THEORYS & METHODS

• Sociology involves three key areas – Sociological Research Methods, Sociological Theory and Perspectives, Methodology
• Research Methods


  • Quantitative and qualitative research methods
  • Research design
  • Sources of data, including questionnaires, interviews, participant and non-participant observation, experiments, documents and official statistics
  • The distinction between quantitative and qualitative data
• Theories/Perspectives


  • Consensus, conflict, structural and social action theories
  • The concepts of modernity and post-modernity in relation to sociological theory
• Methodology

  • The relationship between positivism, interpretivism and sociological methods; the nature of social facts
  • The practical, ethical and theoretical factors which influence choice of research topic, research method(s) and the conduct of research
  • The nature of science and the extent to which sociology can be regarded as scientific
  • The relationship between theory and methods
  • Debates about subjectivity, objectivity and value freedom
  • The relationship between sociology and social policy
• Assessment: Paper 1 'Theory and Methods' – 1 x 20 'Methods in Context' + 1 x 10 mark 'outline and explain', Paper 3 'Theory and Methods' – 1 x 10 mark 'outline and explain' + 1x 20 mark "Applying the item, evaluate"
• Hypothesis

  A proposed explanation for a phenomenon
• Primary data


  Data collected directly by the researcher
• Secondary data

  Data collected by others, not the researcher
• Quantitative data

  Data in numerical form
• Qualitative data


  Data in the form of words, images, observations
• Reliability


  The extent to which a measurement, procedure, or instrument provides the same result on repeated trials
• Validity


  The extent to which a concept, conclusion or measurement is well-founded and corresponds accurately to the real world
• Authenticity


  The genuineness of a source of data
• Credibility


  The believability and trustworthiness of research findings
• Representativeness


  The extent to which a sample accurately reflects the characteristics of the population from which it is drawn

  
• Generalisability


  The extent to which research findings can be applied to the wider population
• Positivism


  The view that the logic, methods and procedures of the natural sciences can be applied to the study of society
• Interpretivism


  The view that the subject matter of Sociology is fundamentally different to that of the natural sciences, and requires an empathetic understanding of social action
• Objective

  Unbiased, factual, not influenced by personal feelings or opinions
• Subjective


  Based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions
• Verstehen


  Empathetic understanding, seeing the world from the eyes of others
• Sampling


  • Survey population
  • Sampling frame
  • Sampling technique
  • Sampling unit
  • Sample attrition
  • Sample
  • Random sample
  • Systematic sample
  • Stratified sample
  • Multi-stage sample
  • Quota sample
  • Volunteer sample
  • Snowball sample
  • Non-representative sample
• Social facts


  Forces greater than us which impact upon us and our behavior
• Rapport


  A close and harmonious relationship in which the people or groups concerned understand each other's feelings or ideas and communicate well
• Operationalise

  To define a concept in terms of the specific operations or procedures used to measure or manipulate it
• Interviewer bias


  Bias introduced by the interviewer, e.g. through the way questions are asked
• Social desirability effect


  The tendency of respondents to answer questions in a way that will be viewed favorably by others
• Response rate

  The proportion of people in a survey sample who respond to the survey
• Standardised


  Consistent, uniform, following the same procedure
• Pilot study


  A small-scale preliminary study conducted to evaluate feasibility, time, cost, adverse events, and improve upon the study design prior to performance of a full-scale research project
• Interview schedule


  A set of predetermined questions that the interviewer asks respondents in a structured interview
• Hawthorne effect


  The tendency of people to change their behavior when they know they are being observed
• Gatekeeper


  A person who controls access to a research setting or participants
• Field diary


  A record kept by a researcher of their observations and experiences during fieldwork
• Going native

  When a researcher becomes too immersed in the social world they are studying and loses their objectivity
• Closed setting


  A research setting that is physically or socially bounded, such as a prison or hospital
• Independent variable

  The variable that the researcher manipulates or changes to observe the effect on the dependent variable
• Dependent variable


  The variable that is observed and measured to determine the effect of the independent variable
• Control group


  A group in an experiment that does not receive the experimental treatment, used as a comparison for the experimental group
• Experimental group


  The group that receives the experimental treatment in a study