Chapter 3: Using Research Methods
What is Research?
Research is the systematic process of data collection for the purpose of producing knowledge
When we research we collect data according to a careful plan and use that data to figure out something new about the world
Empirical are statements that could hypothetically be proven true or false
Normative is commonly accepted as the appropriate
Using Research Skills Outside the Classroom
While much of the research you will encounter as you continue your sociological education is conducted by academic researchers, the importance of research is not limited to the academic sphere
The ability to conduct and use research is a marketable skill for college grads looking for jobs
Understanding research makes us better citizens and more effective consumers
Using research
Basic Research is research directed at gaining fundamental knowledge about some issue
Ex. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek developed advanced telescopes and was first able to see a bacterium that researchers were then able to understand how bacteria was related to disease
Applied Research is research designated to produce results that are immediately useful in relation to some real world-situation
Ex. Alexander Fleming discoevering Penicilium mold, the basis for penicillin
What is Data and Where do We Get Them
Data is pieces of information, including facts, statistics, quotes, images, and any other kind of information
Asking Questions
Data collection involving asking questions can be conducted either through surveys or through interviews
Surveys are a set of prewritten questions that respondents are asked to answer
Interviews are research design where the researcher talks to the participant in person, over the phone, or through video chat), using an interview guide (list of questions or topics to cover
Observing and Interacting
Not all research can be done by asking questions, sometimes we need to see how individuals behave in the real world
Observation is studying a phenomenon as a spectator
Participation-Observation is observing an action and interaction while participating as part of the social connection of being studied
Particularly found in Ethnography
Ethnography is research that systematically studies how groups of people live and make meaning by understanding the group from its own point of view
Experiment is used to find out how people are likely to act in particular and potentially controlled situations
Control Group is the group that does not experience the treatment or manipulation in a study
Field Experiments are experiments conducted in the real world, not in a laboratory setting
Looking at Documents
Sometimes researchers use documents or other existing materials as the basis for their research
Most advantageous when researchers are interested in a topic for which it could be difficult to talk to people, like questions about the past, or when researchers are interested in the documents themselves, as studies of media
Comparative-historical Research is when researchers look at documents from the past
Content Analysis is when researchers use texts and systematically categorize elements of those texts based on a set of rules
Research Ethics
Some ethical responsibilities researchers have
Don’t make up data
Don’t plagiarize others’ work
Have informed consent of participants involved in a study
Informed Consent requires that the participants be told the purpose of the research, what they will be asked to do, and any risks of harm prior to participating. They must be given the chance to withdraw their participation at any time
Any research receiving federal funding, almost all research done by colleges/universities, and most other research involving human subjects are reviewed by the institutions review board
Institutional Review Board (IRB) reviews experiments and was established to protect human subjects
What do we do with Data
Data Analysis is the process of reducing the mass of raw data researchers have collected to a set of finding that provides the basis for making conclusions
Qualitative Methods are methods that rely primarily on information that is not numerical, such as words or images
Coding is description labels that are applied to sections of text or images so they can be classified into categories
Quantitative Methods are methods that rely on numerical information
Quantitative Data Analysis
Data represented using numbers
This research is typical for survey data
Qualitative data is often organized with spreadsheet software, like Microsoft Word or Google Sheets
Descriptive Statistics are measures that are used to characterize the data
Explanatory Statistics are statistics used to measure the relationship between different elements within the data
Getting Started Doing Research
Sociological research is like scientific research in that it is according to the scientific method
Scientific Method is a systematic process of steps that takes researchers from the development of a research question through the collection and analysis of data
They start with a research question and then find out what is already known about their question through a process called a literature review
Literature Review is finding out what is already known about a topic by reading prior scholarly literature
Next is the hypothesis
Hypothesis is a prediction about the expected finding of the research, typically about the relationships between specific phenomena under study in the research project
Deductive and Inductive Research
Deductive Research is research where researchers begin with a general idea or prediction and then gather data to test this idea
Inductive Research is research where the data is gathered first to then be used to generate new ideas and understandings
Starts with a much broader question
Research Questions is what it is that the researcher plans to study
Researching Theories
Theory is a set of ideas used to explain how or why certain social patterns occur
Theories help sociologists to notice and understand social patterns in society
Once researchers have defined their research question(s) and/or hypotheses, they begin to develop the specific details they will go about carrying out their study
Researchers will then decide between a cross-sectional or longitudinal design
Cross-Sectional are studies carried out at one particular point in time and designed to explore and explain what is going on at what point in time
Longitudinal are studies that are carried out over a longer period of time, with the research collecting more data from the same respondents or different ones at multiple points in time
Sampling and Measurement
Sampling is the process of selecting respondents for inclusion in the research project
Random vs nonrandom samples
Random is a sample where everyone who meets the criteria for participation in a study had an equal chance of being selected
Nonrandom samples are only used when random sampling is impossible
Operationalize is turning an abstract concept into a concrete measure
Variables are factors that are likely to change or vary within the context of the study
Constants are variables that stay the same for everyone in a study
Attributes are answer categories
What Makes Research Good?
