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2

Jill Karlowsky English 57 cards

Cards in this deck (57)

  1. 1What are paradigms?- general theoretical perspective (viewpoint) that includes a set of assumptions about the nature of reality that guide research questions
    - the fundamental models or frameworks researchers use to organize their observations and reasoning (are neither true nor false)
  2. 2Why are paradigms important?- Because usually there is more than one way to make sense of social phenomena
    - You may ascribe to one, and others another, but neither is more right
    - Example: liberals & conservatives explaining homelessness differently
  3. 3How are paradigms & theories different?Theories = more specific
    Paradigms = more general
    There are no right / wrong paradigms, theories can be disproved
  4. 4How do social scientists use paradigms?- Social scientists developed paradigms for understanding social behaviour
  5. 5What is the difference in paradigms between natural scientists & social scientists?Natural scientists: believe in "paradigm shifts" (succession of new paradigm when old one = falsified; e.g., no modern scientist believes the earth is flat)
    Social scientists: paradigms gain and lose popularity, but are seldom discarded completely (e.g. structural functionalism)
  6. 6What are Macrotheories?Theories aimed at understanding the "big picture" of institutions, whole societies, and interactions among societies
    - E.g., "rich get richer, and poor get prison"
  7. 7What are Microtheories?Theories aimed at understanding social life at the intimate level of individuals or small groups and their interactions
    - E.g., jury deliberations
    - Socio-psychological component of sociological research
  8. 8What are 4 sociological paradigms?1. Functionalism
    2. Conflict theory
    3. Symbolic Interactionism
    4. Feminist theory
  9. 9In functionalism what is the... - main level of analysis? - main focus? - main question? - ideal society?- Macro level of analysis
    - Values = main focus
    - "How do the institutions of society contribute to social stability?"
    - State of equilibrium
  10. 10In conflict theory what is the... - main level of analysis? - main focus? - main question? - ideal society?- Macro level of analysis
    - Class inequality = main focus
    - "How do privileged groups seek to maintain their advantages and subordinate groups seek to increase theirs, often causing social change in the process?"
    - Elimination of privilege (esp. class privilege)
  11. 11In symbolic interactionism what is the... - main level of analysis? - main focus? - main question? - ideal society?- Micro level of analysis
    - Meaning = main focus
    - "How do individuals communicate as to make their social settings meaningful?"
    - Respect for validity of minority views
  12. 12In feminist theory what is the... - main level of analysis? - main focus? - main question? - ideal society?- Micro & Macro levels of analysis
    - Patriarchy = main focus
    - "Which social structures and interaction processes maintain male dominance and female subordination?"
    - Elimination of gender inequality
  13. 13What is macrosociology?- Large-scale research looking at widespread phenomena that affects many people in society (e.g., poverty, war, capitalism)
    - Looks at broad social trends
    - Studies large groups, cities, institutions
    - Paradigms = functionalism & conflict theory
  14. 14What is microsociology?- Small-scale, everyday social interactions between individuals and small groups
    - More of an interpretive analysis of society as a smaller sample is studied and you try to determine how the observed interactions/trends would affect larger groups or societal institutions
    - Paradigms = symbolic interactionism
  15. 15What is the influence of paradigms on research?- Shape the kinds of methods likely to be used
    - Affect the type of facts researchers seek to discover
    - Influence conclusions drawn from the facts
    - Aid in determining which concepts and concerns are considered important
  16. 16Despite the influence of paradigms, researchers within ALL paradigms seek to practice having ...1. Rationality
    2. Reasonableness
    3. Objectivity
  17. 17Rationality- The criterion for assessing thinking in terms of its logical consistency
    - The conclusions drawn from the argument
  18. 18Reasonableness- a quality of mind that is open to new ideas and evidence
    - the willingness to consider beliefs based on new arguments or findings
  19. 19What do rationality and reasonableness share?- both are qualities of the mind
    - rationality: the quality of thinking
    - reasonableness: the quality of open-mindedness
  20. 20What does science use rationality for?- to assess theory
    - when thinking is faulty, theories are revised to remove the contradictions
  21. 21What does science use reasonableness for?- to continuously challenge existing beliefs w/new ideas and empirical evidence
  22. 22Researchers use this scientific process but whether they meet the criteria of science is judged on....- the product produced
    - the product is assessed by others
  23. 23Objectivity- linked to agreement reality
    - a series of observations w/high inter-subjective reliability
    - a conceptual attempt to go beyond our individual views (subjective)
    - a matter of communication - trying to find a common pattern amongst subjective accounts
    - When we succeed, patterns of subjectivity turn into objective reality
  24. 24Positivism- belief in a objective reality independent of the human experience
    - represents the belief in a logically ordered, objective reality that can be DISCOVERED through science
    - truth is out there waiting to be discovered
  25. 25Positivism & social science- has been largely discredited in social science
    - was important in enlightenment era until the 1960s
    - facilitated the push away from religion & towards science as a way of understanding
