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Basics of Social Reseach
Final Exam
169
Sociology
Undergraduate 3
05/07/2012

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Term
Central Limit Theorem
Definition
a law-like mathematical relationship that states whenever many random samples are drawn from a population and plotted, a normal distribution is formed and the center of such a distribution for a variable is equal to its population parameter.
Term
Cluster sampling
Definition
a type of random sampling that uses multiple stages and is often used to cover wide geographic areas in which aggregated unites are randomly selected and then samples are drawn from the sample aggregated units or clusters.
Term
confidence intervals
Definition
a range of values usually a little higher or lower than a specific value found in a smaple, within which a researcher has a specified and high degree of confidence that the population parameter lies.
Term
convenience sampling
Definition
a type of nonrandom sampling in which a researcher selects anyone he or she comes across.
Term
deviant case sampling
Definition
a type of nonrandom sampling especially used by qualitative research s in which a researcher selects unusual or noncomforming cases purposely a away to provide greater insight into social processes or a setting.
Term
hidden populations
Definition
people who engage in clandestine, deviant, or concealed activities and who are difficult to locate and study.
Term
inferential statistics
Definition
a branch of applied mathematics or statistics based on a random sample. It lets a rearcher make precise statements about the level of confidence he or she has in the results of a sample being equal to the population parameter.
Term
nonrandom sample
Definition
a type of sample in which sampling elements are selected using something other than a mathematically random process.
Term
parameter
Definition
the characteristics of the entire population that is estimated from a sample.
Term
population
Definition
the name for the large general group of many cases from which a researcher draws a sample and which usually stated in theoretical terms.
Term
probability proportionate to size (PPS)
Definition
an adjustment made in cluster sampling when each cluster does not have the same sampling elements.
Term
purposive sampling
Definition
a type of nonrandom sampling in which the researcher uses a wider range of methods to locate all possible cases of a high specific and difficult to reach population.
Term
quota sampling
Definition
a type of nonrandom sample in which the researcher first identifies general categories into which cases or people will be selected, the he or she selects a predetermined number of cases in each category.
Term
random-digit dialing
Definition
a method of randomly selecting cases for telephone interviews that uses all possible phone numbers as a sampling frame.
Term
random-number table
Definition
a list of numbers that has no pattern in them and that is used to create a random process for selecting cases and other randomization purposes.
Term
random sample
Definition
a type of sample in which the researcher uses a random number table or similar mathematical random process so that each sampling element in the population will have an equal probability of being selected.
Term
sample
Definition
a smaller set of cases a researcher selects from a larger pool and generalizes to the population.
Term
sampling distribution
Definition
a distribution created by drawing many random samples from the same population.
Term
sampling element
Definition
the name for a case or single unit to be selected.
Term
sampling error
Definition
how much a sample deviates from being representative of the population.
Term
sampling frame
Definition
a list of cases in a population or the best approximation of it.
Term
sampling interval
Definition
the inverse of sampling ratio, which is used in systematic sampling to select cases.
Term
sampling ratio
Definition
the number of cases in the population divided by the number of cases in the sample , or the proportion of the population that is in the sample.
Term
sequential sampling
Definition
a type of nonrandom sampling in which a researcher tries to find as many relevant cases as possible, until time, financial resources, or his or her energy are exhausted or until there is no new information or diversity from the cases.
Term
simple random sampling
Definition
a type of random sample in which a researcher creates a sampling frame and uses a pure, random method to select cases. Each sampling element in the population will an equal probability of being selected.
Term
snowball sampling
Definition
a type of nonrandom sampling in which the researcher begins with one case, the based on the information about interrelationships from that case identifies other cases and then repeat the process again and again.
Term
sociogram
Definition
a diagram or map that shows the network of social relationships, influence patterns, or communication paths among a group of people or units.
Term
statistic
Definition
a numerical estimate of a population parameter computed from a sample.
