The Art and Science of Social Research (Second Edition)

Cover
Publisher\'s Notice
Half-title Page
Title Page
Copyright
Brief Contents
Contents
Preface
About the Authors
Chapter 1: The Art and Science of Social Research
	Sociological Perspectives: An Overview
	Types of Social Science Research
	Starting the Research Process: Choosing a Question and Setting Goals
	Overview of This Book
	Chapter Review
Chapter 2: Research Foundations
	Theory within the Scientific Method
	Social Science Theory
	The Elements of Theory
	From Theory to Empirical Study and Back
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 3: Ethical Issues in Social Science Research
	Three Ethical Dilemmas
	Defining Research Ethics
	A Brief History of Ethical Problems in Research
	The Institutional Review Board System
	Privacy and Confidentiality
	Deception in Research
	Scientific Misconduct
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 4: From Concepts to Models
	Defining and Measuring Poverty: An Introduction to Conceptualization and Operationalization
	Conceptualization
	Operationalization
	Completing the Research Process
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 5: Evaluating Research
	Thinking about Reliability and Validity: Measuring and Tracking Poverty
	Reliability
	Validity
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 6: Sampling Strategies
	Using Samples to Describe Populations
	Probability Sampling in Practice
	When Nonrepresentative Samples are Useful
	Sampling in Case-Oriented Research
	Sampling and Big Data
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 7: Survey Research
	What Are Surveys and What Can They Do?
	Types of Surveys: Modes of Administration
	Survey Content: What Do We Ask and How Do We Ask It?
	Conducting the Survey
	Ethical Concerns in Survey Research
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 8: Experimental Research
	Key Features of Experiments
	Advantages of Experiments
	Types of Experiments
	Designing a Laboratory Experiment
	The Experimental Method: Ethical Issues, Challenges, and Limitations
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 9: Evaluation Research
	What Is Evaluation Research?
	Conducting Evaluation Research
	Research Methods Used in Evaluation Research
	Translating Evaluation Research into Large Social Programs
	Two Examples of Evaluation Research
	The Challenges of Evaluation Research: Ethical, Logistical, and Political Concerns
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 10: Ethnography
	Ethnography: Historical Roots
	What Topics Do Ethnographers Study?
	The Diverse Roles of the Ethnographer
	Theory and Research in Ethnography
	Conducting an Ethnographic Field Study
	Contemporary Developments in Ethnography
	Validity and Reliability in Ethnographic Research
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 11: In-Depth Interviewing
	What Topics Do Interviewers Study?
	Types of In-Depth Interviews
	How to Conduct an Interview Study
	Validity and Reliability in In-Depth Interviews
	Focus Groups
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 12: Materials-Based Methods
	Why Use Materials Rather Than People to Answer Sociological Questions?
	Materials Used in Materials-Based Methods
	Primary versus Secondary Information
	Where Do Researchers Find Materials for Analyses?
	Historical and Comparative Methods
	Content Analysis
	Quantitative Data Analysis in Materials-Based Research
	Materials-Based Methods: Limitations and Ethical Concerns
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 13: Univariate and Bivariate Analysis of Quantitative Data
	Statistics and Quantitative Data Analysis
	Univariate Analysis
	Bivariate Analysis
	Describing Trends
	Putting Numbers in Context: Which Statistics Should You Believe?
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 14: Communicating Social Science Research Findings
	Sharing your Results with Academic Audiences
	A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words: Tables, Charts, and Images
	Beyond the Academy: Reaching Out to Broader Audiences
	Tips for Effective Writing
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 15: Social Network Analysis
	What Is a Social Network
	Social Network Concepts
	Social Network Study Design Issues
	Collecting Social Network Data
	Respondents as Social Network Informants
	Sources of Bias in Social Network Studies
	Pseudo-Network Data
	Assessing Social Network Change
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 16: Multivariate and Advanced Quantitative Methods
	Significance Testing
	Confounding Factors
	Reverse Causality
	Moderators and Mediators
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Chapter 17: Analysis of Qualitative Data
	Qualitative Data Analysis: Product and Process
	Types of Qualitative Research
	Approaches to Causality in Qualitative Analysis
	Induction, Abduction, and Deduction
	Steps in Qualitative Data Analysis
	Coding and Analysis
	Writing the Final Report
	Conclusion
	Chapter Review
Appendix A: Sample Consent Form
Appendix B: American Sociological Association Code of Ethics
	Introduction
	Preamble
	General Principles
Appendix C: Examples of Widely Used Survey Data Sets
Appendix D: Template for Reading, Summarizing, and Identifying Key Contributions of Research Articles
Appendix E: Influential Peer-Reviewed Journals in Sociology
Appendix F: Random Numbers Table
Appendix G: Chi-Square Table
Appendix H: Normal Distribution
Appendix I: Doing Field Research in the #MeToo Era
Appendix J: The Peer-Review Process
	Step 1: The Author Decides Where to Send the Finished Work
	Step 2: The Editor Decides whether to Send the Written Work Out for Peer Review
	Step 3: Peer Reviewers, Selected by the Editor, Evaluate the Written Work
	Step 4: The Author Revises and Resubmits the Work
Glossary
Bibliography
Credits
Index