sociology research methods

Subjective knowledge

Knowledge based purely on the opinions of an individual, reflecting their values biases and point of view

Objective knowledge

Knowledge which is free of biases opinions and values of an individual. It reflects what is really out there

Primary data

What the sociologist collects themselves

Secondary data

Data that is produced by somebody else that you then use second hand

Quantitative data

Data that is in numbers that can be presented as graphs and percentages

Qualitative data

Research data that is in words and has a lot of detail

Hypothesis

A statement which you can test is true or false

Sample

The people you speak to

Response rate

The amount of people from the sample who respond

Closed questions

Require respondents to choose between a number of given answers

Open question

Enable respondents to put forward their own answers to the set questions

Reliability

If research can be repeated in a different time or place and produce similar results then it is reliable

Validity

How accurate the research is.

Give examples of four primary research methods

Questionnaires

Interviews

Focus groups

Observation

Give 2 examples of secondary data

Official statistics

Documents

Practical issues

Issues that influence the logistics of a study

How easy or difficult it is to conduct

Ethical issues

Issues that influence the morality of a study

Are participants safe and free from harm

Theoretical issues

Issues influencing the type of data a study finds

What do you want to find out and why you choose that

Practical factors

TIME - how long is it going to take

COST - how much is it going to cost

ACCESS - how are you going to get people to want to do the research

Ethical factors

INFORMED CONSENT - participants have the right to know what they’re signing up for

CONFIDENTIALITY - keeping participants identities a secret

DECEPTION - if there is deception you must confess in the debriefing

RIGHT TO WITHDRAWL - participants can leave at any time

Theoretical factors

RELIABILITY - how easy it would be to repeat the research by someone else

VALIDITY - how accurate the data is

REPRESENTATIVENESS - does the data represent the wider population

How is random sampling collected

Researchers choose participants from their sampling frame at random

Strengths of random sampling

Not biased

Likely to be representative if sample size is large enough

Weaknesses of random sampling

Could possibly get a large amount of similar people

Can be time consuming if the population is large or scattered

how is stratified sampling collected

Researchers divide the population into strata (subgroups) then randomly draws for each in proportion to the target population

Strengths of stratified sampling

Ensures representativeness

Produces more accurate and generalisable results

Weaknesses of stratified sampling

Time consuming

Requires lots of knowledge about the population which may not be available

How is systematic sampling collected

Every ‘nth’ person from the sampling frame is chosen to take part in the research

Strengths of systematic sampling

Simple and unbiased

Time efficient

Weaknesses of systematic sampling

If the sampling frame has a pattern it wouldn’t be representative

may miss out on important variations of the population

How is quota sampling collected

The researcher identifies the characteristics of their target population and asks people who fit their criteria to take part

Strengths of quota sampling

Quick and cheap - no need for a population list

Ensures representation of key groups

Weaknesses of quota sampling

Researcher bias

Not random so results may not be generalisable

How is volunteer sampling collected

Participants come forward and take part in the study because they volunteer in response to an advert

Strengths of volunteer sampling

Quick and inexpensive

Participants are more motivated and cooperative

Weaknesses of volunteer sampling

May not represent the wider population

Volunteer bias

How is opportunity sampling collected

Researchers contact those who are easy access at the time the study is being carried out

Strengths of opportunity sampling

Quick and easy

Useful for pilot study when time is limited

Weaknesses of opportunity sampling

Researcher bias

Likely to be unrepresentative of the target population

How is snowball sampling collected

Contacting one member of the target population who then incentivises others who could participate

Strengths of snowball sampling

Useful for reach hard to access or specific groups

Cost effective and time efficient

Weaknesses of snowball sampling

strong bias - participants are most likely to recruit participants like themselves

Not generalisable

Strengths of primary data

can make questions or observations focus on exactly what they want

Secondary data was collected for another purpose so may not be relevant to you research question

Weaknesses of primary data

Time consuming

Can be hard to reach certain groups

What’s a questionnaire

A method for collecting information from a lard number of people

What’s a closed question and is it qualitative or quantitative

Quantitative and it requires respondents to choose between a number of given answers

What’s an open question and is it quantitative or qualitative

Qualitative and it enables respondents to put forward their own answers to the set questions