Term
stratified sampling
Definition
a type of random sample in which the researcher first identifies a set of mutually exclusive and exhaustive categories, then uses a random selection method to select cases for each category.
Term
systematic sampling
Definition
a type of random sampling where a researcher selects every kth case in the sampling frame using a sampling interval.
Term
target population
Definition
the name for the large general group of many cases from which a sample is drawn and which is very specified in concrete terms.
Term
close-ended question
Definition
a type of survey research question in which respondents must choose from a fixed set of answers
Term
computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI)
Definition
Survey research in which the interviewer sits before a computer screen and keyboard and uses the computer to read questions that are asked in a telephone interview then enters the answers directly into the computer.
Term
context effect
Definition
an effect in survey research where an overall tone or set of topics heard by a respondent affects how he or she interprets the meaning of the data.
Term
contingency questions
Definition
a type of survey research in which the respondent next goes to one or another later question depending on his or her answer.
Term
cover sheet
Definition
one or more pages the the beginning of a questionnaire with information about an interview or respondent.
Term
double-barreled question
Definition
a problem in survey research question wording that occurs when two ideas are combined into one question and it is unclear whether the answer is for the combination of both or one or the other question.
Term
floaters
Definition
respondents who lack a belief or opinion, but who give an answer anyway if asked in a survey research question. Often, their answers are inconsistent.
Term
full-filter question
Definition
a type of survey research question in which respondents are first asked whether they have an opinion or know about the topic, and then only respondents with an opinion or knowledge are asked a specific question.
Term
funnel sequence
Definition
a way to order survey research questions in a questionnaire from general to specific.
Term
interview schedule
Definition
the name of a survey research questionnaire when a telephone or face-to-face interview is used.
Term
matrix question
Definition
a type of survey research question in which a set of questions is listed in a compact form together, all questions sharing the same set of answer categories. (Box 7.5)
Term
open-ended question
Definition
a type of survey research question in which respondents are free to offer any answer they wish to the question.
Term
order effects
Definition
an effect in survey research in which respondents hear some specific question before others and the earlier questions affect their answers to the later questions.
Term
partially open question
Definition
a type of survey research question in which respondents are given a fixed set of answers to choose from, but in addition an "other" category is offered so that they can specify a different answer.
Term
prestige bias
Definition
a problem in survey research question writing that occurs when a highly respected group of individual is linked to one of the answers.
Term
probe
Definition
a follow-up question or action in survey research used by an interviewer to have a respondent clarify or elaborate on an incomplete or inappropriate answer.
Term
quasi-filter question
Definition
a type of survey research question including the answer choice "no opinion" or "don't know".
Term
response set
Definition
an effect in survey research when respondents tend to agree with every series rather than thinking through their answer to each question.
Term
social desirability bias
Definition
a bias in survey research in which respondents give a "normative response" or a socially acceptable answer rather than a truthful answer.
Term
standard-format questions
Definition
a type of survey research question in which the answer categories fail to include "no opinion" or "don't know".
Term
threatening questions
Definition
a type of survey research question in which respondents are likely to cover up or lie about their true behavior or beliefs because the fear a loss of self-image or that they may appear to be undesirable or deviant.
Term
wording effects
Definition
an effect that occurs when a specific term or word used in a survey research question affects how respondents answer the question.
Term
classical experimental design
Definition
an experimental design that has random assignment, a control group, an experimental group, and pretests and posttest for each group.
Term
compensatory behavior
Definition
a threat to internal validity that occurs when participants in the control group modify their to make up for not getting the treatment.
Term
confederate
Definition
a person working for the experimenter who acts as another participant or in a role in from of participants to deceive them for an experiment's cover story.
Term
confounding variables
Definition
in experimental research, variables or factors that are not part of the intended hypothesis being tested, but that have effects on variables of interest and threaten internal validity.
Term
control group
Definition
the group that does NOT get the treatment in experimental research.
