research methods Flashcards
quantitative data
data expressed in a numerical or statistical form. useful for establishing patterns or identifying similarities or differences. it is more objective (scientific and reduces researcher bias)
qualitative data
data expressed Textually instead of numbers. Composed of in depth descriptions of social life. It is more valid. (provides a clear & true picture of the social reality of the lives of the participants)
name the big 4
- generalisability
- validity
- reliability
- representativeness
(the big 4) what is validity?
TRUE INSIGHT
(qualitative)
a concept that refers to whether the research and its findings give a true and accurate picture of what is being studied
(the big 4) what is reliability?
REPLICABLE
(qualitative)
refers to wether or not the same results would be produced if repeated by the same researcher or by another sociologist, the replicability and concistancy of results.
(the big 4) what is the representativeness?
CHARACTERISTICS
(about the sample)
when the group being researched (sample) is typical of the population that Is being investigated.
the individual sample unit will reflect the characteristics of the research population as a whole in terms of social class, gender and ethnicity
(the big 4) what is generalisability?
WIDER CLAIMS
When you are able to make claims about a whole population based on actually studying a small sample. The ability to do this depends on the size and representativeness of a sample, a bigger sample would make one better equipped to make generalisations.
Validity (true insight)
An indication of how sound your research is.
(in data collection means that your findings truly represent the phenomenon you are
Validity mue insigut
claiming to measure.)
Controlling all possible factors that threaten the research’s validity is a primary responsibility of every good researcher.
