Chapter 5: How Sociologists Do Research

Li, a sociology undergraduate, was required to participate in a research study being conducted by a graduate student in his department. He didn't know the topic until he got there, and the things the interviewer asked him were embarrassing. Li chose answers that weren't quite true—in fact, they weren't true at all—to save face for himself and please the interviewer. This scenario exemplifies a case of __________. a. interviewer bias b. rapport c. self-administered questionnaires d. dependent variables

a. interviewer bias

Explain how research and theory work together in sociology.

Neither research nor theory can stand alone. Every theory must be tested—which requires research. The results of research must be explained—and for that we need theory.

What are the eight steps of the research model?

The eight steps of the research model (in chronological order) are 1. Select a topic 2. Define the problem 3. Review the literature 4. Formulate a hypothesis 5. Choose a research method 6. Collect the data 7. Analyze the results 8. Share the results

What are the three necessary conditions for causation?

The three necessary conditions necessary to establish causation are correlation, temporal priority, no spurious correlation.

What are the three ways sociologists measure average, and how do they differ?

The three ways sociologists measure average are the mean, median, and mode. The mean is calculated by adding up a group of numbers and then dividing by the number of cases that you added. The median is the middle case in an ordered range of cases. The mode is the number of cases that occur most often.

Why can't common sense replace sociological research?

What is considered common sense may or may not be true. To answer a question, we need to move beyond guesswork and common sense to know what is really going on.

Sharon had spent months carrying out her sociological experiments. She had collected a ton of data. What was Sharon's next step? a. Analyze the results. b. Generate more hypotheses. c. Select another topic. d. Share the results.

a. Analyze the results.

__________ is a feeling of trust between researchers and the people they are studying. a. Rapport b. Interviewer bias c. Participant observation d. An unobtrusive measure

a. Rapport

Reliability refers to __________. a. consistency of results b. secondary analysis c. how close the data we gathered comes to proving what we want to prove d. the way in which a researcher measures a variable

a. consistency of results

In the research model, specifying what it is that you want to learn about a topic happens during the stage of __________. a. defining the problem b. reviewing the literature c. sharing the results d. unobtrusive measures

a. defining the problem

The subjects exposed to an independent variable in an experiment are in the __________. a. experimental group b. population c. sources of potential bias d. control group

a. experimental group

It is difficult to __________ from participant observation research. a. generalize b. establish rapport c. understand alternative lifestyles d. get a feel for the real life of the respondents

a. generalize

Which of the following is a macro-level topic of sociological research? a. racism on a societal level b. shyness c. how people interact on street corners d. pelvic examinations

a. racism on a societal level

The __________ is made up of people who are in the portion of the population being studied. a. sample b. control group c. respondent d. average

a. sample

The most cost-effective way to administer a questionnaire is to use the __________. a. self-administered questionnaire b. open-ended interview c. unstructured interview d. laboratory experiment

a. self-administered questionnaire

The __________ interview uses __________. a. unstructured; open-ended questions b. structured; questions that the interviewer makes up as he or she goes along c. unstructured; closed-ended questions d. open; computerized responses

a. unstructured; open-ended questions

__________ are the people who respond to a survey. a. Researchers b. Respondents c. Interviewers d. Populations

b. Respondents

__________ is the extent to which an operational definition measures what it is intended to measure. a. A variable b. Validity c. Hypothesis d. Reliability

b. Validity

In the research model, collecting the data is necessary before __________. a. formulating a hypothesis b. analyzing the results c. defining the problem d. reviewing the literature

b. analyzing the results

Questions that include a set of choices from which the respondent can select are called __________. a. biased questions b. closed-ended questions c. stratified questions d. open-ended questions

b. closed-ended questions

The independent variable causes a change in the __________. a. control group b. dependent variable c. other independent variables in the study d. generalizability of the experiment

b. dependent variable

The best method of sociological research to use __________. a. is a survey b. depends on the type of question c. is an experiment d. is document analysis

b. depends on the type of question

Police reports, photographs, and videos are examples of __________ used by researchers. a. participant observation b. documents c. generalizability d. dependent variables

b. documents

The target group to be studied in a research project is the __________. a. survey b. population c. generalizability d. secondary analysis

b. population

After graduate-level study of sociology, sociologists trained in __________ research methods often use __________. a. qualitative; surveys b. qualitative; participant observation c. quantitative; participant observation d. quantitative; qualitative measures

b. qualitative; participant observation

In a __________, everyone in the target population has the same chance of being included in the study. a. stratified random sample b. random sample c. sample of any sort d. survey

b. random sample

In which stage of the research model might you discover that the question you are interested in answering has already been addressed? a. formulating a hypothesis b. reviewing the literature c. analyzing the results d. choosing a research method

b. reviewing the literature

A(n) __________ is a factor thought to be significant for human behavior, which can vary (change) from one case to another. a. operational definition b. variable c. hypothesis d. research method

b. variable

__________ is also known as "participant observation." a. "Teamwork" b. The "case study" c. "Fieldwork" d. "Secondary analysis"

c. "Fieldwork"