Term
cover story
Definition
a type of deception in which the experimenter tells a false story to participants so they will act as wanted and do not know the true hypothesis.
Term
debrief
Definition
when a researcher gives a true explanation of the experiment to research participants about the true nature of an experiment to research participants after using deception.
Term
deception
Definition
when an experimenter lies to research participants about the true nature of an experiment or creates a false impression through his or her actions through his or her actions or the setting.
Term
demand characteristics
Definition
a type of reactivity in which the participants in experimental research pick up clues about the hypothesis and alter their behavior accordingly.
Term
design notation
Definition
the name of a symbol system used to discuss the parts of an experiment and to make diagrams of them.
O=observation of dependent variable, X=treatment/independent variable, R=random assignment
Term
diffusion of treatment
Definition
a threat to internal validity that occus when the treatment "spills over" from the experimental group and the control group research participants modify their behavior because they learn of the the treatment.
Term
double-blind experiment
Definition
a type of experimental research in which neither the research participants nor the person who directly deals with the research participants for the experimenter know the specifics of the experiment.
Term
equivalent time series design
Definition
an experimental design in which there are several repeated pretests, posttests, and treatments for one group often over a period of time.
Term
experimental design
Definition
arranging the parts of an experiment and putting them together (7 parts of experiment: 1. treatment/IV 2. DV 3. Pretest 4. Posttest 5. Experimental group 6. Control group 7. Random assignment)
Term
experimental group
Definition
the group that receives the treatment in experimental research.
Term
experimental mortality
Definition
threats to internal validity due to participant failing to participate through the entire experiment.
Term
experimental realism
Definition
external validity in which the experiment is made to feel realistic, so that experimental events have a real impact on participants.
Term
experimenter expectancy
Definition
a type of reactivity due to the experimenter indirectly making participants aware of the hypothesis or desired result.
Term
external validity
Definition
the ability to generalize from experimental research to settings or people that differ from the specific conditions of the study.
Term
factorial design
Definition
a type of experimental design that considers the impact of several independent variable simultaneously.
Term
field experiment
Definition
experimental research that takes place in a natural setting.
Term
Hawthorne effect
Definition
An effect of reactivity names after a famous case in which research participants reacted to the fact that they were in an experiment more than they reacted to the treatment.
Term
history effects
Definition
a threat to internal validity due to something that occurs and affects the dependent variable during an experiment, but which is unplanned and outside the control of the experimenter.
Term
interaction effects
Definition
the effect of two independent variables that operate simultaneously together. the effect of the variables together is grater than what would occur from a simple addition of the effects from each other. the variables operate together on one another to create an extra "boost".
Term
internal validity
Definition
the ability of experimenters to strengthen a causal explanation's logical rigor by elmininating potential alternative explanations for an association between the treatment and the dependent variable through an experimental design.
Term
interrupted time-series design
Definition
an experimental design in which the dependent variable is measured periodically across many time points and the treatment occurs in the midst of such measurements, often only once.
Term
laboratory experiment
Definition
experimental research that takes place in an artificial setting over which the experimenter has great control.
Term
Latin square design
Definition
an experimental design used to examine whether the order or sequence in which research participants receive multiple versions of the treatment has an effect.
Term
maturation effect
Definition
a threat to internal validity in experimental research due to natural processes of growth, boredom, and so one that occur to research participants during the experiment and affect the dependent variable.
Term
mundane realism
Definition
a type of external validity in which the experimental conditions appear to be real and very similar to settings or situations outside a lab setting.
Term
one-shot case-study design
Definition
an experimental design with only an experimental group and a posttest, no pretest.
Term
placebo effect
Definition
a false treatment or one that has no effect in an experiment. it is sometimes called a "sugar pill" that a subject mistakes for a true treatment.
Term
posttest
Definition
the measurement of the dependent variable in experimental research after treatments.