When researchers carry out research projects they strive to develop accurate and useful answers to their research questions
The decisions researchers make about research design can have important impacts on whether their projects ultimately meet these goals.
Generalizability is whether it is possible to assume that the patterns and relationships observed among the sample in the research study would also hold true for the broader population
Representative is if the people in the sample have characteristics typical of the people in the broader population
Reliability is the extent to which research results are consistent
Interrater Reliability is an assessment of the degree to which different people who are coding or rating the same data do so in the same ways
Validity is whether the research results accurately reflect the phenomena being studied
Causation
Causation is whether a change in one variable causes a change in another variable
Correlation doesn’t equal causation
Demonstrating causation requires researchers to meet three specific conditions
One: must demonstrate that the supposed cause is associated with the supposed effect
Two: must demonstrate that the cause comes before the effect
Three: must be able to eliminate all other possible alternative explanations for the effect
What is Research?
Research is the systematic process of data collection for the purpose of producing knowledge
When we research we collect data according to a careful plan and use that data to figure out something new about the world
Empirical are statements that could hypothetically be proven true or false
Normative is commonly accepted as the appropriate
Using Research Skills Outside the Classroom
While much of the research you will encounter as you continue your sociological education is conducted by academic researchers, the importance of research is not limited to the academic sphere
The ability to conduct and use research is a marketable skill for college grads looking for jobs
Understanding research makes us better citizens and more effective consumers
Using research
Basic Research is research directed at gaining fundamental knowledge about some issue
Ex. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek developed advanced telescopes and was first able to see a bacterium that researchers were then able to understand how bacteria was related to disease
Applied Research is research designated to produce results that are immediately useful in relation to some real world-situation
Ex. Alexander Fleming discoevering Penicilium mold, the basis for penicillin
What is Data and Where do We Get Them
Data is pieces of information, including facts, statistics, quotes, images, and any other kind of information
Asking Questions
Data collection involving asking questions can be conducted either through surveys or through interviews
Surveys are a set of prewritten questions that respondents are asked to answer
Interviews are research design where the researcher talks to the participant in person, over the phone, or through video chat), using an interview guide (list of questions or topics to cover
Observing and Interacting
Not all research can be done by asking questions, sometimes we need to see how individuals behave in the real world
Observation is studying a phenomenon as a spectator
Participation-Observation is observing an action and interaction while participating as part of the social connection of being studied
Particularly found in Ethnography
Ethnography is research that systematically studies how groups of people live and make meaning by understanding the group from its own point of view
Experiment is used to find out how people are likely to act in particular and potentially controlled situations
Control Group is the group that does not experience the treatment or manipulation in a study
Field Experiments are experiments conducted in the real world, not in a laboratory setting
Looking at Documents
Sometimes researchers use documents or other existing materials as the basis for their research
Most advantageous when researchers are interested in a topic for which it could be difficult to talk to people, like questions about the past, or when researchers are interested in the documents themselves, as studies of media
Comparative-historical Research is when researchers look at documents from the past
Content Analysis is when researchers use texts and systematically categorize elements of those texts based on a set of rules
Research Ethics
Some ethical responsibilities researchers have
Don’t make up data
Don’t plagiarize others’ work
Have informed consent of participants involved in a study
Informed Consent requires that the participants be told the purpose of the research, what they will be asked to do, and any risks of harm prior to participating. They must be given the chance to withdraw their participation at any time
