2.4.3 Documents

Question 1

What is a document?

Answer 1

• A document relates to any written texts, such as personal diaries, government reports, novels, newspapers, letters, emails etc.

Question 2

What types of texts are included in documents?

Answer 2

• Texts include paintings, photographs, drawings, sounds, & images from film, TV, radio, & other media output.

Question 3

What are public documents?

Answer 3

Public documents are produced by organizations such as government departments, schools, welfare agencies, businesses, & charities.

Question 4

What are examples of public documents?

Answer 4

• Ofsted reports.
• Records of parliamentary debates,
• Official government reports of public inquiries.

Question 5

What are personal documents?

Answer 5

• Personal documents include items such as letters, diaries, & photo albums.
• They are first-person accounts of social events and personal experiences.

Question 6

What is a famous early study using documents?

Answer 6

• Thomas and Znaniecki’s (1919) research ‘The Polish Peasant in Europe and America’ used diaries, letters, and autobiographies to gain insight into personal experiences of migration.

Question 7

What are historical documents?

Answer 7

• Historical documents can be either personal or public.
• Usually the only source of information for studying the past.

Question 8

What criteria does Scott (1990) propose for assessing documents?

Answer 8

Scott proposes 4 criteria: Authenticity, Credibility, Representativeness, & Meaning.

Question 9

What does authenticity refer to in document assessment?

Answer 9

• Authenticity refers to whether the document is what it claims to be, if there are any missing pages, & who produced the document.

Question 10

What does credibility refer to in document assessment?

Answer 10

Credibility refers to whether the document is believable, if the author was sincere, & if the document is accurate.

Question 11

What does representativeness refer to in document assessment?

Answer 11

Representativeness refers to whether the evidence in the document is typical & if it is safe to generalize from it.

Question 12

What are advantages of using documents.

Answer 12

• Personal documents allow an insight into the social actors reality.
• Interpretivists favour them.
• It’s cheaper & easier to find.

Question 13

What are disadvantages of documents?

Answer 13

• The sociologist does not have a meaning/understanding.
• Online documents are always checked accurately before publication.
• May decrease credibility.

Question 15

What are advantages of using documents in education research?