1. The Sociological Perspective and Research Process
Chapter 1
The Sociological Perspective and Research Process

2. The Sociological Research Process
Research Model
Question or Problem
Review Prior research
Formulate hypothesis
Test the hypothesis (data collection & analysis)
Draw conclusions & report the findings

3. Primary & Secondary Data
Primary Data
the
Truth

4. Qualitative & Quantitative Approaches
. . . is typically used to answer questions about the complex nature of phenomena, often with the purpose of describing and understanding the phenomena from the participants’ points of view.
. . . is used to answer questions about relationships among measured variable with the purpose of explaining, predicting, and controlling phenomena.

5. Four Scales of Measurement
One object is different from another – nominal
One object is bigger or better or more of anything than another – ordinal
One object is so many more units (degrees, inches) than another – interval
One object is so many times as big or bright or tall or heavy - ratio

6. Validity and Reliability of Measurement
measures what it is supposed to measure.
Consistency
of results

7. Inductive Reasoning Deductive Logic
A conclusion is generalized and applied to the understanding of other phenomenon.
Observations about various phenomenon help people draw conclusions.

8. Research Methods The Phenomenon Survey Field Research Questionnaire
Observation
Ethnography
Questionnaire
Interview
Experiments
Causation versus Correlation
Ethical issues in research

9. Why Study Sociology?

10. Lingo/terminology Sociology Society
“The Sociological Imagination” (C. Wright Mills)
Personal Troubles or Public Issues
Is suicide a personal trouble or a public issue?
Homelessness?
Violence?

11. High-income countries Middle-Income countries Low-Income countries
Societies differ economically and socially
High-income countries
Middle-Income countries
Low-Income countries
How might these differences affect individuals lives??

12. Sociology and Other Social Sciences
Anthropology
Economics
SOCIOLOGY
Psychology
Political Science

13. Industrialization Urbanization
The Development of Sociological Thinking
Industrialization
Agriculture to manufacturing
Urbanization
Living in cities
Shift from producers to consumers
“Significant Events That Changed Society”

15. Positivism
Racial & Gender Equality
Comte
Martineau
Spencer
Durkheim
Marx
Weber
Simmel
Social Darwinsm
“Social Facts”; anomie
Conflict
“Value Free”; verstehen
Microlevel analysis

16. Hull House; underpriveleged
Urbanization
Symbolic Interaction
University of
Chicago
Park
Mead
Addams
Atlanta
University
Dubois
Hull House; underpriveleged
“The Philadephia Negro”
“Souls of Black Folks”
NAACP
Double Consciousness

17. Major Sociological Perspectives:
Theory  Perspective
Major Sociological Perspectives:
Functionalist (a.k.a. structural functionalist)
Conflict
Symbolic Interactionist
Postmodern
Macrolevel – large; institutions; society
Microlevel – small, interactions between people; groups

18. X

19. Functionalist Macrolevel
Based on the assumption that society is a stable, orderly system
societal consensus
Robert K. Merton
Manifest Functions
Latent Functions

20. Conflict Macrolevel Social Inequality Scarce Resources
Some have, some have not

21. Symbolic Interactionist
Microlevel
Society is the sum of interaction of people and groups
Definition of situation the way we respond to a situation determines our perception of the situation

22. Postmodern Macrolevel/microlevel Changing society
changing reality
Instablity/uncertainty
Information (overload)
Globalization
Consumerism

23. Questions? Comments?