Chapter 4 – Classifying Research (pp. 79-97)
Overall teaching objective: To introduce undergraduate criminal justice research methods
students to a system for classifying and evaluating research.
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Research is often classified into categories.
For the most part, these categories provide us a way to organize research so we can
access it more efficiently.
Research classifications also enable researchers to evaluate research and in some cases
identify logical errors.
Table 4.1 – Common classification schemes for research. (p. 80)
Classification scheme
Paradigms of research
Description
Describes the general organizing
framework for social theory and
empirical research
Categories of research
Positivist
Interpretive
Critical
Purpose of research
Describes what the research
hopes to achieve
Exploratory
Descriptive
Explanatory
Time dimension of research
Describes the time frame in
Cross-sectional
which data collection takes place Longitudinal
Nature of data
Describes the type of data
collected and, in some cases, the
type of research method used
Quantitative
Qualitative
Method of reasoning
Describes the method of
reasoning used by the researcher
Deductive
Inductive
Unit of analysis
Describes from whom or what
the researcher collects
information
Individual
Group
Community
Nation
Paradigms of Research (p. 80)
 Researchers often approach research questions from a particular paradigm or
perception of social reality.
 These perceptions affect how the researcher conducts the research and, in many cases,
the outcome of the research findings.
 The positivist, interpretive and critical paradigms all contribute to our understanding
of social phenomena.
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Positivist social science inquiry is most like research in the natural sciences. A
positivist relies on empirical observations and may attempt to establish a causal
relationship between variables.
Interpretive social science inquiry is based on the notion that social science research
is fundamentally different than research in the natural sciences. Rather than simply
measure human behavior from the “outside”, interpretive social scientists attempt to
get “inside” to understand the meaning behind human behavior. This involves
interpretation rather than simple observation.
Critical social science inquiry is based on the assumption that research is not value
free and that every researcher brings his or her own particular biases into the research
process. Critical researchers do not attempt to be unbiased and instead believe that
they should use their research skills to affect social change. Critical criminologists
tend to focus on the structure of race, class, and gender inequalities and the
relationships between these inequalities and crime and punishment. A critical
criminologist may find in their research that poor people get harsher sentences
because they cannot afford competent legal representation. They may use this
research to argue for an increase in funding for public defenders. In fact, a critical
criminologist might have even decided to conduct this research for the sole purpose
of improving poor people’s access to legal representation.
The Purpose of Research (p. 81)
 Research is often conducted for a specific purpose.
 Exploratory research provides initial insight into new or emerging social
phenomena or behavior.
 Descriptive research describes existing social phenomena or behavior.
 Explanatory research explains why individuals or groups behave the way they do.
 It is not uncommon for a single research project to serve more than one purpose.
It is also not uncommon for a research agenda to move from exploratory to
descriptive to explanatory research.
The Time Dimension of Research (p. 82)
 Cross-sectional research involves data collection at one point in time. The
findings from this research cannot be used to draw conclusions about change over
time. But they can provide a snapshot of a social condition or population at that
point in time.
 Longitudinal research utilizes data that are collected over a period of time. The
findings from this research indicate how a social condition or particular
population changes over time. There are two types of longitudinal research
designs.
o Trend studies collect the same data over time from different samples of the
same population.
o Panel studies collect the same data over time from the same sample.
Table 4.2 - The time dimension of research. (p. 85)
Time dimension
Description
Advantages
Disadvantages
Cross-sectional
Research based on
data collected at one
point in time.
Provides quicker
insight into the status
of a social situation or
phenomenon.
Does not measure how
social situations and
phenomena change
over time.
Longitudinal
Research based on
data collected at
multiple points over
an extended period.
Provides insight into
how social situations
and phenomena
change over time.
Cannot provide quick
insight into the status
of a social situation or
phenomenon.
Making Research Real 4.1 – What Makes Police Officers Happy? (p. 83)
 This research (Zhao, Thurman and He, 1999) provides insight into what factors
affect job satisfaction among police officers.
 The results are based on a survey.
 Because the time dimension of this research is cross-sectional it is not possible to
know whether these factors might change from one generation of officers to the
next.
The Nature of Data (p. 86)
 Quantitative research measures variables numerically and assumes that the social
world can be understood objectively.
 Qualitative research probes the meaning of variables and assumes that the social
world is best understood subjectively, often from the perspective of the research
subject.
Method of Reasoning (p. 87)
 Deductive reasoning begins with a theory that explains social behavior and uses
observations to test the theory.
 Inductive reasoning begins with observations of social behavior and uses those
observations to develop a theory that explains the behavior.
Making Research Real 4.2 – Deductive Reasoning (p. 88)
 A researcher uses deductive reasoning to test rational choice theory.
 Consistent with the deductive method of reasoning the researcher begins with a
theory and then collects observations (data) to test the ability of this theory as an
explanation of behavior.
Making Research Real 4.3 – Inductive Reasoning (p. 88)
 A researcher used inductive reasoning to develop a theory of how police officers
‘select’ individuals for a traffic stop.
 Consistent with the inductive method of reasoning the researcher begins with a
set of observations and then develops a theory to explain these observations.
Figure 4.1 – Deductive and Inductive Reasoning. (p. 89)
THEORY
DEDUCTIVE
INDUCTIVE
OBSERVATION(S)
Adapted from “Wallace’s Wheel of Science” Wallace (1971)
Unit of Analysis (p. 89)
 The unit of analysis is the ‘what’ or ‘whom’ about which researchers gather
information during a research project. A unit of analysis can be an individual, a
group, a community, a state or even an entire nation.
 An ecological fallacy occurs when a researcher makes a prediction about how an
individual might behave based on data collected at the group level of analysis.
 Reductionism occurs when a researcher makes a prediction about how a group
might behave based on data collected at the individual level of analysis.
Table 4.3 - Logical thinking errors. (p. 91)
Logical Error
Ecological fallacy
Description
Example
When a researcher makes a
prediction about how an individual
might behave based on data
collected at the group level of
analysis.
A high school guidance counselor
reads a study about adolescent
skateboarders and learns that, as a
group, they tend to be risk-takers.
One day while counseling a
student who identifies himself as a
‘skate rat’, he asks the student to
participate in a cognitive
intervention program designed to
reduce risk-taking behaviors
among adolescents. This
counselor has falsely assumed that
this individual student is a risktaker based solely on a research
finding that skateboarders, as a
group, are risk-takers.
Reductionism
When a researcher makes a
prediction about how a group
might behave based on data
collected at the individual level of
analysis.
During an individual counseling
session with a high school student
who happens to be a member of
the Skate Boarding Club, a
guidance counselor classifies the
student as a risk-taker. Because
risk-takers are more likely to
engage in illegal drug use and
unprotected sex, he asks all
members of the Skate Boarding
Club to participate in a group
therapy session designed to reduce
their tendencies to take risk. This
guidance counselor has made a
prediction about the group as a
whole based on his evaluation of
this one individual.
Getting to the Point (Chapter Summary)
 Research is often organized by different classification methods in order to help
researchers access it more efficiently and evaluate its strengths and limitations.

