INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL SCIENCES

INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL SCIENCES

• an umbrella term for academic disciplines
• explores human societies & social relationships
• includes the study of people as;
  • individuals & members of groups
  • families & tribes
  • communities & subcultures
• also includes;
  • history & civics
  • economics & politics
• anthro, psych & socio are sciences because
  • they all investigate human behavior
  • done in a scientific manner
  • all have a defined process of inquiry
  • systematic study through research methods
  • uses the scientific method
• broken down into;
  • physical sciences
  • examples;
    • chemistry & biology
    • physics & geology
    • anatomy & astronomy
  • systematic studies
  • focuses on different aspects of the physical world
  • social sciences
  • examples;
    • psychology & sociology
    • anthropology & history
    • geography & economics
  • they are all the study of humans as social beings
  • studies the web of relationships they create
  • humanities
  • examples;
    • art & philosophy
  • they focuses on things that humans create
• more about social sciences;
  • history
  • study of the past
  • particularly about humans
  • written & oral accounts
    • what happened
    • why it happened
  • geography
  • study of the earth
  • studies earth’s place in the universe
  • studies how people use the earth
  • economics
  • study of resources
  • studies how people use them
  • focuses on money & wealth
  • politics
  • study of power, politics & government
  • looks at how people use these elements
  • how do they find success & happiness
  • anthropology
  • the study of people
  • past civilizations & current cultures
  • psychology
  • the study of the behavior of individuals
  • examines the ways people;
    • develop & learn
    • act/their behavior
  • sociology
  • studies the ways people act & behave in groups
  • looks at relationships
  • organization/interaction of people in groups & social situations
  • each social science studies a different aspect of human behavior
  • named social sciences because it studies humans as social beings
• a closer look into anthropology;
  • study of humans in the widest sense
  • provides the big picture
  • tries to understand who we are as humans
  • includes the study of;
  • human biology
  • physical evolution
  • cultures
  • adaptation
  • has 4 sub-disciplines/branches
  • cultural anthropology
    • focuses on cultural behavior
    • cultural institutions
    • variation in culture
  • physical anthropology
    • studies humans as a biological species
    • includes subtopics of;
    • human evolution
    • biology & variation
    • adaptation & disease interaction
    • archaeology
    • study of material remains of past societies
    • linguistics
    • study of language
• a closer look into psychology;
  • study of human mental processes & behavior
  • how do individuals cope with life’s demands & problems?
  • experimental psychologists come up with theories that try to comprehend what guides our thinking & actions
  • clinical psychologists use their understanding of;
  • overt actions
    • how people behave in certain situations
  • mental processes
    • how people think, feel, remember & learn
  • they study emotions to help individuals who have psychological problems
  • anger, grief, depression
• a closer look into sociology;
  • study of people in groups & within social structures
  • studies the actions of individuals within a particular group
  • tries to detect general patterns of human behavior
  • examines how the categories we belong to shape our experiences
  • adolescents & gender
  • ethnicity & socio-economic status
  • study of how society as a whole can influence our thoughts, feelings & actions
• the social inquiry model/scientific method;
  • outlines the proper scientific steps
  • all social scientists use this
  • investigates various problems
  • conducts research
  • 1. identify a problem or question
  • a problem provides reason for inquiry
  • should be in the form of a question
  • for example;
    • how does social media affect culture?
    • does coffee make you smarter?
  • 2. develop a hypothesis
  • a possible answer to the problem
  • a testable prediction
  • should indicate what needs to be tested
  • serves to focus your research
  • a crucial step
  • a starting point for any investigation
  • 3. gathering data
  • determine what data needs to be collected
  • how will you gather the data?
  • choose an appropriate method of research
    • case studies
    • experiments
    • sample surveys
    • interviews
  • what research model will be the most effective?
  • 4. analyze data
  • organize, interpret, analyze
  • make the data meaningful
  • use statistical analysis, graphs, charts, averages
  • identify trends & patterns
  • data can consist of;
    • quantitative data
    • numbers & statistics
    • qualitative data
    • notes from observations
    • transcripts from interviews
  • data must be changed into a format that helps;
    • test the hypothesis
    • answer the question being asked
    • to be turned into evidence
  • 5. draw conclusions
  • answer to the question being asked
  • determine if your hypothesis is supported, rejected or needs to be revised
