Sociological Research
A Public Restroom?
Common Sense vs.
Scientific Evidence
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“Poor people are far more likely than rich people to break the
law.”
“The United States is a middle-class society in which most
people are more or less equal.”
“Most poor people don’t want to work.”
“Differences in the behavior of females and males are just
‘human nature.’ ”
“People change as they grow old, losing many interests as they
focus on their health.”
“Most people marry because they are in love.”
Question Mindset
…There is a marked increase in the number of
divorces in the United States.
 Factual: The number of divorces as a % have gone up sig.
in the past 25 years
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Comparison: Is this a phenomenon of just American
society and culture?
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Developmental: Have there been other periods in
American history where divorces have gone up or at least
marriage rates fallen.
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Theoretical: What else has happened within the same
timeframe that can be exacerbating the problem?
Sociological Research
Methods
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Sociologists, in order to study issues
collect Empirical Research.
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Empirical Research = research based
on experiences, observations, and
experiments
Sociological Research
Methods
Sociologists in collecting this data
strictly follow the Scientific Research
Method
 This method allows researches to
develop an understanding of Cause
and Effect or causation.
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Ten Steps
In Sociological Investigation
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Select and define topic
Review the literature
Develop key questions to ask
Assess requirements for study
Consider ethical issues
Select a research methodology
Collect the data
Interpret the findings
State conclusions
Publish the findings
Sociological Research Methods
A Systematic Plan for Conducting Research
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Hawthorne effect–A change in a
subject's behavior caused by the
awareness of being studied
Steps in the Ideal Experiment
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Specify the dependent and independent variables.
Measure the dependent variable.
Expose dependent variable to independent variable.
Re-measure dependent variable to see if predicted
change took place.
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If no change, modify hypothesis & re-test
Causation Is Not Correlation!
A causal relationship….when homeless shelters
are closed in a city there are less beds for the
homeless to use.
Cause = Effect
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Rarely when studying or dealing with human
beings do researchers find clear causal
relationships!
Causation
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Cause and effect
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Types of variables
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Independent: The variable that causes the change
Dependent: The variable that changes (its value depends upon the
independent variable)
Correlation
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A relationship in which change in one variable causes change in
another
A relationship by which two or more variables change together
Spurious correlation
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An apparent, though false, relationship between two or more
variables caused by some other variable
Independent and Dependent
Variables
… You are studying the relationship between
spousal abuse and credit card debt.
The independent variable is…
The dependent variable is…
Independent variable: one that produces an effect on
another variable
Dependent variable: the variable affected in the
relationship is the dependent.
Independent and Dependent
Variables
…another scenario….
You are studying healthy lifestyles in the U.S.
(specifically people who walk daily). Advocates
say walking (30 minutes) a day will help cut
down on a persons yearly healthcare costs.
The Independent variable is…
The dependent variable is…
Causation Is Not Correlation!
…There is a strong correlation between the unemployment rate going up
and the number of people utilizing soup kitchens in a given area.
Two variables or occurrences seem to
have a strong link between each other.
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There is always an effort by sociologists to separate causal
from correlational; however correlation can involve
causation (ex: educational experience v. success / family income&involvement
Correlational Research
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Interpreting Correlations
Scores range from -1 to +1
-1, negative relationship
example of a negative : drinking in college
and GPA
0, no relationship
example of a near zero : hair length and
GPA
+1, positive relationship
example of a positive : GPA and scores on
SAT
CORRELATION
Research
Methods
Ethnography
Ethnography
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Firsthand studies of
people using actual
observations or
interviewing.
From this research and
researchers can get clear
first person accounts and
evidence of how a
specific group functions
within a larger society
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Downsides are that
only small populations
can be studied and
results cannot be
applied to diff. groups
even if they hold the
same title
Another loss is if the
researcher becomes to
comfortable they stop
being the researcher
Ethnography
Ethnography:Observation
Observation = observing people in actual social
settings
 An Observation can be done with the participant
being aware of the study or with them completely
unaware of the researcher
Sociological Research Methods
2. Survey’s
Survey = Research method using
questionnaires or interviews to gather data
from individuals.
 Interview = Asking people directly specific
questions and recording their answers
 Questionnaire = Asking people to respond to
questions in writing. Could be in person,
through the mail etc.
Surveys
…surveys tend to be more impersonal and anonymous therefore
they can assess more sensitive information.
…another aspect that has to be watched is how the questions are
worded and the responses a population can respond with.
Survey Research
A research method in which subjects respond to a series of
statements or questions in a questionnaire or interview
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Population
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Sample
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The people who are the focus of the research
The part of the population that represents the whole
Random Sample
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Drawing a sample from a population so that every
element of the population has an equal chance of being
selected
Sampling
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When conducting research sociologists (or any
social scientist) often use representative
samples of the population they are studying.
3. Experiments
Experiments
…For sociology, experiments can allow researchers to control
and accurately study specific social behaviors.
Sociological Research Methods
4. Review past and previous Documents
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By analyzing past research, or materials
(e.g. newspapers, records, arrests) a
sociologists might be able to develop a
theory or support an existing one.
Also……..
Sociological Research Methods
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By analyzing current sources of
electronic communication (e.g. news
reports, music) researchers may once
again be able to support or develop
theories of study.
Ex: Are nightly news programs more likely to
report and visualize minority crimes than white
Caucasian crimes?
Scientific Sociology Terminology
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Reliability–Consistency in measurement
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Does an instrument provide for a consistent measure of
the subject matter?
Validity–Precision in measuring exactly
what one intends to measure
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Does an instrument actually measure what it sets out to
measure?
Controversy and Debate (cont.)
Ethical Guidelines for Research
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Must strive to be technically competent & fair-minded
Must disclose findings in full without omitting significant
data & be willing to share their data
Must protect the safety, rights, and privacy of subjects
Must obtain informed consent; subjects are aware of of
risks and responsibilities and agree
Must disclose all sources of funding & avoid conflicts of
interest
Must demonstrate cultural sensitivity
Ethics
…for the researcher in any social science, the first
question is anyone being exposed to any type of
physical, psychological, or social harm?
..we shall look at another the infamous Stanley Milgram
experiment.
Ethics
…what did Stanley Milgram do wrong (ethically).