sociology101ch5

a statement of how variables are expected to be related to one another, often according to predictions from a theory

a factor thought to be significant for human behavoir, which can vary (or change) from one case to another

the way in which a researcher measures a variable

one of six procedures that sociologists use to collect date: surveys, participant observation, secondary analysis, documents, experiments, and unobtrusive measures

the extent to which an operational definition measures what it was intended to measure

the extent to which research produces consistent or dependable results

repeating a study in order to test its findings

the collection of data by having people answer a series of questions

the target group to be studied

the individuals intended to represent the population to be studied

a sample in which everyone in the target population has the same chance of being included in the study

a sample from selected subgroups of the target population in which everyone in those subgroups has an equal chance of being included in the research

people who respond to a survey, either in interviews or by self-administered questionnaires

a list of questions to be asked of respondents

questionnaires that respondents fill out

direct questioning of respondents

effects that interviewers have on respondents that lead to biased answers

interviews that use closed-ended questions

questions that are followed by a list of possible answers to be selected by the respondent

interviews that use open-ended questions

questions that respondents answer in their own words

a feeling of trust between researchers and the people they are studying

research in which the researcher participates in a research setting while observing what is happening in that setting

the extent to which the findings from one group (or sample) can be generalized or applied to other groups (or populations)

the analysis of data that have been collected by other researchers

in its narrow sense, written sources that provide data; in its extended sense, archival material of any sort, including photographs, movies, CDs, DVDs, and so on

the group of subjects who are exposed to the independent variable

the group of subjects who are not exposed to the independent variable

a factor that causes a change in another variable, called the dependent variable

a factor that is changed by and independent variable

ways of observing people who do not know they are being studied

research in which the emphasis is placed on measurement, the use of statistics, and numbers

research in which the emphasis is placed on observing, describing, and interpreting people's behavior