Research Methods

Question 1

Who are the ESRC?

Answer 1

Economic and social research council

Question 2

What 7 social facts did Durkheim believed influenced suicide rates?

Answer 2

Suicide was effected by many factors e.g.

Integration
Marriage
Religion
Peace/War
Economy
Sex
Race

Question 3

What approach did Durkheim take?

Answer 3

Positivist approach (used statistics and found suicide changed between societies and so wasn’t influenced by free will)

Question 4

What did Atkinson’s study on suicide show about Durkheim’s results?

Answer 4

Durkheim’s results were socially constructed as statistics were based off of description from family members and coroners.

Question 5

How has positivism dominated research?

Answer 5

1) Government uses generalisations made by positivists

2) Science has high status in society so methods that include scientific techniques = high regard

Question 6

How does social action critique positivism?

Answer 6

Social action acknowledges free will and human kind’s ability to act independently and unpredictable.

Question 7

What did Mead say about meanings and experiences in interpretivism?

Answer 7

Socialisation of children = learning to interpret actions around them.

Question 8

What did Weber say about ‘verstehen’?

Answer 8

Verstehen = empathetic standing point

Question 9

How do rapports link to ethnographic studies?

Answer 9

Ethnographic methods include actively involving themselves with participants and their culture to improve validity.

Question 10

How would positivists critique interpretivists?

Answer 10

1) Unprofessional and unsystematic
2) Their presence influences participants
3) Too subjective via interpretations

Question 11

How would interpretivists respond to criticism?

Answer 11

‘Reflexivity’ is used to log each stage to acknowledge that the sociologist may influence some data.

Question 12

What is the difference between objectivity and value freedom?

Answer 12

Objectivity = unbiased research

Value freedom = unbiased sociologist

Question 13

What is the difference between social problems and sociological problems?

Answer 13

Social problems = aspects of social life that cause fear or anxiety
Sociological problems = understanding of why aspects cause fear and understanding

Question 14

What are practical issues in research?

Answer 14

Cost
Time
Subject matter

Question 15

What are ethical issues in research?

Answer 15

Confidentiality
Consent
Deception

Question 16

What are theoretical issues in research?

Answer 16

Which methods (interpretivist or positivist) should be used depending on subject matter

Question 17

What are the two types of random sampling?

Answer 17

1) Systematic = via numbers e.g. every 10th person
2) Stratified = separating sample frame into representative groups of gender, race etc. then choose randomly from those proportions

Question 18

What does McNell and Chapman say about sampling?

Answer 18

Dip toes in before diving into whole pool

Question 19

What is a hypothesis?

Answer 19

An informed guess that the researcher believes is true and so will attempt to prove via aims and objectives

Question 20

What is operalisation?

Answer 20

The breaking down of aims and objectives into things that can be separately researched or measured aka decomposition

Question 21

What are the 5 types of non-random sampling?

Answer 21

1) Quota = researcher chooses how many from each gender, race, age should be used
2) Purposive = choosing cases or individuals to better represent their research
3) Opportunity = making most of situations or research e.g. attending institutions that would accommodate focused group / individuals
4) Snowball = finding someone who fits research then asking them to recommend someone similar/fitting
5) Volunteer = advertising for volunteers in media

Question 22

What is a pilot sample?

Answer 22

A ‘practice’ before the actual research, to ensure no mistakes or weaknesses are missed.

Question 23

What is the difference between official and unofficial statistics?

Answer 23

Official = government collected e.g. ONS or Census

Unofficial = non-government sources e.g. charities and employers

Question 24

What is respondent validation?

Answer 24

Sociologist checking with participant that answer has been interpreted correctly

Question 25

How did Bryman critique respondent validation?

Answer 25

May come across as sociologist not believing participant or encouraging them to agree with suggested interpretation.