Research Methods Topic 6 - Secondary Sources Flashcards
What is secondary data?
Findings which already exist that others have created or gathered
List three types of secondary data.
- Official Statistics
- Other Research
- Media
What are two types of secondary sources?
- Quantitative (OS)
- Qualitative (Docs)
Who favours official statistics?
- Positivists
What do positivists believe about official statistics?
They are reliable and quantitative, allowing for testing of hypotheses and establishing cause and effect relationships
What do interpretivists argue about official statistics?
They lack validity and are social constructions
What is the purpose of the census in the UK?
To collect data on the entire population every 10 years
Name two ways official statistics are collected.
- Registration
- Official surveys
What are two practical advantages of official statistics?
- Cost-effective
- Large scale data
What is a theoretical strength of official statistics?
Representativeness due to covering large numbers of people
Fill in the blank: Official statistics are generally seen as very ______.
reliable
What is a practical disadvantage of official statistics?
The government may not gather statistics on the topic of interest
What are ‘hard’ statistics?
Statistics that provide valid and accurate pictures, like births and deaths
What do Marxists criticize about official statistics?
They serve the interests of capitalism and maintain ruling class ideologies
What are documents in sociological research?
Any written text or media, including personal diaries, government reports, and photographs
What are public documents?
Documents produced for public knowledge by organizations
What are personal documents?
Private documents for personal use, providing first-hand accounts of experiences
What is the significance of historical documents?
They are often the only source of information available about past events
What criteria does Scott suggest for assessing documents?
- Authenticity
- Credibility
- Representativeness
What is a practical strength of using documents in research?
They provide rich qualitative data and insight into social actors’ realities
What is one ethical disadvantage of using documents?
There may be ethical issues regarding consent for publication
What is a theoretical disadvantage of documents?
They lack reliability and cannot establish cause and effect relationships
What does representativeness refer to in the context of documents?
Whether the evidence in the document is typical and safe to generalize from
What is an example of a personal document used in sociological research?
Letters or diaries
What does the availability bias refer to in secondary sources?
The influence of funding, publication preferences, and language on available literature
True or False: Official statistics always provide a complete view of social issues.
False
