Research methods

• Positivism


  a particular set of assumptions about how the world or society is organised.

  very influenced by natural sciences

  should treat people as objects whose behaviour can be directly observed, measured and counted in the same way as natural phenomena

  sociologists should adopt scientific methods
• positivists view on replicability


  sociologists should be neutral and not allow their personal or political values or prejudices to bias any aspect of their research method or interpretation of the data they collect
• positivists view on representativeness


  aim to select a representative sample of that group to take part in their research

  participants should have characteristics that are typical of the larger population
• positivists view on quantitative data


  data should be expressed in numerical forms so that patterns and trends can be spotted and compared

  correlations can be used to help uncover cause and effect relationships which can establish social policies
• positivists view on validity


  argue their approach is the most effective way of achieving validity as they believe that if research is well designed then data gathered should be authentic
• the hypothetic-deductive method

  phenomena

  observation

  hypothesis

  systematic observation and data collection

  data collection

  data analysis

  test hypothesis (if refuted, either revise or reject hypothesis)

  confirm hypothesis

  theory- made up of confirmed hypothesis (create prediction of phenomena)
• replicability


  important in order to ensure reliability of the research method and process.

  • positivists argue that if research is reliable it should be able to be replicated gaining the same or similar results
• Durkheim - study of suicide


  used positivist approach to study suicide

  he found three ket themes:

  • suicide rates remain constant and predictable over time
  • they remain constant between societies
  • remain constant between social groups within tech same society
• Verstehen


  interpretivists aim to achieve verstehen

  when the sociologist learns t o see the world from their standpoint
• reflexivity


  a form of self evaluation that involves researchers reflecting critically on how they organised the research process, their everyday experience of it and how a range of influences might positively opt negatively affect the validity of their findings
• social problems


  aspects of a social life that cause misery and anxiety to both private individuals and society in general

  • crime
  • domestic violence
  • suicide
• sociological problems


  any aspect of social life whether it is normal or deviant eg

  • divorce as it can have negative effects for individuals and society but also interested in marriage as a sociological problem (why is it important)
• current debates in the academic world

  research is influenced by what is going on in the academic world:

  • 1970s - feminism, research into families
  • 1980s - conservative focus on law, research into crime, moral panic and riots
  • 1990s - rise of postmodernism, studies on identity and consumption
• primary data


  when the sociologist goes into the community with a particular research method and persuades a sample of the group to take part
• secondary data


  data that has already been collected by someone else
• Practical factors in research

  • Cost
  • Time available
  • Subject matter of research
  • Social characteristics
• Cost


  Need to fund team, salaries living expenses, travel, rent etc
• Time available


  Depends if research is longitudinal but also depends on the budget available, if have a larger budget then research will continue over a longer period
• Subject matter of research

  Some areas of research are more accessible than others - people may feel uncomfortable talking about certain subjects
• Social characteristics


  For example if research was being done into ethnic minorities then using a white researcher may not be ideal, same for research into women and using a male researcher
• ethics


  british sociological association

  1. informed consent
  2. no form of deception
  3. maintain privacy
  4. research subject should be protected from harm
  5. researchers never engage in immoral or illegal activity
  6. research team should never be put at risk
• hypothesis 


  an informed guess or assumpt9ion that the researchers thinks might be true and that can be tested by breaking it down unto aims and objectives
• operationalisation


  making the hypothesis or research aim measurable
• random sampling


  systematic random sampling:

  • randomly choosing number between one and ten then picking every nth number of the number chosen from the sampling frame until the required sample size is met

  stratified random sampling:

  • dividing research population into sampling frames and using systematic random sampling o select the group that will comprise the sample
• Non random sampling


  Sampling method where the researcher has control over who is selected for the sample
• Quota sampling


  • Researcher decides how many people of each category then goes to find them to fill the quota
• Purposive sampling


  • Choosing individuals or cases that fit the nature of the research
• Opportunity sampling


  • Making the most of the opportunity in which the research population is likely to be found
• Snowball sampling


  • Finding and interviewing a person who fits the research needs and then asking them to suggest someone else who may be willingly interviewed, the sample can grow as large as the researcher wants
• Volunteers sampling


  • May advertise for research volunteers however may fail to produce a representative sample
• pilot studies


  pilot studies can detect:

  • whether questions are clearly understood
  • that questions don't upset or lead the participants
  • the sampling technique is successful in obtaining the right types of people
  • the interview teams are well trained
  • the data produced is the kind that is wanted
• longitudinal study


  study the same group of people over a long period of time

  problems of longitudinal studies:

  • respondents may drop out
  • views of those who remain may be significantly different to those who dropped out so not represenative
  • researchers may be too friendly and loose objectivity
  • expensive