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Research Methods (Overview) 1. 2. 3. 4. INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH SOCIAL SCIENCES TYPES OF RESEARCH MOTIVES FOR SOCIAL RESEARCH Announcement Leading anti-sexist male activist Jackson Katz is coming to WSU on January 27 at 7 p.m. to give a male perspective on violence against women, and what men can do to stop it. Location: Katz will speak to WSU and the Pullman community from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Compton Union Building’s auditorium. Instructor Name: Dr. Arina Gertseva Office: Wilson-Short, room # 146 Office Hours: M & W 8:00 -11:00 a.m. E-mail: [email protected] Teaching Assistant Teaching Assistant: Joseph King Office: Wilson-Short Hall 214 Office Hours: by appointment Phone: 335-4595 (messages only) Email: [email protected] Course Website http://cooley.libarts.wsu.edu/garina/soc320/ Assignment # 1 Photos/images are symbolic statements that tell a lot about the person Create a photo essay about who you are Study the photo essays created by your classmates Analyze these exhibits to answer the question “How do WSU students see themselves?” Assignment # 1 Note both style and content Look for the “what”, and deduce the “why” Think comparatively Develop general categories(e.g., things related to school, family, leisure) Note any differences by gender Assignment #1: Example Research “Research is an organized and systematic way of finding answers to questions” Research is …. SYSTEMATIC because there is a definite set of procedures and steps which you will follow ORGANIZED in that there is a structure or method in going about doing research. It is a planned procedure, not a spontaneous one. FINDING ANSWERS is the end of all research. Research is successful when we find answers. Sometimes the answer is no, but it is still an answer. QUESTIONS Without a question, research has no focus, drive, or purpose. Questions are everywhere “How are you?” “How was the party?” “Do you want to have a cup of coffee?” Questions are everywhere “Why people lie — and how to tell if they do?” “Why do people cheat?” Explaining human behavior “How do people fall in love?” Compatibility? Attractiveness? Difference? Untested explanations Unfounded, but commonly accepted, explanations for behavior can have widespread consequences To avoid the trap of easy and untested explanations, we need to adopt an approachscientific explanation Social Sciences The social sciences are a group of academic disciplines that study human aspects of the world List of social sciences (not all) Anthropology Communication Cultural studies Economics Education Geography History International Relations Linguistics Political science Psychology Social policy Social work Sociology Development studies Methods Experiment Survey Observation Interview Unobtrusive Method Other Methods: Mike Adams Mystery Meat Macrophotography A News Target Photo Tour by Mike Adams This is a 1x magnification shot of a stack of salami slices. You can clearly see some of the texture, the fat blobs and some dark spices that appear to be spices 3x magnification of some huge black chunk of something. Note that the ingredients list of this product lists no pepper! Mystery Meat Macrophotography Here's a 1x cross-section photo of a Jimmy Dean pork sausage Here's a 4x magnification showing some of the beef collagen casing (that's the stuff that looks like rice paper). That's made from interesting beef parts Why to do research? Beyond Academia Since the late 1970s, many social scientists have tried to make the discipline useful for non-academic purposes The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, developers, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy Science and Research We are surrounded by research We use social research to raise children, reduce crime, improve public health, sell products, or just understand one’s life Reports of research appear on broadcast news programs, in magazines, and in newspapers People change their behavior, …they Abandoned electric blankets (increase in cancer in children whose mothers had used electric blankets while pregnant) Moved their chairs away from televisions (“radioactivity”) Take aspirin a day to avoid strokes Quit smoking to avoid cancer Weight loss boom Advertising Weight loss drug- Wonder Pill European health agencies have warned that the weight-loss drug rimonabant -- marketed as Acomplia, may cause dangerous psychological side effects in 10 percent of users , including suicidal thoughts Side effects no one is talking about Rimonabant acts to suppress appetite by blocking receptors in the brain that regulate food intake and help break down sugars and fats Evidence suggests that 10 percent of Acomplia users develop psychological side effects, the most common being depression Other potential side effects include anxiety, irritability, nervousness and sleep disorders Approximately one percent of users experience suicidal thoughts while taking the drug Crossen Cynthia “Tainted Truth: The Manipulation of Fact in America”. New York: Touchstone, 1994 Research and food Research about food contributed many truths to the world (some of them contradict the others) There is little agreement about how coffee, oat bran, margarine, wine, and nuts affect human bodies Coffee Benefits Reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease Reduced risk of gallstone disease Reduced risk of Parkinson's disease Cognitive performance Analgesic enhancement Antineoplastic Cardioprotective Laxative/diuretic Antioxidant Risks Anxiety and sleep changes Constipation Cosmetic Blood pressure Effects on pregnancy and menopause Coronary artery disease Research and food There is truth about food so sacred that it cannot be challenged by research Consider some surprises of recent years “Milk is the number one health hazard facing young children” , wrote a Santa Rosa, California doctor in support of a new report by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine The report cited a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine about milk contributing to juvenile diabetes Diabetes? Despite its neutral name , the committee is actually a pressure group of mostly vegetarians who oppose animal research and support animal welfare groups Motives for Social Research Policy Motivations Academic Motivations Personal Motivations Policy Motivation Specific problem/issue is addressed Student government wants to know whether the number of students who are arrested for driving while intoxicated will decline if university sponsors alcohol-free parties next year Academic Motivation Provide foundation for knowledge about the world without visible practical meaning Today’s computers could not exist without research in abstract mathematics conducted over a century ago Why do people conform to social norms? Personal Motivation Shy people might study how to be more comfortable with strangers International researchers might be interested in cultural adjustment to the host culture Previous trauma can be a motive for future research in psychology Example: explain the behavior of Kitty’s Neighbors (1964) Kitty Genovese – New York woman who was stabbed to death over a period of about 40 minutes During the attack, over 30 of her neighbors listened to her screams, yet no one of them bothered to call the police “Urban Apathy” phenomenon Types of research Pure research Applied research for the sake of scientific Practical goal in mind knowledge Construction of theories of models that allow for a better understanding of human behavior No immediate direct impact Development of strategies intended to address the problem Which research is more useful? Some scholars/policy makers consider pure research to be waste of time and money Since the late 1980s, many social scientists have tried to make the discipline useful for non-academic purposes The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, developers, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy Which topic is more important? American Time Use Survey (ATUS) Series - collects information on the kinds of activities people engage in and the time they spend involved in these activities by age, sex, educational attainment, labor force status, and other characteristics, as well as by weekday and weekend day. Which topic is more important? Impact of the Court Process on Sexually Abused Children in North Carolina, 19831986 - examines how sexual abuse and the subsequent judicial processes affect the mental health functioning of child victims by assessing the impact of (1) additional harm to victims from out-ofhome placement, (2) criminal prosecution of the offender/family member, (3) subject testimony in juvenile or criminal court, and (4) family and professional support for the children.