Research Methods - Choosing a research method

Question 1

Primary Data

Answer 1

Information collected by sociologists themselves for their own purposes, which may be to obtain a first hand “picture” of a group or society, or to test a hypothesis.

Question 2

What are some methods of collecting primary data?

Answer 2

Social Surveys, Participant observation, experiments

Question 3

Whats an advantage of using primary data?

Answer 3

Sociologists may be able to gather precisely the information they need to test their hypothesis.

Question 4

Secondary data

Answer 4

Information which has been collected or created by someone else for their own purposes, but which the sociologist can then use

Question 5

What are some sources of Secondary data?

Answer 5

Official Statistics , documents etc.

Question 6

What is Quantitative data?

Answer 6

Information in a numerical form. Examples of this include official statistics, information collected by polls etc.

Question 7

What is Qualitative Data?

Answer 7

Data which gives a feel for what something is like - for example what it feels like to get good GCSE results, or a marriage to end in divorce.

Question 8

What are means of collecting Qualitative data?

Answer 8

Participant observation, In-depth interviews etc.

Question 9

Practical issue - time and money

Answer 9

Some methods of research will require different amounts of time and money and this may influence the sociologist’s choice

Question 10

Practical issue - Requirements of funding bodies

Answer 10

Research institutes, businesses and other organisations that provide the funding for research may require the results to be in a particular form e.g. government funded research in educational achievement may have targets for pass rates and therefore will want quantitative data

Question 11

Practical issue - personal skills and characteristics

Answer 11

Each sociologist possesses different personal skills and this may affect their ability to use different methods

Question 12

Practical issue - Subject matter

Answer 12

It may be harder to study a particular group or subject by one method than by anther. For example it might prove difficult for a male sociologist to study an all-female group by means of participant observation

Question 13

Practical issue - research opportunity

Answer 13

Sometimes the opportunity to carry out research occurs unexpectedly and this means that it may not be possible to use structured methods like questionnaires which take longer to prepare

Question 14

Ethical issue - informed consent

Answer 14

Research participants should be offered the right to refuse to be involved. They should also be informed about all aspects of the research so they can make an informed decision as to if they would want to participate or not

Question 15

Ethical issue - confidentiality and privacy

Answer 15

Researchers should keep the identity of research participants secret in order to help prevent possible negative side effects on them

Question 16

Ethical issue - harm to research participants

Answer 16

Researchers should be aware of the possible side effects of their work on those they study e.g. police intervention, harm to employment prospects, social exclusion etc.

Question 17

Ethical issue - Vulnerable groups

Answer 17

Special care should be taken where research participants are particularly vulnerable because of their age , disability, or physical/mental health

Question 18

Ethical issue - Covert research

Answer 18

The researcher’s identity being hidden can become a serious ethical problem, such as deceiving or lying to people in order to win their trust or obtain information.

Question 19

Theoretical issue - Validity

Answer 19

Some sociologists argue that qualitative methods like participant observation give us a more valid or truthful account of what it is like to be a member of a group than quantitative methods.

Question 20

Theoretical issue - reliability (aka. replicability

Answer 20

A reliable test is easily repeatable. In sociology, quantitative methods such as written questionnaires tend to produce more reliable than qualitative methods such as unstructured interviews.

Question 21

Theoretical issue - Representativeness

Answer 21

This refers to wether or not the people being studied in an experiment are typical sample of the group of interest. If it is not , the data found can’t be generalised and applied to the rest of the group of interest.

Question 22

Theoretical issue - Methodological perspective

Answer 22

A sociologist’s methodological perspective may affect their choice of methods when researching. These two types of perspectives are: Positivists and Interpretivists

Question 23

What are Positivists?

Answer 23

Sociologists who prefer quantitative data, and who seek to discover patterns of behaviour and see sociology as a science.

Question 24

What are Interpretivists?

Answer 24

Sociologists who prefer qualitative data, and seek to understand social actor’s meanings and reject the view that sociology can model itself on the natural sciences.