SY2 Research Methods.
What you need to know





Definitions of all the following terms and methods.
How to evaluate each method in terms of GROVER (generalisability,
representativeness, operationalisation, validity, ethics and reliability).
You should know which methods are qualitative and which are
quantitative.
You should also be able to give examples of research you know about.
(see summaries of research on education).
You also need to know the different sampling methods and why they are
selected for certain types of research.
Definitions
 Primary data: first hand original research (e.g. participant observation,
focus group, social surveys)
 Secondary data : data already collected; used for different reasons such
as reanalysis (e.g. official statistics)
 Quantitative: data that is largely numerical in form(e.g. large
scale social survey)
 Qualitative: data consisting of words/meaning/interpretations
(e.g. participant observation)
 Positivist: objectivity, causes, reliability, sociology should be
scientific
 Interpretivist : sociology and research should report on how people
understand the world (meanings)
 Validity: does the data provide a true picture of what is being
studied or measured? Are the findings an accurate account of
social reality?
 Reliability: the extent to which repeated measurements, under
the same conditions, produce the same results. If other
researchers using the same methods, under the same
conditions, produced the same results then the data is reliable.
How constant are the findings? Quantitative methods often lack validity
but are often reliable. Qualitative methods are criticised for being
unreliable.
 Representativeness: Is the group of people being studied
typical of others? Sampling techniques are important in gaining a
representative group of participants. Random techniques are used for
quantitative research and non-random for qualitative.
 Target population: The social groups the researcher is interested in e.g
offenders
1
 Sampling frame: A representative list of people from the target
population from which the sample will be drawn e.g young offenders
institutions
 Random sample: participants are selected randomly by computer or by
hand e.g from a hat, this ensures every person in the frame has an equal
chance of being selected
 Stratified random sample: the sample frame is separated into strata e.g
gender, age, ethnicity and then random samples are drawn separately
from the stata to ensure a representative sample
 Systematic sampling: the first participant is drawn at random and then
every nth (5th or 10th etc) is drawn after that.
 Quota sampling: Non-random as it involves the researcher selecting a
quota of particpants from particular groups e.g male/ Asian.
 Snowball sampling: used when participants are difficult to access e.g
gang members. One contact asks friends if they will take part and the
friends ask more friends and so on. This is non-random.
 Purposive sampling: non-random, selecting a group of people for a
specific purpose e.g Car workers in Luton.
 Gatekeepers : These are the people who work in institutions like
education or a care home that can facilitate access to a group of
participants e.g school children or disabled people.
 Generalisability: can the findings from one setting be applied
to similar settings? Are the findings from a study of student drug
users in London similar to findings if we studied drug users in
Manchester?
 Bias: distortion of results; difference from true value
 Hawthorne effect: When participants behave differently because they
know they are being observed.
 Objective: to what extent is the research value free and a reflection of
reality?
 Operationalisation : Expressing a concept in a way that can be
measured. For example; it is pointless to talk about social class if no
indicator of what social class means is provided. The basic point is
sound; if you cannot define something then you cannot measure it.
 Ethical issues: involve informed consent, deception,confidentiality,
protection from harm, right to withdraw.
 Practical issues: Time, cost, practicality of method, availability of
sample, funding, going native.
2
Methods
 Social Survey: a quantitative study on a large scale to find information
regarding issues like crime, attitudes, habits etc- uses questionnaires or face
to face structured interviews.
 Questionnaire: requires respondents to answer in writing – can be large
scale or small, open or closed questions but are usually quantitative.
 Interviews: Face to face interaction between researcher and interviewee.
Can be structured and quantitative or semi-structured or unstructured which
are qualitative.
 Observations: observing groups or individuals either from afar (covert) or
with their consent (overt). Can be structured and quantitative or qualitative
as in participant observation where the researcher becomes part of the
group.
 Experiments: Not usually done in Sociology although there are some
examples. Can be laboratory (in a closed environment) or field (in a natural
setting) Involves manipulating and controlling variables such as gender to
see the effect on behaviour. I.e do people behave differently towards baby
boys or girls.
 Statistical data: form of secondary, quantitative data used to gather
numerical data on phenomena e.g GCSE results.
 Content Analysis: usually quantitative data collecting by analysing the
content of media publications, tv shows etc e.g How many minutes do
women appear in Eastenders compared to men.
 Focus Groups: uses qualitative methods to explore issues relating to a group
e.g community wellbeing.
 Personal Documents: Include letters, diaries, photographs and are useful for
qualitative research particularly for Historical comparisons.
 Longitudinal studies: conducted over a long period of time comparing data
from participants to see changes. Can be quantitative or qualitative.
 Pilot Studies: Only carried out on quantitative studies to test quality of
questions for questionnaires or interviews- checks validity and reliability
before a large scale study is done.
 Case Studies: carried out on individuals or small groups – in depth account
of their stories so is qualitative.
 Mixed methods:Triangulation - several different methods are used to
conduct the same kind of research so that the reliability and validity can be
checked.
 Methodological Plurism - the use of mixed methods to conduct one single
study.
