethical issues
Legality can be an issue in covert researchers, as sometimes researchers working with deviant groups may have to do illegal acts to maintain their cover