  26. 26What are the elements of social theory?- theory = a set of inter-related (through variables) propositions (ideas) used for understanding and explaining observed realities
    - systematic sets of inter-related statements to explain some social phenomenon
    - theories specify general paradigms
  27. 27What are the 3 features of a theory?1. The components of a theory are propositions
    2. Theories are abstract
    3. The propositions (ideas) in a theory are inter-related
  28. 28The components of a theory are propositions- Axioms: theoretical propositions assumed to be true
    - are the taken for granted beginnings of a theory
    - propositions = building blocks of a theory (ideas)
    = an expression of a relationship between concepts
  29. 29Theories are abstract and composed ofpropositions that are generated from concepts
    - since concepts=abstract, & propositions=abstract, a theory using these pieces=abstract
  30. 30Why is it important that theories are abstract?Because the goal is to organize this set of abstract information into a set of concrete experiences
  31. 31The propositions (ideas) in a theory are inter-related- ideas are connected together
    - propositions are ideas that have to be connected
  32. 32In the empirical experience, theory moves from _____ level to _____ levelabstract level ----> concrete level
  33. 33Scientific theory is a story that helps to understand ________. ______ emerges when the _______ & _______ levels of experience emerge.reality / reality / abstract / concrete
  34. 34Empirical theory begins with ______. These _____ are then linked together by ______. Then, together these sets of ___________ _____________ form a theory.concepts
    concepts / propositions
    interrelated propositions
  35. 35Concepts must refer to ___________ ______.empirical things
  36. 36_______ are used as indicators of the imaginary concepts (on an abstract level) that we have in mind.variables
  37. 37Variables, then are used to go from the ...abstract level ---> concrete level
  38. 38Operationalizationthe process of translating abstract concepts into variables
    - a way of clarifying through VARIABLES to indicate what a concept means
  39. 39Social scientific theories need a way of translating concepts & relationships into _________/_______ experience. This is done through _________.observable/empirical
    operationalization
  40. 40Empirical deductionlogical process for transforming a theoretical proposition into a research hypothesis
  41. 41Hypothesisa THEORETICALLY INFORMED expectation about EMPIRICAL PATTERNS expressed as a RELATIONSHIP between VARIABLES
    - informed: by theoretical/logical thinking/ abstract experience
    - backed by systematic set of ideas
    - provides a theoretically informed expectation about empirical patterns
  42. 42The traditional model of science is based on ...hypothesis testing
    - determining whether or not the expectations reported in a hypothesis are confirmed by concrete, empirical patterns
  43. 43What are the main elements in the traditional model of science?1. Theory -propositions (ideas) = developed
    2. Operationalization -specifying meaning of concepts under consideration
    - abstract theoretical proposition into a research hypothesis
    3. Observation -based on operational definitions
    -the procedure used for linking the abstract (concepts) to the concrete (observations)
  44. 44All of the elements in the traditional model of science are based on ...the deductive model of science
  45. 45Through observational definition....something abstract can be expressed as something concrete
  46. 46Traditional methods of social science research rely heavily on operational definitions since it is _____ & ______ around the idea of ____________.deductive & organized
    hypothesis testing
  47. 47List the steps (and processes between them) in operational definition1. Concept
    (Operationalization)
    2. Variable
    (Instrumentation)
    3. Instrument
    (Measurement)
    4. Observation
  48. 48Falsificationcriterion that it is possible for empirical evidence to disconfirm a hypothesis
    - possibility of evidence rejecting a hypothesis
    - if there is no chance a hypothesis can be disconfirmed, it hasn't been meaningful
  49. 49Deductive theory uses the ______ ______ approach and is part of the _______ _______ approach.top - down
    traditional scientific
  50. 50What are the 5 steps in deductive theory construction?1. Select topic
    2. Specify range of phenomena your theory addresses
    3. Identify major concepts/variables
    4. Find out what's known about the relationships among those variables
    5. Logically reason from those propositions to the specific topic you're examining
  51. 51Step 3 in deductive theory construction, " Identify major concepts/variables", is also called ....operationalization
  52. 52Step 4 in deductive theory construction, "Find out what's known (observations) about the relationships among those variables" is also called...operational definition
  53. 53Inductive theory uses the _______ _______ approach; starting with _______________, moving towards_______.bottom-up
    general observations
    theorizing
  54. 54Inductive theory construction is a process based on ... which are then used to ...... which then are used for ......the discovery of patterns
    construct propositions
    theory construction
  55. 55Grounded theoryan approach to theory construction that generates ideas to account for observed empirical patterns
  56. 56Field researchthe direct observation of events in progress, and is frequently used to develop theories using grounded theory
  57. 57What are the 2 links between theory and research?1. Test theory by research (deductive)
    2. Construct and develop theory from research (inductive)

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Flashcards on 2, created by Jill Karlowsky on 08/12/2018.
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Jill Karlowsky
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