• Be sure the topic you have chosen is not too broad. You must be able to cover it adequately in a reason­able amount of time and a reasonable number of pages.

• Develop an outline for your report. Be sure that you have an introduction and a conclusion that relate to each other—and that the discussion proceeds logically throughout the paper. Use headings within the paper if they will improve clarity and organization.

• Do not leave all the writing until the last minute. It is best to write a rough draft, let it sit for a few days, and then take a fresh look before beginning revi­sions.

• If possible, read your paper aloud. Doing so may be helpful in locating sections or phrases that do not make sense.

Remember that all information which you have ob­tained from other sources must be cited. If an author's exact words are used, it is essential that they be placed within quotation marks. Even if you reword someone else's ideas, you must indicate the source of these ideas.

Some professors may require that students use foot­notes in research reports. Others will allow students to employ the form of referencing used in this textbook, which follows the format of the American Sociological Association. If you see "(Merton, 1968:27)" listed after a statement or paragraph, it means that the material has been adapted from page 27 of a work published by Merton in 1968 and listed in the reference section at the back of this textbook.

♦ SUMMARY

Sociologists are committed to the use of scientific method in their research efforts. In this chapter, we examine the basic principles of scientific method and study various techniques used by sociologists in con­ducting research.

1. There are five basic steps in scientific method: de­fining the problem, reviewing the literature, formulat­ing the hypothesis, selecting the research design and then collecting and analyzing data, and developing the conclusion.

2. Whenever researchers wish to study abstract con­cepts such as intelligence or prejudice, they must de­velop workable operational definitions.

3. A hypothesis usually states a possible relationship between two or more variables.

4. According to scientific method, research results must possess both validity and reliability.

5. By using specialized sampling techniques, sociolo­gists avoid the necessity of testing everyone in a popu­lation.

6. The conclusion of a research study should ideally generate ideas for future investigation.

7. When sociologists wish to study a cause-and-effect relationship they may conduct an experiment.

8. In the classic method of conducting an experi­ment, an experimental group is exposed to an indepen­dent variable while a control group is not.

9. Participant observation allows sociologists to study certain behaviors and communities that cannot be in­vestigated through other research methods.

10. The two principal forms of survey research are the interview and the questionnaire.

11. Unobtrusive measures are research techniques that have no impact on what is being studied.

12. The Code of Professional Ethics of the American Sociological Association includes among its basic prin­ciples objectivity and integrity in research, respect lot the subject's right to privacy, and preservation of confi­dentiality.

13. Max Weber urged sociologists to practice value neutrality in their research by ensuring that their per­sonal feelings do not influence the interpretation of data.

♦ KEY TERMS

Causal logic The relationship between a condition or variable and a particular consequence where one event leads to another, (page 36)

Code of ethics The standards of acceptable behavior

that are developed by and for members of a profes­sion. (49)

Content analysis The systematic coding and objective recording of data, guided by some rationale. (47)

Control group Subjects in an experiment who are not introduced to the independent variable by the re­searcher. (41)

Control variable A factor held constant to test the rela­tive impact of an independent variable. (39)

Correlation A relationship between two variables whereby a change in one coincides with a change in the other. (36)

Cross-tabulation A table that shows the relationship between two or more variables. (48)

Dependent variable The variable in a causal relation­ship which is subject to the influence of another vari­able. (36)

Experiment An artificially created situation which al­lows the researcher to manipulate variables and in­troduce control variables. (41)

Experimental group Subjects in an experiment who are exposed to an independent variable introduced by a researcher. (41)

Hawthorne effect The unintended influence that ob­servers or experiments can have on their subjects. (44)

Hypothesis A speculative statement about the relation­ship between two or more variables. (36)

Independent variable The variable in a causal relation­ship which, when altered, causes or influences a change in a second variable. (36)

Index An indicator of attitudes, behavior, or charac­teristics of people or organizations. (38)

