1b: How do sociologists study society?

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1IdkvmgC7d3BCkRZhkSoRbMTQPM0-zVit/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=101450239369494697220&rtpof=true&sd=true

positivism

* focuses on producing quantitative data
* based on the belief that sociology should use the same research methods as the natural sciences
* sociologists: auguste comte, emile durkheim
* objectivity and lack of bias leads to accuracy
* favour experiments, social surveys and questionnaires
* quantitative data

interpretivism

* argue the difference between sociology and natural sciences
* focus on understanding how humans see reality rather than ability
* dismiss positivist methods
* use unstructured interviews and participant observation

the main steps in devising and implementing a research strategy

* research aims and topic selection
* hypothesis setting and revision
* pilot studies
* sampling

the main steps in devising and implementing a research strategy - research aims and topic selection

* sociologists identify a **sociological** problem
* aim: understand them - not providing answers
* best kinds of problems are ones without understanding
* research projects are always related to or arise from a different research
* factors influencing research topic:
* personal interests, experiences and observation
* what is already known about the topuc
* social changes and developments
* availability of funding
* practicality
* ethical issues
* cost and time on research is important - research is carried out by sociologists employed by educational and research bodies
* sociologists need to convince funding bodies that their research is worthwhile

the main steps in devising and implementing a research strategy - hypothesis setting and revision

* review available evidence
* find previous information
* literature review
* draw on other ideas to clarify issues
* have a clear hypothesis
* hypothesis: statement of research in attempt to find evidence to support or disprove
* find how 2 or more variables connect
* cause and effect relationship
* establish correlation
* positivist approach: has hypothesis
* interpretivist approach: looser broader aim
* decide research method and plan implementation
* choose from different methods based on practical, ethical and theoretical issues
* should provide material and evidence supporting or disproving hypothesis

the main steps in devising and implementing a research strategy - pilot studies

* test with a small number of respondents to see problems in design or improve plan
* putting problems right early can save money, time and effort

the main steps in devising and implementing a research strategy - sampling

* choose appropriate sample by selecting possible respondents
* expensive and impractical to include all respondents
* samples make research manageable
* people that research is about - survey population
* list of everyone in the population - sampling frame
* good sampling frames are hard to find
* samples aren’t necessary sometimes
* many countries have a census which collects information from the whole population
* sample has to be a cross-section of the population

commonly used sampling frames

* electoral roll - list of everyone registered to vote in elections
* telephone directories
* school registers

types of samples

* random samples
* stratified samples
* systematic samples
* cluster samples
* opportunity samples
* quota samples
* snowball samples

random samples

* everyone in the sampling frame has an equal chance of being chosen
* not always representative

stratified samples

* overcomes problem of random samples not always being representative
* sampling frame is divided and then a random sample is taken from each division
* divided by different characteristics

systematic samples

regular to the choice e.g. every tenth person

cluster samples

* used when population is spread out over a large area
* certain areas are chosen for sampling frame from which random samples are taken
* reduces expense and time of travelling around whole country

opportunity samples

* people who are available at the time to take part in the research
* researcher makes decisions
* often used when short on time

quota sampling

* researcher has instructions to find people with certain characteristics
* used in market research

snowball sample

* finding one respondent and getting them to put you in touch with more or others
* no sampling frame

what happens after a pilot study

* research is carried out
* data and information is collected
* sociologist has to analyse and work out problem from data
* data raises further questions
* research findings are reported, read and used
* findings published in books
* end of individual research

research stages of difficulties in implementing a research strategy

* identifying a topic
* reviewing existing evidence
* developing an aim
* choosing a method
* implementing research method

identifying a topic - potential problem

practical problems - finding respondents, funding

reviewing existing evidence - potential problem

difficult to find - many sources, outdated

developing an aim - potential problem

difficult choices about overall approach

choosing a method - potential problem

method chosen may not produce data, may not confirm or disprove hypothesis or doesn’t fulfill aim

implementing a research method - potential problem

practical, ethical, theoretical

ethical issues affecting the choice and implementation of a research strategy

* harm
* informed consent
* privacy
* deception
* anonymity
* confidentiality

harm

participants musn’t be harmed in a study - includes but isn’t limited to physical, emotional and mental harm

informed consent

partipants’ informed consent must be obtained - respondents must agree to take part, understood what’s involved, purpose of research, findings and can refuse to take part in answering particular questions

* researcher shouldn’t try to persuade participant
* not necessary to get informed consent from everyone involved
* rule of consent rules out covert observation
* amount of information which needs to be given out is also unclear
* researchers break this guideline quite frequently in minor ways
* e.g. underestimate how long a research will take

privacy

researcher shouldn’t invade participant privacy - researcher needs to respect privacy after consent and researcher cannot force participant to give information

deception

partipants shouldn’t be decieved - researchers shouldn’t present research different from what it is

