Transcript
Research Methods
Introduction to Sociology
1)
When conducting research, a sociologist's own personal experience is not ________ enough to produce accurate statements about the larger society.
Answer:
general
2)
Counting and precise measurement of observable behaviour, concentration on a limited number of variables, and prediction are all hallmarks of a ________ approach to sociology.
Answer:
quantitative
3)
A/an ________ is a set of interrelated statements that organizes and summarizes knowledge about some part of the social world.
Answer:
theory
4)
________ logic involves making connecting links between related theoretical statements.
Answer:
Axiomatic
Diff: 3
5)
________ definitions describe the actual procedures or operations used to measure theoretical concepts.
Answer:
Operational
6)
A ________ for sociologists is something (like income or religion) that takes on different values in different groups.
Answer:
variable
7)
________ means that repeated measurements of the same variable with the same or equivalent instruments should be equal.
Answer:
Reliability
8)
A ________ sample is derived from a population by pure chance, and is designed to provide a miniature picture of that population.
Answer:
random
9)
________ analysis involves the examination of themes from communications such as conversations, letters, newspapers, books or movies.
Answer:
Content
10)
Sociologists often formulate hypotheses that Variable A is related to Variable B with "other things being equal", where the "other things" are termed ________ variables.
Answer:
Control
11)
________ refers to how well experimenters can generalize from the lab to the real world, from hypothetical questions to actual behaviour.
Answer:
external validity
12)
Using the method of ________, a researcher asks permission to join and observe a group and to question its members about the meanings of their behaviour.
Answer:
participant observation
13)
Theory rooted in and arising from data collected by the researcher is known as ________ theory.
Answer:
grounded
Diff: 3
14)
________ research involves collecting data on independent and dependent variables at the same time.
Answer:
Cross-sectional
15)
________ is the application of several research methods to the same topic, in the hope that the weaknesses of one method will be balanced by the strength of the others.
Answer:
Triangulation
16)
Durkheim adopted a position called ________, meaning that he wanted to use the research methods of the natural sciences, appropriately adapted, for the social sciences.
A)
Positivism
B)
Constructivism
C)
Observational
D)
Socialist
E)
Scientology
Answer:
A
17)
Most quantitative sociologists never actually:
A)
publish their results
B)
observe the behaviour of the people they study
C)
worry about reliability and validity
D)
develop comprehensive hypotheses and theories
E)
use survey data
Answer:
B
18)
Weber argued that the social sciences should not borrow research methods from the natural sciences because humans engage in meaningful, goal-directed behaviour, called ________.
A)
experimentation
B)
democracy
C)
social action
D)
cooperation
E)
distortion
Answer:
C
19)
________ logic involves deriving a specific statement from a more general statement.
A)
Axiomatic
B)
Operational
C)
Deductive
D)
Inductive
E)
Rational
Answer:
C
Diff: 3
20)
________ ________ describe the actual procedures or operations used to measure theoretical concepts.
A)
Variable languages
B)
Inference testing
C)
Spurious samples
D)
Manipulated definitions
E)
Operational definitions
Answer:
E
21)
Rarely do researchers have the time or resources to study everyone they want to therefore they usually draw a ________ selecting a subset of individuals from the population they wish to study.
A)
variable
B)
replicate
C)
experiment
D)
operation
E)
sample
Answer:
E
Diff: 1
22)
A sample in which the various elements of a population are chosen in the same proportion as they appear in the population is called a ________.
A)
convenience sample
B)
mirror sample
C)
quota sample
D)
random sample
E)
cluster sample
Answer: C
23)
Which of the following is not an example of a random sampling method?
A)
selecting people at random off a street corner
B)
randomly selecting respondents from a list of tax-paying Canadians
C)
clustering a city, randomly selecting from these clusters, then randomly selecting people in these clusters from a complete list of addresses
D)
a quota sample collected randomly from a list of the research population
E)
using random digit dialing for a telephone administered survey
Answer:
A
Diff: 3
24)
________ analysis involves the examination of themes from communication such as conversations, letters, newspapers, books or movies.
A)
Time based
B)
Reliable
C)
External
D)
Content
E)
Marginal
Answer:
D
25)
Many qualitative sociologists feel that because most theories about social life are incomplete, ________ is a better word than theory. The use of that term allows a greater flexibility.
A)
manipulation
B)
sampling
C)
deductive
D)
fluctuating
E)
perspective
Answer:
E
Diff: 3
26)
Participant observers tend to collect their data first and conclude with what they call ________ theory.
A)
polls
B)
outright
C)
respondent
D)
under-representation
E)
grounded
Answer:
E
27)
Participant observers are more likely than others to use ________ logic in developing their hypotheses and theories.
A)
inverted
B)
inductive
C)
deductive
D)
rational
E)
pre-experimental
Answer:
B
28)
Although experiments are very useful for determining cause and effect, they are often difficult to conduct when studying human subjects. Human research subjects may behave differently under experimental conditions than they would usually behave because they want to please the experimenters. This phenomenon has been called ________.