Term
preexperimental design
Definition
experimental designs that lack random assignment or use shortcuts and are much weaker than the classical experimental design. They may be substituted in situations where an experimenter cannot use all the features of a classical experimental design, but have weaker internal validity.
Term
pretest
Definition
a measure of the dependent variable prior to the treatment in an experiment.
Term
quasi-experimental design
Definition
experimental designs that are stronger than preexperimental designs. They are variations of the classical experimental design that an experimenter uses in special situations or when an experimenter has limited control over the independent variable.
Term
random assignment
Definition
dividing research participants into groups at the beginning of experimental research using a random process, so the experimenter can treat the groups as equivalent.
Term
reactivity
Definition
the general threat to external validity that arises because participants are aware that they are in an experiment.
Term
selection bias
Definition
a threat to internal validity when groups in an experiment are not equivalent at the beginning.
Term
Solomon four-group design
Definition
an experimental design in which research participants are randomly assigned to two control groups and two experimental groups. Only one experimental group and one control group receive a pretest, all four groups receive a posttest.
Term
static-group comparison design
Definition
an experimental design with two groups, no random assignment, and only a posttest.
Term
subjects
Definition
a name for participants sometimes used in experimental research.
Term
testing effect
Definition
a threat to internal validity that occurs when the very process of measuring in the pretest can have an impact on the dependent variable.
Term
treatment
Definition
what the independent variable in research is called.
Term
accretion measures
Definition
Nonreactive measures of the residue of activity of people or what they leave behind. (Garbology)
Term
coding
Definition
the process of converting raw information or data into another form for analysis. In content analysis, int is a means for determining how to convert symbolic meaning in text into another form, usually numbers (coding system). In QUANTITATIVE analysis, it is a means of assigning numbers. In QUALITATIVE research, it is a series of steps for reading raw notes and assigning codes or conceptual terms.
Term
coding system
Definition
a set of instructions or rules used in content analysis to explain how to systematically convert the content from symbolic data to systematic content.
Term
content analysis
Definition
research in which one examines patterns of symbolic meaning within written text, audio, visual, or other communication medium.
Term
erosion measures
Definition
nonreactive measures of the wear or deterioration on surfaces due to the activity of people.
Term
fallacy of misplaced concreteness
Definition
when a person uses too many digits in a quantitative in an attempt to create the impression that the data are accurate or the researcher is highly capable.
Term
General Social Survey (GSS)
Definition
a survey of random sample of about 1500 US adults that has been conducted in most years between 1972 and the present and is available for many researchers to analyze.
Term
latent coding
Definition
a type of content analysis coding in which a researcher identifies subject meaning such as general themes or motifs in a communication medium.
Term
manifest coding
Definition
a type of content analysis coding in which a researcher first develops a list of specific words, phrases, and symbols , then finds them in a communication medium.
Term
nonreactive
Definition
measures in which people being studied are unaware that they are in a study.
Term
recording sheet
Definition
Pages on which a researcher writes down what is coded in content analysis.
Term
Statistical Abstract of the United States
Definition
A US government publication that appears annually and contains and extensive compilation of statistical tables and information.
Term
structured observation
Definition
a method of watching what is happening in a social situation that is highly organized and that follows systematic rules for observation and documentation.
Term
text
Definition
a general name for symbolic meaning within a communication medium measured in content analysis.
Term
unobtrusive measures
Definition
another name for nonreactive measures, it emphasizes that the people being studied are not aware of it because the measures do not intrude.
Term
acceptable incompetent
Definition
when a field researcher pretends to be less skilled or knowledgeable in order to gain access to a field site.
Term
analytic memos
Definition
the written notes a qualitative researcher takes during data collection and afterwards to develop concepts, themes, or preliminary generalizations.
Term
appearance of interest
Definition
a technique in field research in which researchers maintain relations in a field site by pretending to be interested and excited by the activities of those studied, even though they are actually uninterested or very bored.
