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Methodology sociologists and terms
Review of sociologists and terms within the unit on methodology
18
Sociology
11th Grade
04/30/2014

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Term
Positivism
Definition
argued by both Auguste Comte and Emile Durkheim...that sociology can be scientific
Term
Positivism argues...
Definition
  • objective social facts that can be expressed in statistics
  • these facts can be value-free an objective
  • multivariate analysis (analyzing the importance of many different possible causes) 
Term
experiments...theories can be tested in precise conditions controlled by a researcher who then develops a hypothesis. Experiments involve trying to isolate the effects of independent variable on a dependent variable.
Definition
Term
Field experiments
Definition
...difficult to control variable, and if those being studied are aware of the experiment, this may alter their behavior - the Hawthorne Effect
Term
Comparative method of research
Definition

...involves using the same logic as the experiment, but using events that have already taken place rather than creating artificial situations.

ex. Durkheim on suicide

Weber on the Protestant ethic

Term
Interpretive approach
Definition
...interpretivists usually advocate the use of qualitative data to interpret social action, with an emphasis on the meanings and motives of the actors.  People do not simply react to external stimuli, but interpret the meaning of stimuli before reacting.
Term

Social Action theory

 

Definition
Max Weber saw sociology as the study of social action (or meaningful behavior). In the Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber tries to understand why Calvinists reinvested their money and became early captialists.
Term
Herbert Blumer (1962)
Definition
...argues that sociologists need to understand the viewpoint of the people whose behavior they are trying to understand.  They cannot do this simply be using statistical data.  Interactionists prefer in-depth interviews and participant observation.
Term
Phenomenologists
Definition
...argue that the social world has to be classified before it can be measured. Classifications (for example, whether an act is suicide, or whether someone is a criminal) depend upon the judgements of individuals.
Term
Primary Research
Definition
...data collected by sociologists themselves
Term
Secondary Data
Definition
...pre-existing sources of data
Term
Reliability
Definition
...whether another researcher using the same procedure would obtain the same results.  Quantitative methods are sometimes seen as more reliable.
Term
Validity
Definition
...whether the data produce a true reflection of social reality.  Some see qualitative data as offering a more valid picture of social reality.
Term
Sampling
Definition
...sampling is used in order to generalize about the larger population, often chosen as a cross-section of the larger group - so that the sample is representative.
Term
Random Sampling
Definition
In this approach every sampling unit has an equal chance of bveing chosen.  It relies upon statistical probability to ensure a representative sample.
Term
Stratified Random Sampling
Definition
To ensure representativeness, the population is divided into groups according to important variables such as class, gender, and ethnicity, and the sample is then chosen in the same preponderance in the population.
Term
Case Studies
Definition
...involve the study of a single example of something.  The effort is to develop a comprehensive understanding of something by studying it in depth.
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