Researchers often approach research questions from a particular paradigm or
perception of social reality. These perceptions affect how the researcher conducts
the research and, in many cases, the outcome of the research findings. The
positivist, interpretive and critical paradigms all contribute to our understanding
of social phenomena.

Research is often conducted for a specific purpose. Exploratory research provides
initial insight into new or emerging social phenomena or behavior. Descriptive
research describes existing social phenomena or behavior. Explanatory research
explains why individuals or groups behave the way they do. It is not uncommon
for a single research project to serve more than one purpose. It is also not
uncommon for a research agenda to move from exploratory to descriptive to
explanatory research.

Cross-sectional research involves data collection at one point in time. The
findings from this research cannot be used to draw conclusions about change over
time. But they can provide a snapshot of a social condition or population at that
point in time.

Longitudinal research utilizes data that are collected over a period of time. The
findings from this research indicate how a social condition or particular
population changes over time. There are two types of longitudinal research
designs. Trend studies collect the same data over time from different samples of
the same population. Panel studies collect the same data over time from the same
sample.

Quantitative research measures variables numerically and assumes that the social
world can be understood objectively. Qualitative research probes the meaning of
variables and assumes that the social world is best understood subjectively, often
from the perspective of the research subject.

Deductive reasoning begins with a theory that explains social behavior and uses
observations to test the theory. Inductive reasoning begins with observations of
social behavior and uses those observations to develop a theory that explains the
behavior.

The unit of analysis is the ‘what’ or ‘whom’ about which researchers gather
information during a research project. A unit of analysis can be an individual, a
group, a community, a state or even an entire nation.

An ecological fallacy occurs when a researcher makes a prediction about how an
individual might behave based on data collected at the group level of analysis.
Reductionism occurs when a researcher makes a prediction about how a group
might behave based on data collected at the individual level of analysis.