Exam 1: The Science, society, and Social Research

Exploratory research identifies the causes and effects of social phenomena.

Qualitative methods are most often used for ______ type of research.

The belief that there is a reality apart from our own perception of it,that it can be understood through observation,and that it follows general laws is known as ______.

What special problems do the social sciences face,in comparison with natural sciences,such as physics or biology? How do social scientists attempt to deal with those problems?

Which of the following is true about intersubjective agreements?

The everyday error that involves choosing to look at things that are in line with our own preferences or beliefs is called ______.

You are working for a community development organization in a city with high rates of unemployment,poverty,high school attrition,and juvenile delinquency.Your organization wants to begin an afternoon computer training program for young people.Explain how descriptive,exploratory,explanatory,and evaluation research can all be used to help start and later maintain this program.

Errors in everyday observations and reasoning include all of the following EXCEPT ______.

Quantitative methods generally present findings as ______

Social researchers undertake research for various reasons.If you were going to propose research on student success in university settings,describe potential sets of motives from each of the following perspectives: personal interest,policy guidance/program management,academic concerns.

Consider the research conducted on Internet use and other forms of social relations,as described in Chapter 1.Which conclusions are most consistent with your own casual observations about social relations in the United States? List three of your own observations that are either consistent with or contradict conclusions found in the text.Describe how you might propose descriptive research to test whether your observations hold up to scientific criteria.In addition,be specific about the types of errors in everyday reasoning that might apply to your casual observations.

Most social science research is motivated by personal gains only.

Social science reduces the likelihood of overgeneralization by ______.

Dr.Smith is studying the effect of violent music on young teenagers.In order to collect data,she distributes surveys to a local public school,each with the same set of questions.She did this in order to reduce the risk of ______.

Selective observation occurs when people conclude that what is true for some cases is true for all cases.

Claims presented so that they appear scientific even though they lack supporting evidence and plausibility are known as ______.

Which of the errors in scientific reasoning are the most difficult for social science to overcome? Review each of the four and evaluate the relative difficulties they create.Answer in terms of a specific research area,such as understanding homelessness,crime,or adaptations to communities or work organizations.

Intersubjective agreement refers to an agreement between scientists about the nature of reality.

An everyday observer states: "What was good enough for my grandfather is good enough for me!" This is an example of what type of error of everyday logic?

A researcher who conducts a survey with 200 participants and then does in-depth interviews with 40 of these participants is using mixed methods research.