Sociology

Instructor: Dr. Mariam Al Hasbani

Fall Semester
2023-2024
 Chapter 2
Asking and Answering Sociological Questions

1. Steps of the Sociological Research Process

2. Research Methods
• Quantitative and Qualitative research methods
• Ethnography
• Survey
• Experiments
• Comparative Research
3. Scientific Research: Sociology versus Natural Sciences
• Standards for Scientific Research
 Steps of the Sociological Research Process

Conducting sociological research is a process which includes seven main steps:

1. Define the Research Problem: Select a topic for research & state the problem that
you want to investigate and your main research question.
2. Review the Literature: Review related research works to familiarize yourself with
existing studies on the topic.
3. Make the Problem Precise & Formulate Hypotheses: State how to approach the
problem (theoretically), and put forward ideas/guesses to test empirically.
4. Select a Research Design: Decide how to collect the research data, which research
method(s) to use. Decision depends on the type of research question addressed.
5. Carry out the Research: Collect data based on the research methods you selected.
6. Interpret the Results: analyze the collected data and test your hypotheses.
7. Report the Research Findings: Write and disseminate the findings.
 Research Methods

• Remember step 4 in research process- Selecting a Research Design

QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE
research design/ methods research design/methods
Use objective and statistical data Use data derived from interviews, accounts or
observations
Survey -most commonly used method Ethnography or Fieldwork - most commonly
used method
Use of large samples Use of few cases

Focus on documenting trends, comparing Offer great depth and rich details on a topic.
subgroups, or exploring correlations.
Can’t offer great depth and detail on a topic.

We can use a qualitative or a quantitative method (or both sometimes) to study the same topic/issue.
 Ethnography
• A qualitative method widely used in sociological research.
• Def. : A firsthand study of people using observations, interviews, or both. Also called
fieldwork.
• Ethnographers, when studying a group, organization, or community, may choose to observe at
a distance and not participate directly in the activities under observation, OR choose
• Participant observation method - researcher participates directly in the activities of the
group or community being studied.
 Changes in Ethnographic work:
o Problems encountered in conducting research were excluded now mentioned.
o Objective reports were expected from ethnographers now more open info about the
observers/ethnographers & their link to the people under study.
• Strengths: Produces richer and more in-depth information than other methods on peoples’
behavior; & better understanding of broader social processes.
• Limitations: Study only small groups or communities; findings not easy to generalize; &
researchers may lose the objective perspective.
 Surveys

• Most commonly used method in quantitative research.

• Def.: A method of sociological research in which questionnaires are administered to the population
being studied.
• Survey research produces information that is less detailed but can be generalized to the population as a
whole.
• Two types of questions are used in surveys: Standardized (fixed- choice) questions and Open-ended
questions. (A questionnaire’s terminology must be understandable)
• Most surveys are preceded by pilot studies, which reveal problems with the survey not anticipated by
the investigator.
• Sampling: “Studying a proportion of individuals or cases from a larger population as representative of
that population as a whole”
- Selecting a Sample that is Representative (statistically typical of the larger population) is important so
the survey results can be generalized to the total population.
- One important procedure that ensure that a sample is representative is: Random Sampling.
• Advantages: large numbers of people studied, responses easily quantified, compared and analyzed.
• Disadvantages: High nonresponse levels, findings accuracy may be doubtful due to shallow nature of
 Experiments and Comparative Research

Experiment:
“A research method by which variables can be analyzed in a controlled and systematic way, either in an
artificial situation constructed by the researcher or in a naturally occurring setting.”
• In a typical experiment, people are randomly assigned to two groups: The Experimental group
(receives some special attention based on the researcher’s theory) and the Control group. Examples…
• Advantages: Easier for researchers to repeat, test a hypothesis under highly controlled conditions.
• Disadvantages: Artificial -not real-life situations, human behavior affected by the experimental situation,
difficult to generalize results as only small groups studied.
Comparative Research:
“Research that compares one set of findings on one society with the same type of findings on other
societies”.
• It enables researchers to document whether social behavior varies across time and place, and by one’s
social group membership.
• Most comparative work is quantitative (but could be qualitative) .
• Most influential way of doing comparative research is through historical research. Ex: Skocpol’s ‘States
and Social Revolutions’ (1979) and Wimmer’s ‘Waves of War’ (2012) comparative historical studies.
 Scientific Research: Sociology versus Natural Sciences

• Q: Can we study human social life in a scientific way?

• Science: is the use of systematic methods of empirical investigation, the analysis of data,
theoretical thinking, and the logical assessment of arguments to develop a body of knowledge
about specific subject matter.
According to this definition, sociology is a scientific endeavor.
• The organized series of steps of research process we explained … is the scientific method that
sociologists use in studying society/human social life.
• Sociology is not equivalent to a natural science… We cannot study human beings in the same
way as we can study objects in nature.
• However, there are common values or basic standards for any research to be scientific -in
both the natural sciences and the social sciences.
• Three basic standards that sociological research tries to meet to be scientific: 1) Inference - to
be able to generalize or to make broader claims about phenomena. 2) Procedure of collecting
and analyzing data should be public. 3) all sources of uncertainty in a study should be specified.