Sociological Research Methods

Scientific Method in Studying Society

The scientific method ensures objectivity and consistency in research.
Understanding the scientific method is crucial because it influences many aspects of our society.
People are constantly exposed to data, and familiarity with scientific research standards helps in evaluating information.
Scientific method standards are stringent.
The scientific method involves precise preparation.
Sociologists follow five basic steps:
- Defining the problem.
- Reviewing the literature.
- Formulating a hypothesis.
- Selecting the research design and collecting/analyzing data.
- Developing a conclusion.
Researchers write a report including an executive summary.
The scientific method allows objective evaluation of data.

Defining the Problem

The first step is to clearly state the research question.
Example: Does it pay to go to college?
The research aims to find out the earnings of people with different levels of formal schooling.

Operational Definition

Social science researchers must develop operational definitions of concepts.
An operational definition explains an abstract concept in specific terms for assessment.
Example: Defining education as the number of years of schooling and earnings as the income received in the past year.

Reviewing the Literature

Examining scholarly studies helps refine the problem, clarify techniques, and reduce mistakes.
In the example, information about salaries for different occupations would be examined.
Reviewing other studies on the relationship between education and income is important.
Many factors influence earning potential, such as the influence of rich parents.
Macro-level data, like state-by-state comparisons, can be considered.
A study found that states with higher education levels also have higher household income levels.
Median percentage for the entire nation of those 25 years of age and over completing college was 32.6\% in 2018, and the national household median income was $61,927.

Formulating the Hypothesis

After reviewing research, researchers formulate a hypothesis.
A hypothesis is a speculative statement about the relationship between variables.
Variables: measurable traits or characteristics.
Researchers suggest how one aspect of human behavior affects another.
The independent variable influences or causes change in another.
The dependent variable depends on the influence of the independent variable.
Example: Affordable housing (independent variable) affects homelessness (dependent variable).
The hypothesis is that higher education leads to more money earned.
Identifying independent and dependent variables clarifies cause-and-effect relationships.

Causal Logic

Causal logic involves the relationship between a condition/variable and a consequence.
Independent variable (x) influences dependent variable (y) (i.e., x leads to y).
Example: Parents who attend church regularly (x) are more likely to have children who are churchgoers (y).

Correlation

A correlation exists when a change in one variable coincides with a change in the other.
Correlations indicate possible causality but do not prove it.
Example: People who watch TV news are less knowledgeable than those who read newspapers; this is caused by a third variable: ability to comprehend information.
Sociologists seek to identify causal links.

Collecting and Analyzing Data

A research design is needed to test the hypothesis.
The research design guides data collection and analysis.

Selecting the Sample

Social scientists select a sample from a larger population.
A sample is statistically representative of the population.
A random sample gives every member an equal chance of being selected.
Specialized techniques like snowball or convenience samples are used for specific populations.
Conclusions can be drawn from non-random samples using statistical techniques.
Online polls are not necessarily reflective of the broader population.
For the research example, data from the American Community Survey is used.

Ensuring Validity and Reliability

Research results must be valid and reliable.
Validity: the degree to which a measure reflects the phenomenon being studied. Accurate data gathering is essential.
Reliability: the extent to which a measure produces consistent results.
The Census Bureau checks responses to ensure data accuracy and reliability.

Developing the Conclusion

Scientific studies do not answer all questions but generate ideas for future study.

Supporting Hypothesis

Data supports the hypothesis: more schooling leads to more money.
Those with a high school diploma earn more than those who did not complete high school; those with an associate's degree earn more than high school graduates, etc.
Some exceptions exist.
Sociologists are interested in general patterns and exceptions.
For people with a high school diploma or less, 29% earn under $30,000 per year, while only 23% earn $60,000 or more. In contrast, only 16% of those with an associate's degree or higher earn less than $30,000, while 62% earn more than $60,000.

Controlling for Other Factors

A control variable is held constant to test the impact of an independent variable.
Example: Studying the influence of education on income while controlling for gender and race.
During the coronavirus pandemic, researchers used a control variable (performance of schoolchildren prior to any parental help) to analyze homework help.

Summary of the Scientific Method

Define the problem.
Review the literature.
Formulate a hypothesis.
Collect and analyze data.
Develop the conclusion.

Module 5 Recap and Review

Sociologists use the scientific method.
Five basic steps: define the problem, review literature, formulate a hypothesis, collect/analyze data, develop the conclusion.
Workable operational definitions are needed for abstract concepts.
A hypothesis states a possible relationship between variables.
Sampling avoids testing everyone in a population.
Research results must be valid and reliable.

