research methods Flashcards
(22 cards)
validity definition?
A true or genuine picture of what soemthings really like
ethics definition?
issues of right and wrong - moral principles
reliability definition?
a piece of research is reliable if it produces exacly the same results when repeated in identical conditions
generalisability definition?
refers to when research finding are applicable to the wider society
objectivity definition?
the absence of bias or percieved ideas
questionnaires definition?
refers to lists of questions prepared by the researcher all respondents anwer the same questions
ethnography definition?
the direct observation of a group and often involves participation to investigate the way the group experiences and interprets the social world
survey definition?
a research method that involves systematically collecting nfo from a group of people by asking them questions- large scale
gatekeeper definition?
refers to someone with the trust and respect of a group that can ease the intro of a researcher
quantitative data definition?
info in numerical form
qualititative data definition?
info (usually words) about peoples thoughts feelings motivations attidues.,.
primary data definition?
info collected first hand by sociologist flr their own research purposes
positivism definition?
the belief that society is made up of ‘social facts’ that can be studies scietifically to discover laws of cause and effect
anti positivism definition
focuses on how we construct social meanings through interactions with others, they believe human beings cannot be studied scientifically in the same way as the natural world
official statistics definition?
quantitative data collected by the government and other official bodies
secondary data definition?
information collected not by sociologists themselves for their own research puposes, but by other people or organisations for non sociological purposes
longitudina survey definition?
study of a sample of people in which info is collected at regular intervals over am extended period of time
triangulation definition?
the use of two or more different methods or sources of data, the strengths of one tend to counter the weaknesses in the other
strengths of quantitative data?
- can identify trends over time
- can make comparisons between social groups
- easliy analysed and interpreted
- reliable
weaknesses of quantitative data?
- lacks validity and subjectivity
- respondants are not allowed to expand on their opinions
- statisics can be biased
strengths of qualitative research methods?
- high validity
- subjective
- respondent can expand on meanings and interpretations of their behaviour
weaknesses of qualitative data?
- lacks comparative data which can be analysed in statistical form - no trends indetified
- lacks reliability and objectivity
- small scale/not repersentative