How can you improve respond rates of questionnaires

On the spot completion

Assurance of confidentiality

Not too long

Strengths of questionnaires

Researcher can contact a large sample which can make it representative

Reliable - participants are answering the same questions so it’s reliable

Ethical - usually anonymous

Weaknesses of questionnaires

Respondents may interpret questions differently

Representativeness - if there is a low respond rate there could be low representativeness

Objectivity - researchers wording may influence how the respondent answers

What’s a structured interview

The interviewer has prepared a list of questions so that all the interviews are the same

Strengths of structured interviews

Reliable - everyone’s asked the same questions

easy to compare answers

An find our statistics

Weaknesses of structured interviews

Low validity - participants may give answers that they think researcher wants to hear

Doesn’t allow participants to expand

What is an unstructured interview

A guided conversation. Interviewer may ask one question to start things off.

Strengths of unstructured interviews

High validity - respondents can give in depth answers

flexible - interviewers can explore new topics

Weaknesses of unstructured interviews

Less reliable - answers may vary between participants and are harder to compare

Time consuming to conduct and analyse

Researchers need to be prepares on how to answer to the responses

What is a semi structured interviews

Researchers have a set of questions but can follow up with new questions

Strengths of semi structured interviews

Balance of reliability and validity - some consistency but allows depth

Flexible - can explore interesting topics that arrive

Weaknesses of semi structured interviews

Time consuming

Can be influenced by researcher bias in follow up questions

What is a focus group

A group of participants discuss a topic together guided by a researcher

Strengths of focus groups

High validity - participants can build on each others ideas giving insight

Efficient - you can get data for several people at once

Weaknesses of focus groups

Some others may dominate so others may feel pressured to agree

May not feel comfortable sharing with other people in the group

Can be hard to analyse because of lots of discussion and overlapping ideas

What are observations

Watching and listening to the group and record what is observed over time

What is participant observation

Where the researcher joins a group and participates in its activities as a full member

what is non participant observation

When the researcher is like a fly on the wall observing group activities in a natural setting without taking part

Overt

The group is aware they’re being studied

Covert

The researcher joins the group without informing them

Strengths of overt participation observation

Ethical - participants know they are being studied

High validity - the researcher can see behaviour from the inside

Weaknesses of overt participation

People may change how they are acting because they know they are being watched

Access - may be harder to enter the group

Strengths of covert participant observation

High validity - people will act natural because they don’t know they are being watched

Access - some groups may not agree to being interviewed so observation may be the only way

Weaknesses of covert participant observation

Unethical - participants haven’t given consent

Risky for the researcher in dangerous situations

Strengths of overt non participant observation

Ethical - consent has been given

objective - less likely to be drawn into group activities and lose objectivity

Weaknesses of overt non participant observation

People can change how they act

Low validity

Strengths of covert non participant observation

High validity - Members will act naturally

Useful for studying hard to access groups

Weaknesses of covert non participant observation

Unethical - no consent

Researcher has little understanding because can’t ask questions

What is official statistics

Quantitative data that has already been compiled by government departments

What are hard statistics

Statistics which provide accurate figures which aren’t affected by factors such as decisions taken by those compiling them eg birth statistics

What are soft statistics

Statistics affected because of the processes involved in collecting them

Eg. Crime rate statistics

Strengths of offcicial statistics

Researchers can save time and money by analysing pre existing data

Can identify trends and patterns

Weaknesses of official statistics

Researchers have no control over the quality of the data

Key variables could be missing

Because collected for their reasons

What are documents

Qualitative data presented in words or visual form

Strengths of documents

Save time and money because someone else has already gathered the information

Helps the sociologist understand the meaning begins statistical data

Weaknesses of documents

Authenticity- is there any missing pages

Credibility- is the document believable

representativeness - is the evidence in the document typical

What is triangulation

Methodological approach of using more than one method

Strengths of triangulation

Can gain both qualitative and quantitative data which can give a bigger picture

Can check the reliability

Weaknesses of triangulation

Researcher needs to be highly skilled at lots of methods

expensive

time consuming

What’s a pilot study

A small scale trial run of the research before the full research is carried out

Strengths of poilot studies

Identify practical problems

Secure funding for the actual study