RESEARCH METHODS IN SOCIOLOGY

LEAD-OFF ACTIVITY- PREDICT HOW YOU THINK CONDITION HAS CHANGE FROM 1900 TO 2000  _______________ times as many adults are getting high school degrees.  ________________ percent of all American homes have telephones, and a flush toilet.  Accidental deaths have decreased by __________________.  Wages in the manufacturing sector are____________ times greater  Average household assets are _________ greater.  The average work-week is ________ percent shorter  The air we breathe is ______ cleaner/dirtier.  More than __________ of the Americans have at least 1 car, VCR, AC, cable, tv, washer and dryer

QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH VS. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

ETHNOGRAPHY/PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION- QUALITATIVE  Descriptive study of a particular human society.  The ethnographer lives among the people who are the subject of study for a year or more, learning the local language and participating in everyday life while striving to maintain a degree of objective detachment.  He or she usually cultivates close relationships with “informants” who can provide specific information on aspects of cultural life.  While detailed written notes are the mainstay of fieldwork, ethnographers may also use tape recorders, cameras, or video recorders.

CASE STUDY- QUALITATIVE  Through investigation is done of a small group, incident or community  Provides depth of understanding from group members; viewpoint  Permits the study of social behavior  Difficult to generalize findings  Presence of researcher can influence results  Field research is conducted- data being collected in natural settings (nonlaboratory)

THE SURVEY METHOD- QUANTITATIVE  Involves interviewing or administering questionnaires, or written surveys, to large numbers of people.  The investigator analyzes the data obtained from surveys to learn about similarities, differences, and trends.  He or she then makes predictions about the population being studied.

SURVEYS PT.2  Sample- a group of people that represents a larger population  Representative Samples- a sample that accurately reflects the characteristics as a whole ex.-  Census- procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population.

CORRELATIONAL RESEARCH-QUANTITATIVE  Correlational research attempts to determine if a relationship exists between two variables, and the degree of that relationship.  These factors can be characteristics, attitudes, behaviors, or events.

CROSS-CULTURAL RESEARCH- QUANTITATIVE  Sociologists may conduct cross-cultural research, or research designed to reveal variations across different groups of people in terms of folkways, mores, customs etc.  Most cross-cultural research involves survey, direct observation, and participant observation methods of research.

SECONDARY ANALYSIS-QUANTITATIVE  Some sociologists conduct research by using data that other social scientists have already collected.  Is most common in situations in which collecting new data is impractical or unnecessary.  Sociologists may obtain statistical data from academic institutions, governmental agencies, historical or library sources.

EXPERIMENT– QUANTITATIVE  Research that occurs in a contained environment (laboratory setting)  Can be replicated with precision  Variable can be manipulated  Artificial setting  Not suited for sociology

EXIT TICKET Provide an example of each type of research method