Socy 210 Exam

Front 1

Why Sample?

Back 1

- Need a process to select participants and observations on which to carry out in a study
- Studying a whole population may be impossible
- More accurate information

Front 2

What Are Two Major Types of Sampling?

Back 2

- Non Probability
- Probability

Front 3

What is Non Probability Sampling?

Back 3

- Simple
- Common in qualitative studies
- May be unrepresentative
- Elements of population don’t stand an equal chance of selection

Front 4

What is Probability Sampling?

Back 4

- Most common in social research, quantitative studies
- Representative of the larger population
- Elements have equal chance of selection

Front 5

What is Purposive/Judgemental Sampling?

Back 5

- Sample selected on the basis of your own knowledge of the population you intend to study and your research questions
- Useful when studying a small subset of a larger population

Front 6

What is Snowball Sampling?

Back 6

- When already recruited respondents provide the researcher with assistance in locating other members of the population under study
- Useful when members of a population are particularly difficult to locate
- I.e. sex workers, undocumented immigrants
- Representative is problematic (because the outcomes become too similar)

Front 7

What is Haphazard Sampling?

Back 7

- Reliance of available subjects
- Use of those available subjects at a particular time
- Convenient and inexpensive
- Not representative of a larger population
- Difficult to generalize
- I.e. recruiting subjects on the street, or in a classroom.

Front 8

What is Quota Sampling?

Back 8

- Helps address the issue of representativeness of a sample
- Begins with a table describing the characteristics of the target population
- With this you try to assign equal portions of people who belong to different groups to your sample

Front 9

What is Representativeness?

Back 9

- A sample is said to be representative of a population if its aggregate characteristics closely approximate those aggregate characteristics in the population
- Basic Principle: ALL member os a given population should stand an equal chance of being selected for a particular sample

Front 10

What is Population?

Back 10

- Theoretically specified aggregation of the elements in a study
- I.e. Canadians, sociology students

Front 11

What is Sample?

Back 11

- Portion of the population from which information is collected

Front 12

What is a Sampling Unit?

Back 12

- Elements considered for selection during some stage of sampling
- The elements of a population that are available and have an equal chance of being selected to form the sample

Front 13

What is the Sampling Frame?

Back 13

- List or quasi list of elements from which a probability sample is selected (i.e. a roster, phone books)
- Compiled lit of individual sampling units
- A summary description of a given variable ( i.e. proportion of people who smoke)
- In a population is called a parameter
- In a sample is called a statistic

Front 14

Simple Random Sampling (SRS)

Back 14

- Most basic method of random sampling
Research participants selected at random from a sampling frame
- Computer assisted

Front 15

Stratified Sampling

Back 15

- You begin with a table describing the characteristics of the target population and dividing it into homogeneous subsets (strata)
(i.e. race, gender, nationality)
- A proportion of individuals from each strata assigned to the sample matching the proportion of individuals from that group who belong to the population at large

Front 16

Cluster Sampling

Back 16

- Used when it is either impossible or impractical to compile an exhaustive list of the elements that compose a large population
- Population elements may already be grouped into subpopulations, of which lists actually exist

Front 17

What is RDD?

Back 17

- Random Digit Dialling

Front 18

What is a Statistic?

Back 18

- The summary description go a variable in a sample

Front 19

Why Qualitative Field Research?

Back 19

- Social research “right where it happens”
- Deeper understanding of social phenomena
- Probing social life in its natural habitat
- Good to study social processes over time as they happen
- Data collecting and theory generating

Front 20

What is Case Study Design?

Back 20

- Common in qualitative fieldwork
- Not a mode of observation, but a type of research design where attention is paid to a single instance of some social phenomenon
- Used in both qualitative and quantitative research
- Sometimes used as preliminary to a more elaborate study

Front 21

The Extended Case Method

Back 21

- Developed by Micheal Burawoy
- Used to discover flaws and modify existing social theories
- 1st step: researcher enter the field with a clear expectation of what to find
-2nd step: notes how observations conflict with extant theory and whether they support of reject what already exist
- Theory ->Observations= largely deductive

Front 22

Grounded Theory Approach

Back 22

- When researched don’t begin with a preconceived idea, but instead allows theory to emerge from the data

Front 23

Ethnographies

Back 23

- Rooted in naturalism, observing events and people in a natural setting, this is important and specific because it considers what people do not do what they say they do

Front 24

How to “Get In Field Research"

Back 24

- Gather relevant literature
- To gain access into the field
- Identify the gatekeeper: formal access and consent by contacting the person in charge.
- Seek out the informant: establishing contact with a member who introduces you to the field
- Join the group: secures membership status
- In some cases deception in used

Front 25

What is a Complete Observer?