Any research receiving federal funding, almost all research done by colleges/universities, and most other research involving human subjects are reviewed by the institutions review board
Institutional Review Board (IRB) reviews experiments and was established to protect human subjects
What do we do with Data
Data Analysis is the process of reducing the mass of raw data researchers have collected to a set of finding that provides the basis for making conclusions
Qualitative Methods are methods that rely primarily on information that is not numerical, such as words or images
Coding is description labels that are applied to sections of text or images so they can be classified into categories
Quantitative Methods are methods that rely on numerical information
Quantitative Data Analysis
Data represented using numbers
This research is typical for survey data
Qualitative data is often organized with spreadsheet software, like Microsoft Word or Google Sheets
Descriptive Statistics are measures that are used to characterize the data
Explanatory Statistics are statistics used to measure the relationship between different elements within the data
Getting Started Doing Research
Sociological research is like scientific research in that it is according to the scientific method
Scientific Method is a systematic process of steps that takes researchers from the development of a research question through the collection and analysis of data
They start with a research question and then find out what is already known about their question through a process called a literature review
Literature Review is finding out what is already known about a topic by reading prior scholarly literature
Next is the hypothesis
Hypothesis is a prediction about the expected finding of the research, typically about the relationships between specific phenomena under study in the research project
Deductive and Inductive Research
Deductive Research is research where researchers begin with a general idea or prediction and then gather data to test this idea
Inductive Research is research where the data is gathered first to then be used to generate new ideas and understandings
Starts with a much broader question
Research Questions is what it is that the researcher plans to study
Researching Theories
Theory is a set of ideas used to explain how or why certain social patterns occur
Theories help sociologists to notice and understand social patterns in society
Once researchers have defined their research question(s) and/or hypotheses, they begin to develop the specific details they will go about carrying out their study
Researchers will then decide between a cross-sectional or longitudinal design
Cross-Sectional are studies carried out at one particular point in time and designed to explore and explain what is going on at what point in time
Longitudinal are studies that are carried out over a longer period of time, with the research collecting more data from the same respondents or different ones at multiple points in time
Sampling and Measurement
Sampling is the process of selecting respondents for inclusion in the research project
Random vs nonrandom samples
Random is a sample where everyone who meets the criteria for participation in a study had an equal chance of being selected
Nonrandom samples are only used when random sampling is impossible
Operationalize is turning an abstract concept into a concrete measure
Variables are factors that are likely to change or vary within the context of the study
Constants are variables that stay the same for everyone in a study
Attributes are answer categories
What Makes Research Good?
When researchers carry out research projects they strive to develop accurate and useful answers to their research questions
The decisions researchers make about research design can have important impacts on whether their projects ultimately meet these goals.
Generalizability is whether it is possible to assume that the patterns and relationships observed among the sample in the research study would also hold true for the broader population
Representative is if the people in the sample have characteristics typical of the people in the broader population
Reliability is the extent to which research results are consistent
Interrater Reliability is an assessment of the degree to which different people who are coding or rating the same data do so in the same ways
Validity is whether the research results accurately reflect the phenomena being studied
Causation
Causation is whether a change in one variable causes a change in another variable
Correlation doesn’t equal causation
Demonstrating causation requires researchers to meet three specific conditions
One: must demonstrate that the supposed cause is associated with the supposed effect
Two: must demonstrate that the cause comes before the effect
Three: must be able to eliminate all other possible alternative explanations for the effect