Transcript Sociological Research Methods

G671
100 surveys were sent out to students regarding
bullying. The survey simply asked: “Have you ever
experienced bullying? Yes or no?”
Only 48 were returned, and of those, about 40% of
students claimed they had experienced bullying at
some stage in their school/college life.
What potential problems can you identify with
this survey and its findings?

Describe the difference between primary and
secondary data.

Identify two advantages and two
disadvantages of each type.

Describe the difference between quantitative
and qualitative data.

Research Methods are what sociologists “do”.

In many ways, it is what distinguishes
sociology from philosophy: Sociological
theories are underpinned by evidence.

In order to gain the required evidence,
sociologists must conduct empirical
research.



Nearly everything we have studied this year
so far is drawn from research conducted by
sociologists.
In the exam, the 52 Mark question will ask
you to evaluate a piece of research.
In order to do this, you need to have a wideranging knowledge and understanding of
sociological research methods.
What is the difference between PRIMARY
and SECONDARY data?


Primary Data is data that is collected directly
by sociologists.
It could be for the purpose of testing a
hypothesis or to gain a clearer picture of a
particular group.

On your whiteboards, write down three
methods that could be used to gather
primary data.

Secondary Data is data that has been
collected by someone else for their own
purposes.

On your whiteboards, write down two ways
in which secondary data could be found.
ADVANTAGE #1
Primary Data
ADVANTAGE #2
DISADVANTAGE
#1
The data is up to
date and
contemporary
Secondary Data A quicker and
cheaper way of
doing research
It may not
provide the
exact data
DISADVANTAGE
#2
What is the difference between Quantitative
and Qualitative data?



Information in numerical form.
This data is preferred by positivists.
Examples of quantitative data might include:
GCSE Results
How many marriages end in divorce (stats)
Proportion of over-60s in the population





Data in the form of words.
The idea is to help understand how people
think and feel.
This data is preferred by interpretivists.
Provides rich, detailed descriptions of
people’s feelings and experiences.
Can also include other non-numerical data
(e.g. Photographs).
Police statistics
Observations
Letters
Structured Interviews
Letters
A Level Results
Diaries
Photographs
Opinion Poll Results
Questionnaires
Interviews
Quantitative/Qualitative?
Primary/Secondary?

In pairs, study the examples provided and
discuss whether a quantitative or qualitative
approach would be most appropriate and
why.
Once a sociologist decides what area they
wish to research, they need to decide on an
appropriate method.
The choice of method will often be influenced
by the strengths and limitations of each.
These limitations can be Practical, Ethical or
Theoretical.
Check: What does ‘practical’ mean?
What does ‘ethical’ mean?
INFORMED CONSENT
TIME
SAFETY OF RESEARCHER
CONFIDENTIALITY
BEING ABLE TO ACCESS SAMPLE
FUNDING BODIES
EFFECTS ON PARTICIPANTS
PERSONAL SKILLS OF RESEARCHER

Complete the activity on the worksheets
provided.

5 mins to discuss – then feed back to the
class.

Theoretical issues can be summarised
through four key concepts.

It is essential that you understand these
concepts and use them in the exam!!!!

What is your understanding of these terms?

What does it mean for something to be
reliable?

What does it mean for something to be valid?
Reliability is the extent to which a
test/method/procedure produces similar
results under constant conditions.
Validity is the extent to which a method
measures or describes the thing that it is
supposed in a truthful way. In other words, it
gives you a true picture of what is really
happening.
I weigh myself every morning for a week.
Every morning, the scales tell me I weigh 35
stone.
 Is this data:
a) Reliable?
b) Valid?





Quantitative data tends to be more reliable
than qualitative data...
...This is because quantitative methods tend
to be more tightly structured.
However, it is difficult to get truly reliable
results in sociology, because people are
unreliable.
For example, observations of human beings
are rarely the same twice.
Qualitative methods tend to be more valid,
because the researcher can spend more time
drawing from people what they really think or
feel about something – and why.
 For example, you would learn more about a
group by hanging out with them and observing
them closely for a week than you would from
getting them to fill in a multiple choice
questionnaire.
 The big problem is, though, that some people
act/speak differently when they know they’re
being studied.





You read an article that states 10% of Yr10
boys and 7% of Yr10 girls have smoked
cannabis in the last week. 43% of the year
group have taken drugs in the last 6 months.
What kind of data is this?
What RELIABLE methods could you use to
find out if it was replicated in your
school/college?
What methods would you use to find out if
Yr10 were being truthful (VALID.)

Representativeness is the extent to which the
individual/group being studied is typical of the
research population.

If they are typical, then what is true of them is
true of others like them. We can therefore
generalise from this sample.

Generally speaking, a large sample has more
chance of being representative/generalisable
than a smaller one.

I want to research goths; my aim is to find out
how important style is to a ‘goth’ lifestyle.
Who would be the most representative?

a)
b)
c)
How many of this sort of person should I talk
to if I want to generalise my results for...
Goths in Northampton College
Goths in The East Midlands
Goths in England & Wales
How would the amount of people I need to
study impact my choice of method?

The method a researcher chooses will also
depend on their methodological
perspective.

There are two main, contrasting perspectives
in sociological research: Positivists &
Interpretivists.



Treat the study of society as a science.
They favour quantitative methods, which
are objective and
high in
reliability.
The researcher
should be distant
and value free.



Believe a scientific study of society is not
possible, as people are too individual.
Favour qualitative methods which are high
in validity.
They are interested in
gaining empathy and
understanding...
...verstehen!!!!

You want to do a study on Goths in the
Midlands: How are you going to obtain your
sample? Identify three potential ways.



Do you need a sample that is representative
of a particular target population?
How big should the sample be: Will the
sociologist be able to make generalisations
from the results?
Is there a suitable sampling frame (list that
includes most of target population)?

Simple Random Sampling – select a number
of sampling units from the sampling frame
(usually computer generated)

Systematic Random Sampling – pick one
name from the frame and then choose every
nth after that.

Stratified Random Sampling – Divide the
target population (e.g. by gender or ethnicity)
and then take random samples from each
group.

Quota Sampling – Decide how many people
from each population group are needed and
then select them personally.

Snowball Sampling – Find one person who
fits the criteria and then ask them if they
know others who will take part, and so on…

Purposive Sampling – Seeking out particular
people directly.

Opportunity Sampling – Choosing from
those people available at a particular time
(e.g. the first 20 who come along).

Volunteer Sampling – When people actively
volunteer to take part (e.g. in response to an
advertisement).

In pairs or small groups, read through and discuss the
study you are given and answer the following:
What was the aim of the study?
What method(s) was used?
Comment on the reliability and validity of the
method(s).
d) What was the sample and how was it gathered?
e) Comment on the representativeness of the sample
and the generalisability of the results.
f) What practical and ethical considerations did the
researcher have to take into account? Why?
g) What were the findings of the study?
a)
b)
c)