Research Designs

Research design is a detailed plan for obtaining data scientifically.
Design selection is based on theories and hypotheses.
Common research designs: surveys, ethnography, experiments, and existing sources.

Surveys

Surveys provide information about people's thoughts and actions.
Surveys must be based on representative sampling.

Surveying Cell Phone Users

Reaching people via cell phones presents methodological problems.
As of 2019, 61% of households in the United States could be reached only by cell phone, and the proportion was rising.
Cell phone users are more likely to screen calls and break off mid-survey.
Federal law requires hand dialing for cell phones making automatic dialers illegal.
Researchers are projecting which people are likely to abandon their landlines.

Web-Based Surveys

Web-based surveys are becoming attractive due to low costs.
They can be quite valid.

Wording Questions

Questions must be simple, clear, and specific.
Open-ended questions must be carefully phrased.
Researchers must pay careful attention to changes in society.
Census relationship questions include: Opposite sex husband wife spouse, opposite sex unmarried partner, same sex husband wife spouse, same sex unmarried partner.

Types of Surveys

Interview: face-to-face, phone, or online questioning.
Questionnaire: printed or written form.
Interviews have higher response rates.
Questionnaires are cheaper.
Studies show that the characteristics of the interviewer have an impact on survey data.

Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research

The survey is an example of quantitative research: collecting and reporting data in numeric form.
Qualitative research relies on field and naturalistic settings, focusing on small groups and communities.

Ethnography

Ethnography is the study of an entire social setting through fieldwork.
Observation is the basic technique.
Ethnographic research includes historical information and interviews.
Participant observation involves joining a group to understand its operations.
Researchers take detailed notes.

Visual Sociology

Visual sociology is the use of photographs, film, and video to study society.
Photography and sociology have approximately the same birth date, in the eighteen-thirties.
Visual sociology includes the conscious creation of a visual record.
Photographic records can also be useful in comparative studies.
Visual sociology is proving useful in applied sociology.

Experiments

Used to study cause-and-effect relationships.
Involves manipulating variables in an artificially created situation.
Two groups are selected: experimental (exposed to the independent variable) and control (not exposed).

Hawthorne Effect

The presence of an observer may affect behavior.
The term Hawthorne effect refers to the unintended influence that observers of experiments can have on their subjects. Workers made a special effort to impress their observers.

Use of Existing Sources

Secondary analysis uses previously collected and publicly accessible information.
Non-reactive: does not influence people's behavior.
Researcher may not find exactly what is needed.

Content Analysis

Content analysis is the systematic coding and objective recording of data.
Researchers study cultural, economic, and political documents.
Has revealed shifts in portrayal of men in mainstream country music lyrics.
A 2020 survey found that 90% of black Americans would like to see media content with diverse casts.
From 2007 through 2019, an 83% of the movies, all the leading or co leading characters were white. Even by 2019, 68 percent of all the leads and co leads were white.

Module 6 Recap and Review

Sociologists use four major research designs: surveys, ethnography, experiments, and existing sources.
Two survey forms: interviews and questionnaires.
Ethnography studies behaviors and communities that other methods cannot investigate.
Visual sociology is important for ethnographers.
Experiments study cause-and-effect relationships.
Sociologists use secondary and content analysis with existing sources.

Ethics of Research

Sociologists must abide by a code of ethics.
The American Sociological Association (ASA) has a code of ethics.
Basic principles:
- Maintain objectivity and integrity in research.
- Respect people's rights, dignity, and diversity.
- Protect subjects from personal harm.
- Preserve confidentiality.
- Seek informed consent.
- Acknowledge collaboration and assistance.
- Disclose financial support.
Ethical questions may not be clear-cut.
Sociologists must protect subjects' privacy by ensuring anonymity and confidentiality.
Research proposals involving human subjects must be overseen by a review board.
The subjects are not placed at an unreasonable level of risk.

Confidentiality

Sociologists may face questions from law enforcement.
Rick Scarce was jailed for contempt of court for declining to provide information about animal rights activists.
The American Sociological Association supported Scarce.
Federal legislation is needed to clarify the right of scholars and journalists. to preserve source confidentiality.

Conflict of Interest

Disclosing funding sources may not guarantee ethical conduct.
Accepting funds from organizations that benefit from study results can compromise objectivity and integrity.
Exxon Corporation supported research on jury verdicts related to the Exxon Valdez oil spill.