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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
!RaNd0m!
100
Define Researcher Bias.
Condition in which the prescience of the researcher introduces uncontrolled variables into the research, making it unreliable
100
Define social identity.
Collective or group of identities applied to roles. Different cultures group these and classify them. An example would be the identity of a male or female.
100
Define structured interview.
A set of standard questions asked by the researcher of the respondent.
100
Define triangulation.
The use of two or more research methods where the weaknesses of one can be offset by the strengths of the other, to improve overall research reliability and validity.
100
What type of experiment takes place in the "real world".
Field experiments
200
Explain and define 'Ideology' and its meaning with the use of an example.
Ideology is a system of related beliefs. An example would be any form of religious beliefs.
200
Define and explain the meaning of the term 'mass culture'.
Culture of the masses as opposed to the high culture of the ruling elite, characterized as simple and worthless. Mass culture may include trends such as popular music whereas high culture involves classical music.
200
Give 2 strengths of content analysis.
1) It can identify underlying themes and patterns of behavior that may not be immediately apparent 2) It has predictive qualities, such as predicting future conflict
200
Why are positivists not interested in descriptive accounts of research?
Positivists prefer quantitative methods with greater "scientific accuracy" are observational results.
200
What are the three stages Auguste Comte argued human societies pass through?
Theological, metaphysical, and positive
300
Describe Oberg's emergent research design. What methodology does this relate to?
This is part of the interpretivist methodology. It includes: planning, data collection (people are studied subjectively), data analysis (takes place throughout the research process), and evaluation (which does not seek to draw a conclusion).
300
Give the seven functions that culture performs according to Mazrui (1996).
The functions are communication, perception, identity, value systems, motivation, stratification, and production.
300
How can questionnaires provide unintentionally biased questions?
The question could have more than one meaning, which would mean that people were answering different questions. Leading questions also suggest a required answer by using language such as most people believe. Hypothetical questions can also make respondents imagine themselves in a position they do not actually hold.
300
Explain the main view of positivism.
It is both possible and desirable to study social behavior using similar methods as those used when studying the natural world. Social systems are made up of structures that exist mainly of individuals.
300
What are the two things Marxists claim is the basis of social control and order?
The economic base, involving owner, manager, laborer, and its organisation. The political and ideological superstructure of political institutions of government.
400
Explain how the different parts of society work together to form a social system.
Functionalists, such as Murdock and Parsons, agree that social systems consist of four subsystems: political, cultural, economic, and family. Each performs different functions that address certain issues in society. Connections between subsystems allow members of society to survive.
400
Describe how men and women are biologically programmed with different traits, which lead them to perform different roles.
Women are passive and nurturing. They are best suited to care for children and the elderly. This makes them well-suited to child-rearing. Men are more aggressive and are best-suited for the providing role. This translates to paid work in contemporary societies.
400
Why would there be possibility of invalid data in an unnatural setting?
Respondents may behave or respond differently in a laboratory setting due to unfamiliarity and lack of comfort and feeling much like they are in a study. While unethical, an unnatural setting could still be used with deception.
400
How do value judgments influence a researcher's choice of topic?
The subjective nature of value judgements means that personal beliefs about how something should be studied will likely heavily influence the choice of method. For example, if a researcher feels it is unethical to do something, they will probably choose to abandon this option.
400
Define 'value judgments'.
Judgements based solely on the values of those making a decision; value judgements are, by definition, subjective.
500
Assess the idea that globalisation results in a lack of unique culture.
Globalised culture reflects how the local or national cultural developments can spread, to be picked up, shaped and changed to suit the needs of different groups. This can result in the creation of something new, different and unique, a process known as cultural hybridisation. On the other hand, an alternative interpretation suggests a process of convergence and similarity within cultural groups. Many products and services have spread throughout the world, homogenizing some forms of culture into things that can be bought and sold. Sklair argues that to understand global cultural development we need to think about localised globalism, globalised localism, and global cultural convergence.
500
Assess the view that social engineering will cause social problems.
Social engineering is when individuals are manipulated to produce desired social outcomes, like gender equality when females and males do no fulfill gender roles. It turns into a less efficient way of organizing human cultural relationships. Social engineering shapes people into how society wants them to be so that they can perform effective roles with their society. This can benefit the economy. On the other hand, social engineering will not cause problems because it will help people conform the societal rules and laws. People will always obey the rules and laws of a society. Less people will disobey the laws put forth by society.
500
Explain and identify 3 reasons why secondary documents may pose reliability problems, and why this makes it difficult to generalize.
1) They are incomplete thoughts that may not be applicable to a large group of people due to individual differences 2) They are inaccurate: some secondary data may include false information or be misinterpreted 3)They are unrepresentative: data may only be representative of the individual who wrote it, making them unreliable and ungeneralizable because of individual differences
500
What makes a research approach unreliable and how can the reliability be improved?
A research approach is unreliable if the different answers are drawn. The reliability can be improved by standardizing the research approach. This allows less scope for differences to occur in the way that different researchers ask questions and collect data.
500
Evaluate the extent to which non-representative sampling his useful to society.
Unrepresentative samples can be used when findings do not have to be generalized. They are useful methods for case studies and can be used to highlight individual differences. They can produce highly detailed and valid findings. However, they can not be generalized to wider populations. Conclusions can not be made about the nature of something, and they are not useful to wider society.