* lying about research topic
* not giving full information in order to get the partipant to respond naturally

anonymity

partipant’s name or defining traits mustn’t appear on survey form unless for further contact

confidentiality

it shouldn’t be possible to trace an individual’s answers from published findings

main methods used in sociological investigation

* questionnaires/social surveys
* interviews
* experiments
* case studies
* longitudinal studies
* participant observation
* non-participant observation
* content analysis
* triangulation

questionnaires/social surveys

* highly reliable
* not always valid
* the UK census survey

questionnaires/social surveys - types of questions

* closed or pre-coded
* scaled
* open

questionnaires/social surveys - closed or pre-coded questions

* researcher provides set of answers
* respondents can choose from answers
* researcher limits responses
* each answer is coded by a value used for analysis

questionnaires/social surveys - closed or pre-coded questions (advantage)

easy to analyse results and produce statistical tables

questionnaires/social surveys - closed or pre-coded questions (disadvantage)

some respondents may want to give answers not in the options

questionnaires/social surveys - scaled questions

* form of close-ended question
* debate: odd/even number of respondents
* odd: respondents choose middle one to avoid making a choice
* even: respondents are pushed to make decisions
* this data proves things
* risks forcing people

questionnaires/social surveys - open questions

* provides quantitative data and limited qualitative data
* uses for deep data so respondents can provide a response
* difficult to analyse data

questionnaires/social surveys - ways of administering surveys

* self completion questionnaires
* structured interviews

ways of administering surveys - self completion questionnaires

* respondents answer questions without additional guidance from researcher
* researcher is absent: questionaires are returned with some questions empty, inappropriate answers, misunderstood
* postal questionnaires - large sample, more representative, generalised, low response rate
* argued that those who return questionnaires are different from those who don’t

self completion questionnaires - ways of improving response rate

* sending a letter explaining research in detail and obtaining informed consent
* sending a stamped, addressed envelope
* following up those who don’t respond
* making the questionnaire short and easy
* giving relevant and clear, short questions
* using people’s names for personal involvement
* sign each letter
* offering an incentive

ways of administering surveys - structured interviews

* researcher reads out questions and answers allowed and records them
* telephone, face-to-face questionnaires
* face-to-face questionnaires: administered location, interviewee should be at east
* questions should be standardised
* higher response rate
* researcher can explain purpose and reassure partipants
* take up more time and are more expensive

questionnaires/social surveys - guidelines for good questionnaire design

* short
* clear layout
* easy instructions
* start with short questions
* minimum needed questions
* enough alternative answers
* questions shouldn’t be leading
* questions should avoid terms that aren’t understood by everyone
* only ask things partipants know
* best to leave personal information to the end

questionnaires/social surveys - strengths of self-completion questionnaires

* cheap
* can be sent to those who are geographically distant
* researcher cannot influence answers given
* convenient as participants can choose when to answer

questionnaires/social surveys - limitations of self-completion questionnaires

* low response rate
* questions may be understood
* researcher cannot be sure who answered the questions
* participants leave questions answered

questionnaires/social surveys - strengths of structured interviews

* interviewer can explain questions
* interviewer can ask additional questions or avoid irrelevant ones
* higher response rate
* good relationship with participants = trust and valid answers

questionnaires/social surveys - limitations of structured interviews

* interviewers may influence answers through participant interaction
* time-consuming
* expensive
* participants may give socially desirable answers
* several interviewers may approach work in different ways

interviews

* unstructured
* semi-structured
* focus group
* group

interviews - features

* qualitative
* no schedule of questions
* flexible and conversational
* interviewer can follow up
* hard labour

interviews - unstructured

* brief set of prompts
* aim: get interviewee to talk freely

interviews - semi-structured

* interview guide - list of questions, topics
* order of questions varies
* all questions may not be asked
* similar wording for questions

interviews - guidelines for good interviews

* interviewers should be flexible and good listeners
* make interviewee comfortable
* create an order so questions flow well
* understandable and relevant language
* avoid leading questions
* keep a fact sheet record
* make sure interview location is quiet and private
* use a good quality recording machine to record and transcribe interviews

interviews - types of good questions

* introductory
* follow-up
* probing questions
* specifying questions
* indirecrt questions
* silence
* interpreting questions

focus group interviews

* group interviews focusing on a particular topic
* researcher has interview guide with different types of questions
* researchers find out how groups respond to each other
* closer to real social life
* researcher can decide how much they want to be involved
* risk: irrelevant discussion
* researchers should know how to deal with silence, no speakers and people who speak too much
* difficult to record and transcribe

interviews - strengths

* interviews provide detailed and valid data about respondents
* flexibility allows interviewer to probe deeply
* interviewers can assess the honesty and validity of answers
* information for further investigation can be brought out

interviews - limitations

* time consuming to carry out, transcribe and analyse
* difficult to make generalisations without standardised questions
* less reliable - difficult to replicate
* interviewer should be highly skilled
* interviewer bias
* interviewer effect - affected by CAGE

experiments

* positivist method
* produce quantitative data
* used to find cause and effect/correlations
* lab experiments
* controlled variables, minimised subjectivity, quantified data
* viewed as flawed
* aren’t helpful as people live in society, not in labs
* hawthorne effect
* bandura and the bobo dolls
* sociologists prefer field experiments
* pygmalion in the classroom

