Secondary Sources

Question 1

What kind of data is official statistics?

Answer 1

Quantitative

Question 2

Give 3 characteristics of official statistics

Answer 2

Collected by the government
Liked by positivists
Reliable

Question 3

Give 2 practical advantages of official statistics

Answer 3

They are cheap

Easy to access

Question 4

Give 2 theoretical advantages of official statistics

Answer 4

Large sample so more representative

Easy to replicate the mode of collection so is more reliable

Question 5

Give 2 disadvantages of official statistics

Answer 5

Interpretivists see it as subjective as they are only decisions individuals have made to record incidents

May have a political or male bias so are less valid

Question 6

What kind of data are documents?

Answer 6

Qualitative

Question 7

Why are the 3 types of documents?

Answer 7

Public
Personal
Historical

Question 8

Describe public documents

Answer 8

Produced by organisations like government or schools. They are official and can be read by anyone
Eg OFSTED

Question 9

Describe personal documents

Answer 9

First person accounts
Includes writers feelings and attitudes
Eg diaries and letters

Question 10

Describe historical documents

Answer 10

A public or personal documents from the past

Question 11

Give an advantage and disadvantage of public documents

Answer 11

Easy access

Less valid as the funding body will only produce favourable findings

Question 12

Give an advantage and disadvantage of personal documents

Answer 12

Verstehen

Lack of confidentiality

Question 13

Give an advantage and disadvantage of historical documents

Answer 13

No ethical interference

May not be representative as only things from the rich may have been saved - POLLOCK

Question 14

What is the McPherson Report?

Answer 14

350 page inquiry into the police investigation around Stephen Lawrence’s death which found that the Met Police were institutionally racist

Question 15

What kind of document was the McPherson report?

Answer 15

Public

Question 16

What was the Black Report?

Answer 16

1978 Labour Government looked into wealth inequalities leading to differences in health which needed more benefits but when Margaret Thatcher published it she added a 9 page foreword decrying the need for benefits

Question 17

What kind of document was the Black Report?

Answer 17

Public

Question 18

Give an advantage of the McPherson report

Answer 18

In depth - 350 pages =more valid

Question 19

Give a disadvantage of the MacPherson Report

Answer 19

Government funded so may have not been as critical as it could be

Question 20

Give a disadvantage of the Black Report

Answer 20

Shows how political bias can influence public documents

Question 21

What happened in Hey’s research?

Answer 21

Studied girls’ friendships through their notes which they passed to each other and from picking their discarded ones off the floor

Question 22

What kind of document did Hey use in their research?

Answer 22

Private

Question 23

Give an advantage of Hey’s research

Answer 23

The ones she took from the floor and the bin were valid

Question 24

Give a disadvantage of Hey’s research

Answer 24

Informed consent for the ones she took from the floor

Question 25

Who used historical documents?

Answer 25

Aries (see childhood for description)

Question 26

Give an advantage of Aries’ research

Answer 26

Shows change over time

Question 27

Give a disadvantage of Aries’ research

Answer 27

Only rich art was preserved = less representative POLLOCK

Question 28

Who used official statistics for their research?

Answer 28

Durkheim

Question 29

What was durkheim’s study?

Answer 29

Studied suicide statistics over 11 European countries and saw how variables like religion and family relationships affected the rates

Question 30

Give 2 advantages of Durkheim

Answer 30

Geographically representative

Ethical

Question 31

Give a disadvantage of Durkheim’s research

Answer 31

Can not control all other variables - less valid