translates the social world into numbers that can be studied mathematically, can be measured
quantitative research
uses nonnumercial data like texts, interviews, photos and recordings to help understand social life
qualitative research
ex of qualitative research
IQ (intelligence)
depression
self esteem
a procedure for acquiring knowledge that emphasizes collecting data through observation and experiment
scientific method
operational definitions?
variables
ex, with dress in class
a relationship between two variables
correlation
a relationship where one variable causes another variable to change
causation
a relationship that seems to appear between two variables, but is actually caused by some external or intervening variable
spurious correlation
a change in the way we think about some aspect of life
paradigm shift
Thomas Kuhn?
said research can lead to a paradigm shift
ex of paradigm shift
view on marriage equality
triangulation?
uses 3 points to validate the variable
studying people in their own environments in order to understand the meanings they give to their activities
ethnography
2 steps of ethnography?
the researcher participates in and observes a setting
then the researcher makes a written account(field notes) of what goes on there
the researcher both observes and becomes a member in a social setting
participant observation
involve direct face to face contact with respondents
interviews
what can interviews generate?
large amounts of qualitative data
interview:: research indentfies the _____ _____ of interest, then selects a _____ of people to be interviewed from that population
target population
sample
what kind of questions can interviews use?
open ended
close ended
let respondents talk as much as theyd like about the question you asked
open ended
give respondents a choice of answers
close ended
questionnaires that are administered to a sample of respondents selected from a target population
surveys
survey research tends to look at ?
large scale social patterns and employs statistics and other mathematical means of analysis
refer to any data that has already been collected by earlier researchers and is available for future research
existing sources
formal tests of specific variables and effects that are performed in a setting where all aspects of the situation can be controlled
experiments
many experiments involve 2 groups?
experimental
control
participants that receive the experimental treatment
experimental group
participants that continue without intervention so they can be compared with the experimental group
control group
Max weber coined the phrase?
value-free sociology
states that researchers should identify facts without allowing their own personal beliefs or biases to interfere
value free sociology
help researches avoid bias and adhere to professional standards and to protect respondents from harm
code of ethics
the American Sociological Association has developed its own?
code of ethics
a group of scholars within a university who meet regularly to review and approve the research proposals of their colleagues and make recommendations for how to protect human subjects