Sociology Chapter 3 Action Research Have Students Visit The Center

CHAPTER 3: DOING SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH

BRIEF CHAPTER OUTLINE

I. The Research Process

A. Sociology and the Scientific Method

B. Inductive and Deductive Reasoning

II. Research Design

A. Developing a Research Question

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Understand that sociological research is a true scientific endeavor, whether it is

quantitative or qualitative.

KEY TERMS (listed in text)

concept (66)

content analysis (74)

controlled experiment (71)

correlation (72)

covert participant

Hawthorne effect (68)

hypothesis (66)

independent variable (66)

indicator (66)

inductive reasoning (62)

qualitative research (66)

quantitative research (66)

sample (68)

scientific method (61)

KEY PEOPLE

Sir Francis Bacon (61)

LECTURE OUTLINE

I. The Research Process

1. The research methods sociologists use depend upon the questions they ask.

Mitchell Duneier (in his study Sidewalk), for example, wanted to know how

homeless people lived, so he used participant observation. Other kinds of

inductive reasoning (the research question develops from an observation).

II. Research Design

A. Developing a Research Question

1. The first step in sociological research is to develop a research question.

2. A major source of questions is past research, which is increasingly available

B. Creating a Research Design

1. A research design reflects the overall logic and strategy underlying the research,

and emerges from the questions asked.

C. Quantitative versus Qualitative Research

1. A research design includes a plan for gathering data, using both quantitative

(numerical analysis) and qualitative research (gathering in-depth information).

people know that they are being studied and therefore change their behavior.

D. Gathering Data

1. Sociologists can use primary data (original material) or secondary data (data

already gathered by others) and must evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of

E. Analyzing the Data

1. Analysis of data may be statistical (numerical analysis) or qualitative (in-depth).

2. Computers have greatly facilitated the process of analyzing data, and data are

F. Reaching Conclusions and Reporting Results

1. The final stage of research is developing conclusions, relating findings to

sociological theory and existing research, reporting these findings, and possibly

them to a broader population.

III. The Tools of Sociological Research

A. The Survey: Polls, Questionnaires, and Interviews

1. Surveys offer structured ways to ask people closed-ended (e.g., yes/no) or open-

ended questions.

2. The return rate is the percentage of questionnaires returned from all those

distributed.

B. Participant Observation. Combines subjective knowledge gained through personal

people’s behavior.

E. Historical Research. Examines sociological themes over time.

F. Evaluation Research. Assesses the effect of policies and programs on people in

society.

IV. Research Ethics: Is Sociology Value-Free?

1. Most sociologists do not claim to be value-free, but they do try to produce

objective research. The choices sociologists make in the research process can all

LECTURE/DISCUSSION SUGGESTIONS

1. Debunking. Conduct a true-false questionnaire on common social myths (for example:

2. Research Process. Use an example of your own research to demonstrate the issues involved

in the research process for students. Alternatively, use an example from research that

3. Policy Research. Present an example of evaluation research on a national, state, or local

policy issue in order to demonstrate how such research is used by organizations and by

policy-makers. The in-class discussion could be preceded by an online discussion using a

4. Developing a Research Project. Have the class develop a list of issues they would like to

study. Next, break the class into learning teams (no more than six students per team) and

5. Being value–free. Students need to understand what being value-free means and how

difficult it is to achieve. Have students make a list of their personal biases (using their own,

6. Historical Research. Have your students choose an event that defined their family’s history.

7. Informed Consent. Have your students discuss the rules related to informed consent. Have

8. Content Analysis. Have the students watch a TV show of their choice. Ask them to

examine the way the culture they live in is portrayed in the program. Next, have them go

9. Action Research. Have students visit the Center for Collaborative Action Research at

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. Statistics. Give groups of students hypothetical or real examples of research conclusions

2. Designing a Research Project. Create groups to focus on a topic: teen pregnancy, school

dropouts, or youth violence. Instruct each group to:

(a) Agree on a hypothesis or research question to pose on the topic assigned, identifying the

3. Analyzing a Research Article. Choose a research article, or have students select a research

article on a topic for a term project or short paper you have assigned. First, demonstrate how

4. Collecting Data. Break your class up into small groups and have them each develop a

5. Surveys. Surveys are used throughout society. Students often assume that they are

providing valid information and tend to believe the mass media’s interpretation of this

6. Evaluation Research. Have your students discuss their majors and how evaluation research

7. Social myths. Visit the website of Public Agenda Online (https://www.publicagenda.org).

From Resources, choose one of the options assigned for this discussion (Instructors can

VIDEO SUGGESTIONS (Videos with a * next to them have corresponding activities below.)

Miss Evers’ Boys (118 min.)

This HBO special about the Tuskegee syphilis studies can be used to raise questions about

research ethics, racial and class inequality, and the U.S. health care system.

Zimbardo filmed his experimental “prison” from beginning to end and then provided the

commentary for this revealing film.

Start Seeing Cycles (“Awareness Test”) (2008, 1 min.)

This fun short public service announcement points out how easy it is to overlook information

Ghosts: Inside Secret America. (2013, 49 min.)

In this episode, investigative journalists Mariana van Zeller and Darren Foster journey to some

Opposing Aggression and Bullying. (2011, 38 min.)

Initiate lectures and class dialogue with this cluster of ABC News segments on violence,

aggressive behavior, and crime. In each scenario, actors draw unassuming spectators into tense

* Debunking Myths with Statistics, Debunking Myths About the “Third World.” Hans Rosling

VIDEO ACTIVITIES

After viewing Quiet Rage: The Stanford Prison Experiment, break into small groups and discuss

possible ethical issues associated with the experiment in the film. Discuss whether or not this

experiment could be done today, and if not, what would have to be changed in the experiment to

meet ethical standards.

INTERNET EXERCISES

of interest, as well as some of the newsletters of the divisions. Write a brief note on a social

problem of your choosing and develop a research methodology to share with other students

in class.

3. Develop an online study club. Invite faculty and authors to be part of the club and/or to

check in at will. Each month select a social problem or social issue that the club will be

4. Have your students look at the 2010 Census. In their discussion, have them look at where

Note: Some students may be interested in student membership and the discount offered by the

ASA for student members, or in eventually becoming members of the SSSP. These Internet

Exercises could be conducted within an online course management system, with students using

the Discussion Board to share their findings.