  • divided into four categories
    • the evidence supports the hypothesis
    • there is some evidence to support the hypothesis
    • the evidence does not support the hypothesis
    • the evidence supports an alternative hypothesis
  • never venture beyond what the evidence supports
• steps to analyze data;
  • data should be separated into two categories
  • relevant evidence
  • Irrelevant evidence
  • only keep data that supports or negates the hypothesis
  • convert numbers into percentages
  • put the data into a chart or graph
  • does it reveal any trends?
  • data should be analyzed in terms of;
  • how it supports the hypothesis
  • how is fails to support the hypothesis
• three checks of social scientific studies;
  • objectivity
  • findings must not be coloured by the personal opinions of the researcher
  • relevance
  • findings must relate directly to the problem
  • validity
  • all results must be accurate & reliable
• research method;
  • variety of methods for collecting data
  • method chosen is determined by a question, problem & area of study
  • case study;
  • observation of an individual, situation, or group over a period of time
  • studies one situation in depth
  • great deal of information can be learned
  • many hypotheses about similar situations can be developed
  • experiment;
  • helps determine how one factor is related to another
  • causation or correlation?
  • what happens if one factor is changed?
  • a control group is monitored
  • they are a standard for comparison against the experimental group
  • most often used in psychology
  • ethical questions must be considered
  • interviews;
  • used to get detailed information from a few people
  • often recorded for accuracy
  • questions prepared in advance
    • can be expanded on during the interview
    • depends on the discussion that follows
  • sample surveys;
  • used to obtain information about thoughts & behavior of a large group of people
  • a limited number of people selected to represent a larger group
  • controlled for age, gender, ethnicity, occupation, etc.
  • conclusions are drawn about that larger group
  • length of the survey: 10-15 mins
  • typical tool is a questionnaire
    • series of formulated questions
    • collects information for research
    • often multiple choice
  • major drawback
    • respondents cannot explain their opinions
    • simply answers questions
  • observation;
  • used to learn how people respond in realistic situations
  • unstructured observation
    • studying people without a predetermined idea of what to look for
    • allows fresh insight & new ideas
  • structured observation
    • planning beforehand what will be observed
    • keeping a list of things to look for
  • participant observation
    • used mainly by anthropologists
    • participates in the group’s activities
• a closer look into bias;
  • what is a bias?
  • a personal opinion, formed in advance
  • is about an event,person or thing
  • a reason why people interpret the same facts differently
  • causes people to select different facts & to ignore others
  • makes finding the truth about any person or human activity very difficult
  • what is frame of reference?
  • shapes a person’s biases
  • includes all the personal experiences gained through;
    • culture & family
    • religion & friends
  • for example, you maybe be biased in favor of you're new science class this year because you always found science an interesting subject
  • your friend may have bias against the same class because she has almost failed science every year
  • both BIAS & FRAME OF REFERENCE can have a significant impact on the work that social scientists do
  • it may INFLUENCE THE CONCLUSIONS being made during investigation of different social science problems & research
• social science; research methods & ethics
  • ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH
  • participant observation
    • participates in group activities
    • pro: subjects are more natural
    • con: observers perception affects study
  • interview
    • dialogue between interviewer & subject
    • pro: subject can explain their answer
    • con: face to face interactions can lead to false data
  • PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH
  • experiment
    • testing the relationship between two factors
    • pro: can determine cause & effect
    • con: question of ethics; following the principles of profession
  • sample survey
    • questions given to a representative population
    • pro: large population researched so the info is applied to a larger group
    • con: thoughts of those surveyed cannot be explained
  • structured observation
    • planning what will be observed
    • pro: subjects are more natural
    • con: observer’s perception affects study
  • case study
    • observation of an individual, situation, or group overtime
    • pro: detailed, overtime
    • con: small population
  • SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
  • focus group
    • a small group (6-12 people)
    • reflects a specific group/demographic
    • pro: provides open feedback & topics/discussions are free flowing
    • con: people within the group can influence others responses

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