Research methods

Research methods

1. surveys

   • questionaires
     • if its postal. it reaches a large amount of people and can be rerepresentative
     • its reliable and can be repeated by other sociologists
     • the questions were carefully worded so they werent led of track
     • validity- did those answering the question answer truthfully
   • interviews
     • an informal and open ended is where the interviewer doesnt have pre set questions
     • unstructured intervews give people the chance to go into depth and speak openely
     • speak honestly therefore its valid
     • the influences of the interviewer may influence what they say
       • hawthorne effect
     • not reliable as it cant be repeated

2. ethnographic methods

   • observation
     • participant observation=joining in
     • covert participant oberservation= researcher true role and identity is a secret
     • have to have informed consent
     • time consuming
   • experiments
     • laboratory experiment= artifical enviroment
     • field experiment= takes place in natural surroundings
       • more reliable than laboratory experiment as its in natural settings
       • validity was high as people behaved normally
       • didnt always have consent
       • time consuming
       • not always representative

3. secondary data

   • offical statistics
     • produced by local and national government
     • using existing data is cheaper than doing your own?
     • easy to obtain
     • reliable as other sociologists have used it
     • may bebiased
     • comparisons may be difficult if goverment reports havent been used consistently
   • mass media
     • large and accessible to everyone
     • reliable as sociologists can check your soirces
     • data already exists