Social Sciences
Research is the backbone of science, which is defined by its trust in empirical evidence. The social sciences demand different types of experimental designs than the hard sciences. Biology and chemistry often yield cut-and-dry results that can be unequivocally observed, calculated, and replicated. The social sciences are more limited in the ways studies can be designed. Ethical considerations might prevent researchers from being able to test a new pharmaceutical intervention or conduct a study involving children. Moreover, human beings are not robots. Our reactions in different social situations cannot be predicted with complete accuracy. One person's behavior can change dramatically over the course of a few years or even within the same day. Human beings are complex, and the social sciences can only attempt to codify and classify as accurately as a biologist can. However, research remains the core of the social sciences just as it is for any other scientific endeavor. Research helps social scientists formulate theories, and research is also essential for substantiating or disproving existing theories.
Theories offer basic frameworks for research investigations. For example, a criminologist might work within a conflict theory framework; or a psychologist might work within the cognitive developmental theory framework. The theory guides the research design, the selection of subject and the selection of the population too. As a body of research grows, new theories may be devised that summarize or encapsulate the essence of an area of research. When studies corroborate previous findings, the theory is bolstered and supported. When studies expose flaws in prior research designs, a theory may be cast aside as easily as it was created. Theories can be proven and disproven more directly: as when larger-scale studies reveal a negligent effect that appeared in a smaller-scale one.
Conducting studies remains a key concern for social scientists. Positive concerns include the trust in empirical research to promote a better understanding of human life. Negative concerns include such things as ethics, poor research design, misleading statistical analyses, spurious conclusions, reliability, and replicability.
The data sample will also be characterized and the structure of the sample will be put into consideration .at the final stage of the initial data analysis the findings are documented and any corrections that are deemed important are made at this stage. The main data analysis phase follows that is aimed at answering the actual research question as well as any analysis that will be important when it
Social Science Research Evans, A. And S. Frank. (2004). Adolescent Depression and Externalizing Problems: Testing Two Models of Comorbidity in an Inpatient Sample. Adolescence. 39 (153) [HIDDEN] Retrieved from: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2248/is_153_39/ai_n6145265/ The Scientific Method, though requires data and data analysis to be effective. In its most basic outline, quantitative data is information that can be measured by numbers or numerical values. Quantitative inquiry is a method that is used in scientific methodology to
Inductive reasoning occurs when one makes inferences from particular situations or scenarios to predict future situations. In this study, the authors seek to use information from particular youth's experiences of the transition to adulthood and apply it to the development of a general understanding of whether or not youth can overcome existing social class, gender and ethnic divisions (MacDonald et al., 2005). 5. Identify at least 4 major findings from
video games in the life of the student. The problem with the Likert Scale is that Thurstone Scale 1) I like video games. Agree Disagree 2) I play video games everyday. Agree Disagree 3) I play video games online Agree Disagree 4) I play video games with friends online. Agree Disagree 5) I play video games after school. Agree Disagree 6) I play video games before doing homework. Agree Disagree 7) I play video games while doing homework. Agree Disagree Guttman Scale (Based on 7 Criteria Above) Respondent Item 1 Item 2 Item 3 Item 4 Item 5 Item 6 Item 7 1 2 3 4 The key to
For this kind of research to be effective, researchers must gain the trust and confidence of these individuals. Careful planning, focus group research, and investigation may help to build this kind of trust, but all of those steps add time (and expenses) to the research process. c) Use of untested assumptions. Researchers may have their own assumptions about how people react to trauma, and these assumptions may negatively affect their
Social Science Research Conceptualize and operationalize the variables in that sentence What is the relationship between age and responsibility? Age refers to the numbers of years a person has live right form birth till date. Age may indicate the level of maturity of an individual depending on the circumstance a person has been brought up. The age of a person can only be categorized and measured according to figurative values. For instance age
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