Unit 1: Theory and Methods

Question 1

Bias

Answer 1

prejudice that distorts the truth when research is influenced by the values of the researcher or by decisions taken about the research, such as the sampling method used

Question 2

Case Study

Answer 2

a detailed in-depth study of one group or event

Question 3

Causation

Answer 3

Where a strict link can be provided b/w variables in a time sequence; such as heating water to 100C causes it to boil. Causation difficult to find is socio
One thing causes another definitely
Cause and effect relationships
Ex - depression leads to lack of motivation

Question 4

Comparative Study

Answer 4

in research, looking at two or more different groups or events in terms of their simialrities and differecnes

Question 5

Conflict

Answer 5

disagreement between groups with different interests

Question 6

Consensus

Answer 6

basic agreement on a set of shared values

Question 7

Content Analysis

Answer 7

a method of studying communication and the media, which involves classifying the content and counting frequencies

Question 8

Correlation

Answer 8

When two variables are connected to each other but causation cannot be proved - for example ill health is related to poverty - this is not a causal relationship because some sick people are not poor and some poor people are not sick

Question 9

Covert Participant Observation

Answer 9

in such research the group being studied is unaware of the research and is decieved into thinking the researcher is a real memeber of the group

Question 10

Ethical Issues

Answer 10

issues that have a moral dimension, such as when harm or distress may be caused to participants

Question 11

Field Experiments

Answer 11

experiments that take place in the natural setting of the real world rather than in a laboratory

Question 12

Focus Group

Answer 12

a group brought together to be interviewed on a particular topic (the focus); a special type of group interview

Question 13

Generalisability

Answer 13

when the findings about a sample can be said to apply to a larger group of people sharing their characteristics

Question 14

Group Interview

Answer 14

any interview involving a group interviewed together

Question 15

Hawthorne Effect

Answer 15

the unintended effects of the researcher’s presence on the behaviour of responses of participants

Question 16

Historical Documents

Answer 16

a wide range of documents from the past used as sources of information by solciologists

Question 17

Hypothesis

Answer 17

a theory or explanation at the start of the research that a research is designed to test

Question 18

Identity

Answer 18

how a person sees themselves and how others see them, for example as a girl and as a student

Question 19

Interpretivism

Answer 19

approaches that start at the level of the individual, focusing no small scale phenomenon and usually favouring qualitative methods

Question 20

Interviewer Bias

Answer 20

intentional or unintentional effect of the way the interviewer asks the questiosn or interprets the answers

Question 21

Interviewer Effect

Answer 21

ways in which an interviewer may influence participants responses by their characteristics or appearance or by verbal cues such as facial expressions and tone of voice

Question 22

Longitudinal survey

Answer 22

a survey taking place at intervals over a long period

Question 23

Macro/Micro Approach

Answer 23

A macro approach focuses on the large scale of whole societies
Micro approaches on small scale social interaction

Question 24

Non-participant Observation

Answer 24

when the researcher observes a group but does not participate in what it is doing

Question 25

Objectivity

Answer 25

absence of bias; the researchers do not allow their feelings or values to affect the research

Question 26

Official/non-official statistics

Answer 26

official statistics are produced by government and official agencies, non-official statistics are produced by other organisations, such as chairities and think tanks

Question 27

open/closed/pre-coded questions

Answer 27

closed or precoded questions are those where the researcher has set out which responses can be recorded. In open questions the respondent can reply freely in their own words and give their own responses

Question 28

Overt participant observation

Answer 28

when the group being studied is aware that research is taking place and who the researcher is

Question 29

Perspectives

Answer 29

ways of viewing social life from different points of view

Question 30

Pilot Study

Answer 30

a small-scale test of a piece of a research prject before the main research

Question 31

Positivism

Answer 31

an approach to sociology based on studying society in a scientific manner

Question 32

Postal Questionnaires

Answer 32

self completion questionnaires that are sent out and returned by post

Question 33

Primary Data

Answer 33

information collected by sociologists at first hand

Question 34

Qualitative data/research

Answer 34

information and facts (like attitudes or kinds of actions) that are not able to be presented ni numerical form

Question 35

Quantitative data/research

Answer 35

information and facts that take a numerical form

Question 36

Questionnaires

Answer 36

a standarduised list of questiosn used in social surveys

Question 37

Reliability

Answer 37

when the research can be repeated and similar responses will be obtained

Question 38

Representativeness

Answer 38

the degree to which research findings about one group can be applied to a larger group or similar groups

Question 39

Respondent

Answer 39

someone who provides informations to researchers, usually used for surveys and interviews rather than other methods

Question 40

Response Rate

Answer 40

the proportion of responses obtained out of a sample

Question 41

Sampling Frame

Answer 41

a list of the members of the population from which the sample is chosen

Question 42

Sampling Methods Random/snowballing/quota/stratified

Answer 42

sampling methods - the different ways in which samples can be created Random - when each person has an equal chance of being selected stratified - when the sampling frame is divided, for example by gender or age quota - deciding in advance how many people with what characteristics to involve in the research and then identifiying them

Question 43

Secondary Data

Answer 43

information collected earlier by others earlier and used later by a sociologist

Question 44

Self Completion Questionnaires

Answer 44

questionnaires that are completed by the respondent on their own, with the researcher not present

Question 45

Semi-structured Interviews

Answer 45

an interview with some standardised questions but allowing the researcher some flexibility in what is asked in what order

Question 46

Social Survey

Answer 46

the systematic collections of information from a sample usually involving a questionnaire or structured interviews

Question 47

Structuralism

Answer 47

A structuralist approach focuses on large scale macro social ctructures and institutions rather than individuals - see societies as a set fo structures where individuals play definite roles - *Emile Durkheim+study on suicide *

Question 48

Structured Interview

Answer 48

an interview in which the questions are standardised (the same questiosn asdked in thr same order) and the replies codified to produce quantitative data

Question 49

Subjectivity

Answer 49

lack of objectivity; the researcher's view influences the approach taken

Question 50

Survey Population

Answer 50

all those to whome the findings of the study will apply and from which a sample is chosen

Question 51

Telephone Questionnaire

Answer 51

when the researcher reads the questions to a repondent over the telephone and reciords their answers

Question 52

Trend

Answer 52

a change overtime in a particular direction

Question 53

Triangulation

Answer 53

use fo two or more methods in the same research project

Question 54

Unstructured Interview

Answer 54

an interview without set questions that usually involves probing into emotions and attitudes, leading to qualitative data

Question 55

Validity

Answer 55

when the findings accurately reflect the relaity that it is intended to capture