SOCL 2001 Chapter : Chapter 2 Research
Document Summary
To examine human behavior: guided by rules in order for it to be ethical. Involves gathering of data through experimentation or surveys, not just opinion: can guide social policies. Research methods: quantitative numerical, example: surveys, qualitative non-numerical data, greater detail example: videos, photographs, transcripts, subjects can be more candid, more in-depth findings, more time consuming than surveys. Procedure to acquire knowledge: emphasizes collecting data through observation and experiment. Scientific theories are open to modification as new data updates itself requires scientific method. Research process: choose topic pose a question, summarize related research, hypothesis relationship between 2 or more variables, prediction, describe research design method, technique, collect data, present findings, analyze/explain results, qualitative: Variable: one of two or more phenomena that a researcher believes are related. Example: age, ethnicity, social class, gender, education level. Reliability consistency, measure the same kind of data each time it is tested, repeated measures . Validity accuracy of the question or the measurement tool.
