AS RESEARCH METHODS

Question 1

One of the advantages of lab experinments is that they hypotheses can be trested in controled conditions

MENTION MORE

Answer 1

1) particapants may not be aware that they are being observed thus –> hawthrone effect is avoided

2) Postivits see this as a detatched + Objective scinteifc mean of study

being in controled coditons –> relaible thus replicable

-easier to replicate than field experiments-due to standardised conditions

Question 2

What are the types of interviews

Answer 2

Unstructured
Semi structured
Focus groups

Question 3

What does reliability mean

Answer 3

Research can be repeated with the same responses

Question 4

What includes content annylisis

Answer 4

Research method used for the systematic analysis of media texts + coomuntiviaion
Includes both qlt and ant forms
What both have in common is study of texts (dats sources such as tv,written docs etc)

Question 5

what is the interviewer effect?

Answer 5

when interviewer may influence participants responses –> through their characteristics –>
- apperance
- verbal cues –> such as facial expresssions OR tone of voice

Question 6

what are hard statistics/evidence copy?
AND give examples

Answer 6

-High level of accuracy+ cannot be doubted
apart from any errors ot incompleteness
recorded by law
eg// in most countries records kept of al births + marriages + death — because they have to be legally registered

Question 7

what does generalisabilty mean?

Answer 7

when findings about a sample can be applied to a larger grp of ppl sharing same characteristics

Question 8

what are soft statistics copy?
AND give examples

Answer 8

these depend on ppl making decisions about what + how to record
^these decisions may lead to –> different statistics + there may be changes overtime IN WHAT IS RECORDED
not clearly recorded
-depending on which definition use 
e.g// include unemployment statistics +
how many crimes taken place –> bec DECISIONS ARE MADE ABT WHAT TO INCLUDE + HOW TO COMPILE STATISTICS

Question 9

what is the difference bwetween qualitative and quantitive data?
3 mention

Answer 9

QLTLTIVE DATA
- describes phenomena
descriptive
includes U.I and Participant obervation
prefered by interprevitists
offers validity
- looks a t meanings, interaction patterns between induviduals

QNTTIVE DATA
- numerical
produced as numbers such as officual statistics
- allows representativeness of target population
- includes surveys questionaries, Structured interviews
allows relaibility, representation and generalizability

Question 10

what are the 2 methodoligies used in research

Answer 10

Inductive methodolgy

• gathering statistics fro evidence –> then giving theory on the basis of of evidicne

Deductive Methodolgy

give a theoratical hypothosis then –> testing agqainst evidence

Question 11

What is primary data
Mention it’s + and -

Answer 11

Data personally collected by researcher
Researcher may use a range of methods such as observational studies + Interviews

Researcher has greater control over the definition of Sociological phenomena + data collection + by whom and for what purpose
Representative data
Validity and reliability

Time consuming + expensive to design + construct + carry out
Diff to conduct if involves a sample
Difficult to gain access to target grp —-> some ppl may refuse to participate or in case of historical research some potential respondents may not be alive

Question 12

what does the term validity mean?

Answer 12

it refers to the extent to which findings REFLECT REALITY + give TRUE PIC

Question 13

define historical documents

Answer 13

Documents produced in the past so may be useful to investigate how society has changed over time

Question 14

Define the features of personal documents

Answer 14

First person accounts
Documents less easy for researcher to obtain since may feel that they are private thus may not show their availability or existence

Question 15

Mention the limitations of using personal docs and historical docs

Answer 15

May be unrepresentative - famous people may write letter+ diaries with the intention that they will be published sometime in the future -favourable view of themselves and their actions 

Need to be checked
against resources

May give favourable view of themselves and actions
May be biased

-not always accessible-not know where they come from

-Can be fabricated+c incomplete+ unrepresentative

-Newspaper documents can be fake+ researcher needs to know whether they are originals or copies that may have been changed by other authors

X-Some immediately made public+ some made available to particular researchers some kept secret for many years

-Treated with caution-writers may want to give up their own version of events+ present themselves in favourable light 

Question 16

Mention the strengths of digital sources

Answer 16

Make vast range of information available at low cost + very easy access

Are global -> makes it easier to access information about different parts of the world

Question 17

What does representativeness mean

Answer 17

Sampling a smaller version of the population

Question 18

how do quessionares add to flexibility of the scientific quantitive methods?

