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research methods Flashcards

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Sociology 101 flashcards
1
Q

macro

A
  • sense of social structure
  • objective
  • large scale
  • positivist
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2
Q

micro

A
  • indviduals
  • meanings of interactions
  • subjective
  • interpretivist
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3
Q

primary data

A

generated first hand

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4
Q

secondary data

A

using data which already exists

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5
Q

quantitative

A

methods which generate numerical information

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6
Q

qualitative

A

methods which generate in-depth data

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7
Q

positivism

A
  • identify underlying causes
  • quantitative data
  • cause and effect
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8
Q

interpretivism

A
  • qualitative data
  • understanding
  • how people give meaning to the social world
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9
Q

valid

A
  • true measurement of social reality
  • interpretivist
  • depth and detail
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10
Q

reliable

A
  • trustworthy and replicable
  • contradicts with validity
  • quantitive, consistency of data
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11
Q

generalisable

A
  • make claims about target population based on sample
  • depends on representative
  • size of sample
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12
Q

representative

A
  • typical/reflects the target population
  • positivists
  • typical characteristics
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13
Q

sampling frame

A

list of members of the sample population to be studied and their contacts

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14
Q

random sampling

A

simple, systematic, stratified

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15
Q

non random sampling

A

opportunity, quota, snowball

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16
Q

simple random

A

randomly selecting people from a list of names

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17
Q

+/- simple random

A

+ everyone has an equal chance

- doesn’t guarantee the outcome the researcher wants (disproportionate)

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18
Q

systematic random

A

numbering participants and picking them at set intervals

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19
Q

+/- systematic random

A

+ not biased

- not representative

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20
Q

stratified random

A

dividing the population into smaller groups

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21
Q

+/- stratified random

A

+ more specific to age and gender

- could be biased

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22
Q

quota

A

selects people to fit into certain categories

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23
Q

+/- quota

A

+ can fit target population

- biased as researcher looks for them

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24
Q

snowball

A

asking someone who fits the criteria if they know other people

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25
Q

ethical questions

A
  • unpaid
  • no harm
  • confidently
  • informed consent
  • no deception
  • anonymity
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26
Q

gatekeepers

A

a person who keeps the information

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27
Q

advantages of longitudinal studies

A
  • spot patterns and trends over time
  • see cause and effect relationships
  • used by positivists and intrepretivists
  • reliable as its repeated
  • large scale with a large sample
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28
Q

disadvantages of longitudinal studies

A
  • people drop out over time
  • high cost in time and money
  • research methods can be problematic
  • the research can change peoples thinking
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29
Q

pilot studies

A

test run of the research

- used before questionnaires and interviews

30
Q

advantages of pilot studies

A
  • saves wasting time
  • improves questions
  • trains the researcher
  • overview of time and cost
31
Q

disadvantage of pilot studies

A
  • expensive
  • delays study
  • contaminate the research
  • sends a bad message
32
Q

social surveys

A
  • questionnaires and structured interviews

- produces standardised data

33
Q

types of questions

A
  1. open
  2. closed
  3. graded
34
Q

advantages of questionnaires

A
  • collect information from a lot of people
  • can use all types of questions
  • identifies correlations
  • representative and reliable
35
Q

disadvantages of questionnaires

A
  • producing good questions is problematic
  • closed and graded limit response
  • may lack validity
36
Q

questionnaires

A

standardised list of pre set questions asked by the researcher

37
Q

ways to interview

A

face to face, phone, internet

38
Q

3 types of interview

A

structured, instructed, semi-structured

39
Q

advantages of structured interview

A
  • standardised data
  • easy to compare respondents
  • easy to replicate
  • large numbers
  • quick and cheap
40
Q

disadvantages of structured interview

A
  • lack validity
  • lack depth
  • lack flexibility
  • the same question could be interpreted differently
41
Q

advantages of unstructured interview

A
  • validity and depth
  • better understanding respondents
  • leads to new ideas
  • reduced interviewer effect
42
Q

disadvantages of unstructured interview

A
  • less standardised
  • less reliable
  • more time and money
  • avoid cherry picking information to fit hypothesis
43
Q

overt non participant observation

A

openly observing peoples behaviour with consent

44
Q

covert non participant observation

A

observing people who are unaware they’re being observed

45
Q

overt participant observation

A

being involved with the participant while observing them with consent

46
Q

covert participant observation

A

being involved with the participant but not telling them you’re observing them

47
Q

focus group advantages

A
  • researcher understands why people have certain opinions
  • study group interactions
  • the group will prioritise issues they find more important
48
Q

focus group disadvantages

A
  • researcher has less control
  • time consuming and expensive
  • analysing the material is difficult
49
Q

