Fundamentals of Social Research Methods, Summaries of Sociology

Download Fundamentals of Social Research Methods and more Summaries Sociology in PDF only on Docsity! Fundamentals of Social Research Methods Social Research Methods Exam 1 Science Science is a set of logical, systematic, and documented methods for investigating nature and natural processes. The knowledge produced by these investigations is considered scientific knowledge. Social Science Social science is the use of scientific methods to investigate individuals, societies, and social processes. The knowledge produced by these investigations is considered social scientific knowledge. Pseudoscience Pseudoscience refers to claims that are presented in a way that makes them appear scientific, even though they lack supporting evidence and plausibility. Motives for Social Research The three main motives for social research are: 1. Policy Motivation: to inform policy decisions and evaluate the effectiveness of policies and programs. 2. Academic Motivation: to expand the understanding of social phenomena and contribute to the development of social theory. 3. Personal Motivation: to satisfy one's own curiosity or interest in a particular social issue or problem. Four Types of Social Research Descriptive Research: Defines and describes something, what it is. It is quantitative, but not experimental. It simply describes an event, survey, correlation study, or case study. Exploratory Research: Seeks to find out how people get along in the setting under question, what meanings they give to their actions, and what issues concern them. Explanatory Research: Seeks to identify causes and effects of social phenomena and to predict how one phenomenon will change or vary in response to variation in some other phenomenon. Evaluation Research: Seeks to determine the effects of programs, policies, or other efforts. 1. 2. 3. 4. Qualitative Method Qualitative methods, such as participant observation, intensive interviewing, and focus groups, are designed to capture social life as participants experience it rather than in categories predetermined by the researcher. These methods rely on written or spoken words or observations that do not often have a direct numerical interpretation and typically involve exploratory research questions, an orientation to social context, and the meanings attached by participants to events and to their lives. Quantitative Method Quantitative methods, such as surveys and experiments, record variation in social life in terms of quantities. The data treated as quantitative are numbers or attributes ordered in terms of magnitude. These methods are typically used to test hypotheses and are associated with explanatory and evaluation research. Inductive Research Inductive research is the type of research in which general conclusions are drawn from specific data. The process involves collecting data, then developing a theory that explains patterns in the data. Deductive Research Deductive research is the type of research in which a specific expectation is deduced from a general premise and is then tested. The process starts with a social theory, then tests its implications with data. The specific expectation deduced from the more general theory is a hypothesis. Theory A theory is a logically interrelated set of propositions about empirical reality. Independent Variable An independent variable is a variable that is hypothesized to cause or lead to variation in another variable. Dependent Variable A dependent variable is a variable that is hypothesized to change or vary depending on or under the influence of another variable. Positive Direction of Association A positive direction of association means that as the independent variable changes, the dependent variable changes in the same direction. Reliability Reliability refers to the extent to which a measurement procedure yields consistent scores when the phenomenon being measured is not changing. A measure can be reliable but not valid. Validity Validity refers to the extent to which measures indicate what they are intended to measure. Open-ended Question An open-ended question is a survey question to which the respondent replies in their own words, either by writing or talking. Close-ended Question A close-ended question is a survey question that provides pre-formatted response choices for the respondent to circle or check. Levels of Measurement The four levels of measurement are: 1. Nominal: The lowest level, where data is classified into categories and the order of those categories is not important. 2. Ordinal: Data is classified into categories that have a clear order or ranking. 3. Interval: Data represents fixed measurement units, but there is no absolute zero point. 4. Ratio: Data represents fixed measured units and has an absolute zero point. Idiosyncratic Individual Errors Idiosyncratic individual errors are errors that affect individuals or other cases in unique ways that are unlikely to be repeated in just the same way. These errors can occur when individuals don't understand a question, when some unique feelings are triggered by the wording of a question, or when they are feeling out of sorts due to some recent events. Generic Individual Errors Generic individual errors are errors that occur when the responses of groups of individuals are affected by factors that are not 'what the instrument is intended to measure', such as agreeing with statements simply because one tries to avoid saying they disagree with anyone. Method Factors Method factors are errors that occur when questions are unclear and are misinterpreted by respondents, or when unbalanced response choices lead most respondents to give positive rather than negative responses. Using multiple items to measure a single concept can help address method factors.