Sociology Chapter 2 Test Answers – Flashcards
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A questionnaire with a set of predetermined responses is
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closed-ended.
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Over the last five semesters, Dr. Thompson's research class has asked the same question on a particular project. Each semester the question produces similar answers. This exemplifies which concept?
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reliability
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Jamison plans to research the benefits of comedy as a coping mechanism during times of natural disasters. Before moving ahead, he will explore pertinent research already compiled on this topic. This is what step of the scientific method?
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literature review
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Which of the following statements about quantitative and qualitative research is correct?
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Qualitative research works with nonnumerical data and often tries to understand how people make sense of their social world, whereas quantitative research translates the social world into numbers and often tries to find cause-and-effect relationships.
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Using the photos from Good Housekeeping magazines from the 1940s and 1950s as sources of data to better understand changes in home design is an example of which type of research method?
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historical method
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In their study of teenage mothers, Kathryn Edin and Maria Kefalas found that
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teenage mothers frequently viewed children as a source of stability in their lives.
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Why Isn't Johnny in Preschool? was a project conducted by Chicago's Community Organizing and Family Issues group aimed at determining why lower income, racially diverse families in Chicago were less likely than other families to enroll their children in early educational programs. The findings were used to design outreach and public awareness campaigns. This type of research project is called
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action research
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At the end of every semester, Dr. Showalter asks her students to complete a teacher evaluation. This is a type of _____ research.
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survey
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What is the goal of ethnographic research?
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to describe the activities researchers observe and understand what those activities mean to the groups they are studying
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Which type of research is most likely to use field notes?
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participant research
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To better assess how campers feel about their experiences in summer camp, the counselors pass out a questionnaire. The responses are either: strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree. This is an example of
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a Likert scale
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_____ is the assurance that no one other than the researcher will know the identity of the respondent.
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confidentiality
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Why is it important to be objective when you conduct research?
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If you're not objective, you might misinterpret the data instead of letting the facts speak for themselves.
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The statement, "What students' eat for breakfast affects their grades," would be an example of a
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hypothesis
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Dr. Lui plans to research the relationship between breast-feeding and preschool success. In this research, breast-feeding is the
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independent variable
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Institutional review boards help to ensure the safety of subjects of review. Who sits on such a board?
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academic scholars
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Which of the following illustrates a causal relationship?
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Sara babysat for four hours. She earned twenty dollars.
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Compared to interviews, surveys offer the following advantages (select all that apply).
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A) Researchers can more easily generalize their results to the larger population. C) There is less concern about interviewer bias.
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Dr. Frank wants to explore how gender impacts the experiences of boys and girls in competitive swimming. He opts to use interviews as his means of collecting data. Select ALL of the following that are a disadvantage of this method.
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B) The interview process can be very time intensive. C) Representativeness may be limited.
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interview
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offers the opportunity for a wealth of information in respondents own words
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ethnography
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offers a means of studying groups often overlooked by other methods
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survey
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offers the opportunity to gather lots of data quickly and on large groups
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existing sources
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offers opportunity to use data from a different time period
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Order the steps of the scientific method as discussed and illustrated (Figure 2.1) in your text. There are seven typical steps to this method.
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Identify a problem or question, review literature, formulate hypothesis, choose research method, collect data, interpret results, disseminate findings
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variable
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one of two or more phenomena that a researcher believes are related and hopes to prove are related through research
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qualitative research
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research that works with nonnumerical data such as texts, fieldnotes, interview transcripts, photographs, and tape recordings; this type of research more often tries to understand how people make sense of their world.
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hypothesis
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a theoretical statement explaining the relationship between two or more phenomena.
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operational definition
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a clear and precise definition of a variable that facilitates its measurement
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literature review
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a thorough search through previously published studies relevant to a particular topic
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scientific method
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a procedure for acquiring knowledge that emphasizes collecting concrete data through observation and experiment
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correlation
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a relationship between variables in which they change together, and may or may not be causal
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quantitative research
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research that translates the social world into numbers that can be treated mathematically; this type of research often tries to find cause-and-effect relationships
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ethnography
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a naturalistic method based on studying people in their own environment in order to understand the meanings they attribute to their activities; also the written work that results from the study
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rapport
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a positive relationship often characterized by mutual trust or sympathy.