3
Famous studiesTASK – Select a study in bold and research it. Leave a
comment on the blog identifying the Aim, Method, Findings and evaluations of
the study.
Official Statistics
 The Census – every household every 10 years. Full picture of population of
UK
 Crime statistics from police/courts, and British Crime survey
 ‘Suicide’ Emile Durkheim (& J Maxwell Atkinson as criticism)
Comparative method
 ‘Suicide’ Emile Durkheim
Questionnaires
 The Census – closed questions
 ‘Hite Report’ – Shere Hite – open questions, feminist
 ‘The Making of a Moonie’ – Eileen Barker
 British Crime Survey
Interviews
 ‘From here to Maternity’- Anne Oakley – in depth interviews
 ‘Sociology of Housework’/’Housewife’ – Anne Oakley – structured and in
depth interviews
 ‘Interviewing women – a contradiction in terms’ - Anne Oakley (journal article
on feminist views on interviews as a research method)
 ‘The Making of a Moonie’ Eileen Barker – in depth, interpretivist
Experiments
 Counselling experiment – Harold Garfinkel – field experiment –
ethnomethodological
 ‘Pygmalion in the Classroom’ – Rosenthal and Jacobsen – field experiment interpretivist
 ‘On being sane in insane places’ – Rosenhan – field experiment –
interpretivist
 Bobo doll experiments – Bandura etc – lab experiments – social
psychology
 Zimbardo Stanford Prison Study
Observation
 ‘Analysing Teaching Behaviour’ – N Flanders – overt, structured, non
participant
 ‘A Glasgow Gang Observed’ – James Patrick – largely covert, participant
 ‘The Tearoom Trade’ – Laud Humphreys – covert and overt, semi
participant
 ‘Learning to Labour’ – Paul Willis – largely overt, mostly participant
 ‘The Making of a Moonie’ – Eileen Barker – overt, participant
4
Quantitative research Methods
1. Identify one feature of quantitative research (1 mark)
2. Identify one feature of social surveys (1 mark)
3. What are the aims of surveys (1)
4. Why do sociologists use pilot studies / surveys (1)
5. How do longitudinal surveys overcome the problem of only receiving a
“snapshot” of people’s behaviour (1)
6. Why are longitudinal surveys unreliable at times (1)
7. You have been asked to research juvenile crime rates among males and
females in Britain:
a. Identify and explain 3 possible advantages of using questionnaires for
this research (5 marks)
b. Identify and explain 3 possible disadvantages of using questionnaires
for this research (5)
8. Write 2 closed questions (2 marks) and 2 open questions (2 marks) you
might want to ask your respondents.
9. Identify and explain 1 advantage (2) and 1 disadvantage (2) of closed
questions.
10. Identify and explain 1 advantage (2) and 1 disadvantage (2) of open
questions.
11. Complete the following self-report questionnaire:
a. Why did the questionnaire use closed, rather than open, questions (1)
b. Why is this type of questionnaire an appropriate method to use when
trying to discover the amount of criminal behaviour in society (2)
12. What is meant by “a sample” of a population (1)
13. Why does a sample have to be representative of a population (2)
14. Identify and explain one feature of random sampling (2)
15. Identify suitable sampling frames for the following research (2 marks)
i. Students at this college
ii. The voting intentions of people in England
11. Identify and briefly explain three types of random sampling (3)
16. What two strata would you use to stratify a sample based on the need to get
the views of men and women of different ages (2)
5
17. Quota sampling is a type of stratified sampling that does not select people
randomly for inclusion in the sample. Why might a researcher use quota
sampling instead of stratified random sampling (3)
18. Explain, using an appropriate example, why sociologists sometimes use nonrandom sampling (4)
19. Briefly explain, using an appropriate example, snowball sampling (3)
Postal Questionnaires
Shere Hite. The Hite Report: Women and Love
This feminist study was carried out in the 1970s and early 1980 and made use of
a postal questionnaire. There are number of ways in which these may be
administered. They may be sent to a pre selected sample or issued as an insert
in a magazine or as in the case of the Hite Report questionnaires might be left in
offices in places of work etc.
Background
Hite began her work in the 1970s and her aim was to cast light on what at that
time was a secret and forbidden area of social life. Earlier in the twentieth
century it was supposed by some experts that women had not independent sex
drive and that men were the sexual sex. If women did display an interest in sex
this was often regarded as deviant and shameful. Although this attitude had
changed by the early 1970s it was still an area that was regarded as taboo and
not generally spoken about openly.
The Questionnaire
For this reason she decided that the subject was best approached anonymously
and respondents were asked not to sign their names. Hite quotes one of her
respondents:
I would find it very hard to say all these things to another person, and I am sure
that many women would feel the same as I. I am sick of reading various
“advice” columns about what I should be feeling, but I have not found another
forum for saying what I think myself, taking my own time, rethinking, not feeling
any pressure to be perfect or “in” or anything.
Hite was also concerned not to impose her own frame of reference onto what
she was trying to discover, she therefore rejected closed pre-coded questions in
6
favour of open-ended which would “permit women’s own voices to emerge”. The
questionnaire contained over a hundred questions – see page two for some
examples.
