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CHAPTER 2 Social Research
Chapter Outline
Sources of Knowledge About Society
 A Model for Doing Research
 Causation and the Logic of Science
 Quantitative Research Methods
 Qualitative Research Methods
 Ethics in Social Research
 A Final Note

Sources of Knowledge About Society

Four major nonscientific sources of knowledge
Intuition – quick and ready insight not based on rational
thought
 Common sense – refers to opinions widely held because
they seem so obviously correct
 Authority – someone who supposedly has special
knowledge that not everyone has
 Tradition – knowledge because that is what those older
than us state as fact

Sources of Knowledge About Society

Nonscientific knowledge often provides false or
misleading information, therefore we need to
question what we think we know.

We need to seek an understanding of where and
how the information was gathered.

Application of the scientific method when doing and
accepting research is very helpful.
Sources of Knowledge About Society
Science

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Objectivity – scientists are expected to prevent their
personal biases from influencing the interpretation of
their results (Weber’s concept verstehen). Data is to be
interpreted on the basis of merit.
Verifiability – a study can be repeated by others. This
exposes one work to critical analysis, retesting, and
revision by colleagues.
A Model for Doing Research: The
Scientific Method
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Identifying the problem
Reviewing the literature
Formulating hypotheses
Developing a research design
Collecting data
Analyzing data
Stating findings and conclusions
1. Identifying the Problem

Questions addressed here in the development of
stating the problem include:
 What
is the topic for investigation?
 In
what is the researcher interested in learning
more information?
 How
will society and research be enriched from
the information to be gathered?
2. Reviewing the Literature

Examine the existing literature for relevant theories
and previous research methods and findings.
3. Formulating Hypotheses

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Hypothesis – tentative, testable statements of
relationship among variables.
Operational definitions – definitions of abstract
concepts in terms of simpler, observable
procedures.
4. Developing a Research Design

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Population – all those people with the
characteristics a researcher wants to study.
Sample – a limited number of cases drawn from
the larger population.
It is important to select a random and stratified
sample in order for the researcher to make sound
generalizations from the data
5. Collecting Data

Three basic ways of gathering
data in sociological research:
 Asking
people questions –
Survey
 Observing behavior – Participant
Observation
 Analyzing existing materials and
records – Secondary Analysis
and Document Analysis
6. Analyzing Data

Before analyzing the
data and after it is
collected, it must also
be classified or coded.

When looking over the
data collected, the
researcher is looking to
see whether or not the
identified hypotheses
are supported.
7. Stating Findings and Conclusions

Regardless of whether the sample was of a large
size or the hypotheses were supported, the
findings of the research should be written up and
reported.

The researcher will reflect on whether the
methods used were adequate, were there
limitations in the study, and in what ways were
the hypotheses accepted, rejected, or modified.
7. Stating Findings and Conclusions

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By making the information public, it makes it
possible for others to:
duplicate the research
conduct a slightly different study
or proceed in a very different direction.
Using the Research Model

Although most sociologists follow the model, they
do not do so mechanically.

They may also conduct exploratory studies prior to
stating hypotheses or before developing research
designs.

They may also alter their hypotheses and research
designs as their investigation is in process.
Questions for Consideration
What were the findings of this research?
 What methods were employed in this
research?
 How can you apply any or all of the three
sociological theoretical approaches to the
data found in this study?

Causation and the Logic of Science

Causation – events occur in predictable,
nonrandom ways, and one event leads to another.
causation – an event occurs as a result
of several factors operating in combination
 multiple
Causation and Variables

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Variable - a characteristic that is subject to change.
Quantitative Variable – a variable that can be
measured and given numerical value (e.g.,
individuals, groups, objects).
Qualitative Variable – variation in kind versus in
numerical degree (e.g., sex, marital status).
Forming Quantitative & Qualitative
Variables
Questions for Consideration

Since answers to these questions could be used to
classify people into one of two categories, which
category would you be in?
 People who place a high value on education
 People who place a low value on education

Can you identify other categories that could be
qualified from these questions?
Other Types of Variables

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Independent Variables – variables that
cause something to occur.
Dependent Variables – variables which a
change (or effect) can be observed or you
expect to observe.
Other Types of Variables
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Independent variables usually when
introduced cause the dependent variable
to change.
Intervening Variables – influences the
relationship between an independent
variable and dependent variable.
Correlational Relationships
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Correlation – when one variable changes another
or several other variable changes (either negatively
or positively).
Positive Correlation – when both the independent
and dependent variable(s) change in the same
direction.
Negative Correlation – independent and dependent
variable(s) change in opposite directions (when one
goes up the other goes down).
Positive and Negative Correlations
Criteria For a Cause-and-Effect Relationship
1. Two variables must be correlated.
2. All possible contaminating factors must be
taken into account.
3. A change in the independent variable must
occur before a change in the dependent
variable can occur.
Application of the Causal
Relationship Criteria

1.
Refer to “Using the Sociological Imagination” from the
beginning of the chapter.
Two variables must be correlated – Some
researchers found that juvenile delinquency increases
as church attendance declines.
Application of the Causal
Relationship Criteria – Cont.
2.
All possible contaminating factors must be
taken into account –
The negative relationship between church
attendance and delinquency occurs because age
is related to both church attendance and
delinquency.
Application of the Causal
Relationship Criteria – Cont.
We need to take all variables relevant to the
relationship. The age variable reveals that the
relationship between church attendance and
delinquency is not a causal one. Church
attendance is the contaminating factor here.
Application of the Causal
Relationship Criteria – Cont.
3.
A change in the independent variable must
occur before a change in the dependent
variable can occur –
cause must occur before effect. In this case, it
cannot be determined which occurred first:
church attendance or delinquency. Causality
between these two variables cannot be
established.
The Experiment as a Model


Experiment – takes place in a laboratory in an
attempt to eliminate all possible contaminating
influences.
This allows the researcher to determine the effects
of an independent variable on a dependent
variable.

