research methods

• secondary data

  statistics

  docs- letters, emails, progress reports

  league tables

  ofsted reports

  case studies
• primary data

  questionaires

  experiments

  observations

  longitudinal studies
• PERVERT

  Practical

  Ethical

  Reliable

  Validity

  Example

  Representiveness

  Theoretical
• generalisable 


  whether a study only applicable to specific group in society or be generalised to wider society
• operationalise


  the process of defining a concept precisely so that it can be easily understood by respondents and measured by the researcher. 

  e.g instead of asking "are you religious", researchers may operationalise question by asking "do you believe in god"
• practical issues

  time

  money

  access

  funding

  subject matter
• ethical issues

  consent

  confidentiality

  danger

  vulnerable groups
• theoretical issues

  validity

  reliability

  representativeness

  positivism/interpretivism
• pilot study

  draft version of study
• rapport

  a close and harmonious relationship between researcher and respondents, such that both parties understand each other’s feelings and communicate well.
• reliability


  means if someone else repeats the same research with the same population then they should achieve the same results.
• representativeness 


  if the research sample reflects the characteristics of the wider target population that is being studied.
• triangulation


   the use of more than one method in social research. For example a researcher might combine structured questionnaires with more in-depth interviews. 
• verstehen


  weber- ' to understand in a deep, empathetic way'
• longitudinal studies 


  a study of a sample of people in which information is collected from the same people at intervals over a long period of time.

  For example, a researcher might start off in 2015 by getting a sample of 1000 people to fill in a questionnaire, and then go back to the same people in 2020
• going native

  where a researcher becomes biased or sympathetic towards the group he is studying, such that he or she loses their objectivity.
• extraneous variables

  undesirable variables which are not of interest to the researcher but might interfere with the results of the experiment.
• attrition rate

   the percentage of respondents who drop out of a research study during the course of that study. This can often be a problem with longitudinal research
• triangulation

  the mixing of data or methods so that diverse viewpoints or standpoints cast light upon a topic.

  able to generalise more research

  more validity
• case studies

  involves the detailed examination of a single case

  not representative, cannot generalise

  can be used to suggest hypotheses at the start of research, provide detailed insight into a particular group
• non participant observation

  • where researchers observe respondents without participating
  • may be structured - looking for certain things to happen in the observation
  • or unstructured - note down anything they deem important
  • favoured by positivists
  • e.g OFSTED inspections - have a criteria to look out for