Answer 18

can be used in different ways
administered in different ways
- via internet
- via telephone
- via postal or online qs
via person (can include hawthrone effect)

Question 19

What is secondary data?
Mention it’s + and -

Answer 19

Data that already exists in form such as docs or research previously completed by other sociologist

Save time money and effort —> by using existing data eg statistics of crime
May be situations where secondary data only the available resource
Useful for historical + comparative purposes
Official stats — high In rep + reliable — bec data is consistent and likely to represent what it claims to represent

Validity + reliability may impacted by
Official definitions about social institutions + behaviours may be unreliable and varied.
Not always produced with keeping sociologists needs in mind
Some documents such as personal documents —may not be most reliable or rep source as it may only reflect view of a single individual rather than representing wider opinions

Question 20

in depth methods–> allows researcher to develop _______ _______ of the ________ and how they actually ____ about the _____ being researched

Answer 20

detailed understanding
feel
issue

Question 21

What does Objectivty mean?

Answer 21

Ability of researcher to remain detached in his work

Question 22

mention the strengths of qualitative data

Answer 22

1) valid due to indepth + detail
2) alowes capturing complex reasons for behavior
3) procides with understanding of meanings + motivations –> behind respondants actions
5)allows participant to talk + act freely —Led more by the respndant rather than researcher who is less likely to impose own perspective
4) allows researcher to have greater freedom to study ppl in natural + realistic setting —more likely to show how ppl really behave +what they really believe

Question 23

mention limitations of qualitative data

Answer 23

Emphasis on small sample size+ intensive study difficult to generalize –> cannot ensure representativeness

less relaible –>bec research difficult to replicate + generalise due to in-depth detail nature

time consuming process that quantititve

cannot make comparisions btween different patterns and trends

Question 24

questionaires reflect _______ _______ ________

Answer 24

researchers world view

Question 25

Mention the strengths of historical and personal documents

Answer 25

May be highly valid -access to data data that would cost a lot of money+ time+ effort to collect personally -Reveals differences in peoples behaviour -Documents like Anne Frank’s-analyse on literal meanings+ hidden meanings+ and what they tell us about hopes+ fear+ believes of whoever produced them Provide pic of reality at that time they were produced Provide disrcriptive details + insights that may be missing in statistical sources Offer first hand accounts from ppl included Useful for comparisons + contrasting how people lived -Analyses phenomena in different time periods -Can help provide data in situations where it is not possible to collect primary data

Question 26

what is the 4 pointer paradigm by scott

Answer 26

1) Authenticy -->

Question 27

What are the + and - of present qs

Answer 27

+ Generate consistent findings Answered in short span of time Ease to quantify data Useful when researcher wants to contact large sample quickly Reliability Less Risk of bias - Low response rate Carefully designed sample may turn unrep Difficult to examine complex issues Researcher not know whether respondant has interpreted qs properly Ignored

Question 28

What are Questionaries

Answer 28

Written qs that can be ausmisteten through no of ways Researcher asks qs to respondent Involve close ended and open ended qs

Question 29

What are the strengths of content analysis?

Answer 29

-Can be used for concept mapping (page tracked how media professionals portrait global warming in order to show how far global warming was reported in terms of natural or social causes)-quantification of such behaviour allows the researcher to draw complex conclusions from data that are simple data collection techniques -Can identify underlying patterns of themes of behaviours-that may not be immediately apparent -Use a standardised framework means data can be checked and replicated

Question 30

What are the weaknesses of content analysis?

Answer 30

-Reliability is limited because the researcher must make subjective judgements about what they are counting+ the categories they are analysing-they do not only have to make decisions about which categories will not be used but also have to judge which forms of behaviour will fit which category -They do not tell us much about how + why the audience receive and understand+ Accept and ignore themes and patterns discovered by the research 

Question 31

What are the positives of using primary data

Answer 31

Compete control over how the data is collected+ by whom+ purpose Researcher has greater control over reliability + representativeness

Question 32

What are the negatives of using primary data?

Answer 32

Time consume+ expensive to design+ construct+ carry out Difficult to conduct if involves a sample Difficult to gain access to target group Some parts spins may refuse to participate or in case of historical research potential respondents may not be alive

Question 33

What are the positives of using secondary data?

Answer 33

Research is able to save time+ money+ effort by using existing data Some situations where secondary data is the only source available Also used for historical and comparative purposes Some are high in reliability such as official statistics — because consistent data-likely to represent what it claims to represent

Question 34

What are the negatives of using secondary data?

