SACR 2900 - Researching Social Life: What is Research and Theory?

SACR 2900 - Researching Social Life: What is Research and Theory?

Date: September 17, 2025

Professor: Mark Munsterhjelm, PhD

Copyright 2025 by Mark Munsterhjelm. All course materials are strictly for private study use by students and cannot be posted publicly or distributed.

1. The Need for Research

A. For Understanding

  • People and Events

    • Example: Investigating whether social media apps contribute to rising rates of adolescent mental illness.

    • Questions:

    • How do adolescents interpret quantitative measures such as the number of followers, views, likes, or retweets?

    • How has Russia’s invasion of Ukraine affected world food prices?

    • What are the international implications for food security and malnutrition?

    • Could rising prices destabilize some governments?

B. For Earning a Living

  1. Understanding and applying quantitative research allows:

    • Interpretation of statistics in business contexts (e.g., economic growth).

    • Understanding crime statistics in policing contexts.

  2. Compiling and organizing data

    • Importance in producing reports that capture trends (e.g., demographic changes, buying habits).

C. For Making Informed Choices

  • Sound Decision Making

    • Understanding economic statistics aids in gauging the economy's trajectory, making investments, and anticipating future trends (e.g., impacts of AI on employment).

  • Research informs practice.

2. Ways of Knowing

A. Alternatives to Research

  1. Authority: Specialized knowledge from credible sources.

  2. Common Sense: Practical knowledge based on everyday experiences.

  3. Media Myths: Incorrect information propagated through media.

  4. Personal Experience: First-hand knowledge based on one’s life.

  5. Tradition: Knowledge that is passed down through generations.

3. Personal Experience and Errors in Reasoning

A. Limitations of Alternatives to Research

  • Common errors include:

  1. Overgeneralization: Assuming a pattern exists based on limited observations.

  2. Selective Observation: Perceiving a general pattern based on subjective factors rather than objective data.

  3. Premature Closure: Stopping data collection prematurely due to the false belief that an answer has been found.

  4. Halo Effect: Generalizing based on the reputation or status of an institution or individual.

  5. Imprecise Observation: Errors due to the limits of human perception and memory.

  6. Illogical Reasoning: Drawing conclusions without considering all relevant information.

B. Detailed Examples of Errors

  1. Overgeneralization Example:

    • A department head infers general happiness from three coworkers' comments about their offices.

  2. Selective Observation Example:

    • After buying a red sports car, Lisa perceives red cars everywhere.

  3. Premature Closure Example:

    • An internist misdiagnoses lung cancer as asthma due to a hurried conclusion.

  4. Halo Effect Example:

    • Higher acceptance rates for researchers from prestigious universities.

  5. Imprecise Observation Example:

    • Errors in self-reported data in diet and nutrition studies.

  6. Illogical Reasoning Example:

    • Betting on red in roulette because it's “due” to win, failing to understand randomness.

4. Scientific Reasoning

A. Definition

  • Scientific Reasoning:

    • Based on empirical methods that involve careful observations and systematic procedures.

    • Finding data must be open to scrutiny; underpins social science research.

    • Involves both applied and basic research.

B. Research Process Steps

  1. Select Topic

  2. Focus Question

  3. Design Study

  4. Collect Data

  5. Analyze Data

  6. Interpret Data

  7. Inform Others

5. Key Concepts in Research

A. Agency and Structure

  • Agency: Individual's ability to make independent choices.

  • Structure: Social institutions, norms, and values that enable or restrict individual agency.

B. Theories as Tools

  • Theory: A systematic explanation for observations related to specific life aspects.

    • Theories are not final and are open to revision.

    • Consider them as tools for understanding rather than absolute truths.

    • Theories can possess ideological underpinnings related to power dynamics.

C. Generalization

  • Definition: A quasi-theoretical statement that summarizes findings or regularities in empirical evidence without using abstract concepts.

    • Example: More men than women enroll in engineering programs in Canadian universities.

    • Asks which theories might explain this observable trend.

D. Individual versus Aggregates

  • Individual Differences: Complex and nuanced personal circumstances.

    • Example: A person's decisions about marriage or education can depend on various life responsibilities.

  • Aggregates: Collective outcomes without regard for individual cases.

    • Example: Investigating how parental obligations influence educational attainment overall.

E. Variables

  • Definition: Groupings of attributes that can be manipulated or observed.

    • Example: Gender, occupation, social class as variables.

    • Independent Variable: Causes an effect on the dependent variable.

    • Example: Education reduces prejudice.

6. Models of Explanation

A. Idiographic vs. Nomothetic

  1. Idiographic

    • Focuses on unique, individual cases.

    • Seeks exhaustive understanding of specific instances.

    • Often utilizes qualitative data.

    • Concept of Verstehen: Gaining meaningful understanding by seeing through another's perspective.

    • Example: Personal reasons for family planning decisions.

  2. Nomothetic

    • Explains general classes of cases rather than singular instances.

    • Seeks maximal explanation with minimal causal variables by uncovering patterns and probabilistic causation.

    • Typically involves quantitative data.

