Research Methods Exam 1 (Chapters 1-4)

Research Method

A systematic procedure, technique, or mode of inquiry used by a discipline or art

Systematic Research

The opposite of random. Done or acting according to a fixed plan or system; methodical. Pre-planned, well-documented, and carefully followed actions. Allows for replication and reproduction.

Non-Systematic Methods

Surveys, Biases, Social media, Politicians, Celebrities, Media, Personal experience, Opinions, etc.

Problems with Authority Figures

Parents, politicians, police, advocacy groups, etc: May overstate expertise, May impose a position via coercion or force, May have ulterior motives.

Problems with Tradition

Parents, friends, teachers, politicians, etc: Something is true because "it's always been that way", Sometimes associated with prejudice and racism, May have no basis other than history, History may change + Ideas may have never been correct in the first place.

Problems with Common Sense

Similar to tradition. What was once true may no longer be true, Phenomena can change over time as social conditions change, Social phenomena are often more complicated/nuanced than they appear on the surface.

Problems with Media

Often conflated with authority/experts. Primary goal is to entertain rather than inform. Least representative examples are the most entertaining. Overall, media tends to perpetuate myths or promote ideologies

Problems with Personal Experience

Probably the most influential way of knowing and therefore the most dangerous if incorrect. Takes place as Overgeneralization, Selective observation (confirmation bias), Premature closure, Halo effect.

Premature Closure

The acceptance of information before it has been objectively established/fully investigated

Halo Effect

the tendency to draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic. Undue amount of prestige/respect due to a relationship, authority position, etc.

Science

Systematic, transparent, peer reviewed, tentative

Pseudoscience

veneer of science but doesn't follow the scientific method

Activism

Ostensibly follows the scientific method, but is conducted to reach a predetermined conclusion. Contrary evidence and results are ignored, minimized, or explained away. At worst, data is falsified altogether. When scientific findings are presented as "fact" then it has become activism.

Descriptive Research

define and describe social phenomena

Exploratory Research

Gather information so that more precise questions can be asked for future research

Explanatory Research

Builds on descriptive and explanatory and seeks to provide an explanation for why

Evaluation Research

Determines the effects of policies, programs, and interventions

Quantitative Research

numerical data often used for description, explanation, and evaluation

Qualitative Research

"Rich" data that is recorded in subject's own words or by recording observations of their behaviors, often used for exploration

Mixed Methods Research

May explore first with qualitative, then follow up with quantitative

Theory

a set of interconnected statements or propositions that explain how two or more events or factors (variables) are related to one another

Deductive Theory

begins with an abstract, logical relationship. Moves towards concrete evidence. Top-down approach. Generally quantitative.

Micro-level theory

the study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups

Macro-level theory

deals with larger aggregates such as neighborhoods, counties, states

Idiographic approach

Exhaustive list of all causal factors. Inherently deterministic: "cause and effect". Not commonly used by criminologists.

Nomothetic approach

Identifies only the most important factors. Inherently probabilistic: "Likelihood" rather than "cause and effect"

Parsimonious

maximum predictive power with the simplest explanation. Helps us understand more with less factors. Incomplete by nature.

Paradigm

how you think about some phenomenon rather than specific predictions; a higher level of abstraction than theory

Positivist Theory

approach of the natural sciences; believes there are social laws; identify these laws and predict behavior

Interpretive Theory

emphasizes subjective understandings; analysis through direct observation; studies how people create and maintain social worlds

Critical/Marxist Theory

positivism and interpretivism ignore social context; interaction revolves around power; research should identify the use of power as control

Formal Theory

a theory developed for a broad conceptual area (ex: crime, deviance, recidivism). Compares cases within the same formal area (ex: examining various forms of crime without much focus on the details).

Substantive Theory

a theory developed for a specific area of concern (ex: delinquent gangs, street youth lifestyle). Examines cases within the same substantive area (ex: what causes youth to enter gangs?).

Federal Policy for Protection of Human Subjects (1991)

Required all institutions seeking federal funding to establish an IRB

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

A committee at each institution where research is conducted to review every experiment for ethics and methodology.

Informed Consent

an ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

3 Key Points: Protection of Human Subjects

Must involve voluntary participation, avoid harm to participants, avoid deception

Random error v Systematic error

Random: Occurs in ways that either overestimate or underestimate the true value. Because the errors are random, they tend to cancel each other out.

Systematic: Occurs in ways that are patterned and lead to overestimating or underestimating the true value.

Conceptualization

The process of identifying what a concept means

Concept

a construct derived by mutual agreement from mental images

Operationalization

The process of specifying the operations that will indicate the values of our variables

Variable

a characteristic or property that can vary

Indicators

The specific questions used to measure variables

Hypothesis

a statement or proposition that identifies expected relationships between concepts

Continuous Variables vs Discrete Variables

Continuous: Large, sometimes infinite number of values, Can often be divided into smaller increments

Discrete: Relatively fixed set of values, Contain distinct categories

Nominal Variable

Indicates a difference between categories and cannot be ranked, Exhaustive, Mutually exclusive

Ordinal Variable

Named categories that can be ranked/ordered

Interval Variable

Can specify the distance between categories, Must believe that the distances between categories are equal, Does NOT have a true zero

Ratio

There is a true zero, Allows for proportions or ratios, Zero should be theoretically observable

Reliability

when a measurement procedure gives consistent scores as long as the phenomenon being measured is not changing

Stability

reliability across time (test-retest method)

Internal consistency/equivalence

Reliability with multiple indicators

Inter-rater reliability

reliability with multiple researchers collecting data; Ensures different researchers will give similar ratings for the same observations

Representative

reliability across subgroups (different ages, racial groups, genders, etc)

Validity

the extent to which your measure reflects the true meaning of your concept

Face validity

does the measure appear to measure what it's supposed to?

Content validity

does the measure cover the full range of the concept?

Criterion validity

how well does the measure compare to a more direct or validated measure of the same phenomenon?

Construct validity

typically used when criterion validity is not possible (no clear criterion exists for validation purposes, or a criterion exists but is not available)