+/- overt non participant

A

+ its honest
+ positive
- Hawthorne effect
- unnatural

50
Q

+/- covert non participant

A

+ less likely to change behaviour
+ less time consuming
- explanations are limited
- unethical

51
Q

+/- overt participant

A

+ easier to record observation
+ doesn’t have to worry about being discovered
- may not behave naturally
- researcher may not be accepted

52
Q

+/- covert participant

A

+ more valid
+ gain understanding from new pov
- getting accepted and exit is hard
- time consuming and expensive

53
Q

ethnography

A

data gathered on direct observations of a particular society, focusing on beliefs, language, practices and social differences

54
Q

advantages of ethnography

A
  • detailed and valid
  • high in ecological validity
  • can combine different research methods
  • provides a naturalistic descriptive account
55
Q

disadvantages of ethnography

A
  • lacks representativeness and generalisability
  • can’t be replicated so no reliability
  • time consuming
  • ethical issues
  • objectivity is problematic
56
Q

official statistics

A

numerical data collected by the government, gathered by surveys carried out by state agencies (e.g the ONS)

57
Q

unofficial statistics

A

quantative data that is collected by non-government sources such as employers, professionals, political parties and charities

58
Q

advantages of statistics

A
  • easy and cheap to access
  • they’re up to date
  • positivist as collected in a standardised, scientific way
  • gathered from large representative samples
  • often form a basis of hypotheses for research
59
Q

disadvantages of statistics

A
  • definitions used by organisations may differ from sociologists
  • statistics can be changed by the government for political advantage
  • socially constructed so could be bias
  • tell us very little about human behaviour that underpins them
60
Q

hard statistics

A

are thought to be reliable and valid as there’s a legal requirement for them and they’re very specific (divorce, birth and death rates)

61
Q

soft statistics

A

are less reliable as they cover areas that are difficult to define accurately (crime stats by the police0

62
Q

police crime statistics problems

A
  • so many crimes aren’t reported
  • police don’t record all crimes or take them seriously
  • ‘the dark figure’ is the unknown number of crimes
63
Q

content analysis

A
  • analysis of the media or documents
  • can be quantative (numbers of articles)
  • can be qualitative (themes)
64
Q

criteria for document to be used

A
  1. authentic = is it genuine?
  2. credibility = is it accurate?
  3. representative = is it a complete account the situation?
  4. meaning = can the researcher understand the document?
65
Q

3 types of content analysis

A
  1. formal - classifies content in an objective manner but ignores meanings
  2. thematic - looks for motives and ideologies but interpretations may not be correct
  3. textual - how the text encourages a certain reading but it may not
66
Q

advantages of content analysis

A
  • cheap and easy to access, so it’s up to date
  • sometimes it’s the only way to research a topic
  • can spot patterns and trends overtime and compare them
  • positivist approach is reliable as it can be repeated
  • large studies are representative and generalisable
67
Q

disadvantages of content analysis

A
  • must accept definitions of concepts
  • the data may be bias and inaccurate
  • personal documents are subjective
  • lacks validity
  • researchers subjective could effect the data
68
Q

mixed methods

A

the combination of multiple methods of data collection

  • primary and secondary
  • qualitative and quantative
69
Q

triangulation

A

multiple research methods are used to cross check the findings for validity and consistency

70
Q

methodological pluralism

A

multiple research methods are used to build a fuller picture, usually combining quantative and qualitative

71
Q

advantages of mixed methods

A
  • fuller picture and cross checking
  • wider range of data
  • strengths of one method can compensate for the weakness of another
  • could combine positivism and interpretivism
  • combine primary and secondary data
  • adds benefits to the key concepts
72
Q

disadvantages of mixed methods

A
  • results may not be consistent so reduces validity
  • time consuming
  • too much data can be costly
  • too complicated
  • greater skills needed by the researcher
  • can be overkill
  • puts contrasting approaches together which might not work
  • negative effects on the key concepts

Sociology (12 decks)

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