The document discusses research methods in sociological research and provides examples of qualitative and quantitative research methods. It also discusses how sociological observation is informed by theoretical perspectives, providing examples of functionalism and conflict theory perspectives.
The document discusses research methods in sociological research and provides examples of qualitative and quantitative research methods. It also discusses how sociological observation is informed by theoretical perspectives, providing examples of functionalism and conflict theory perspectives.
The document discusses research methods in sociological research and provides examples of qualitative and quantitative research methods. It also discusses how sociological observation is informed by theoretical perspectives, providing examples of functionalism and conflict theory perspectives.
The document discusses research methods in sociological research and provides examples of qualitative and quantitative research methods. It also discusses how sociological observation is informed by theoretical perspectives, providing examples of functionalism and conflict theory perspectives.
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ASSIGNMENT 1
SUBMITTED TO : DOCTOR NADEEM OMAR TARAR
MUHAMMAD ALI ASIF
01-111182-056 ASSIGNMENT 1
Q1: What is the significance of research methods in sociological research? Explain the 2 major types of research methods, along with examples.
Answer: Research methods are being used by sociologist to examine the world, the problems in it and study their patterns to observe the society from level of individual to level of groups. Now for this sociologist first have to design a research method. When entering a social environment sociologist must be careful because there are times to be unknown and times to be obvious. There are times to simply observe and times to take interview. Some needs to be informed that they are being observed and some participants don’t. A scientist wouldn't walk around a wrongdoing ridden neighborhood at 12 PM, calling out, "Any gang members around? So in planning a research sociologist can use any of research method design. Each examination technique comes with supporting arguments and opposing arguments, and the subject of study firmly impacts which strategy or strategies are put to utilize.
The two main types of research method are qualitative and quantitative. Qualitative research is descriptive in nature, because it generally deals with non-numerical and unquantifiable things. Qualitative researchers use a variety of methods to develop deep understandings of how people perceive their social realities and in consequence, how they act within the social world. A genuine case of a qualitative research technique would be unstructured interviews which create qualitative information using open inquiries. This permits the respondent to talk openly, picking their own words. This enables the researcher to build up a genuine feeling of an individual's understanding of a situation. For the qualitative researcher, there is no single reality, it is subjective and exist only in reference to the observer. Theory is data driven, and emerges as part of the research process, evolving from the data as they are collected.
Quantitative research is much more numbers-driven. The emphasis is on the collection of
numerical data. The conclusion then makes inferences based on that data. This type of data can be used to construct graphs and tables of raw data. This Research is used to test a theory and ultimately support or reject it. For example, a rating scale or closed questions on a questionnaire would generate quantitative data as these produce either numerical data or data that can be placed into categories (e.g., “yes,” “no” answers). Experimental techniques limit the potential ways wherein a research participant can react to and express appropriate social behavior. Discoveries are therefore liable to be context-bound and basically a reflection of the assumptions which the researcher brings to the investigation. The design of the study is determined before it begins. For the quantitative research, researcher reality is objective and exist separately to the researcher, and is capable of being seen by anyone. Q2: How sociological observation is informed by a perspective or theories? Explain your answer, by giving examples of two theoretical perspectives.
Answer: Sociologists basically study patterns, interactions and social events. And then come up with a theory that explains why things work as they do. In terms of sociology a theory is define as a way to explain different social happenings. For example Sociologists develop theories to explain social occurrences such as protest rallies. Theories vary in scope depending on the scale of the issues that they are meant to explain or address. A few theories provide broad perspectives explain many different aspects of social life, and these are called paradigms. Paradigms are philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them. These paradigms are structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. These paradigms dominate sociological thinking as they provide useful explanations. . For example, Emile Durkheim developed theories of social structure that included functionalism, the division of labor, and anomie.
Functionalism, also called structural-functional theory, sees society as a structure with
interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of the individuals in that society. Functionalism perspective says that a society is a collection of different groups of people which need to perform their duties, support each other, work together to achieve individual as well as collective goals. Without assessing and supporting each other, it would be very difficult to achieve goals for the betterment and stability of the society. Such as government, education, family, healthcare, religion, and the economy. An early sociologist Durkheim believed that individuals may make up society, but in order to study society, sociologists have to look beyond individuals to social facts. Social facts are the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern social life. According to Robert Merton social processes have many function. Manifest functions are the consequences of a social process that are sought while latent functions are unsought consequences of social process. A manifest function of college education, for example, includes gaining knowledge, preparing for a career, and finding a good. Latent functions of your college years include meeting new people, participating in extracurricular activities. Another latent function of education is creating a hierarchy of employment based on the level of education attained.
Conflict theory looks society as a competition for limited resources. Competition leads to conflict. Because the individuals and groups of society compete for advantage, there is constantly conflict for change. When there are large groups competing, the outcome is often major social change. This conflict can arise from the desire to own the means of production, to own the power or land, or to own the realm of political power, and can be revolutionary. Social groups are always fighting with each other but it varies from society to society for example in some societies people with dark complexion are consider weak. A sociologist. Weber noted that different groups were affected differently based on education, race, and gender, and that people’s reactions to inequality were moderated by class differences and rates of social mobility. Another example of conflict theory was women march happening in Islamabad few days back.
What was that wasn’t it a large social group fighting for their identity or competing for limited resources.
