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✅Sociology -exam 2 Research Methods > Strengths And Weaknesses > Flashcards

Strengths And Weaknesses Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the strengths or primary data?

A

⚫️Valid
⚫️specific to your hypothesis
⚫️control reliability
⚫️up date relevant in postmodern era

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2
Q

What are the weaknesses

A 
🔴Open to all personal bias 
🔴Practical issues 
      -time consuming 
      -small samples 
      -expensive 
🔴Access is difficult for the sample
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3
Q

What are the strengths of questionnaires

A

⚫️time to think about appropriate answers
⚫️reliable data
⚫️large sample :: representative and can generalise
⚫️practical as can collect large sample quickly
⚫️primary data specific to study
⚫️no researcher bias
⚫️qualitative data put into graphs/stats
⚫️ethical, choose to fill in questionnaire
⚫️operationalise key terms to aid understanding
⚫️cross reference data from different questions to identify trends e.g by gender and age

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4
Q

What are the disadvantages of questionnaires

A

🔴researcher picks questions :: researcher bias
🔴questions could be misunderstood and respondent can’t ask for explanation
🔴reponces lack validity
🔴if closed questions the researcher has decided on the range of possible answers
🔴doesn’t obtain qualitative data
🔴extreme results
🔴open questions could take a long time to analyse / too much data to analyse

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5
Q

Describe the advantages of structures interviews

A

⚫️specific topics :: data can be collected and compared
⚫️reliable data
⚫️presence of researcher can improve response rates
⚫️standardised approach helps make info reliable
⚫️interviewer can explain
⚫️good rapport makes it more valid

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6
Q

Describe the disadvantages of structured interviews

A

🔴low sample :: not representative
🔴more time consuming/expensive to fund researcher :: not practical
🔴interviewer bias (socially acceptable answers vs truth due to lack of anonymity
🔴respondents can’t explain/ discuss answers

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7
Q

Describe the disadvantages of unstructured interviews

A

🔴Bad rapport= Bad information (less valid info)
🔴loose focus on the topic
🔴difficult to analyse data
🔴longtime to analyse data, not practical

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8
Q

What are the advantages of unstructured interviews

A

Qualitative data, can expand on views
Valid If good rapport
Interviewer can probe questioning/understanding
Improve response rates

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9
Q

What are the advantages of semi-structured interviews

A
  • avoid some disadvantages associated with structured and unstructured interviews
  • open ended questions :: interviewer and resonant can discuss topic in detail for qualitative data
  • researcher can prompt respondent and ask for clarification leading to higher validity
  • interview isn’t confined to what researcher thought up in advance as can talk about issues prompted by respondent
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10
Q

Describe the disadvantages of a semi-structured interview

A
  • don’t have full advantage of structured or unstructured interviews
  • expensive and time consuming
  • interviewer bias
  • bad rapport reduce validity
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11
Q

Describe positives of group interviews

A
  • facilitators to encourage all members to participate + maintain conversation
  • recorded so note taking is avoided
  • conversation more naturalistic than one to one interviews
  • responses more wide ranging
  • responses explored in some detail
  • practical several respondents at the same time (time consuming and cheaper)
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12
Q

What are some negatives of group interviews

A

Unreliable method as they can’t be repeated with other groups

  • meaning is open to biased researchers interpretation
  • pressure imbalance :: pressure to give information
  • group moderator needs to be highly skilled
  • dominant group members may influence others reducing validity
  • difficult to analyse
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13
Q

What are most observations?

A

Ethnographic

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14
Q

Name the main benefit of participation observation?

A

Allows researcher to gain a sense of versthen (empathy can understand the perspective of the individual)

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15
Q

What is the main negative of participant observation

A

Hawthorne effect may occur (people change behaviour as they know their being watched)

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16
Q

Which observation gains what data?

A

Quantitative data= non participant observation

Qualitative data= participant observation

17
Q

Name some disadvantages of observations

A 
Impractical (time consuming) 
Detail of events my not be representative of all 
\::results may not be generalisable 
-possible hawthorn effect 
-can be ethnographic
18
Q

Name advantages of questionnaires

A
  • cheap and quick
  • no need to recruit and train interviewers
  • generally easy to quantify
  • respondents complete and return data themselves
19
Q

Name disadvantages of questionnaires

A
  • low response rate
  • postal questionnaires may not be received for returned
  • data may be superficial/brief
20
Q

Name some advantages of longitudinal studies

A
  • qualitative data
  • valid
  • Supported by interpretivists
  • form of qualitative data which documents change/time
21
Q

Name some disadvantages of longitudinal studies

A

-impractical
(Long time, no insurances they will survive/not withdraw in study)
-ethical issues (right to withdraw+Anominity)
-money economic and social research council won’t fund study this long
-criticised by positivists
-not representative :: can’t be generalised
-low in reliability
-hawthorn effect
-subjective info + allows for researcher bias and not easy to analyse

22
Q

What are the strengths of triangulation?

A
  • more representative than using 1 method
  • improve reliability and validity
  • quantitative and qualitative data :: easily establish trends (rich)
  • advantages for positivits and interprevtists
  • can compare
23
Q

Name some disadvantages of triangulation

A

Practical issues as more research= more time = more money

24
Q

Name some advantages of content analysis

A

Cheap
Easy
Comparisons over time
Quantitive data can be turned into statistics
Only method that can be used to study content of something not opinion of something e.g media
Reliable if clearly operationalised
Minimal ethical issues

25
Q

Name some disadvantages of content analysis

A

Media is biased :: results may be biased

  • all categories must be clearly operationalised for consistency
  • researcher bias as it’s their opinion what’s recorded
  • unreliable if you don’t operationalise
  • practical issues (time consuming)
  • can lack validity if you don’t account for context of sentence
26
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of systematic sampling

A

Strength:
Fair

Limitation:
Not random as not everyone has a equal chance of selection

27
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of random sampling

A

Strength:
Unbiased + quick

Limitation:
May not be representative e.g disproportionally male/female

28
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of stratified sampling

A

Strength:
Representative because there is proportional representation of groups

Limitation:

  • very time consuming to pick sample + contact them
  • can’t be used in every study
29
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of quota sampling

A

Strength:
Quicker than stratified sampling + representative

Limitation:

  • not random
  • generisability is in question
30
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of snowball sampling

A

Strength:
-used for groups that are difficult to access/ not on a sample frame e.g drug abusers

Limitation:

  • not random
  • not representative
31
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of purposive sampling

A

Strength:
Practical, avoid approaching those not suitable to characteristic sample required

Limitation:
Not representative

32
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of volunteer sampling

A

Strength:
-due to development of online research it is widely available for use of students in a wide variety of students

Limitation:

  • not representative of target population as are self selecting
  • extremes of ideas
33
Q

Describe strengths and weakness’ of opportunity sampling

A

Strength:
Can be used by students who lack the time/resources available to professional researchers

Limitation:
Very unrepresentative
Biased sample
Drawn from a small part of target population

✅Sociology -exam 2 Research Methods (5 decks)

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