sociologist choice of research method and topic Flashcards
1
Q
factors affecting choice of method?
A
- practical- time, cost, access, funding
- ethical- vunerbale research group eg children
- theoretical- type of sociologist
2
Q
what are practical factors?
A
things that may hinder the sociologist in planning and implementing of their research
3
Q
examples of practical factors?
A
- time
- characteristics and skills of researcher
- funding/cost
- funding body
- personal values of research
- saftey of research
- accessibility of topic area
4
Q
methods that are not practical?
A
- interviews (time)
- observations (saftey/accessibility)
- statistics (accessibility)
- lab (cost) of controlling variables
5
Q
what are theoretical factors?
A
sociologists theroetical beliefs will impact their choice of method
6
Q
examples of theoretical factors
A
- marxist distrust stats + public docs
- feminists prefer unstructured interviews
- positivies= quantatitve data
- social action= qualitative data
7
Q
what are ethical factors?
A
sociologists responsibility to esnure the physical, psychological and emotional well-being of research participants
8
Q
examples of ethical factors?
A
- deception
- consent
- right to withdraw
- confidentiality
- avoiding harm
- intrusion of privacy
- competence (uphold good name of sociology)
- ethical issues w secondary data
9
Q
factors affecting choice of topic?
A
- practical
- funding body
- current issue eg what important at time
- theoretical issue eg feminist look at gender
- chance eg some stumble on opps by chance
