Chapter 2: Conducting Research Part 1

Why do we need to understand research?

To make sense of our social world and to understand that common sense is not always correct

What are two different types of research?

Pure (basic) research and Applied research

What is pure (basic) research?

Research conducted to contribute knowledge to a discipline without necessarily solving a specific problem.

What is an example of pure research?

A history professor studying slavery to learn more about the past.

What is applied research?

Research conducted to study a problem and propose a solution.

What is an example of applied research?

A study for Metro that examined why senior citizens were not riding buses and led to accessibility improvements.

Under applied researcher, what type of research is there?

evaluation research

Give an example of evaluation research.

Studying whether the DARE program successfully prevented drug use among school children

What is research cycle?

A strategy for carrying out and
conducting research through a series of steps

Do all sociologists follow the research cycle exactly the same way?

No. Researchers may modify the process

What are the steps of the Research Cycle?

1. 1. choose a topic

2. 2. State the problem that you wish to study

3. 3. the researcher conducts a literature review,

4. 4. form a hypothesis

5. 5. choose a research strategy or method to study the problem

6. 6. researcher collects the data

7. 7. researcher analyzes the data

8. 8. researcher shares finding with the scientific community

What is the first step of the research cycle?

Choose a topic

What is the second step of the research cycle?

state the problem that you wish to study

What is the third step of the research cycle?

Conduct a literature review

What is the fourth step of the research cycle?

Form a hypothesis

What is the fifth step of the research cycle?

Choose a research strategy or method

What is the sixth step of the research cycle?

Collect the data

What is the seventh step of the research cycle?

Analyze the data

What is the eighth step of the research cycle?

Share findings with the scientific community

What should you keep in mind when choosing a topic?

Study something that you would find interesting.

Who was Max Weber?

A sociologist who discussed value-relevant and value-free sociology

What is value-relevant sociology?

Studying topics that have meaning or importance to you

What is value-free sociology?

Keeping personal opinions and feelings out of research

Why did Weber believe value-free research was important?

To help researchers remain objective

What is literature review?

looking at the existing information in order to learn about the subject you want to study

Why is it important to conduct a literature review?

a. To learn about the topic

b. to see how other researchers have studied your topic of interest

c. To determine how much information exists.

d. To see whether existing research is outdated.

What is a hypothesis?

A prediction about the relationship between two or more variables.

Why is a hypothesis often called an educated guess?

Because it is based on information gathered from a literature review.

What are variables?

The factors being studied in research

What was the sample hypothesis in the notes?

Excessive viewing of violent television programs may result in aggressive behavior in children.

What do we need to do when creating our Hypothesis?

We need to come up with a very specific
statement and define what we mean so if other researchers see they will understand

What is an operational definition?

A precise definition of a concept or variable so that it can be measured and studied consistently

Why are operational definitions important?

They allow other researchers to understand exactly how a study was conducted.

What concepts in the television study would require operational definitions?

"Excessive," "aggressive behavior," and "children."

What is reliability?

Getting the same results repeatedly, showing consistency.

What is replication?

other researchers repeating a study to see if the same results are obtained the same result as you.

Why is replication important?

It helps verify that findings are accurate and reliable.

How can successful replication be guaranteed?

By providing clear operational definitions and detailed research procedures.

What is validity?

The extent to which a study actually measures what it is intended to measure.

What are some research methods?

surveys, experiments, participant
observation and secondary
analysis

The strategy that a researcher chooses depends on the topic, and what else?

It also depends on time, money and availability of
subjects.
- Time-some strategies are more time consuming than
others.
- Money-some strategies are relatively inexpensive-others
may involve lots of expenses.
- Availability of subjects-Subjects are the people in your
study. (Our subjects are children).

Which is the most commonly utilized research strategy (see step 5)  used by sociologists?

survey research

Survey research takes what two formats?

questionnaires and interviews

What is a questionnaire?

A set of questions completed on paper or digitally.

What is an interview?

A verbal exchange where a researcher asks questions face-to-face, by phone, or online (Zoom may work as well).

What is an advantage of questionnaires?

They are less expensive and less time-consuming

What is a disadvantage of questionnaires?

They often have low response rates and response bias.

What is response bias?

People interested in research may be more likely to respond.

What is an advantage of interviews?

Researchers can obtain detailed information and ask for clarification on answer also clear along with clearing preconceptions.

What is a disadvantage of interviews?

They can be expensive and time-consuming along with harder to generalize.

What two examples of survey research were mentioned in the notes?

The US Census employs questionnaires
and interviews.

Steven Klineberg (Rice University) –
annual Kinder Houston Area Survey—
shifts in demographics and attitudes.

What is an experiment?

Research conducted in an artificial setting where conditions can be controlled and observed.

In which discipline are experiments commonly used?

Psychology

Who conducted the Stanford Prison Experiment?

Philip Zimbardo

What was another name for the Stanford Prison Experiment?

The Pathology of Imprisonment.

What did Zimbardo believe about prisons?

That the prison environment was harmful to both inmates and officers.

Why did the experiment end early?

Subjects experienced psychological distress.

What is a major criticism of experiments?

Artificial environments may not accurately reflect real-world situations.

Can experimental findings always be generalized to the real world?

no

What is participant observation?

A research method where the researcher joins and studies a group from within.

Is participant observation qualitative or quantitative research?

Qualitative research.

What is qualitative research?

is based on subjective impressions—it’s like reading a story.

What is an advantage of participant observation?

Researchers can gain detailed insights into a group.

What is a disadvantage of participant observation?

It can be very time-consuming and subjective.

Examples of participant observation

Research on the homeless. Researchers have studied homelessness by literally
becoming homeless.

Tearoom Trade was a controversial study that violated some very
important ethical codes that utilize participant observation. Why was it controversial?

• - violate a subject’s right to privacy
  - harm a subject physically or psychologically
  - deceive a subject in a way that may result in harm.

What was Humphreys studying?

Public homosexual encounters.

How did Humphreys obtain personal information?

follow the men who engaged in
these activities and collected personal information from them (traced their license plate numbers)

What role did Humphreys play in the study?

He acted as a "watchqueen," warning participants if police appeared.

What was we almost always do concern the subjects?

• - treat subjects with respect
  - inform them of their rights as subjects