Sociology Ch. 2 Notes PDF

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Chapter 2 Studying Social Life: Sociological Research Methods

● Research Methods Overview ○ Quantitative research - Translates the social world into numbers that can be studied mathematically ○ Qualitative research - Uses non-numerical data like texts, interviews, photos, and recordings to help us understand social life ● What is the Scientific Method? ○ A systematic, organized series of steps that ensures maximum objectivity and consistency in researching a problem

● Literature Review ○ Consists of relevant scholarly studies and information ■ Refine the problem ■ Clarify possible techniques for collecting data ■ Eliminate or reduce avoidable mistakes ● Form Hypothesis ○ Hypothesis - A speculative statement about the relationship between two or more variables ■ Examples: The more education a person has, the more income they have. ■ Property crime is higher in urban areas than non-urban areas ○ Variable - Measurable trait or characteristic subject to change under different conditions ○ Independent - variable that causes the change ○ Dependent - variable that changes ● Define Variables ○ Operational definition - Explanation of an abstract concept that is specific enough to allow researchers to access the concept ● Correlation & Causation ○ Correlation - A relationship in which two or more variables change together ■ As education increases, income increases

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○ Causation (cause and effect) - A relationship in which one variable causes change in another ○ An increase in level of education leads to an increase in income\ ○ Spurious correlation - A false relationship between 2 or more variables caused by some external variable Research Design ○ Sampling ■ Target population - People who are the focus of the research ■ Sample - Members of the target population who will actually be studied Probability Sampling ○ Sample drawn so that every member of population has equal chance of selection Nonprobability Sampling ○ Convenience sample - Participants are selected because they are available or easy to find ○ Snowball sample - Participants recruited through word of mouth or by posting notices on the internet or other media outlets Data Collection Methods ○ Ethnography ○ Experiment ○ Interview ○ Survey Ethnography ○ Studying people in their own environments in order to understand the meanings they give to their activities ○ Participant observation - researcher observes and/or becomes a member in a social setting Existing Sources ○ Secondary data - Data that has been collected by earlier researchers and is available for future research ○ Cost effective; unobtrusive Experiment ○ An artificially created setting that allows a researcher to manipulate variables ■ Determine causal relationships ■ Experimental group - Participants who are exposed to the independent variable ■ Control group - Participants who are NOT exposed to the independent variable Research Ethics ○ Helps researcher avoid bias and protects research subjects ○ Institutional Review Board (IRB) - Group of scholars within a university who review and approve their colleagues research proposals ■ Recommend how to protect human subjects...