Social Research Methods, Goals, and Applications Explained

Introduction

The modern consumer is more demanding than the consumer of two decades ago, and this shift can be attributed to factors such as globalization and market liberalization, increasing competition among product and service providers, and growing access to information — all of which raise consumer expectations. In order to better understand and satisfy customer needs, economic agents conduct thorough research by which they segment consumers into target audiences characterized by specific needs and demands. At the foundation of this research lies social research.

Social research is broadly understood as the study of societies, but its applications are far more extensive and complex than this simple definition suggests. Social research can be used, as noted above, to understand and satisfy customers' needs, but it also serves functions such as analyzing the electorate or examining social problems — including family matters, unemployment, income inequality, and related issues. In the words of Sarah Valek (2010), "social research is the scientific study of society. More specifically, social research examines a society's attitudes, assumptions, beliefs, trends, stratifications and rules. The scope of social research can be small or large, ranging from the self or a single individual to spanning an entire race or country. Popular topics of social research include poverty, racism, class issues, sexuality, voting behavior, gender constructs, policing and criminal behavior."

Given this wide importance and range of application, this paper strives to assess and present the most significant findings in the specialized literature on social research.

Literature Review

Social research is a complex and important process, but due to its breadth and complexity, arriving at a universally accepted definition is a challenging task. At a general level, social research can be understood as the totality of efforts, tools, and techniques employed in the study of society with the purpose of helping one better understand that society.

Social research begins with the individual inquiries of a person and then increases in complexity and impact. In other words, social research is born out of human curiosity, the search for knowledge, and the desire for development. Since free inquiry is a natural feature of the human mind, social research becomes a natural component of social development (Kerry, 2009). In order to support this system of mental, social, and economic progress, it is of the utmost importance to ensure the continued development of universities (Cole, 2009).

Charles C. Ragin (1994) identifies seven distinct goals of social research:

When conducting social research, social science specialists must take several political dimensions into consideration. These political aspects are not explicitly outlined in any single manual but are rather implied by the nature of the work. At a broad level, political considerations in social research refer primarily to the means by which social data are collected and utilized. Three distinct elements requiring careful attention throughout the social research process are the objectivity of the study, the ideology it promotes, and the treatment of race relations — a matter that has recurred throughout the field of social studies and has raised various complications and concerns (Babbie, 2009).

Allan J. Kimmel (1988) approaches the dimensions of social research from a different angle — that of the ethical issues that may arise. He argues that ethical problems can easily emerge at various stages of social research. The most common ethical issues occur when the results of a study are misused or when generally accepted tools and techniques are improperly applied. Kimmel identifies five types of ethical issues in social research:

The tools and techniques used in social research can be divided into two main categories: qualitative research models and quantitative research models (Walliman and Walliman, 2006). Four of the more common qualitative research methods are participant observation, direct observation, unstructured interviewing, and case studies. Participant observation is the most complex tool, as it requires extended periods during which the researcher must be accepted as a member of the community being studied. Often confused with participant observation, direct observation also draws conclusions from watching a community, but the researcher maintains a neutral and more distant position. Unstructured interviewing is built on direct interactions between the researcher and various respondents. Case studies, finally, involve gradual and sustained investigations of a particular topic, typically created through a combination of the preceding methods (Trochim, 2006).

Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods

With regard to quantitative methods, the survey is the most common tool. Quantitative research differs from qualitative research in that qualitative research seeks to understand the behavior of an individual or group from a subjective point of view, and its results often cannot be extrapolated and applied to the broader community. Quantitative research, by contrast, is more precise and objective; it is based on facts and figures, and its findings can generally be generalized to the wider population (De Vaus, 2002).

Quantitative research tools offer several advantages over qualitative methods:

Despite these advantages, quantitative research also has notable limitations:

The selection of a social research tool depends strictly on the requirements of the particular study, the nature of the results sought, the nature of the variables involved, and other considerations. Generally, however, researchers do not limit themselves to a single methodology but make use of a combination of both qualitative and quantitative tools (Walliman and Walliman, 2006).