Research Methods Explanations Flashcards
What are official statistics?
- They are quantitative data which is collected by the government
- It is referred to as secondary data as it is collected on behalf of the government
- They are available to the public through publifications. They compile and publish all official government statistical data
What are examples of official statistics?
- The national census is a government survey which is completed by everyone in the UK every ten years. This helps locate and provide resources
Who prefer official statistics?
- Positivits prefer official statistics as they produce quantitative data meaning they can be analysed and interpreted easier to then form conclusions of cause and effect relationships
What are strengths and weaknesses of official statistics?
Strengths =
- Representative
- Readily available
- Reliable
- Ethically sound
Weakness =
- Lack validity
- Lack depth
- Can be manipulated
- Misinterpretation
What are documents?
- Documents are written, pictorial or audio material produced by government bodies and individuals
- They are secondary resources as the researcher is borrowing existing information to analyse and interpret
- They produce qualitative data and can be used for content analysis. This can then be converted into quantitative data by converting it to a numerical form
- The researcher will need to select a sample material which is representative of the topic of interest
- They will then need to analyse the material in a systematic manner which will be based on what the researcher wants to investigate
What are different types of documents?
- Personal Documents = These can be letters, diaries, memoirs, autobiographies, suicide notes, photos and videos.
- Public Documents = These can come from government departments, businesses or organizations. They can also include mass media sources such as television, newspapers or the internet, etc.
- Historial Documents = They can either be public or personal documents that have been created in the past. This can be used to compare trends and change
What are examples of documents?
- The Diary of Anne Frank = A personal and historical document
- The Macpherson Report = A public document
Who prefer documents?
- Interpretivists like documents as they are qualitative data and provide an insight into a detailed account of meanings and experiences. This increases the validity
- Positivits reject documents as they are unreliable and unrepresentative. However, they can be quantitative data or converted to which is useful as they are facts and figures
What are strengths and weaknesses of documents?
Strengths =
- Deeper insight
- Readily Available
- Accesibility
Weaknesses =
- Unrepresentative
- Consent
- Dependent on memory and can lead to bias
What are questionnaires?
- A questionnaire is pre-determined set of written questions. This can be posted, emailed or handed to a respondent for the respondent to fill in. These may also be referred to as social surveys
- A self completion questionnaire is when the respondent fills and returns the questionnaire
There are two types of questionnaires =
1. Close-ended questionnaires: The questions are pre-determined with a range of pre-set possible answers
2. Open-ended questionnaires: There are no pre-set answers so the respondent is able to express themselves in their answer with no restrictions
What are examples of questionnaires?
- The National Census
What are strengths and weaknesses of questionnaires?
Strengths =
- Reliability
- Comparison
- Quick and Cheap
- No researcher bias
Weaknesses =
- Limited insight
- Low response rate
- False information/socially desirable answer
- Risk of harm and consent
What are observations?
- An observation is a research method of watching others in their natural everyday lives
There is six different types of observational methods to use:
1. Participant Observation = The researcher joins in and observes the group’s everyday activity (This can be an unstructured observation)
2. Non-Participant Observation = The researcher observes a group of people but does not take part in the activity of the group being studied. (These are often structured observations)
3. Structured Observation = The researcher will know in advance what they are looking for
4. Unstructured Observation = They will record evrything they observe or that is important to them
5. Covert Observation = The identity of the researcher and purpose of the study is not disclosed to the group being observed
6. Overt Observation = The researcher’s identity is revealed to the group of people being studied
What are examples of observations?
- Paul Willis ‘Learning to Labour’ used participant observation
Who prefers observations?
- Interpretivists prefer participant observations as it produces valid data as they are in their normal environment. Futhermore, covert observation as it reflects the true picture
- Positivists have questioned the usefulness of participant observation as they may have the hawthorne effect and observer bias
What are strengths and weaknesses of observations?
Strengths =
- Only investigation possible
- Validity and deep insight
Weaknesses =
- Subjective interpretation
- Lacks reliability
- Can be expensive
- Difficult to access
- Staying in and getting out
- Dangerous
- Includes deception and a lack of informed consent
What are interviews?
There are four types of interviews =
1. Structured Interviews: These are formal interviews with questions that have a range of pre-determined answers for the respondent to choose from. This is able to obtain answers of a factual nature
2. Unstructured Interviews: An interview introduces a topic in broad terms but no pre-determined answers. This is to open a discussion which the respondent can answer in their own words which is able to produce qualitative data of opinions. A focus group is a group of particiapants who share the same experience are collectively interviewed
3. Semi-Structured Interviews = This will have some pre-determined questions and a range of possible answers
4. Group Interviews = They can be conducted to a group or multiple respondents at a time. This may lead to deeper insight and encouragement
What are examples of interviews?
- Sue Sharpe’s = Just like a girl - conducted interviews
- Paul Willis = Learning to labour - Group Interviews
Who prefers interviews?
- Positivits prefer structured interviews as they is a list of close-ended questions meaning the asnwers can be classified and quantified numerically. This allows them to see if there is a pattern or trend to make generalisations
- Interpretivtis prefer unstructured interviews as it produces qualitative data to gain understanding of opinions and attitudes
What are strengths and weaknesses of interviews?
Strengths =
- Representative as they are quick to adminster
- Reliable
- Cheaper
- Higher response rate
- Can clarify questions ensuring validity
Unstructured Interviews:
- Less costly
- Deeper insight
- Larger sample
- Effective on senstivie issues
Weaknesses =
- Limited insight
- Lack of flexibility
- Sensitive nature
Unstructured Interviews:
- Unreliable
- Hard to analyse
- Unrepresentative
- Interview effect
- Skilled researcher
- Socially desirable
What are experiments?
- Laboratory Experiments =
- Seen as the most scientific method as it is a tightly-controlled research method conducted in an artificial environment to test a hypothesis
- The purpose of a lab experiments is to see if one variable has an effect on the other variable . This means they can establish a cause an effect relationship - Field Experiments =
- They are carried out in a real life environment where people are in everyday normal behavior.
- Participants do not know that they are taking part in a study.
- The researcher is still able to manipulate the independent variable in a natural setting - Comparative Method =
- This uses data comparisons to establish a relationship between the variables
What are examples of experiments?
- Rosenthal and Jacobson: Pygmalion in the Classroom = Field Experiments
Who prefers experiments?
- Positivits prefer experiments as they produce quantitative data and they are reliable and objective. The social variables can be measured objectively. They can analyse the data to discover a cause and effect relationship
What are strengths and weaknesses of expierements?
Strengths =
- Lab exps are reliable and can be replicated under same procedures
- Positivists say it is objective to gather valid information
- Can control variables
Weaknesses =
- Artificial
- Hawthorne Effect
- Deception, lack of consent and harm
