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| Question | Answer |
| What is Triangulation? | Using multiple methods in order to gather reliable data. |
| What is primary data? | Data collected personally, in the form of questionnaires and fieldwork interviews and observational studies. |
| What is secondary data? | Originates from a source other than personal research and can include newspaper articles, books, mass media and the research of other social scientists. |
| What is quantitative data? | It quantifies the relationship between two or more things and is represented statistically or numerically, based on surveys and statistical polls. |
| What is qualitative data? | Specifies the quality of the relationship between two or more things and involves interpretation based on either fieldwork or surveys. |
| How must a sociologist analyse their results? | Objectively, using 'sociological imagination' and steering clear of any biases that may be based on their personal experiences. |
| How should a sociologist report their findings? | They should structure their conclusion into a coherent, user-friendly format that included an analyses of their qualitative findings and/or quantitative data, as well as charts and graphs presenting survey statistics. |
| Outline the sociological research process | -Choose a subject to research -Read existing sociological research on the topic -Hypothesis the relationship between variable being tested -Decide on the research plan, what are the most suitable methods of data collection? -Carry out research according to this plan -Record the results and analyse the findings -Report the research, discuss the findings in terms of your preliminary thoughts -Discuss your findings with the wider research community |
| What is ethnography (fieldwork) | -Qualitative approach -First hand study of and often engagement with the people being studied -Use participant observation -Conduct interview -Some times use non-participant observation -Generates rich, detailed information and allows for an understanding of broader social processes |
| What is participant observation? | When a sociologist becomes assimilated into a group they wish to study by living or working alongside group members. Researchers often take part in daily tasks and contribute to the overall well being of a group, organisation or community. |
| Name three advantages to PO | 1) The researcher could gain admission to social groups they may not have been able to research from a 'sociological' point of view. (Gangs, if they have a good cover) 2) Information from the participants being researched is far more direct and detailed and can learn about their own experiences. 3) Participants do not usually know they are being observed and so will not alter their behaviour. |
| Name three disadvantages of PO | 1) It is time consuming and laborious. 2) It may be hard for the researcher not to break cover when asking questions 3) Some groups cannot be studied in this way as they require a set of skills to enter the group in the first place (e.g. a gymnastics team) |
| What is non-participant observation. | Opening observing a group, but not as a member of said group. |
| What is the 'Hawthorne effect'? | They way in which people change their behaviour when they are aware they are being watched (workers in the Western Electric Company working harder when being observed) It is a disadvantage of NPO |
| What types of interviews can be used in sociological research? | -Formal -Open ended -Unstructured -Take place under PO, participant thinks it is a casual conversation |
| Why are social surveys used in sociological research? | It enabled researchers to gather quantitative data from a larger cross section of a population. |
| Which two formats can a questionnaire be conducted in? | 1) Standardised (fixed selection of answers) 2) Open ended |
| What are the disadvantages to using a questionnaire? | - Can be too highly standardised so that they do not reflect the true concerns and opinions of the people being studied. -People may answer what they profess to believe not what they actually believe |
| When is sampling used? | When the group being studied is too large to question each individual so a representative sample (who represent the typical characteristics of the population) or a random sample will be given questionnaires. |
| Other than representative and random sampling, what types of sampling are there? | - Quota sampling (choosing people from a range of different quotas, or groups, which fairly represent the population) -Stratified sampling (diving the population into levels or strata which are representative and then choosing at random from among these) |
| What is a disadvantage of sampling? | Due to the numerical insight needed to carry out accurate sampling, it can be a complex process which requires specific statistical knowledge |
| How are random samples gathered? | Using the electoral roll or birth records |
| In which two ways can comparative research be conducted? | Cross-culturally (e.g.measuring teen crime rates in western societies and in non-western societies) Historically (e.g. measuring in change statistical values over time) |
| Why do some sociologists favour experimentation? | The results are seen as objective, re-testable, and thus a solid basis for drawing up an argument and conclusion. |
| Why do some sociologist NOT favour experimentation? | They claim it shows us what people do but not WHY they do it which should be key to sociological research. Researchers using experimentation must be careful not to look too hard for proof of their hypothesis regardless of how good this evidence really is Also the Hawthorne effect can disrupt the results |
| What is a longitudinal study? | The subject is watched for development over time, and analysis and long-term trends can be researched and analysed in this regard. |
| How would a sociologist use content analysis? | They would examine what was being communicated in the content, what meaning were intended and so on. They would use linguistic analysis and measurable data, to be as exact as possible and allow any findings to be repeatable. |
| What factors should be considered when evaluating a piece of sociological research? | -The method of data collection and the form of presentation may influence the information given and the conclusion reached. - What way seem like hard factual statistics may turn out to hide ambiguity and subjectivity |
| What is the 'positivist perspective'? | One that sees only scientific data as valid data. One that focuses on statistics to indicate and describe wider social trends. The statistical data MUST have been collected in accordance with the scientific method . |
| What is the symbolic interactionist or 'anti-positivist' perspective? | One that does not see statistics as objective or value-neutral, rather they are just as prone to the Hawthorne effect and researcher bias. They question how the definition of a statistic (act of crime/suicide) is reached |
| What are 'social facts'? | Things such as economic reality or religious institutions, since they all have the power to deeply affect who we are as individuals. |
| How did social facts affect how Durkheim believed the study of society should be approached? | With a scientific mind set and method since social facts can be hard to see and may cause pre-conceived ideas and affect how we see the true nature of social reality. |
| Define 'reliability' | Reliable research and it's data should be easily repeatable. Quantitative data is more reliable than qualitative. |
| Define 'validity' | How far does data give us a true or VALID picture of the subject or research? Is the methodology appropriate for the topic? Was it carried out ethically and correctly? |
| How can research be valid but not reliable? | When researching a certain group, time and circumstance would have changed who is in the group and how it operates and so previous research is not reliable for understanding the group. |
| How is research reliable but not valid? | In researching crime in relation to the colour of the victims shoes, the results when repeated are likely to be similar but the study itself is not valid as the colour of the shoes has nothing to do with the crime committed. Also, when using questionnaires, participants do not always answer truthfully so their answers are not valid. |
| What are some ethical considerations in sociological research? | -No one should be harmed -Researchers should be honest -Participants confidentiality should be respected -No laws should be broken |
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