7. Social Patterns and Research

A. Quantitative Research

  • Concerned with collective patterns and probabilistic outcomes.

  • Example: Increased safety when pedestrians look before crossing streets; however, exceptions exist.

B. Graphs Examples

  1. Graph of Quebec's Fertility Rates (years presented: 1931 - 1993).

  2. Average Age at First Marriage in Canada (years: 1921 - 2008).

  3. Births to Mothers Over 30 in Canada (years: 1974 - 2009).

C. Quiz: Idiographic or Nomothetic

  1. Homogeneous populations and trust levels: Nomothetic

  2. Agricultural policies post-Bolshevik Revolution: Idiographic

  3. Causes of the Cuban Revolution: Idiographic

  4. Uncle Bob's feelings about a neighbor's dog: Idiographic

8. The Role of Theory in Science

A. Explanation of Patterns

  • Theories aim to provide explanations for observed social phenomena and relate to the explanatory objectives of scientific research.

  • Theories help shape empirical research efforts.

B. Kuhn's Paradigm Shifts

  1. Argument: Scientific progression is not linear but cyclical, involving paradigm shifts.

  2. Example: Historical context referencing theories of relativity replacing Newtonian physics.

C. Coexistence of Paradigms in Social Sciences

  1. Unlike natural sciences, social science paradigms do not necessarily displace one another.

  2. Multiple paradigms concerning similar phenomena can coexist.

  3. Critique of Kuhn’s theory for overlooking the incorporation of previous theories.

9. Social Theories and Factors

A. Macro vs. Micro Theoretical Levels

  1. Macro: Examines large-scale social structures and their influence on individual behaviors and outcomes.

    • E.g., job markets, educational choices.

  2. Micro: Focuses on individual-level interactions and experiences.

    • E.g., social communication, identity formation.

B. Ontology and Epistemology

  1. Ontology: Nature of reality; two views:

    • Objective social order that exists “out there.”

    • Subjective reality constructed by individuals.

  2. Epistemology: Framework for observation and understanding.

    • Models include Positivist and Interpretative paradigms.

10. Theories and Metaphors in Understanding

A. Role of Metaphors

  • Theories shaped by root metaphors that foster communication and understanding by linking new concepts to known ideas.

  • Metaphors are ideological and influence cognitive processes.

B. Positivism

  1. Definition: An epistemological stance emphasizing objective observation and empirical methods.

  2. Key aspects:

    • Focuses on discovering universal laws similar to natural sciences.

    • Adopt a deductive approach towards research.

C. Structural Functionalism

  1. Root metaphor: Society as an organism.

  2. Core assumptions:

    • Society comprises interdependent parts contributing to overall stability.

    • Different societal functions fulfill specific needs.

    • The focus is macrotheoretical, identifying the functions of various social components while ignoring inequalities.

D. Symbolic Interactionism

  1. Root metaphor: Interaction and communication as foundational for social reality.

  2. Key assumptions:

    • Identity is socially constructed.

    • Microtheoretical approach, focusing on individual interactions shaping collective understanding.

    • Involves studies by theorists like Erving Goffman and George Herbert Mead.

11. Critical Theory Perspectives

A. Research as Power Relationship

  • Concerns about the objectivity of researchers (e.g., Dorothy Smith and Michel Foucault).

  • Explores power dynamics influencing research outcomes and interactions between the researcher and subjects.

B. Conflict Theory

  1. Root metaphor: War

  2. Major concepts:

    • Power, exploitation, struggle, inequality.

    • Macrotheoretical, interpreting social behavior and history through the lens of conflict.

C. Critical Feminist Theory

  1. Framework addressing gender inequalities within social contexts.

  2. Interrogates power relations and social norms constructed by a patriarchal perspective.

D. Critical Race Theory

  1. Explores how race interacts with social structures to create stratification.

  2. Acknowledges that inequalities cannot be explained purely through class or gender theories.

12. Social Economic Statistics Case Study: Guatemala

  • Population: 14 million (50% of Mayan descent)

  • 2009 GDP per capita: US$2660.7

  • Poverty rate: 53.7% (2011)

  • Languages: Spanish and Mayan languages.

  • Life Expectancy: 75.0 years (women), 67.9 years (men).

  • 67% of Indigenous Mayan children reported malnourished according to UN evidence.

13. Cultural Myths and Pseudoscience

A. Maya Alien Theories

  1. Notable claims by Victor Montejo regarding the Maya civilization’s abandonment oftheir sites due to space travel rather than historical conflict.

  2. Discourse surrounding pseudo-scientific narratives asserting alien influences on human history.

B. The Role of Rhetoric in Myths

  • How rhetoric is employed to dissociate indigenous history from established facts by reassigning agency to extraterrestrial influences.

14. Conclusion

  • Research serves as a foundation for understanding societal dynamics while considering the complex interplays of theory, context, and individual experience.

  • Recognition of diverse paradigms is essential for a holistic comprehension of social phenomena, process dynamics, and individual agency.

Note: Please refer to original lecture material for diagrams and figures as visual supplements to the notes.