Wk0- Intro

Question 1

Why Does Theory Matter? (4)

Answer 1

• What to Study
• What to include/What do ignore
• How we gather info
• How we represent our work to others

Question 2

Type of approach used in a project is determined by…

Answer 2

The conceptual basis

Question 3

Methods can be used to.. (2)

Answer 3

1) Produce PRIMARY data
e. g. interviews, questionnaires, field observations

2) (Re-) Analyse SECONDARY data
e. g. census, school league tables, other survey data

• Already been gathered or generated by someone else but are re- analysed by you to produce new results

Question 4

Census Purpose

Answer 4

“To describe accurately and precisely a wide variety of characteristics of the US population as well as the populations of smaller areas such as states and countries” (Babbie, 2010: 93)

Question 5

Census Data

Advantages (5)

Answer 5

• National coverage (not a sample) but also small area statistics
• Independent of data gathered by gov directly
• Possibility of longitudinal assessment
• Official thing and data is comparable across
• Used to plan/allocate resources

Question 6

Census Data

Disadvantages (4)

Answer 6

• Cost
• Lag time- length between census years: census is a big job thus years in between are kinda inaccurateUndercounting
• Of what groups?
• Homeless and illegal immigrants?

Categories may not keep pace with societal change

• Questions re- ethnicity
• Industrial change
• Big database doesn’t necessarily mean life is easier by any means though

Question 7

Canadian Census: Comparability of Language Data

Answer 7

• Canadian census asks about LANGUAGE whilst UK census asks about ethnicity at most
• For the first time since 2011, 3 language qus (knowledge of official languages, home language and mother tongue) were included on the census questionnaire
• Statistics Canada had observed changes in patterns of response to both mother tongue and home language qus that appear to have arisen from changes in the placement and context of the language qus on the 2011 census questionnaire relative to previous censuses
• As a result, Canadians = MORE inclined than in previous census to report languages other than English or French as their only mother tongue and also MORE inclined to report multiple languages as their mother tongue and as the language used most often as home
• Not uncommon in survey research to observe CHANGES IN RESPONSE PATTERNS due to changes to a questionnaire and most particularly due to changes in the context in which the question is embedded

Question 8

Key References

Answer 8

Babbie (2010) - Census definition and info about change

Statistics Canada- About language/ethnicity change

Question 9

Changing Categories of White Ethnicity in UK

Answer 9

1991 - GB = ‘White’

Generally Scotland has extra category compared to England

Progression to 2011 with Scotland including ‘Gypsy Traveller’ , ‘Polish’, ‘Irish’ and ‘Other White Ethnic Group (FT)’ in its groups

Question 10

Why is Geographical Theory Special?

Answer 10

Creswell (2013)

• Confluence of the profound and banal
• Geog is HARD TO ESCAPE: due to its ‘everydayness’
• Geog is everywhere- although not necessarily readily apparent because we need the TOOLS to see it

Question 11

Theory is linked through…

Answer 11

Methodology and Epistemology:

Choices we make to gather info e.g. generalisability vs depth

Question 12

What even is ‘Theory’?

Answer 12

Cresswell (2013)

“Theory is thinking, practice is doing”
- Theory can be seen as unpractical and unreal (= abuse)

• Conceptual focus on a messy reality (orders and prioritises it so seems clearer)
• Form of ordering the multiplicity of raw experience and “facts”
• Although what it means depends on its CONTEXT e.g. physical is much more specific than human geog theory

Question 13

Academic Sense of Theory

Answer 13

Cresswell (2013)

‘Organised and patterned sets of ideas over spur of the moment thoughts and are more or less organised ways of ordering the world which exists in our minds and which we share with others’

Question 14

3 Types of Theory and Description

Answer 14

1) SOCIAL THEORY
- Interdisciplinary though roots lie in sociology
- Addresses the way in which society is structured and occasionally TRANSFORMED
- Keen uptake post 1970s

2) CRITICAL THEORY
- Refers to a set of ideas that are designed to provide a critique of the ways things are and promote something better i.e. the ways that things COULD be

3) PRACTICE OF POLITICS
- History of geog include the development of its national institutions, biographies of key players, relationships between geog and the state thus geographical history is not a simple process

• Must understand ideas from the past as they inform ideas now and in the future