experiments - field experiments

* ethical problems
* risk
* researcher may lose control
* effective for getting inside group behaviour

case studies

* involved detailed research on one or more topics
* involve any combination of methods
* usually not possible to generalise or prove/disprove a hypothesis
* affluent worker (case study)

case studies - strengths

* allow different aspects to be studied using different methods
* provide deep and detailed accounts
* draws wider conclusions
* produce findings that can be tested by other research

case studies - limitations

* findings may apply only to the case
* may not be generalised
* cannot be replicated
* researchers involvement can influence results

longitudinal studies

* carried out over a period of time
* used by government-funded organisations
* employs surveys
* panel studies
* same sample used repeatedly
* panel sample
* panel members interviewed regularly
* NCDS
* 7 up

longitudinal studies - strengths

* gives a snapshot view of society and shows it over time
* shows factors for changes
* valid data due to committment

longitudinal studies - limitations

* considerable amount of time and research
* sample attrition: indivduals die, move away, decide they don’t want to partake, movement of individuals
* hawthorne effect

participant observation

* helps develop an understanding of the world from the point of view of the subjects
* researchers put themselves in the same position as those they’re researching
* stages of participant observation
* getting in
* staying in
* getting out
* gang leader for a day - case study

stages of participant observation - getting in

* researchers adopt an overt rule and declare their true identity to the group or adopt a covert rule and produce a cover story
* researcher should share the same CAGE as the group
* the researcher should gain relationships with key individuals to get access

stages of participant observation - staying in

* observer should develop a trusting role
* involves learning and listening
* taking notes may disrupt the natural behaviour
* objectivity
* researcher may have to do things they don’t agree with

stages of participant observation - getting out

* researcher should be detached enough to write an impartial and accurate account
* members of the group shouldn’t be identified in reports

participant observation - covert participation observation

* group doesn’t know research is taking place
* decieves the group and conceals truth
* no informed consent
* public research protects anonymity
* most likely used where criminal or deviant activities are involved
* avoids the risk of changing the behaviour of the group under study
* researcher will have to become a full participant in the group as research may be ruined
* may involve participating in illegal activities
* difficult to ask questions and take notes without arousing suspicion
* moral and ethical concerns about observing and reporting without consent
* observer has to work hard at passing as a member of the group

participant observation - overt participation observation

* group is aware that research is taking place
* informed consent
* researcher may be able to ask questions or interview people
* researcher can avoid participating in illegal or immoral behaviour
* ethically and morally right
* validity - group being studied may behave differently from normal

participant observation - strengths

* high in validity
* deep understanding

participant observation - limitations

* presence of observer may affect group behaviour
* low reliability
* cannot be generalised
* problems in gaining access, winning acceptance, etc.
* researcher should share similar social characteristics
* covert: time and energy needed to maintain cover
* researchers may lose objectivity and be influenced by the group

non-participant observation

* carried out by observation alone without the researcher participating
* eliminates the risk that people will be affected by the presence of a researcher or a new member of their social group
* used when groups might be unwilling to cooperate in the research - raises ethical issues
* quantitative data
* avoids hawthorne effect
* normal social situations
* visible presence of observer may influence the activity
* doesn’t let the researcher investigate the meanings people attach to the behaviour that is being observed - issues over reliability and validity

content analysis

* studies content of documents and mass media
* researcher defines set of categories and classifies the material being studied by how frequently it appears
* viewing the world - case study

content analysis - strengths

* provides information in statistical form
* reliable
* avoids ethical issues as it doesn’t involve respondents

content analysis - limitations

* quantitative data
* doesn’t answer why
* difficult to decide categories and allocate media to it

triangulation

researcher uses a variety of methods

triangulation - strengths

* supports quantitative data with qualitative data - reliable, valid
* validity can be checked
* reliability can be checked
* cross-referencing
* provides balance

triangulation - limitations

* time consuming
* expensive
* researcher should be skilled
* difficult to combine positivist and interpretivist approaches

analysing research - 3 types of issues when evaluating

* practical - time, money, response
* ethical
* theoretical - overall approach, validity, reliability, representativeness, bias

validity

extent to which the research findings accurately reflect reality

do interpretivists favour validity or reliability

validity

reliability

extent to which the findings of the research can be confirmed by repeating the study

representativeness

findings of the research should apply not only to the actual sample but to the whole population being studied

sampling error

samples cannot be the same as the whole population so there will always be a difference between the results for a sample and results for the whole population

how is sampling error reduced

by having a large random or stratified random sample

research bias

* positivist view: argue researchers should be neutral and object for reliability
* interpretivist view: argue sociology is about people so it’s impossible to be completely unbiased
* researchers should be open about their bias to readers and let them make their own decisions about validity and reliability - adopted by feminists
* imposition problem: the researcher imposing themselves or their values on the research
* happens through the social characteristics of the researcher
* or happens through the ways in which researchers word questions or analyse data