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Conventional method for controlling the influence of
contaminating variables is to select a control group
as well as an experimental group.
Experimental Group – group exposed to the
experimental variable.
Control Group – group not exposed to the
experimental variable.

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Matching is done to make the groups comparable
– participants are matched in pairs.
Randomization (preferable to matching) – subjects
are assigned to the experimental or control group
on a random (chance) basis.
Quantitative Research Methods

Quantitative methods include survey
research and precollected data (secondary
research).

About 90% of the research published in
major sociological journals is based on
surveys.
Survey Research
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In a survey, people are asked to respond to a series of
questions by mail, email, face-to-face, and/or by
telephone.
Questionnaires are written and interviews are
questions asked by an interviewer.
Ideal for studying large numbers of people.
Representative samples are selected.
Include many variables.
Relatively precise.
Permit the comparison of responses.
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Random sample – a sample of the population
where every member of the population has equal
opportunity of being selected for inclusion in the
sample.
Stratified random sample – population is divided
into categories such as sex, age, race; subjects are
then selected randomly from each category. This is
to ensure the proportion of persons in a given
category reflects the population at large.
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Close-ended Questions – limited, predetermined set
of answers are provided (i.e., multiple choice). May fail
to elicit the participants underlying attitudes and
opinions.
Open-ended Questions – asks the respondent to
answer in his or her own words. Not always easy to
quantify.
Double-barreled Questions – posing more than one
question, therefore confusing the data and/or the
respondent.

Disadvantages of survey research
 surveys are expensive
 questionnaires may not include unanticipated
information
 responses rates are often low
 wording may introduce bias
 surveys cannot probe deeply into context
 researchers must watch for Hawthorne effect
Precollected data
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Secondary analysis – the use of previously
collected information
Permits high quality research.
Low cost.
Reveals changes in variables over an extended
period of time.
Sources include government reports, company
records, voting records, prison records, and
reports from research done by others.
Precollected Data: Advantages &
Disadvantages


Advantages
 Permit the study of issue over time.
 Researcher cannot influence the answers.
Disadvantages
 Existing information may not exactly suit current
researcher’s needs.
 People who originally collected the data may have
been biased.
 May be too old to be valid.
Qualitative Research Methods

Qualitative research methods include field
research and the subjective approach.

Qualitative research relies heavily on
descriptive data.
Qualitative Research Methods

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Field research – investigates aspects of social life that
cannot be measured quantitatively and that are best
understood within a natural setting. Assumes findings
in one case can be generalized to similar situations.
Case study – thorough investigation of a single group,
incident, or community. Accomplished primarily through
intensive observation, information obtained from
informants, and informal interviews.
Qualitative Research Methods

Participant observation – researcher becomes a
member of the group being studied (as in the
video about the homeless in NY).
Advantages of Field Studies
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Field studies can produce a depth and breadth of
understanding unattainable with quantitative
methods.
Can reveal insights from the people involved.
Valuable where survey research methods would
be either impossible or biased.
Disadvantages of Field Studies
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Findings from one case may not be generalizable to
similar situations.
Possibility of bias of field researcher; researcher often
has to rely on personal judgment and interpretation.
Lack of objectivity and standardized research
procedures makes it difficult for other researchers to
replicate.
Subjective Approach

Subjective approach studies an aspect of human
social behavior by ascertaining the interpretations
of the participants themselves.

A prominent example of this approach is
ethnomethodology, which attempts to uncover the
taken-for-granted social routines.
Ethnomethodology
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…the study of the processes people develop and
use in understanding the routine behaviors
expected of themselves and others in everyday
life.
Ethnomethodologists assume that people share
the meanings that underlie much of their everyday
behavior.
Ethnomethodology

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Harold Garfinkel is a prominent advocate of
ethnomethodology.
Garfinkel believes the best way to understand people’s
construction of social reality is to deprive them
momentarily of their mental maps of daily routines –
upsetting the apple cart.
Ethnomethodologists can learn by observing the
process of reconstruction.
Research Methods: Advantages
& Disadvantages
Research Methods: Advantages
& Disadvantages
Focus on Theoretical Perspectives
Ethics and Sociological Research

Sociologists are committed to:
 Objectivity
 Highest technical research standards
 Accurate reporting of methods and
findings
 Protection of the rights, privacy, integrity,
dignity, and autonomy of the subjects of
their research.
Ethics in Sociological Research

The code is concerned with maximizing the benefits of
sociology to society and minimizing the harm that
sociological work might create.
Ethics in Sociological Research

Several eminent social scientists have been criticized
for conducting research that many scientists consider
unethical. Subjects were placed in stressful situations
without being informed of the true nature of the
experiment: Milgram 1963, 1965, 1974 & Zimbardo et
al 1981
A Final Note
Reliability
 Validity
 Replication

Reliability

…a measurement technique that yields
consistent results on repeated application.
Validity

…exists when a measurement technique actually
measures what it is designed to measure.
Replication

…the duplication of the same study of
ascertain its accuracy.
Questions for Consideration

Do you think that a selected sample of three thousand
individuals could yield an accurate picture of leisure
habits of Americans? Why or why not?

Pretend you are a sociologist studying the relationship
between the receipt of welfare payments and
commitment to working.

Describe the research method you would select, and
discuss why it is the most appropriate to this topic.