CHAPTER 2: THE SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH PROCESS (& SCIENTIFIC METHOD)

WHY RESEARCH SOCIOLOGY?

Common sense versus research Often mutually exclusive…consider suicides

Common sense “People who threaten suicide, don’t commit suicide”

In most cases the opposite is true

Research Emile Durkheim, perhaps the first to use the

scientific method in sociological studies Suicide and issues of cohesiveness High suicide rate associated with large scale societal

problems (dysfunction: Functionalist approach)

SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE In Sociology, used to debunk fallacies and interpretations in

society. (Unmasking or correcting mistaken ideas)

Must first acknowledge values and beliefs

Normative and Empirical Normative: uses religion, habits, law, etc. to answer

questions about beliefs Empirical: uses systematic collection and analysis of data

to derive answers Descriptive

(Facts about whom, where, and when) Explanatory

(Facts about cause and effect)

Describe, predict, collect Deductive approach

Theory Hypothesis Observation Generalization

Inductive approach Observation Generalization Theory

Hypothesis

THEORY AND RESEARCH

QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Scientific Objectivity Comparing data to

variables Numbers rather than

words “Quant-” is like

quantity

Example: the temperature outside is 37°C

Interpretive Description Subject to opinion, or

misunderstanding Words rather than

numbers Qualitative is opinion

Example: it is hot outside

Quantitative Qualitative

HYPOTHESIS AND VARIABLES A hypothesis is a statement of the relationship

between two (or more) concepts Concepts are abstract elements like “loneliness” or

“social integration”

A variable is any concept with measurable traits or characteristics (and are subject to change from situation to situation) They are the observable (or measurable)

counterparts of concepts Example: “Suicide” is a concept, the “rate of

suicide” is a variable Two types of variables, independent and dependent

INDEPENDENT AND DEPENDENT VARIABLES

Is presumed to “cause” the dependent variable Age, sex, or

affiliation are often used as independent variables Cause

“Depends” on the independent variable In suicide, the rate

of suicide depended upon social integration Effect (of change in

independent variable)

Independent Dependent

o Operational Definition: explanation of an abstract

concept

• Example: You receive an “A,” but what exactly does an

“A” mean, put it into perspective, or operationalize it

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Durkheim concluded that the degree of social integration contributed to suicide rates, low integration resulted in higher rates.

This is an Inverse-causal relationship. (or indirect variable)

Causal would be high integration and high rates. (or direct variable)

Whereas Multi-causal would analyze more than one factor in establishing variables.

Durkheim’s analysis of about 26,000 suicides, classified from age to method of suicide, revealed that there were four distinct categories of suicide Egoistic, Altruistic, Anomic, and

Fatalistic Egoistic: Isolation from social group, i.e.

loneliness Altruistic: Excessive integration, i.e. loss of

cause and of self, and thus loss of will to live

Anomic: Lack of shared values, i.e. rapid social change

Fatalistic: Excessive regulation, oppression i.e. suicide of slaves, prisoners

Validity and Reliability Validity: extent to which study measures what

was supposed to be measured Reliability: consistent results among subjects

RESEARCH METHODS

Specific strategies or techniques for systematically conducting research. There are four widely used (and acceptable)

methods for collecting data, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Quantitative

Survey (Questionnaires) Secondary Analysis (Unobtrusive research) Experiments (Laboratory or Natural setting)

Qualitative Survey (Personal Interview) Secondary Analysis (Cultural artifacts) Field Research (Case studies, Ethnography,

Unstructured Interviews)

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Survey, Pros and Cons:

Pros: Able to reach large populations, multiple variable friendly, able to monitor social change on large scale

Cons: Respondents may or may not fit category, truthfulness?, sometimes cannot display “hard facts” (like laws or policy)

Secondary Analysis, Pros and Cons:

Pros: Inexpensive and readily available, low bias risk, historical context

Cons: May be incomplete or unauthentic, may not be correlated, difficult to categorize

(Pros and Cons of methods continued on next slide)

Survey Questionnaire

Printed research instrument, with a series of items for subjects to respond

Often self-administered, “agree or disagree” responses

Secondary analysis Unobtrusive (statistical) research

Using existing material to analyze data (trends or correlations) gathered by others

Often gathered from public research sites, uses raw data

Experiments Laboratory setting

Designed to recreate “real-life” situations, while monitoring a multitude of variables

Experimental group (exposed to independent variable) or Control group (not exposed to independent variable to maintain baseline)

Natural setting Real setting, such as flood or other disaster,

provides researchers with “living laboratories” Cannot be replicated (in almost all

circumstances), nor would it often be ethical to do so

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Experiments, Pros and Cons:

Pros: Degree of control over variables, limited number of subjects, high degree of replication

Cons: Not truly real scenarios, prone to bias, sometimes hard on subjects, “Hawthorne effect “ the changing of behavior as a result of observer

Field Research, Pros and Cons:

Pros: Most realistic setting, large amounts of data, everyone can be a part of study

Cons: May or may not be indicative of larger population, cannot be precisely measured

Survey Personal Interview

Data-collection encounter in which interviewer asks the respondent questions

Can be subject to bias; misinterpretation of questions, altered behavior towards interviewer

Secondary Analysis Cultural Artifacts

Examination of cultural artifacts or forms of communication to extract thematic data about social life

Typical materials include: written records (diaries), visual texts (movies), material culture (music, clothes), and even behavior residues (wear marks in a floor)

Field Research Participant Observation

Collecting data while being a part of the activities of the group of study

Case Study An in-depth multifaceted investigation of a single

event, person, or group. Ethnography

Detailed study of a group by researchers who may live with that group over a period of years

Unstructured Interview Extended, open-ended interview, often in-depth

REFERENCES AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

o Sociology In Our Times (Seventh Edition)o By: Diana Kendall

o Notes incorporatedo By: James V. Thomas, NIU Professor (Emeritus)o Formatted By: Jacob R. Kalnins, NIU student

o Pictures Incorporatedo Clip Art (PowerPoint: 2007)o Google Images: Sociology In Our Times