Research methods key concepts

Research methods key concepts

1. Research concepts

   • Validity
     • Where the data provides a true picture of the social reality of those being researched.
   • Reliability
     • The ability to repeat the same research and gain the same or similar results.
   • Representativeness
     • The extent to which the sample selected is a fair reflection of the target population.
   • Generalisability
     • The ability to make claims about the target population from the research findings.

2. General key concepts

   • Primary methods
     • First hand research. A method carried out directly by the researcher such as questionnaires or observations.
   • Secondary methods
     • Second hand research. When other peoples/institutions data is used and analysed by a researcher such as government statistics or media.
   • Quantitative data
     • Methods like surveys and structured interviews give objective results in a numerical form and can easily be put into tables and graphs so results can be correlated. Quantitative methods can gain large scale data e.g. The Census.
   • Qualitative data
     • Methods like observations and unstructured interviews give results about individuals lives, their meanings and feelings. This is in-depth data which is descriptive and subjective.

3. Positivism/ quantitative concepts

   • Questionaires
     • List of questions subject to self completion. Questions can either open, closed or scaled. Produce quantitative data.
   • Structured interviews
     • An interview that has structured questions.