Chapter 2 Vocab Flashcards
(31 cards)
quantitative research
research that translates the social world into numbers that can be treated mathematically; this type of research often tries to find cause-and-effect relationships
qualitative research
research that works with nonnumerical data such as texts, field notes, interview transcripts, photographs and audio recordings; this type of research is often used when people are trying to better understand their world
scientific method
a procedure for acquiring knowledge that emphasizes collecting concrete data through observation and experimentation
literature review
a thorough search through previously published studies relevant to a particular topic
hypothesis
a theoretical statement explaining the relationship between two or more phenomena
variables
two or more phenomena that a researcher believes are related; these will be examined in the experiment
operational definition
a clear and precise definition of a variable that facilitates its measurement
replicability
the ability of research to be repeated, and thus, later verified by other researchers
correlation
a relationship between variables in which they change together and may or may not be causal
causation
a relationship between variables in which a change in one directly produces a change in the other
intervening variable
a third variable, sometimes overlooked, that explains the relationship between two other variables
spurious correlation
the appearance of causation produced by an intervening variable
deductive approach
an approach whereby the researcher formulates a hypothesis first and then gathers data to test that hypothesis
inductive approach
an approach whereby the researcher gathers data first, then formulates a theory to fit the data
ethnography
a naturalistic method based on studying people in their own environment in order to understand the meanings they attribute to their activities; also, the written work that results from the study
participant observation
a methodology associated with ethnography whereby the researcher both observes and becomes a member in a social setting
rapport
a positive relationship often characterized by mutual trust and sympathy
field notes
detailed notes taken by an ethnographer describing their activities and interactions, which later become the basis of the analysis
autoethnography
a form of participant observation in which the feelings and actions of the researcher become a focal point in the ethnographic study
thick description
the presentation of detailed data on interactions and meaning within a cultural context, from the perspective of its members
reflexivity
how the identity and activities of the researcher influence what is going on in the field setting
grounded theory
an inductive method of generating theory from data by creating categories in which to place data and then looking for relationships among categories
representativeness
the degree to which a particular studied group is similar to, or represents, any part of the larger society
validity
the accuracy of a question or measurement tool; the degree to which a researcher is measuring what they think they are measuring