What is a valid sociological topic? a. anything involving psychology b. respectable human behavior c. all human activity d. only things that can be measured mathematically

c. All human activity

__________ means that two or more variables are present together. a. Control group b. An unobtrusive measure c. Correlation d. Secondary analysis

c. Correlation

When you select a sample for a sociological study, your aim is to get __________. a. everyone in the population b. your friends to be the sample c. a representative sample d. a different individual to answer each item on the questionnaire

c. a representative sample

In sociological research, gender __________. a. plays no role b. excludes female subjects from most contemporary social research c. bias must be guarded against d. always leads to interviewer bias

c. bias must be guarded against

A(n) __________ predicts a relationship between or among variables. a. research design b. literature review c. hypothesis d. aggregate

c. hypothesis

What you expect to find according to predictions from a theory is known as a(n) __________. a. variable b. research design c. hypothesis d. analysis of documents

c. hypothesis

When a researcher questions respondents directly, that researcher is conducting __________. a. random samples b. dependent variables c. interviews d. control groups

c. interviews

If the questions that you ask the people taking part in your study are not __________, you will end up with biased answers. a. easy b. designed to elicit the answers you want c. neutral d. complicated enough

c. neutral

In secondary analysis, researchers analyze data collected by __________. a. artificial intelligence b. their own interviews c. others d. the subjects themselves

c. others

The __________ is drawn from selected subgroups of a target population. a. questionnaire b. neutral question c. stratified random sample d. random sample

c. stratified random sample

A(n) __________ interview uses __________ questions. a. unstructured; closed-ended b. control; open-ended c. structured; closed-ended d. structured; open-ended

c. structured; closed-ended

A(n) __________ is the collection of data by having people answer a series of questions. a. sample b. population c. survey d. experiment

c. survey

Experiments use __________ to test __________. a. control groups; interview bias b. dependent variables; independent variables c. variables; causation d. documents; questionnaires

c. variables; causation

Plagiarism in sociological research __________. a. is acceptable in controlled experimental studies b. is probably unavoidable c. violates research ethics d. is acceptable in document studies

c. violates research ethics

__________ is a precise way to measure a variable. a. Reliability b. Validity c. The hypothesis d. An operational definition

d. An operational definition

What is the first step in the research model? a. reviewing the literature b. sharing the results c. beginning the case study d. choosing the subject matter

d. Choosing the subject matter

__________ are used to study people who are unaware that they are being studied. a. Questionnaires b. Interviews c. Open-ended questions d. Unobtrusive measures

d. Unobtrusive measures

Which of the following is an example of an open-ended question? a. Should public officials who accept bribes be jailed? b. In your opinion, should public officials who accept bribes be required to perform community service? c. Should public officials who have been convicted for accepting bribes be registered in a public list, in the same manner that sex offenders are registered? d. What do you think should be done to a public official who accepts bribes?

d. What do you think should be done to a public official who accepts bribes?

A case study reveals a lot about __________ situation(s). a. unimportant b. no particular c. all d. a particular

d. a particular

The __________ step in the research model is to share the results. a. first b. second c. next to last d. last

d. last

The control group subjects are __________ in the study. a. exposed to all variables b. not exposed to the dependent variable c. not d. not exposed to the independent variable

d. not exposed to the independent variable

Professional handling of confidential sociological field notes entails __________. a. publishing them only in professional journals b. burning the notes once the researcher has had time to draw conclusions from them c. publishing them online, so that anyone can read them d. protecting respondents

d. protecting respondents

Halid spent some time drawing up the questions for his __________, which is a set of questions respondents will be asked. a. survey b. sample c. experiment d. questionnaire

d. questionnaire

To collect data on your topic, you need to select the appropriate __________. a. publisher b. findings c. results d. research method

d. research method

Respondents use __________ to answer open-ended questions. a. a list of possible responses b. closed questions c. only single words, such as "true" or "false," d. their own words

d. their own words

Which of the following is a research method? a. ensuring validity b. operationalizing the definition c. divining an answer d. using unobtrusive measures

d. using unobtrusive measures