quantitative +qualitative research

• What influences sociologists' choice of research methods?

  Practical, ethical, and theoretical issues
• What are the practical issues affecting research methods?

  • Time and money
  • Requirements of funding bodies
  • Personal skills of researchers
  • Subject matter of the study
  • Research opportunity
• What are the ethical issues in sociological research?

  • Informed consent
  • Confidentiality and privacy
  • Harmful effects
  • Vulnerable groups
  • Covert methods
• What are the theoretical issues in sociological research?

  • Reliability
  • Validity
  • Representativeness
• What do interpretivists prefer in research methods?

  Qualitative data that provides a 'feel'
• What do positivists prefer in research methods?

  Quantitative data in numerical form
• What is the main means of data gathering in natural sciences?

  Laboratory experiments
• How do positivist sociologists view society?

  As an objective reality made of social facts
• What do positivists believe about social patterns?

  They follow observable and measurable patterns
• What do positivists use to discover laws of cause and effect?

  Careful observation and measurement
• How can quantitative data on exam results be used?

  To show class differences in achievement
• What are the quantitative research methods preferred by positivists?

  • Experiments
  • Questionnaires
  • Structured interviews
  • Analysis of official statistics
• What is a key feature of laboratory experiments?

  They are controlled experiments
• What is the purpose of dividing subjects into experimental and control groups?

  To measure the effect of the independent variable
• What is the independent variable in an experiment?

  The variable believed to have an effect
• What does a change in the experimental group indicate?

  It may be caused by the independent variable
• Why are laboratory experiments rarely used in sociology?

  Due to practical, ethical, and theoretical reasons
• What are the practical issues limiting laboratory experiments in sociology?

  • Open systems make control difficult
  • Individuals are complex and unique
  • Cannot study past events
  • Small sample sizes limit generalizability
  • Risk of artificial behavior (Hawthorne effect)
• What is the Hawthorne effect?

  Behavior changes due to awareness of being studied
• What is the expectancy effect?

  Researcher's expectations influence outcomes
• What are the main ethical issues in experiments on humans?

  • Informed consent
  • Harmful effects on subjects
• Why is informed consent important in research?

  Subjects must agree after understanding the study
• When might deception be necessary in research?

  When it ensures valid experimental results
• What are the theoretical strengths and limitations of laboratory experiments?

  Strengths:

  • High reliability
  • Controlled conditions

  
  

  Limitations:

  • Lack of validity
  • Not suitable for studying meanings
• What is reliability in research methods?

  Ability to replicate results consistently
• Why do positivists value reliability?

  It allows checking of other researchers' work
• What are field experiments?

  • Conducted in natural surroundings
  • Subjects are unaware they are being studied
• How do field experiments differ from laboratory experiments?

  Field experiments occur in natural settings
• What is the purpose of actor tests in field experiments?

  To test for discrimination in real situations
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of field experiments?

  Advantages:

  • More natural and valid
  • Avoid artificiality of labs

  
  

  Disadvantages:

  • Less control over variables
  • Ethical concerns about deception
• What are questionnaires in sociological research?

  • Written answers to pre-set questions
  • Can include closed-ended questions
• What is the comparative method in sociology?

  • A thought experiment
  • Compares two similar groups to find effects
• Who conducted a famous study using the comparative method?

  Emile Durkheim
• What is the goal of the comparative method?

  To discover cause-and-effect relationships
• What are the limitations of laboratory experiments in sociology?

  • Lack of external validity
  • Small sample sizes
  • Artificial conditions
• What are the strengths of laboratory experiments from a positivist perspective?

  • High reliability
  • Objective data collection
  • Effective for hypothesis testing
• What are closed-ended questions also called?

  Forced choice questions
• How is the comparative method different from field and laboratory experiments?

  It is a thought experiment conducted mentally
• What does the comparative method rely on?

  Re-analyzing secondary data
• What is the main goal of the comparative method?

  To discover cause-and-effect relationships