SOC TEST 6

reactivity

the problem that the subjects of social research may react to the fact of being studied, thus altering their behavior from what it would have been normally

symbolic realism

the need for social researchers to treat the beliefs they study as worthy of respect, regardless of the researcher’s personal views

emic perspective

a term used by anthropologists in reference to taking on the point of view of those being studied

etic perspective 

a term used by anthropologists in reference to maintaining a distance from the “native” point of view in the interest of achieving more objectivity 

reflexivity

a direct relationship between cause and effect; a researcher’s own characteristics can affect what they see and how they interpret it

naturalism

an approach to field research based on the assumption that an objective social reality exists and can be observed and reported accurately

ethnography

a report on social life that focuses on detailed and accurate description rather than explanation

ethnomethodology 

an approach to the study of social life that focuses on the discovery of implicit, usually unspoken assumptions and agreements; this method often involves the intentional breaking of agreements as a way of revealing their existence

grounded theory

an inductive approach to the study of social life that attempts to generate a theory from the constant comparing of unfolding observations; this differs greatly from hypothesis testing, in which theory is used to generate hypotheses to be tested through observations

case study

the in-depth examination of a single or few instances of some social phenomenon, such as a village, a family, or a juvenile gang

extended case study

a technique developed by Michael Burawoy in which case study observations are used to discover flaws in and to improve existing theories

institutional ethnography

a research technique in which the personal experiences of individuals are used to reveal power relationships and other characteristics of the institutions within which they operate

participatory action research PAR

an approach to social research in which the people being studied are given control over the purpose and procedures of the research; intended as a counter to the implicit view that researcher are superior to those they study

emancipatory research

research conducted for the purpose of benefiting disadvantaged groups

Rapport

an open and trusting relationship; especially important in qualitative research between researchers and the people they’re observing 

qualitative interview

contrasted with survey interviewing, the qualitative interview is based on a set of topics to be discussed in depth rather that the use of standardized questions

focus group

a group of subjects interviewed together, prompting a discussion; the technique is frequently used by market researchers, who as a group of consumers to evaluate a product or discuss a type of commodity

unobtrusive research

methods of studying social behavior without affecting it; this includes content analysis, analysis of existing statistics, and comparative and historical research

content analysis

the study of recorded human communications, such as books, websites, painting, and laws

coding

the process whereby raw data are transformed into a standardized form suitable for machine processing and analysis

manifest content

in connection with content analysis, the concrete terms contained in communication, as distinguished from latent content

latent content

in connection with content analysis, the underlying meaning of communications, as distinguished from manifest content

comparative and historical research

the examination of societies (or other social units) over time and in comparison with one another