Research Methods - Positivism

Positivism

Value quantitative data, factual, macro, favour reliability, think Sociology can be studied as science

Reliability

Replicability/Repeatability of the experiment

Validity

Accuracy/Truthfulness of study

Quantitative data

Numerical, factual, mostly stats, yes/no etc

Qualitative data

Words, meaning, interpretation, opinion based

Practical factors

How much time taken, cost, resources needed, access, etc

Ethical factors

Consent, confidentiality, privacy, protection from harm, deception, right to withdraw etc

Theoretical factors

Replicability, validity, generalisation, representativeness etc

Official statistics

Collected by national/local governments, on education, crime, marriage, births, deaths etc. (ONS)

Are official statistics qualitative or quantitative?

Quantitative

Examples of official statistics

GCSE results, census data

Critisisms of Official Statistics

Can be misleading, they are ‘social constructs’ as controlled by society, Government have power to manipulate data

Advantages of Official Statistics

Practical - Free, easy access, allows for comparisons

Ethical - Ethics already approved if they were published(secondary source)

Theoretical - Positivist favoured. Objective as factual, Quantitative, Can be highly representative

Disadvantages of Official Statistics

Practical - Stats may not be relevant to certain research topics, definitions of things may differ, may need special access

Ethical - If given special access, must keep data confidential

Theoretical - Interpretivists dislike, lacks validity, only snapshot of one period of time, out of date quickly

Experiments

HIghly controlled situation, researcher tries to control variables to establish cause and effect

Hawthorne effect

People act differently to normal because they know they are being watched

Lab experiments

Split to 2 groups, experimental and control. Take place in very controlled area so repeatable.

Lab experiment example 1

Bandura’s bobo doll study - Study of aggression, adults attacked doll in front of child, then left room, Child then copied their actions.

Lab experiment example 2

Stanford Prison experiment - 24 students put into a prison, 12 guards, 12 prisoners, simulation. The guards began to abuse power, emotionally and physically harm prisoners.

Field experiments

Takes place in natural environment, participants not aware they are in experiment, reduces hawthorne effect, more valid.

Field experiment example 1

Rosenthal and Jacobson - 20% class are prophecied to be academic spurters, and they do succeed, due to Self fulfilling prophecy

Field experiment example 2

Sissons experiment, actor outside Paddington Station asked for directions, did it twice, with actor dressed professionally, and as a WC Labourer, found people more helpful to professional.

Advantages of Experiments

Practical - Field, Don’t need to incentivise participants

Ethical - Consent gained before/after, can use code names for confidentiality

Theoretical - Lab, positivist favoured as quantitative, objective controlled, replicable. Field, standardised instructions can make it reliable, mostly interpretivist favoured, lack of hawthorne effect, more valid.

Disadvantages of Experiments

Practical - Lab, expensive for researchers, training, venue, incentive, time consuming. Field, costly, venue

Ethical - Lab, Potential harm, deception, only benefits some. Field, lack of consent, deception, potential harm

Theoretical - Lab, lacks validity, artificial environment, Hawthorne effect. Field, harder to control, so harder to repeat, lacks reliability.

Questionnaires

Lists of standardised, pre-set questions people complete by themselves. Postal, online or in person.

Types of question - Open

Interpretivist favoured, asking why, more qualitative data, can be more valid

Types of question - Closed

Favoured by positivists, yes/no, tick box, quantitative data, easier to quantify data

Questionnaire example 1

Census, questionnaire every 10 years by ONS sent to every household, snapshot of society

Questionnaire example 2

Shere Hite’s sexuality questionnaire, used open questions about womens sexual experiences. But had low response rate as very sensitive topic. (4.5% response)

Questionnaire advantages

Practical - Cheap to produce, quick, flexible

Ethical - Easy to get consent, easy to anonymise

Theoretical - Reliable as standardised questions, can be highly representative, positivist favour quantitive data

Questionnaire disadvantages

Practical - Low response rates, language may not be understood, may need to incentivise

Ethical - Sensitive topics without researcher reassurance

Theoretical - Low in validity, no verstehen, interpretivists dislike