A)
social imitation
B)
inductive reasoning
C)
deductive reasoning
D)
the placebo effect
E)
the Hawthorne effect
Answer:
E
29)
________ analysis examines those cases that fail to support the generalizations drawn from the compiled data.
A)
Control variable
B)
Small studies
C)
Conflict
D)
Negative case
E)
Longitudinal
Answer:
D
30)
In participant observation, ________ is difficult.
A)
replication
B)
leaving the research field
C)
working overtly
D)
direct observation
E)
sampling
Answer:
A
31)
Which of the following is NOT required to demonstrate that A causes B?
A)
a logical connection between A and B
B)
A occurs before B
C)
A and B are connected through C, a variable causing both A and B
D)
Removing A will result in the removal of B
E)
Removing B will not necessarily result in the removal of A
Answer:
C
32)
The application of several research methods to the same topic is known as:
A)
multi-research
B)
content analysis
C)
triangulation
D)
cross-variation
E)
variation
Answer:
C
33)
Survey research is forced to deal in ________, demonstrations that changes in one variable go with changes in another.
A)
qualitative data
B)
grounded theory
C)
effective hypotheses
D)
correlations
E)
qualitative data
Answer:
D
Diff: 3
34)
Using a strategy called "praxis," Marxists often:
A)
tend to avoid content analysis
B)
act upon their research
C)
use ethnomethodology as the key method
D)
avoid getting involved in political issues
E)
use covert research methods
Answer:
B
Diff: 3
35)
One of the problems with using someone else's data, a procedure called ________ ________, is that they may be incomplete, since the original collectors were not aware of the information later researchers would need.
A)
secondary analysis
B)
survey research
C)
primary source
D)
latent data
E)
spurious relationship
Answer:
A
36)
A/n ________ approach, which sees history as a series of conflicts over existing material arrangements, is also attractive to Marxists.
A)
secondary
B)
historical
C)
comparative
D)
dialectical
E)
ethnomethodological
Answer:
D
Diff: 3
37)
The type of analysis which requires researchers to study several societies is known as
A)
historical analysis
B)
comparative analysis
C)
inter-societal analysis
D)
cross-cultural methods
E)
content analysis
Answer:
B
38)
Data produced by eyewitnesses at the time an event occurs are described as ________ by historical analysts.
A)
subjective
B)
objective
C)
a secondary source
D)
a primary source
E)
skewed
Answer:
D
39)
Supposed that variables A and B are correlated, but A does not cause B. If a researcher inferred that A causes B, this would be an example of:
A)
causality
B)
a spurious relationship
C)
correlation
D)
a primary source
E)
a secondary source
Answer:
B
40)
What is a hypothesis? A theory? Give an example of each.
41)
Recall that operational definitions describe the actual procedures used to measure theoretical concepts. How would you operationalize sexism in the work place?
Diff: 3
42)
What is cluster sampling? What is quota sampling? Give an example of each.
Diff: 2
43)
Briefly explain how participant observers develop grounded theory using inductive logic.
Diff: 3
44)
Compare and contrast participant observation versus survey research methodologies. What are the strengths and weaknesses of each? Include comments on validity, generalizability and reliability.
Diff: 3
45)
Counting and precise measurement of observable behaviour, concentration on a limited number of variables, and prediction are all hallmarks of a quantitative approach to doing sociology.
Answer:
TRUE
46)
A theory is a set of interrelated statements that organizes and summarizes knowledge about some part of the social world.
Answer:
TRUE
47)
Validity is a statement of presumed relationship between two or more variables.
Answer:
FALSE
48)
Axiomatic logic involves making connecting links between related statements.
Answer:
TRUE
49)
Dependent variables are considered the 'causal variable' in research that explains why something happens.
Answer:
FALSE
50)
A variable for sociologists is something (like income or religion) that takes on different values in different groups.
Answer:
TRUE
Diff: 1
51)
Validity means that repeated measurements of the same variable with the same or equivalent instruments should be equal.
Answer:
FALSE
52)
A random sample is derived from a population by pure chance, and is designed to provide a miniature picture of that population.
Answer:
TRUE
53)
Cluster sampling involves randomly sampling smaller and smaller units within larger units.
Answer:
TRUE
54)
Operational analysis involves the examination of themes from communications such as conversations, letters, newspapers, books or movies.
Answer:
FALSE
55)
Cross-sectional research involves collecting data on independent and dependent variables at the same time.
Answer:
TRUE
Diff: 3
56)
Direct observation of real-life behaviour is rare in quantitative research.
Answer:
TRUE
57)
Theory rooted in and arising from data collected by the researcher is known as deductive theory.
Answer:
FALSE
Diff: 3
58)
Since historical records are usually official documents, validity is hardly ever an issue in historical analyses.
Answer:
FALSE
59)
In general, Marxists agree with Durkheim, that positivism is an important methodology that should be used to study social reality.
Answer:
FALSE