The sample
As well as being concerned about anonymity, Hite wanted a widespread a
sample as possible. For these reasons she distributed her questionnaire through
clubs, church groups, work places, senior citizens homes and women’s
organizations throughout the United States. By selecting a range of
organizations she was able to she believed to get a reasonable representation of
different social groups. In all she distributed 100,000 questionnaires of which
4,500 were returned. (i.e. 4.5%)
Analysis of the data
Because the questions were nearly all open ended the task of analyzing the data
was very complex and time-consuming. However after studying the data, she
was able to code some of the replies once patterns had begun to emerge,
because certain types of answers occurred more or less frequently to some of
the questions.
Questions
1. Explain why the anonymity of respondents helps to encourage greater
validity?
2. What else did Hite do to encourage validity?
3. How did she try to ensure representativeness?
4. Does a response rate of 4.5% undermine any aspect of the study? If so
which?
5. Might there be any problems in coding/sorting responses?
Qualitative Research Methods
1. Identify and briefly explain the difference between structured and
unstructured interviews (2)
2. Identify some possible advantages (2) and disadvantages (2) of
unstructured, as opposed to structured, interviews.
3. Identify and briefly explain the difference between individual and group
interviews (1)
4. Identify some possible advantages (2) and disadvantages (2) of group,
as opposed to individual, interviews.
5. As a follow-up piece of research you have decided to interview a
7
volunteer selection of people who answered your self-report crime
questionnaire:
a. Identify and explain some possible advantages of using
interviews for this research (4 marks)
b. Identify and explain some possible disadvantages of using
interviews for this research (4)
6. Briefly explain how the use of an unstructured interview for this
research might give you a greater depth of information about why
people commit crimes (2)
7. How might your presence, as a researcher, at the interview affect the
data you collect (4)
1. Briefly explain the term “qualitative data” (1 mark)
2. Why do some sociologists use observational research (1)
3. Using an example to illustrate your answer, what would ethnographic
research in modern Britain involve (2)
4. Using an example to illustrate your answer, define the following:
a.
b.
c.
d.
Non participant observation (2)
Participant observation (2)
Overt participant observation (2)
Covert participant observation (2
5. You have been asked to do participant observation based research at
a Further Education College, investigating college life from the staff and
student’s points of view.
Look at each of the following advantages of participant observation; for each,
briefly explain, using examples drawn from your research, how they would be
advantages in your research (3):



High in validity
Reduces Hawthorne effect
Richness of data
6. Look at each of the following disadvantages of participant observation; for
each, briefly explain, using examples drawn from your research, how they
might be disadvantages in your research (4):
7. Ethics
8. Going native
9. Low reliability
10. Unable to generalise findings
8
Research Methods in the exam
Question a) 10 marks – 10 minutes
This will basically be a ‘what’ question. Asking you to define what something is.
You will be given an example of some research on a topic and could be asked to
give a definition of the method used or perhaps another term e.g qualitative,
quota sampling etc, using the source material and your own knowledge. You
should make 3 points and to get AO2 marks you need to develop them by giving
examples from the source material or elsewhere and by stating the advantages
or disadvantages of the method/term you have defined e.g questionnaire.
Question b) 20 marks – 20 minutes
This is basically more of a ‘why’ question. Asking you to say why a researcher
might make certain decisions e.g why use interviews or questionnaires, or
secondary sources, why select their sample the way they have. To get 20 marks
you need to make 5 points which are developed using GROVER (see above)
and advantages and disadvantages of methods/sampling etc. Your answers also
need to be in the context of the source material and you will be asked to refer to
other studies from your own knowledge.
Some possible exam questions
a) - Using material from the item and elsewhere identify the strengths of
questionnaires (replace with any method to practice)
- Using material from the item and elsewhere identify the advantages of random
sampling.
b) - Using material from the item and you own knowledge of studies and research
identify and explain the advantages and disadvantages of surveys in sociological
research
- Using material from the item and your own knowledge of studies and research
discuss the benefits of using triangulation
-Using material from the item and your own knowledge of studies and research
discuss the use of different sampling methods in sociological research.
Use this table for your revision of the terms.
9
Term
Quantitative:
Definition
Examples
Qualitative:
Primary data:
Secondary data :
Positivist:
Interpretivist :
Validity:
Reliability:
Representativeness:
Target population:
10
Sampling frame:
Random sample:
Stratified random
sample:
Systematic
sampling:
Quota sampling:
Snowball sampling:
Purposive sampling:
Gatekeepers :
Generalisability:
Hawthorne effect:
Objective/
subjective:
Operationalisation :
11
Ethical issues:
Practical issues:
Social Survey:
Questionnaire:
Structured
Interviews:
Semi or
unstructured
interviews:
Non-participant
observation
(Overt):
Participant
Observation
(Covert):
Structured
Observation:
Statistical data:
Content Analysis:
12
Focus Groups:
Personal
Documents:
Longitudinal
studies:
Pilot Studies:
Experiments:
Case Studies:
Triangulation and
mixed methods:
13