Quantitative Research

Question 1

what are official statistics

Answer 1

numerical data collected by the government through agencies such as the ONS and the census survey

Question 2

what are unofficial statistics

Answer 2

numerical data collected by non government bodies

Question 3

what are some examples of government surveys that are used to collect statistics

Answer 3

the general household survey and the labour force survey, which provide data on income, wealth, jobs, family life, poverty, etc.

Question 4

why could the ONS be argued as a reliable source of statistics

Answer 4

it provides information for the government, and can be scrutinised and held accountable for the data it collects. it collects data in the national interest and therefore should be free from any biases of private research

Question 5

what are some issues with the ONS

Answer 5

it has been argued by some sociologists to lack validity as the government can often massage data to make things look better than they actually are.

Question 6

why are official statistics reliable

Answer 6

they can be checked by journalists who can put in a freedom of information request so that they can be scrutinised properly/

Question 7

what are the strengths of official statistics

Answer 7

they are easy to access, up to date, often use large representative samples, and it is easy to see trends over time.

Question 8

what are the weaknesses of official statistics

Answer 8

their reliability is wavered slightly due to the differing definitions there are. the government could collect data on unemployed but their criteria for what is unemployed may differ to that of the views of the sociologist who uses the data, which can lead to a misrepresentation of the data. they are also partial to political abuse and are socially constructed.

Question 9

what are surveys

Answer 9

surveys are a systemic collection of mainly qualitiative data from a large number of people.

Question 10

what is an example of a survey

Answer 10

the british household panel survey. a longitudinal survey based uopn periodic interviews and questionnaires which provides data on various aspects of social change in british families.

Question 11

what are longitudinal studies

Answer 11

these are studies that study the same group of people over a long period of time

Question 12

what are the benefits of longitudinal studies

Answer 12

they provide us with information on changes in attitudes and behaviours over a number of years

Question 13

what are the weaknesses of longitudinal studies

Answer 13

the respondents may drop out, or the researchers may lose track of them, which undermines the representativeness of the original sample. there is danger that the research team may get too friendly with the group. the people being studied are aware they are being studied which can have an impact on the choices they make

Question 14

what is the problem with using studies that extended over a short period of time

Answer 14

the study cannot fully show the developments, and so the results can be misleading

Question 15

what is the problem with using retrospective studies

Answer 15

these rely on people’s memories, which are not reliable because things can be forgotten or manipulated

Question 16

what is a questionnaire survey

Answer 16

these are lists of questions written down in advance that people answer. they use a variety of different question types, as you can get closed questionnaires with tick the box answers, and you can also get the open questioned ones where the respondents use their own words

Question 17

what needs to be considered when preparing a questionnaire

Answer 17

that they are straightforward - most people dont have the patience to sit and answer 100 open end questions. the questions should be neutral and objective; dont sway the respondents viewpoints. dont use vague words as they mean different things to different people.

Question 18

what are the strengths of questionnaires

Answer 18

they can reach more people and are easy to distribute to the respondents. they are less time and money consuming than other methods. provide anonymity, so people are more honest about the more sensitive topics such as sexual behaviour. ensures minimal contact between researcher and respondent.

Question 19

what are the weaknesses of questionnaires

Answer 19

they can be designed poorly, with vague wording or complex wording that the respondents dont fully understand. many people cannot be bothered to reply to them either

Question 20

what are academic studies

Answer 20

these are studies carried out by universities led by at least one expert academic and researched by teams of skilled researchers.

Question 21

why are academic studies reliable

Answer 21

they are peer reviewed by other academics in the field who will point out any inconsistencies and problems

Question 22

what is an example of an academic study that failed

Answer 22

a medical study in 1998 falsely linked the MMR vaccine to autism, resulting in many parents choosing not to have their children vaccinated, leading to an anti-vaxxer movement.

Question 23

what should be considered when thinking of using an academic study

Answer 23

what methods were used in the study, are they biased according to the researchers, who is paying for the research

Question 24

what does the reliability of tv news depend on

Answer 24

the company producing the news, and the ability to check facts against other sources

Question 25

what is RT and is it reliable

Answer 25

russian television news. it can be useful to see news produced that is not from the dominant western perspective. however, it is known to be heavily influenced by the russian government so should watch for opinions

Question 26

what is al jazeera and is it reliable

Answer 26

it is an arab news agency. it is useful to see perspectives on the news rather than the dominant western perspective. however there are questions about the impartiality of the source

Question 27

are websites a reliable source of information

Answer 27

in some ways yes because it allows a community of users to share knowledge on a particular topic. when edited, it is checked over by others in the community, so there is opportunity to question the content. however, we don’t know who provided the content and can’t trust the verification process which could take time and be flawed.

Question 28

is youtube a reliable source of information

Answer 28

this can be a useful way of hearing different points of view, and all facts should be checked against other sources and viewers should be aware of the bias in the content.
some of the content is made by providers who create along the same guidelines as journalists. some content is just people chatting away their own opinions with no evidence to back it up

Question 29

what is ofcom

Answer 29

regulator of communications in the UK. it is an independent body tasked with ensuring media firms are in line and aren’t using up their power to manipulate things

Question 30

what is the reliability of tv documentaries like

Answer 30

depends on the tv firm that made them. it is not supposed to be politically biased, but there is institutional bias which can be shown by who they choose to feature in the documentaries. they can be more analytical than normal news stories, as there is more time for them to go into depth about a certain topic. the journalists should be working by the same ethical code as newspaper journalists when it comes to accuracy, and should be cross checking facts and using first hand sources for material where they can

Question 31

is the bbc a reliable source of information

Answer 31

it rates high for impartiality and trustworthiness. it is paid for by tv license payers and has to live up to the royal charter. low representation of minority groups though

Question 32

are pressure groups reliable

Answer 32

reports will have a high level of expertise, with professional researchers and a good methodology. however, they will be biased and this can affect their presentation of the data collected

Question 33

are political parties reliable

Answer 33

they are very biased, they want to make themselves look good and their opponents look bad. parties cannot lie, but they often present information in a misleading way. they can spin information to make themselves look better.

Question 34

newspapers/news

Answer 34

they are allowed to be politically biased. journalists are expected to be part of the national union of journalists and will have to follow a code of conduct, including cross checking of facts. reports have to be honest, accurate and fair.
some are sensationalist, meaning they report the most shocking events and use language to exaggerate
they are all run for profit and want to sell as many copies as possible, which can impact how stories are written. issues that might damage the capitalist agenda such as climate change are rarely reported.

Question 35

are opinion polls reliable

Answer 35

a number are reliable, and are often used by the government and media outlets
they are expected to use sampling techniques that make sure they survey a microcosm of society
some have been discredited over the years

Question 36

what opinion polls are reliable

Answer 36

yougov
ipsos mori
survation
icm
comres
populus

Question 37

are structured interviews reliable

Answer 37

• scientific
• closed questions = factual data
• conducted quickly
• better response rates
• people may respond with suspicion
• respondents could be unconiscioulsy be led to a particular answer because of how the interviewer worded questions
• inflexible
• only snspshots tkane at a moment in time - fails t ocapture the changin gnature of social life