Topic 6 - Secondary Sources

Question 1

Define the term secondary sources and give 3 examples

Answer 1

Secondary data refers to findings that already exist that others have already gathered. Such as official statistics, other researchers, and media.

Question 2

Are secondary sources qualatative or quantitative

Answer 2

They can be both qualitative and quantitative

Question 3

Who supports official statistics? Why?

Answer 3

Positivists as they are reliable and quantitative. Therefore, they are able to test hypothesis

Question 4

What are official statistics?

Answer 4

Quantitative data gathered by the government or other offical bodies such as the 10 yearly census

Question 5

Give one practical strength of official statistics. Why?

Answer 5

Cheap - as they are free and easy to access online as most are published in online reports.

Question 6

Give a practical weakness of official statistics. Why?

Answer 6

Specificity - the government may not gather stats on the topic the researcher is interested in.

Question 7

Give an ethical strength of official statistics. Why?

Answer 7

Ethical source - all ethical issues have already been considered by the government

Question 8

Give an ethical weakness of official statistics. Why?

Answer 8

Manipulation - There is a risk that official statistics may be manipulated to downplay or exaggerate certain issues

Question 9

Give a theoretical strength of official statistics. Why?

Answer 9

High in reliability - they are produced in a standardised way, using set procedures. So they can be replicated.

Question 10

Give a theoretical weakness of official statistics. Why?

Answer 10

Lacks validity - as errors can be made when producing the data, such as public filling in the forms incorrectly.

Question 11

Who supports the use of documents in research? Why?

Answer 11

Interpretivists - as they written accounts outlining research such as diaries or medical records. These contain qualitative data providing higher validity.

Question 12

Define the term documents in relation to topic 6.

Answer 12

Documents refer to any written text such as novels, reports, or medical records.

Question 13

Give a practical strength of using documents. Why?

Answer 13

Cheap - no experiment is needed as someone has already collected the data for the theorist.

Question 14

Give a practical weakness of using documents. Why?

Answer 14

Availability bias - certain perspectives can be underrepresented due to factors such as lack of funding and language barriers.

Question 15

Give an ethical strength of using documents. Why?

Answer 15

Credibility - well-regarded secondary sources often undergo rigorous peer review, meaning they won’t pose ethical issues.

Question 16

Give one ethical weakness of using documents.

Answer 16

Misinterpretation - researchers creating secondary data are more likely to misunderstand or misinterpret the primary data, leading to inaccuracies or biases.

Question 17

Give one theoretical strength of using documents.

Answer 17

High in validity - personal documents enable researchers to get an insight into the nuance of their study as they are rich in qualitative data.

Question 18

Give one theoretical weakness of using documents.

Answer 18

Low in reliability - researchers creating secondary data may have theoretical or ideological biases leading to skewed perspectives on the topic.