Term
attitude of strangeness
Definition
a technique in field research in which researchers study a field site by mentally adjusting to "see" it for the first time as an outsider.
Term
competent insider performance
Definition
a method field researchers use to demonstrate the authenticity and trustworthiness of a study by the researcher "passing" as a member of the group under study.
Term
defocusing
Definition
a technique in early field research when then researcher removes his or her past assumptions and preconceptions to become more open to events in a field site.
Term
direct observation notes
Definition
notes taken in field research that attempt to include all details and specifics of the what researcher heard or saw in a field site. They are written in a way that permits multiple interpretations later.
Term
ecological validity
Definition
a way to demonstrate the authenticity and trustworthiness of a field research study by showing that the researcher's descriptions of the field sites math those of the members from the site and that the researcher was not a major disturbance.
Term
ethnography
Definition
an approach to field research that emphasizes providing a very detail description of a different culture from the viewpoint of an insider in that culture in order to permit a greater understanding of it.
Term
ethnomethodology
Definition
an approach to social science that combines philosophy, social theory, and method to study.
Term
external consistency
Definition
a way to achieve reliability of data in field research in which a researcher cross-checks and verifies qualitative data using multiple sources of information.
Term
field site
Definition
one or more natural locations where a researcher conducts field research.
Term
focus group
Definition
a type of group interview in which an interviewer asks questions to the group and answers are give in an open discussion among the group members.
Term
gatekeeper
Definition
a person in an official or unofficial role who controls access to all or part of a field site.
Term
go native
Definition
what happens when a field researcher in field research gets overly involved and loses all distance or objectivity and becomes like the people being studied.
Term
guilty knowledge
Definition
when a researcher in field research learns of illegal, unethical, or immoral actions actions by the people in the field site that are not widely known.
Term
internal consistency
Definition
a way to achieve reliability of field data in field research in which a researcher examines the data for plausibility and sees whether they know form a coherent picture, given all that is known about a person or event, trying to avoid common forms of deception.
Term
jotted notes
Definition
in field research, what a researcher is inconspicuously writes while in the field site on whatever is convenient to jog the memory later.
Term
members
Definition
the insiders or native people in a field site who are being studied.
Term
member validation
Definition
a way to demonstrate the authenticity and trustworthiness of a field research study by having the people who were studied (members) read and confirm that which the researcher reported to be true.
Term
naturalism
Definition
the principle that researchers should examine events as they occur in natural, everyday ongoing social settings.
Term
normalize social research
Definition
techniques in field research used by researchers to make the people being studied feel more comfortable with the research process and to help them accept the researcher's presence.
Term
back translation
Definition
a technique in comparative research for checking for lexicon equivalence. A researcher translates text from an original language into a second language, then translate the same text in the second language back into the original language, then compares the two original language texts.
Term
conceptual equivalence
Definition
in historical-comparative research, the issue of whether the same ideas or concepts occur or can be used to represent phenomena across divergent cultural or historical setting.
Term
contextual equivalence
Definition
the issue in historical-comparative research of whether social roles, norms, or situations across different cultures or historical periods are equivalent or can be compared.
Term
external criticism
Definition
in historical research, a way to check the authenticity of primary sources by accurately locating the place and time of its creation (ie, its not a forgery).
Term
Galton's problem
Definition
in comparative research, the problem of finding correlations or associations among variables or characteristics in multiple cases or units, when the characteristics are actually diffused from a single unit or have a common origin. Thus, a researcher cannot really treat the multiple units (e.g. countries, cultures, etc.) as being wholly separate.
Term
Human Relations Area Files (HRAF)
Definition
an extensive catalog and comprehensive collection of ethnographies on many cultures (mostly preliterate) that permits a researcher to compare across cultural units.
Term
internal criticism
Definition
how historical researchers establish the authenticity and credibility of primary sources and determine its accuracy as an account of what occurred.