Answer 34

Not always produced to needs of sociologist kept in mind Official definitions of social institutions + behaviour may be unreliable and varied May only reflect view of single individual rather than representing wider opinions

Question 35

What are quantitative data strengths?

Answer 35

-Allows for statistical comparisons and correlations-allows summarisation of sources-in order to test the hypothesis and detect changes in patterns+ trends+ longitude studies -Standardised procedures can be replicated because they produce the same results-highly reliable -they do not need to have close£ personal contact with the subjects they study-so their personal view or Myness less likely to get into the collection process— generalisable and objective Present and visual form to help understand

Question 36

What are the negatives of quantitive data?

Answer 36

Based on artificial social setting to control data collection+ responsesx-where it is impossible to capture peoples normal behaviour Not possible to collect in depth data Captures relatively narrow range of information -such as who+ what?+ where?+ when of peoples behaviour. Difficult to analyse and understand meanings behind data Terms of researcher is imposed Eg standardised questionnaire in a survey leading to biased results Quantitative data often seen as surface level only data + superficial

Question 37

Define quantative + qualititsutve data

Answer 37

Qnt - quantifiable value -fact based - expressed in raw numbers + % or rate Qlt -describes phenomena - captures quality +. Cause of ppls behavior -capturing what the subjects understand + how they feel +why they behave in certain particular situations -looks at interaction patterns beteeen Induviduals

Question 38

What are the positive aspects of statistics?

Answer 38

-Only available source covering a particular area of study-such as suicide Cheap and easy to use Readily available -often free of charge on the Internet -Produced by research that uses large sample-reliable and rep -Often repeated every year or every few years + shows changes over time + allows identifying plus comparing patterns+ trends Already produced + publicly available-no ethical issue while using them -govts spend more time+ resources-collecting these statistics then sociologists are able to

Question 39

What are the negative aspects of official statistics?

Answer 39

-lakh validity-reduce everything to numbers Does not show detail + plus reasons behind data-does not give a true pic -Produced by others+ unlikely to contain what sociologist would like to know (would want to know how many marriages breakdown but only show number of divorces not separation) -Politics can affect statistics May be biased in favour of the government + presented to show things and best light Different governments may define concept differently Researcher cannot make comparisons if same phenomenon measured in same way at every stage -Interpretivist argue-stats-socially constructed not objectified facts-do not mean what always seem to mean For example, that show an increase in speeding offences -but do not mean a real increase in such offences Police is just spending more time + resources on detecting speed so higher offences are being recorded-x-lowers validity

Question 40

What are non-official statistics 

Answer 40

Statistical data produced by other organisations Such as religious groups + charity organisations+ policy Institute Called think thanks in media

Question 41

What are official statistics?

Answer 41

They are published+ created by governments Main source of secondary data -used by sociologist to examine patterns+ trends= 1 pattern and trends may be picked up by a statistical analysis -bec they provide brought overview of behaviour-across potentially wide areas — locally+ internationally Eg email Durkheim’s study— identify distinct patterns to suicide behaviour based on competitive analysis of different suicide rates in different societies 2 in terms of trends-statistical data drawn from different years can be used to understand how something has changed Can be used for comparisons within groups such as difference between middle and working class families sizes + between societies

Question 42

What are the strengths of structured interviews?

Answer 42

Avoid reliability problems-respondent misunderstandings regarding a question can be explained by the interviewer being present Higher response rate than self completion questionnaires -avoid the problem of unrepresentative samples Produce reliable data since questions are standardised -can be repeated-data can be checked Several assistants-large number of people interviewed

Question 43

What are the limitations of structured interviews?

Answer 43

-LCK OF ANNOYMITY LEADS TO= - participants may give a socially desirable answers in order to create an impression or please the interviewer-reduces validity (interview effect) - The interviewer may influence respondent answer either through their own social characteristics + age+ sex+ reaction or interaction For example, aggressive interviewers Or females may be uncomfortable responding to personal questions with a male researcher +More time consuming + expensive than self completing questionnaires +If there are several assistant -we may approach work in different ways Interviewer needs to be highly skilled in different aspects A

Question 44

What are digital sources used for

Answer 44

They are used in types of documents such as social media posts Sources of information about things happening in society + world

Question 45

What are the positives of using digital sources?

Answer 45

Vast range of information available at low cost They are available globally, making it easier to get information about different parts of the world Easy access

Question 46

What are the negatives of digital sources?

