Choice of Topic and Methods

What influences a sociologist's choice of topic?

• Values

  • Theoretical perspective

  • Areas of interest

• Research funding bodies

  • Charities

  • Universities

  • Governments

• Career trajectories

  • Early, mid or established career sociologists

Values:

• Not all sociologists are easy to identify as Functionalist, Marxists, or Feminists, etc

  • Not all conflict theorists follow the teaching of Mark- Webber influences some for example

• Influence of the institution that the researcher belongs to

  • Glasgow University Media Group

  • Frankfurt School

  • Chicago School

  • Centre for Contemporary Caribbean Studies

Research funding:

• Different research funding bodies will have different priorities based on social and areas of interest

• Universities- Specialisms in certain areas of sociology

• Governments- Focus more likely to be on large-scale social issues

• Charities- Own specialist issues

  • Rowntree Foundation- Poverty

  • Oxfam- Impacts of poverty on a global scale

Career trajectories:

• Early-career sociologists are less likely to have choices over topics- linked to university funding in a specific area

• Mid-career sociologists will have more knowledge of funding applications, specialist areas of study and connections

• Established sociologist will often guide research in their intuitions based on their field of expertise

How does the topic influence the choice of method?:

• The scale of the research and size of the sample required- larger-scale research topics will be more likely to utilise quantitative methods

• People they are studying- are they vulnerable? Are they hard to access?

• What are they studying? Is it a concept that is easily measured, such as identity formation? This will influence the method chosen

Other factors influencing methods:

• Preferences of those funding the research

• What the research aims to do

• Theoretical perspective

• Methodological perspective

Preferences and aims of those funding the research:

• Governments will prefer large-scale research that relies upon quantitative data. This may be used to inform policies that will have large social impacts and cost implications

• Universities- preferences based on the institution

  • Chicago School mixed theory with ethnographic methods

  • Q-step universities focused on the use of quantitative data

• Charities- dependent upon their aims

  • Shelter- Quantitative data to see the number of homeless

  • Help the Aged- qualitative impacts of loneliness on the elderly

Examples of theoretical preferences in methods:

• Functionalists use positivist methodology as they aim to look at the bigger picture

• Feminist methodologies evolved to look at feminist interviewing (Oakley) aiming at understanding and assisting where possible

• Ethnographic approaches- Favoured by interactionists and some conflict theories to understand the impacts of lived experience on those most disadvantaged in society

Evaluations:

• Gouldner- Choice of topic and method often reflects the interests of the funding body rather than the sociologist

• Weber- Sociologists’ values will always influence their choice of topic, but their research should look to be as objective as possible

• Sociologists should aim for committed sociology according to Gouldner, whilst Weber suggests that sociologists should always look to maintain ethical and moral standards