Social Sciences
What do scholars in social sciences study?
human behavior and interaction along with systems and social structures
Rely on collecting numerical data and performing statistical analysis
what is IMRaD format?
introduction, methods, results, and discussion
passive voice
do they prefer creative or straightforward titles?
straightforward
what are examples of social sciences?
sociology, psychology, anthropology, economics, communication studies, political science
Rely on language, observation, and reporting of individual human experiences
what needs to be in an introduction?
Establishes the context for the study, providing appropriate background on the issue or topic under scrutiny
Evidence of researcher’s review of previous scholarship on a topic
Hypothesis or thesis
what is the passive voice?
the subject of the sentence has something done to them by an agent
what is the role of theory in the social sciences?
Research in the social sciences is “messier” than in the natural sciences
Typically can’t be done in lab settings
Social scientists do not generally establish fixed laws or argue for absolute truths
Based on theories of human behavior and human systems
Propositions that scholars use to explain specific phenomena
Theories are not laws
what kind of processes do social sciences study?
political, economic, personal that contribute to our lives
what are mixed methods?
using both quantitative and qualitative methods
what needs to be in an abstract?
Typically follow the title of the report and the identification of the researchers
Provide a brief overview of the study
what is the active voice?
the subject of the sentence is the agent - the person or thing doing the action
what is the role of bias in the social sciences?
Little to no bias is important
Objectivity in quantitative research
Neutrality in qualitative research
Sometimes bias is inevitable
why is it important that scholars study social sciences?
it helps us understand why we do what we do
what is the IRB process?
Institutional review board (IRB)
A committee of individuals whose job is to review research proposals in light of ethical concerns for subjects and applicable laws
what needs to be in a conclusion?
Where researchers address conventional content coverage of their study’s limitations as well as their findings’ implications for future research
why is passive voice preferred?
what is hedging?
Limiting a claim by conditions or exceptions rather than making a definitive statement
Typically occurs when researchers want to make a claim or propose an explanation but also want to be extremely careful not to overstep the scope of their findings based on their actual data set