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participant observation
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a methodology associated with ethnography whereby the researcher both observes and becomes a member in a social setting
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causation
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a relationship between variables in which a change in one directly produces a change in the other
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paradigm shift
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the term used to describe a change in basic assumptions of a particular scientific discipline
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intervening variable
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a third variable, sometimes overlooked, that explains the relationship between two other variables
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access
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the process by which an ethnographer gains entry to a field setting
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spurious correlation
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the appearance of causation produced by an intervening variable
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reflexivity
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how the identity and activities of the researcher influence what is going on in the field setting.
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Thick Description
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the presentation of detailed data on interactions and meaning within a cultural context, from the perspective of its members
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grounded theory
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an inductive method of generating theory from data by creating categories in which to place data and then looking for relationships among categories
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representativeness
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the degree to which a particular studied group is similar to, or represents, any part of the larger society
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interview
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face-to-face, information-seeking conversations, sometimes defined as a conversation with a purpose
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replicability
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research that can be repeated, and thus verified, by other researchers later.
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bias
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an opinion held by the researcher that might affect the research or analysis
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fieldnotes
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detailed notes taken by an ethnographer describing her activities and interactions, which later become the basis of the ethnographic analysis
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open-ended question
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a question asked of a respondent that allows the answer to take whatever form the respondent chooses
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respondent
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someone from whom a researcher solicits information
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closed-ended question
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a question asked of a respondent that imposes a limit on the possible responses
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double-barreled questions
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questions that attempt to get at multiple issues at once, and so tend to receive incomplete or confusing answers
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informed consent
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a safeguard through which the researcher makes sure that respondents are freely participating and understand the nature of the research.
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sample
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the part of the population that will actually be studied
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leading questions
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questions that predispose a respondent to answer in a certain way
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target population
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the entire group about which a researcher would like to be able to generalize
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negative questions
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survey questions that ask respondents what they don't think instead of what they do
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simple random simple
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a particular type of probability sample in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected
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Action Research
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the presentation of detailed data on interactions and meaning within a cultural context, from the perspective of its members
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weighting
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techniques for manipulating the sampling procedure so that the sample more closely resembles the larger population
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representative sample
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a sample taken so that findings from members of the sample group can be generalized to the whole population
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survey
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a research method based on questionnaires that are administered to a sample of respondents selected from a target population
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probability sampling
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any sampling scheme in which any given unit has the same probability of being chosen.
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Likert scale
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a way of organizing categories on a survey question so that the respondent can choose an answer along a continuum.
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validity
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the accuracy of a question or measurement tool; the degree to which a researcher is measuring what he thinks he is measuring
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content analysis
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a method in which researchers identify and study specific variables - such as words - in a text, image, or media message.
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confidentiality
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the assurance that no one other than the researcher will know the identity of a respondent
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pilot study
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a small study carried out to test the feasibility of a larger one
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comparative and historical methods
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methods that use existing sources to study relationships among elements of society in various regions and time periods.
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reliability
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the consistency of a question or measurement tool; the degree to which the same questions will produce similar answers
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existing sources
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materials that have been produced for some other reason, but that can be used as data for social research
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response rate
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the number or percentage of surveys completed by respondents and returned to researchers.
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control group
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the part of a test group that is allowed to continue without intervention so that it can be compared with the experimental group.
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experimental group
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the part of a test group that receives the experimental treatment
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value-free sociology
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an ideal whereby researchers identify facts without allowing their own personal beliefs or biases to interfere
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independent variable
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factor that is predicted to cause change
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experiments
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formal tests of specific variables and effects, performed in a controlled setting where all aspects of the situation can be controlled
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dependent variable
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factor that is changed (or not) by the independent variable
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control
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in an experiment, the process of regulating all factors except for the independent variable
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basic research
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the search for knowledge without any agenda or desire to use that knowledge to effect change
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deception
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the extent to which the participants in a research project are unaware of the project or its goals
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code of ethics
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ethical guidelines for researchers to consult as they design a project
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applied research
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research designed to gather knowledge that can be used to create some sort of change
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institutional review board
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a group of scholars within a university who meet regularly to review and approve the research proposals of their colleagues and make recommendations for how to protect human subjects
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objectivity
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impartiality, the ability to allow the facts to speak for themselves
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Hawthorne effect
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a specific example of reactivity, in which the desired effect is the result not of the independent variable but of the research itself
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reactivity
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the tendency of people and events to react to the process of being studied