Term
lexicon equivalence
Definition
finding equivalent words or phrases to express the identical meaning in different languages or in the translation from one language to another.
Term
measurement equivalence
Definition
in historical-comparative research, creating and locating measures that will accurately represent the same construct of variable in divergent cultural or historical settings.
Term
oral history
Definition
a type of recollection in which a researcher interviews a person about the events, beliefs, or feelings in the past that were directly experienced.
Term
orientation reading
Definition
at the start of historical-comparative research, reading several general but serious book-length works to acquire background knowledge about a specific era or culture.
Term
primary sources
Definition
qualitative or quantitative data used in historical research. It is evidence about past social life for events that was created and sued by the persons who actually lived in the historical period.
Term
recollections
Definition
the words or writings of people about their life experiences after some time has passed. The writings are based on memories but may be stimulated by a review of past objects, photos, personal notes, or belongings.
Term
running records
Definition
a special type of existing statistic research used in historical research because files, records, or documents are maintained in a relatively consistent manner over a period of time.
Term
secondary sources
Definition
qualitative and quantitative data used in historical research. Information about events or settings are documented or written later by historians or others who did not directly participate in the events or settings.
Term
historical-comparative research
Definition
research in which one examines different cultures or period to better understand the social world.
Term
analytic domain
Definition
in domain analysis, a type of domain a research using categories or terms he or she developed to understand the social setting.
Term
axial coding
Definition
a second coding of qualitative data after open coding. The researchers organizes the codes, develops links among them, and discovers key analytic categories.
Term
cover term
Definition
in domain analysis, the name for a domain (i.e. cultural setting or site in which people regularly interact and develop a set of shared understanding) or "miniculture" that can be analyzed.
Term
domain analysis
Definition
a method of qualitative data analysis in which a researcher describes and reveals the structures of a cultural domain.
Term
empty boxes
Definition
a name for a conceptual categories in an explanation that a researcher uses as part of the illustrative method of qualitative data analysis.
Term
folk domain
Definition
in domain analysis, a domain based on actual words, ideas, and phrases used by members in a social setting or historical actors in a specific era.
Term
illustrative method
Definition
a method of qualitative analysis in which a researcher takes the concepts of a social theory or explanation and treats them as empty boxes to be filled with empirical examples and descriptions.
Term
included term
Definition
in domain analysis, the subtypes or parts of the cultural domain that are within a cover term and have a semantic relationship to each other.
Term
mixed domain
Definition
in domain analysis, a domain that combines the words and categories of members under study with categories developed by a researcher for analysis.
Term
narrative
Definition
a type of writing and analysis in field research and historical-comparative research in which the writer attempts to "tell a story" by following chronological order, describing particular people and events, and focusing on colorful details.
Term
open coding
Definition
a first coding of qualitative data in which a researcher examines the data to condense them into preliminary analytic categories for codes for analyzing data.
Term
selective coding
Definition
a last pass at coding qualitative data in which a researcher examines previous codes to identify and select illustrative data that will support the conceptual coding categories that he or she developed.
Term
semantic relationship
Definition
in domain analysis, a logical connection that links included terms in a domain to one another.
Term
successive approximation
Definition
a method of qualitative data analysis in which the researcher repeatedly moves back and forth between the empirical date and the abstract concept, theories, or models.
Term
What is the population in random digit dialing?
Definition
telephone numbers
Term
Which of the following is NOT a type of probability sampling?
a) simple random sampling
b) systematic sampling
c) stratified sampling
d) cluster sampling
e) purposive sampling
Definition
e) purposive sampling
Term
According do W. L. Neuman, the major ethical issue in survey research is....?
Definition
invasion of privacy
Term
In survey research, when respondents ten to agree with every question rather that thinking through, it is referred to as...?
Definition
sleeper effect
Term
If the time between the pretest and posttest is very short, then the:
Definition
maturation effect is less likely to occur
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