SOCY1050 Lecture 10: Lecture 10
Lecture 10
Doing Sociological Research
Linking research and experience
ā¢ Central overarching questions of sociological research
ā¢ ā āWhy do people behave in the ways that they do?ā
ā¢ ā āWhat does a social problem mean for society?ā
ā¢ Remember: there is no one way of viewing the world and different theories posit different
ideas about how society works!
Subjectivity in research
ā¢ āWhat you see depends on where you standā
ā¢ Our values help decide what to investigate
ā¢ We adopt theories, use previous research to inform current research and utilise particular
methods
ā¢ Researchers can never perceive society in a pure or objective form and must describe their
filters to avoid bias
ā¢ Key point offered from post-positivist perspective: āThere is no singular, objective truth that
exists out there somewhereā
ā¢ Subjective approaches are valued in social science, in spite of the charge that it is ātoo
subjectiveā
ā¢ One needs to be aware of and control bias
ā¢ We are all products of our society and there is no such thing as value-free research
Critical thinking question
ā¢ On what basis do you decide whether statements are true in everyday life?
ā¢ ā For example, if a politician or celebrity make a claim, it must be true, right?
ā¢ ā Or, because you know someone who got ripped off while travelling in Bali, then it must
happen to everyone who travels there?
ā¢ Are some claims-makers more trustworthy or ālegitimateā?
Asking sociological questions
ā¢ One of the major tasks of social scientists is identify causes, or reasons, for social
phenomena
ā¢ Correlation does not mean cause
ā¢ Researchers also search for causal āmechanismsā
ā¢ Quantitative researchers use control variables to further isolate causes
find more resources at oneclass.com
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Document Summary
Why do people behave in the ways that they do?". What does a social problem mean for society?". Remember: there is no one way of viewing the world and different theories posit different ideas about how society works! What you see depends on where you stand": our values help decide what to investigate, we adopt theories, use previous research to inform current research and utilise particular methods. Researchers can never perceive society in a pure or objective form and must describe their filters to avoid bias. Key point offered from post-positivist perspective: there is no singular, objective truth that exists out there somewhere". Asking sociological questions: one of the major tasks of social scientists is identify causes, or reasons, for social phenomena. Researchers also search for causal mechanisms": quantitative researchers use control variables to further isolate causes, qualitative researchers make inferences and theoretical statements about empirical contexts that may be tested in other similar contexts.