Back 25

- Observes the field but does not participate in the activities that take place in the field

Front 26

What is the Participant Observer?

Back 26

- Reveals that she or he is a researcher but still participates in the activities that take place in the field

Front 27

What is a Complete Participant?

Back 27

- Engages fully in activities with other members

Front 28

Strengths of Field Research?

Back 28

- In depth understanding of social phenomena and subtle nuances in attitudes and behaviours
- Flexibility
- May or May not be expensive
- Validity

Front 29

Weaknesses of Field Research?

Back 29

- Reliability
- Not representative of larger populations

Front 30

What is PAR?

Back 30

- Participatory Action Research
- Critiques the distinction between researcher and subject
- The researcher becomes a resource to those being studied

Front 31

Why Experiments?

Back 31

- Mode of observation that enables researchers to explore casual relationships
- Involves taking action and noting the consequences that follow from that action

Front 32

What is Stimulus?

Back 32

- Independent variable

Front 33

What is Effect?

Back 33

- Dependent variale on which the stimulus has some impact

Front 34

What is Placebo?

Back 34

- Inactive treatment (substance) designed to resemble the stimulus being tested

Front 35

What are the Stages of Experiementation?

Back 35

- Pre-testing
- Subjects are measured in terms of D.V before the stimulus or placebo is applied
- Post-testing
- Subjects are measured in terms of the D.V. after the stimulus or placebo is applied

Front 36

What is an Experimental group?

Back 36

- Groups of subjects which is administered the stimulus

Front 37

What is the Control Group?

Back 37

- Group of subjects which is administer no stimulus

Front 38

What is a Double Blinds Experiment?

Back 38

- Neither subjects nor researchers know which group is receiving the stimulus
- Ensures that subjects do no display changes in the D.V. by being aware of the fact they are receiving a stimulus

Front 39

Single Blind?

Back 39

- Subjects don't know

Front 40

Triple Blind?

Back 40

- Subjects, researchers and data analysts don’t know

Front 41

What is an Open-Ended Question?

Back 41

- Respondent is asked to provide her own answer to a question
(i.e. by filling in the blank)

Front 42

What is a Close-Ended Question?

Back 42

- Respondent is asked to select an answer from a list provided by the researcher

Front 43

What are some common pitfalls in question writing?

Back 43

- Jargan, Slang, Abbreviations
- Vagueness
- Emotionally Charger Language
- Leading Questions
- Double Barrelled questions
- when and is in the question
- Question beyond respondents capabilities
- Question not relevant to respondent
- Negative items and double negatives
- Threatening questions

Front 44

What are Contingency questions?

Back 44

- Yes or No
- If you how many times?

Front 45

What are Matrix Questions?

Back 45

- When you want to ask several questions that have the same set of answer categories
- Pros: save questionnaire space
- Cons: might stop reading the questions carefully and answer all questions in a general pattern
(question: sa a d sd u)

Front 46

Self Administered Survey

Back 46

- Most common is mail surveys
- Questionnaire, a set of instructions and envelope for the respondent to send back the completed form
- Not too costly
- people feel more comfortable giving answers here rather than face to face
- Low response rate
- Bias, only people who feel strong about the issue will respond

Front 47

Phone Surveys

Back 47

- Very common method
- Interviewer calls respondent and ask questions and record answers

Front 48

Web Survey

Back 48

- Respondent is directed to a site to answer a questionnaire
- Email Survey

Front 49

Face to Face Interview

Back 49

- Researcher sens interviews to ask question orally and record answers
- High response rate

Front 50

Use of Existing Statistics

Back 50

- Researcher uses both information and statistical inferences carried out by someone else
- Supplemental source of data in both quantitative/ qualitative research

Front 51

Problems with Existing Statistics

Back 51

- Availability of reliable and valid statistical records
- Gap between the intentions of data collectors and the needs of the data analyst

Front 52

Content Analysis

Back 52

- Study of recorded human communications
Pros: cheap not time consuming
Safe
Easy to repeat
Cons: Limited to the examination of recorded communications

Front 53

What is Evaluation Research

Back 53

What is Evaluation Research
- Form of applied research undertaken for the purpose of determining the value of a social intervention
- Appropriate for any study of planned o actual social intervention
- Applied as opposed to basic research
- Evaluation research always takes place in a political context