Research Methods- In-Depth Research Methods Flashcards
What are case studies?
Detailed investigations of a specific thing
What is a life history case study?
Studies one person’s whole life
Why do interpretivists like case studies?
They can provide very detailed data and can give researcher great insight into subject under investigation
Why do positivists dislike case studies?
They aren’t representative of wider populations so can’t be used to make accurate generalisations
What is a focus group?
A small sample that are put in a room together and talk about a particular issue or subject and are observed by a researcher
Why are focus groups good?
They are more like a natural conversation and subjects feel more able to express themselves
What is a longitudinal study?
Usually large-scale quantitative studies done at regular intervals and over a long period of time
What are strengths of longitudinal studies?
- Can analyse changes and make comparisons over time
- Can study how attitudes change over time
What are limitations of longitudinal studies?
- Hard to recruit a committed sample
- Hard to keep contact with sample
- Need long-term funding and keep the research team together
- Rely on interviews and questionnaires which may not be reliable or valid
Who normally do longitudinal studies?
Positivists
What is ethnography?
The scientific description of a specific culture by someone with first-hand experience of observing that culture
What is ethnography usually based on?
Small-scale fieldwork that tends to produce qualitative data
Are ethnography studies valid?
Yes because you can study behaviour in natural settings
What can you use ethnography studies for?
See what a whole community get up to or to find out one individual’s life history
