statistics

Question 1

what are statistics?

Answer 1

numerical data collected for research. these can be non-official (collected by organisations other than the government e.g pressure groups and charities) or official.

Question 2

what are hard statistics?

Answer 2

stats that are likely to be accurate with clear cut answers e.g OFSTED and birth rates

Question 3

what are soft statistics?

Answer 3

less valid and rely on decisions people made e.g domestic violence and suicide

Question 4

what are the strengths of statistics?

Answer 4

*practical- allow comparisons between groups and are collected regularly so they show patterns and trends over time to show cause and effect
- easily accessible so costs little or nothing to use saving time and money
*ethical- no harm to participants because of the detached nature of statistics
*theoretical- positivists prefer as it highly reliable this is because it is easier to spot patterns and trends
- they cover very large numbers and therefore provide a more representative sample
- data remains objective as there is no bond with participants.

Question 5

what are the weaknesses of statistics?

Answer 5

*practical -
- governments collect statistics for their own purpose and not for sociology so may not find what they want
-the government may use different key terms to sociologists e.g poverty
-marxist- gov manipulate stats to benefit capitalism e.g unemployment stats have changed over time to seemingly disguise the true level of unemployment.
*ethical- inappropriate and dehumanising to study certain topics e.g domestic violence
*theoretical- interpretivists dislike as it is usually gathered by someone else , this raises issues of validity e.g the research could have contained leading questions
-‘dark figure’- do the statistics actually measure what they claim to be
-soft stats can raise more issues of validity than hard statistic
-no verstehen

Question 6

what are the studies for statistics?

Answer 6

*british crime survey
*Ofstead
*the equality trust

Question 7

what is the British crime survey?

Answer 7

a survey commissioned by the ONS and is an important monitor on the extent of crime, regarding relationships, experiences of victimisation e.c.t. it is used by the government for policy advisory and crime reduction

Question 8

what is the equality trust?

Answer 8

statistics on the very high levels of income inequality in the uk, showing the bottom 20% of the uk had an income of around £12500 and the top 20% had around £70000