Answer 46

All digital sources must be treated with caution as some may be misleading+ biased+ or incorrect information Digital sources in some countries -access may be controlled by government Difficult to assess the validity of digital resources as important context may be missing

Question 47

Define ethnography

Answer 47

Sometimes called field work Achieves a detailed + in depth understanding of group of people or social situation Can use different qualitative research methods Unstructured interviews + participant observation Broad in scope Entire social setting study Aims for insiders perspective + understanding point of view of a group

Question 48

Define longitude studies

Answer 48

Form of comparative Analysis Includes tracking changes amongst a rep sample over time - few months or many years Long surveys - carried out in intervals over a sig period of time Using methods ranging from qs to non participant observations Eg health and eductuian survey —studied every child born in and between 3rd -9th march 1958 -resrwchers stay away from study grp and contacts during set intervals only + allows researcher to identify+ track personal+ social changes over long periods-revealing hidden trends -can suggest correlation+ causation relationship relationships -ve large representative sample based Sample attrition may occur-people may drop out from the original sample : May lose interest : May die : May move away without leaving contact details For example, British household survey researchers lost half of their respondents in 10 years -High level of attrition -lower levels of sample representativeness -hawthorn effect -ve only a quick look at behaviour at any given moment Can be criticised for lacking depth + validity

Question 49

Define case studies

Answer 49

A tech comprising of in depth qualitative study of characteristics of a part grp or case Eg westwoods 12m p,o study on female workers in stitchco factory Focus on a single group - studied overtime —providing greater depth + detail of info - increasing validity in contrast to simple qualitative studies + helps uncover meanings-that people give to every day behaviour-via participant observation -ve large scale in depth case studies— require lots of money+ time+ effort -Demands highly skilled researchers-who may live+ work with their subjects for years or months due to intensive nature of case studies -Difficult to generalise from small groups and fever cases

Question 50

Define social surveys

Answer 50

One particular type of survey is cross-sectional survey-designed to -Provide snapshot of behaviour at any given time -Qualitative forms of cross-sectional surveys= -Generally descriptive-aim to illustrate particular type of behaviour -Look at certain population characteristics— suicide+ poverty+ income- -apply to a single country or a specific feature of different countries -Qualitative forms-commonly used-to analyse both correlation + causation between different phenomenal -Both types surveys-require rep samples in order to make general generalisation about behaviour -Service focused on identifying groups that share broad similarities-income+ education+ gender -Then they measure differences using a single variable-death rates or suicide rates

Question 51

Define methodological pluralism

Question 52

Define triangulation 

Question 53

What are the strengths of triangulation?

Question 54

What are the weaknesses of triangulation?

Question 55

What are experiments?

Answer 55

-Involve testing r/s between different variables - c/e relationship -Researcher manipulates the independent variables-to see whether it produces a change in the dependent variables which are not changed by the researcher

Question 56

What does correlations mean?

Answer 56

When two or more things happen roughly at the same time Suggesting a relationship

Question 57

What does causation mean?

Answer 57

Involves the idea that when one action occurs another always follows These generate predictability in behaviour

Question 58

What are the two ways to separate causation from casualty?

Answer 58

Test and retest a relationship-the more times the test is replicable with same results— chances the relationship is casual -Use different groups such as the control group and experimental group

Question 59

What are the features of a laboratory experiment?

Answer 59

-Takes place in a closed environment -Conditions are precisely monitored+ controlled? -Ensures no uncontrolled variable affects the relationship between dependent and independent variables -Involves artificially created situation-lacks ecological validity

Question 60

What are field experiments?

Answer 60

More appropriate for sociological research-not conducted in an artificially created social setting -This kind of experiment establishes correlation-not possible to control all variables in real environment 

Question 61

What are field experiments?

Answer 61

More appropriate for sociological research-not conducted in an artificially created social setting -This kind of experiment establishes correlation-not possible to control all variables in real environment 

Question 62

What are the weaknesses of laboratory experiments?

Answer 62

-High risk of Hawthorne effect where peoples behaviour changes to more socially desirable if they are aware of being observed -If subject not informed about nature of experiment before being carried out-raises ethical issues It is difficult to isolate the effect of one variable In laboratory experiment is not possible to fit society in a lab + not possible to study social changes in a lab Similar samples of things can be collected + experimented— but in society similar humans can’t be collected 

Question 63

What are the positives of field experiment

Answer 63

-can be used to manipulate situations in the real world-to understand underlying reasons for every day behaviour -In-depth validity about everyday behaviour