Flashcards
Quantitative Research Methods
Cards in this deck (21)
- 1Quantitative Research Methods: Laboratory ExperimentsControlled experiment
To discover Cause-&-Effect
Prediction of future events - 2Lab Experiments: Practical Issues1. Keat/Urry (1882) = only useful for closed systems but SOCIETY is OPEN!!
2. Individuals are complex - hard to match for groups.
3. Cannot study past.
4. Hawthorne Effect - "subject reactivity" to being studied = not reliable. - 3Lab Experiments: Ethical Issues1. Informed Consent - explaining aims is SELF-DEFEATING?
2. Harm to subjects. E.g. Medical = same treatment to the control group? - 4Lab Experiments: Theoretical Issues1. Reliability :) Replicable, Quantitative = Compare & Objective.
2. Representative :( Lack 'external validity' = Small samples & unnatural control.
3. Free Will (Interpretivism) - Behaviour not caused by external factors. Inappropriate for humans! - 5Field Experiments:Alternative to Lab Experiments.
Subjects natural surroundings & do not know if involved.
E.g. Rosenthal & Jacobson (1968)
Brown & Gay = Actor tests (racism in job employment?)
More valid but less reliable as less control. - 6The Comparative Method:'Thought experiment'
Two groups alike except one variable (e.g. Durkheim's study of Suicide - Statistics)
Less control so less certain if true 'cause' found. - 7Questionnaires:Pre-set questions = written answers.
Closed questions usually. - 8Questionnaires: Practical IssuesStrengths: Quick, cheap, no training & easy to quantify.
Negatives: Limited data, offer incentives (?) low response rates, inflexible & only snapshots. - 9Questionnaires: Theoretical Concerns (Positivism)1. Hypothesis Testing - identify Cause & Effect (Correlation)
2. Reliability :) as = 'standardised measuring instrument'
3. Large-scale & use sophisticated sampling frames = Representative.
4. Objective & Detached (e.g. Postal) - 10Questionnaires: Theoretical Concerns (Interpretivism)1. Detachment :( lack contact & not valid. Meaning cannot be checked.
2. Lying e.g. Schofield (sexual behaviour ... are you a virgin ... no, not yet.)
3. Impose researchers meanings - closed = try to fit response. Open - need to be coded to quantify. Shipman = 'pruned and bended.' - 11Structured Interviews:Face-to-face or by telephone.
Formal & Standardised.
Social interaction but questions still closed.
Link concerns with those above. - 12Structured interviews: Practical Issues1. Cheap & Large (e.g. Young & Willmott 933 interviewed in 1962.)
2. Gather factual info.
3. Quantifiable.
4. Higher response rates (Y&W = only 54 refusals.)
:( for unfamiliar topics & inflexible. - 13Structured interviews: Theoretical Issues (Positivism)1. Hypothesis Testing :) for correlations & cause & effect
2. Reliable - 'standardised' with pre-coded answers.
3. Representative :) but those with time = untypical of the whole population? - 14Structured Interviews: Theoretical Issues (Interpretivism)1. Invalidity - Pre-set answers, no clarification & possibility of lying.
FEMINISM: Oakley = 'masculine' method of research.
Interviewees are passive & results give a distorted view of inequalities. - 15Official Statistics:Secondary source of data collection.
Produced by official bodies e.g. government.
For purpose of policy-making. - 16Official Statistics: Practical Advantages1. Free source of vast amounts of info.
2. Census - very representative.
3. Comparisons between groups.
4. Regular intervals = trends & patterns over time. - 17Official Statistics: Practical Disadvantages1. For government purpose (not specific to the research)
E.g. France no info on race, gender, religion
2. Mismatch between areas/populations.
3. Different definitions used? - 18Official Statistics: Theoretical Issues (Positivism)1. Reliable, correlations & patterns.
E.g. Registration collection = same procedure followed.
2. Representative - large scale & whole population
Census could make errors/public fill incorrectly. - 19Official Statistics: Theoretical Issues (Interpretivism)1. Cicourel = stats are 'constructs' which represent labels people attach to others.
2. Soft: represent decisions of administrators.
Hard: births, deaths (more valid) - 20Official Statistics: Theoretical Issues (Marxism)1. Serve the need of Capitalism.
2. Ideological Functions - 1980s census no longer mention class in death rates.
3. Changing definitions (conceals true reality of capitalist systems.) - 21Official Statistics: Theoretical Issues (Feminism)1. State maintains Patriarchal oppression (conceals gender inequalities)
2. Few stats on unpaid domestic labour.
However, family class used to be based on male occupation but 2001 joint = those with highest & own = HRP.
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- A level Sociology Flashcards on Quantitative Research Methods, created by Emma Simkins on 29/03/2017.
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- Emma Simkins
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