Lecturer 4.pptx

7/28/2019 Lecturer 4.pptx

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sociological Investigation

How sociologist gather knowledge about theworld

Apply sociological perspectives and be

curious to ask questions


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Science and common sense

A logical system that derives

knowledge from direct,

systematic observation

The basic level of practical

knowledge and judgment that

we all need to help us live in a

reasonable and safe way

(The Cambridge Dictionary)

E.g. Earth was flat


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Common sense vs. scientific Evidence

Colds are caused by chills and wet feet

Men survive hardship and exposure better thanwomen

Most poor people dont want to work

Ones character shows in one face

Colds are caused by viruses

Women survive hardship as well asbetter than man

Some, but not most poor people

No dependable association betweenfacial feature and personality

characteristics

Common Sense Scientific Evidence


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Quantitative and qualitative research

Involves analysis of numerical data

Hypothesis

The aim is to classify features, countthem, and construct statistical models in

an attempt to explain what is observed

Researcher knows clearly in advance

what he/she is looking for

involves analysis of data suchas words (e.g. interviews),

pictures (e.g. video), or objects(e.g. an artifact)

Research questions

Provide a complete, detaileddescription of the research

topic, more exploratory innature

Researcher may only knowroughly in advance what

he/she is looking for

Quantitative Qualitative


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Quantitative and qualitative research

Objective seeks precise measurement & analysisof target concepts, e.g., uses surveys,questionnaires etc

Researcher uses tools, such as questionnaires orequipment to collect numerical data

Data is more efficient, able to test hypothesesand can be generalized

Subjective - individuals

interpretation of events isimportant ,e.g., uses participantobservation, in-depth interviews

etc.

Researcher is the data gatheringinstrument

Data is more 'rich', timeconsuming, and less able to be

generalized

Quantitative Qualitative


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Three ways to do research

Positivist (scientific) sociology

Interpretive sociology

Critical sociology


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Three ways to do research

Positive sociology

Study of society based on systematicobservation of social behavior

Interpretive sociology

The study of society that focuses ondiscovering the meanings people attach totheir social world


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Element of science Concept Variable

Measurement

Operationalization

Reliability and validity

Relationship among variables


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Element of science Concept : Mental construct that represent some part of

the world in a simplified form

Family

Economy

Gender


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Element of science

Variable

A concept whose value change from case to case

Price

Social class

Example

The more education a person has the higher the

income a person has.

Independent variable(education)

Dependent variable (income )


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Element of science

MeasurementA procedure determining the value of a variable

in a specific case

Example

Social class (variable )

Income

Education

Occupation


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Element of science

Operationalization Specifying exactly what is to be measured before

assigning a value to a variable Or

The process of identifying the indicators

Reliability : consistency in measurement

Validity : Measuring exactly what you intended to

measure


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Element of science

Relationships among variables

Cause and effect relationship

A relationship in which change in one variable

causes change in another

Example

When studying hard for an exams result in high

grade I.V= studying hard

D.V= high grade

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