AQA Sociology Research Methods (A Level)

Quantitative data

A research method that produces data of a numerical kind.

Qualitative data

A research method that produces data of a written kind.

Representativeness

How well the sample used mirrors the group the researcher wants to study.

Reliability

The extent to which results stand up to re-testing.

Validity

The extent to which the results paint a true picture of real life behaviour.

Verstehen

A German word meaning 'empathy'; the extent to which the researcher can empathise with a person's behaviour by putting themselves in their place.

Positivism

The view that science can be studied as a science, uses quantitative research methods.

Interpretivism

The view that science cannot be studied as a science, uses qualitative research methods.

Operationalisation

The process by which a sociologist defines or measures key variables precisely e.g. social class might be measured in terms of occupation.

The Hawthorne Effect

When participants know they are being watched and change their behaviour because of this.

Triangulation

This is where sociologists use a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods.

Ethical issues

What is morally right or wrong to do in relation to studying people?

Hypothesis

A prediction to be tested i.e. a cause and effect statement, favoured by Positivists.

Aim

A broad idea of what they want to find out of the investigation, favoured by Interpretivists.

Random sampling

When every person in a target population has an equal chance of being selected in the sample.

Systematic sampling

Where every nth person in the sampling frame is selected e.g. every 3rd person on a register.

Quota sampling

The researcher decides how many respondents of a particular type are required (i.e. a quota).

Stratified (stratified - random) sampling

Split the sample down into groups (e.g. gender, class, age) and randomly select from these groups.

Snowball sampling

Using personal contacts to build up a sample ('friend telling friend').

Convenience/opportunity sampling

Selecting those who are conveniently available to the researcher.

Official statistics

Quantitative data gathered by the government or other official bodies. e.g. births, deaths, educations, crime and health statistics.

Non-official statistics

Published by non-government organisations e.g. trade unions and churches.

What are two ways to collect official statistics?

Registration (e.g. parents having to register births by law).

Official surveys (e.g. the Census and the General Household Survey).

Emile Durkheim

Studied suicide statistics to try and compare the suicide rates between Protestants and Roman Catholics, only discovered the more a person is socially controlled they are more likely to commit suicide.

How do Interpretivists see official statistics?

As social constructions e.g. police statistics do not record all crime.

Laboratory experiment

Method where the researcher manipulates the independent variable and measures a dependent variable, experimental & control groups are created and treated differently. Artificial environment.

Example of a Lab experiment?

Philip Zimbardo's Stanford Prison, Milgram's obedience study

Field experiment

Researcher manipulates independent variable and measures a dependent variable in a natural environment. e.g. takes place in a pps natural environment, such as a school or workplace.

Example of a field experiment?

Jane Elliot's racism study in a school (blue and brown eyes), Rosenthal and Jacobson's labelling in schools study.

Comparative method

'Thought experiment' that doesn't involve experimenting on real people but making comparisons between individuals, groups or societies through time. Data used mainly comes from official statistics.

Example of a comparative method?

Durkheim comparing the suicide rates of Protestants and Catholics.

Public documents

Produced by organisations such as the government departments, charities, schools etc. E.g. OFSTED reports, school websites.

Personal documents

First person accounts of social events e.g. letters, diaries, photographs, paintings, autobiographies. (a famous example is Anne Frank's diary)

Historical documents

Personal or public documents created in the past. e.g. Laslett looked at the Parish records to study family structure in pre-industrial & Aries looked at old child rearing books and paintings to study the rise of childhood.

Content analysis

Method for dealing systematically with the contents of documents, often used to analyse mass media. The researcher defines a set of categories and then counts how many times the material is classified under that category. E.g. Manstead and McCulloch studies how TV advertisers portray men and women in adverts.

Informal interviews

Open ended questioning lasting a long period of time, few or no pre-set questions and is recorded. Usually one on one.

Example of an informal interview

Dobash and Dobash (feminists) conducted 104 informal interviews studying domestic violence. Some on them lasted over 12 hours and they spoke about the women's entire lives rather than just the abuse.

Group interviews

In depth interviews with a small group of people.

Example of a group interview

Willis' group interviews to uncover the counter school subculture of the 'lads'.

Covert observation

undercover

Overt observation

open

Participant

researcher joins in with the group's activities

Non-participant

researcher does not join in with the group's activities

Example of CPO

Patrick's Glasgow gang study - he spent 120 hours in the field

Example of OPO

Barker studied the Moonies with their permission.

Example of non-participant overt observation

King did a study where he hid in the school's Wendy house to try and remain unobtrusive.

Longitudinal studies

Researchers study the same group of people at intervals over an extended period of time.

Example of longitudinal studies

7UP (1963-present) 'social history' of Britain told through the eyes of respondents from a range of social backgrounds. Does there social class predetermine their future?

Case studies

An indepth study of one 'unit'. This unit is normally a single individual but it can also be a single group of people such as a school, family or workplace.

Example of a case study

Curtis studied Genie who was found at 13 having been locked in her bedroom and tied to a potty chair her entire life.

Life histories

Person's experience of life recounted to the researcher or set down in the form of a text.

Example of life histories

Linda Hart - diary of the account of a schizophrenic. Chamberlain and Gillborn - carried out life story interviews interviewing three generations of 60 fams who had originated in the Caribbean and migrated to Britain in the 1950s and 60s.

Ethnographic

Ethnography is 'trying to walk in someone else's shoes' and is the use of qualitative methods usually PO but can include unstructured interviews, personal docs etc.

Example of ethnography

Willis studied counter school subcultures using PO and non-PO, group discussion and interviews.

Example of triangulation

Barker studied the Moonies and used both overt PO and questionnaires