Interview A face-to-face or telephone questioning of л respondent to obtain desired information. (45)

Operational definition An explanation of an abstract concept that is specific enough to allow a researcher to measure it. (35)

Participant observation A research technique in which an investigator collects information through direct involvement with and observation of a group, tribe, or community. (42)

Pictograph A graph which uses symbols to show the relationship between different variables. (48)

Questionnaire A printed research instrument em­ployed to obtain desired information from a re­spondent. (45)

Random sample A sample for which every member of the entire population has the same chance of being selected. (37)

Reliability The extent to which a measure provides consistent results. (38)

Replication The repetition of a given investigation in

PART ONE ♦ THE SOCIOL

OGICAL PERSPECTIVE

substantially the same way as it was originally con­ducted, either by the original scientist or by other scientists. (49)

Representative sample A selection from a larger popu­lation which is statistically found to be typical of that population. (37)

Research design A detailed plan or method for obtain­ing data scientifically. (41)

Scale An indicator of attitudes, behavior, or charac­teristics of people or organizations. (38)

Scientific method A systematic, organized series of steps that ensures maximum objectivity and consist­ency in researching a problem. (33)

Survey A study, generally in the form of interviews or questionnaires, which provides sociologists and other researchers with information concerning how people think and act. (45)

Unobtrusive measures Research techniques in which the method of study has no influence on the subjects under investigation. (46)

Validity The degree to which a scale or measure truly reflects the phenomenon under study. (38)

Value neutrality Max Weber's term for objectivity of sociologists in the interpretation of data. (53)

Variable A measurable trait or characteristic that is subject to change under different conditions. (36)

♦ ADDITIONAL READINGS

Bok, Sissela. Lying: Moral Choice in Public and Private Life. New York: Pantheon, 1978. The author, a phi­losopher who teaches medical ethics at Harvard Uni­versity, addresses the use of lying and deception in both public and private life. This book includes chapters on excuses, lies in a crisis, deceptive social science research, and lies to the sick and dying.

Cuba, Lee J. A Short Guide to Writing about Social Science. Glenview, 111.: Scott, Foresman, 1988. A concise (165 pages) but thorough summary of the types of social science literature, with suggestions on writing a re­search paper and organizing an oral presentation.

Denisoff, R. Serge. Inside MTV. Rutgers, N.J.: Transac­tion, 1988. Known for his studies of popular culture, Denisoff employs the sociological perspective to ex­amine a profitable 24-hour cable outlet.

Golden, M. Patricia (ed.). The Research Experience. Itasca, 111.: Peacock, 1976. Golden presents a number of classical sociological studies, along with the re­searchers' insights regarding the problems they en­countered.

Huff, Darrell. How to Lie with Statistics. New York: Norton, 1954. "Figures don't lie, but liars do figure" is an adage that points to the way that statistics can be abused. Huff offers guidance to the reader unso­phisticated in statistics as to how to better understand numbers, graphs, and tables.

Miller, Delbert C. Handbook of Research Design and Social Measurement (4th ed.). New York: Longman, 1983. A veritable encyclopedia of scales, indices, and mea­sures used in sociological studies. Also includes guides to library research, writing of reports, and grant funding.

Simon, Julian, and Paul Bui stein. Basic Research Meth­ods in Social Sciences (3d ed.). New York: Random House, 1985. This authoritative book, frequently used in sociology methods courses, examines the rea­sons for conducting research and discusses data analysis.

Webb, Fugene J., Donald T. Campbell, Richard D. Schwait/. Lee Sechrest, and Janet Below Grove. Nonreactive Measures in the Social Sciences (2d ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1981. The authors iden­tify unobtrusive methods of obtaining social science data other than questionnaires or interviews.

Journals

Among the journals that focus on methods of sociolog­ical and other social scientific research are Irb: A Re­view of Human Subjects Research (which was founded in 1979), Qualitative Sociology (1977), Social Science Research (1972), and Sociological Methods and Research (1972).