The Social Science Inquiry Method

Learning Goal:

• Demonstrate an understanding of general research process

• Understand APA conventions for acknowledging sources

Inquiry

Natural human activityKnowledge by “agreement” rather than by

“experience”Intuition and common-senseScientific Inquiry -an investigation that

follows a formal procedure. This process can lead to answers for questions about people and the world around us.

Stages of the Scientific Inquiry

Ask a question or identify a problem

Develop a hypothesis

Gather data

Analyze Data

Draw Conclusion

s

Decide on methodolog

y

THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD

Identifying the Problem and Developing a Question

What do you want to learn about? Begin with the topic or issue you want to study. This is a starting point of your research Education system Health care system Immigration policy Demographics etc.

Pose research questionThis forms the basis for your investigation. A good research question states exactly what you want to learn. It is clear, focused and appropriately complex?

Form Hypothesis

Developing a hypothesis – a statement of a possible answer to the question which the researcher will attempt to prove or disprove using research.

It gives you direction and helps you to determine what needs to be tested and which research methods you are going to use.

Based on the information you have gathered, predict the answer to your question and specific outcome to the test you've planned.

THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD

Methodology/ Test Your Hypothesis• What type of research method will be the

most effective? (survey, observation, interview, focus group)

• Identify specific measurable behaviours to record

• Create a step by step testing plan on your approach.

Research Methodology in SS

Critical ethnography - - Critical ethnography is an approach to ethnography that attempts to link the detailed analysis of ethnography to wider social structures and systems of power relationships. (Source: http://www.qualityresearchinternational.com/socialresearch/criticalethnography.htm

Field Observation - observing people in their regular/normal settings, where they live, work, study etc.

Experiment - A test under controlled conditions that is made to demonstrate a known truth, examine the validity of a hypothesis, ordetermine the efficacy of something previously untried. Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/experiment

Focus Group - A focus group could be defined as a group of interacting individuals having some common interest or characteristics, brought together by a moderator, who uses the group and its interaction as a way to gain information about a specific or focused issue. Source (http://ag.arizona.edu/sfcs/cyfernet/cyfar/focus.htm

Participant Observationsociological research methodology in which the researcher takes on a role in the social situation under observation. The social researcher immerses herself in the social setting under study, getting to know key actors in that location in a role which is either covert or overt, although in practice, the researcher will often move between these two roles.

Survey - to ask (many people) a question or a series of questions in order to gather information about what most people do or think about something (Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/survey

Interview Structured and non-structured

Qualitative Methods

focus groups, in-depth interviews, and reviews of documents for types of themes

Primarily inductive process used to formulate theory or hypotheses More subjective: describes a problem or condition from the point

of view of those experiencing it Text-based More in-depth information on a few cases Unstructured or semi-structured response options No statistical tests Can be valid and reliable: largely depends on skill and rigor of the

researcher Time expenditure lighter on the planning end and heavier during

the analysis phase Less generalizable

Quantitative Methods

Surveys, structured interviews & observations, and reviews of records or documents for numeric information

Primarily deductive process used to test pre-specified concepts, constructs, and hypotheses that make up a theory

More objective: provides observed effects (interpreted by researchers) of a program on a problem or condition

Number-based Less in-depth but more breadth of information across a large number

of cases Fixed response options Statistical tests are used for analysis Can be valid and reliable: largely depends on the measurement device

or instrument used Time expenditure heavier on the planning phase and lighter on the

analysis phase More generalizable

Data CollectionGather the data/information to answer your

question by using:Secondary Research

Journal articles, university studies, government statistics, credible research from an organization

Primary Research surveys, questionnaires, interviews, experiments

and/or observations. Create recording sheet Communicate your results in an observable chart

form. Conduct observations Observation chart and interpretation and analysis of

chart should be completed (charts, graphs etc) Informed consent?

Data Collection – Cont.

It is important to distinguish between fact and opinion

Facts are supported with evidence that everyone can observe.

Opinions are based on individual observations or experiences (not credible without facts)

Analyze the Data

Data analysis - organize the data so you can compare, analyze and summarize the information.

Look for relationships between the data – these relationships between evidence will help you answer your research question.

Formulate and Communicate Conclusions

Form the conclusions that state how your data answers your question or hypothesis. Is your hypothesis supported by data or not? Should the hypothesis be accepted or rejected. Should there be further research?

All you can say is whether the test supports or fails to support your original hypothesis.  Based on one test, you will almost never be able to say you have proven or disproved the hypothesis.

Creation of a

Theory

Testing a

Theory

INDUCTIVE REASONING – Creating a New Theory

The process in which research begins withobservations and uses inductive reasoning toderive a theory from these observations. Thesetheories attempt to make sense of

observations.The theory is produced after observations aremade.

DEDUCTIVE REASONING – Testing an Existing Theory

A theory testing approach begins with a theory and uses specific points and themes from that theory to guide which observations to make.

Aims for Social Science Research

Social science research looks for patterns in human behaviour as well as connections among those behaviours

Social researchers ask two fundamental types of research questions: What is going on? (descriptive) Why is it going on? (explanatory)

Descriptive Research – WHAT???

Good description is fundamental to the research

Includes: Definition of terms Explanatory/expository information Background information General knowledge about a topic or issue

Explanatory Research – WHY???

Focuses on why questions. For example:

it is one thing to describe the crime rate in a country, to examine trends over time or to compare the rates in different countries (descriptive)

It is quite a different thing to develop explanations about why the crime rate is as high as it is, why some types of crime are increasing or why the rate is higher in some countries than in others (explanatory)

http://www.ctvnews.ca/does-spongebob-ruin-kids-concentration-1.695829

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvXZE1HAL0s

Please complete the following tasks when watching the video:

Identify the potential observation the researcher made to create this study. Why did the author conduct this study?

What might have been his research question. What was the researcher's plausible hypothesis? Explain the methodology/ data collectionConclusions- Assess the hypothesis, arrive at a

conclusionEvaluate research – are there any weaknesses?

Simple Social Science Research

Assignment: Create a possible social science experiment. You are attempting to examine a specific human behavior. Keep it simple!

Purdue University Writing Lab

APA Style: General Guidelines

Your report/essay should be: typed, double-spaced on standard-

sized paper (8.5" x 11") with 1" margins on all sides. You should use 12 pt. Times

New Roman font or a similar font.

Include a page header at the top of every page. To create a page header, insert page numbers flush right. Then type "TITLE OF YOUR PAPER" in the header flush left

page number in the upper right-hand side of every page

APA

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/