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Summary Final exam: Social Research Methods - Alan Bryman
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This summary is a detailed summary of all the chapters needed for the final (and mid-term) exam of the course research skills.
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GEO1-2415Research Skills Summary
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Chapter 1 - The Nature and Process of social research....................................................................................5
The context of social research methods...............................................................................................................5
Elements of the Process of social research..........................................................................................................7
Messiness of social research................................................................................................................................9
Key points.............................................................................................................................................................9
Chapter 2 – social research strategies........................................................................................................... 11
introduction........................................................................................................................................................11
Theory and research...........................................................................................................................................11
Epistemological considerations..........................................................................................................................13
Ontological cosnsiderations...............................................................................................................................15
Research strategy: quantitative and qualitative research.................................................................................16
Influences on the conduct of social research.....................................................................................................17
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................18
Chapter 4 – planning a research project and formulating research questions................................................19
Formulating suitable research questions...........................................................................................................19
Chapter 5 – getting started: reviewing the Literature....................................................................................20
Reviewing the existing literature.......................................................................................................................21
Searching for existing literature.........................................................................................................................23
Avoiding plagiarism............................................................................................................................................24
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................24
Chapter 3 – research designs........................................................................................................................ 26
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................26
Criteria in social research...................................................................................................................................26
Research designs................................................................................................................................................27
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................33
Chapter 7 – the nature of quantitative research...........................................................................................34
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................34
The main steps in quantitative research............................................................................................................34
Concepts and their measurement......................................................................................................................35
Reliability and validity........................................................................................................................................36
The main preoccupations of quantitative researchers......................................................................................37
The critique of quantitative research.................................................................................................................38
, Is it always like this?...........................................................................................................................................38
Chapter 17 – the nature of qualitative research............................................................................................ 40
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................40
The main steps in qualitative research..............................................................................................................41
Theory and research...........................................................................................................................................41
Concepts in qualitative research........................................................................................................................42
Reliability and validity in qualitative research...................................................................................................42
The main preoccupations of qualitative researchers.........................................................................................44
Is it always like this.............................................................................................................................................47
Some contrasts between quantitative and qualitative research.......................................................................47
Some similarities between quantitative and qualitative research.....................................................................48
Femisnism and qualitstive reseach....................................................................................................................48
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................48
Chapter 8 – Sampling................................................................................................................................... 50
Introduction to survey research.........................................................................................................................50
Introduction to sampling....................................................................................................................................51
Sampling error....................................................................................................................................................52
Types of probability sample...............................................................................................................................52
The qualities of a probability sample.................................................................................................................53
Sample size.........................................................................................................................................................54
Limits to generalization......................................................................................................................................55
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................55
Chapter 18 – Sampling in qualitative research.............................................................................................. 57
Levels of sampling..............................................................................................................................................57
Purposive sampling............................................................................................................................................58
Sample size.........................................................................................................................................................61
Not just people...................................................................................................................................................61
Using more than one sampling approach..........................................................................................................61
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................62
Chapter 15 – quantitative data analysis........................................................................................................ 63
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................63
A small research project.....................................................................................................................................63
Missing data.......................................................................................................................................................63
Types of variable................................................................................................................................................63
Bivariate analysis...............................................................................................................................................65
Multivariate analysis..........................................................................................................................................67
Statistical significance........................................................................................................................................68
, Key points...........................................................................................................................................................69
Chapter 9 – structured interviewing............................................................................................................. 71
The structured interview....................................................................................................................................71
interview context................................................................................................................................................72
Problems with structured interviewing..............................................................................................................74
Chapter 10 – self-completion questionnaires................................................................................................ 76
Self-completion questionnaire or postal questionnaire.....................................................................................76
Evaluating the self-completion questionnaire in relation to the structured interview......................................76
designing the self-completion questionnaire.....................................................................................................77
Diaries as a form of self-completion questionnaire...........................................................................................77
Chapter 11 – asking questions...................................................................................................................... 79
Open or closed questions?.................................................................................................................................79
types of questions..............................................................................................................................................79
Rules for designing questions.............................................................................................................................80
Vignette questions..............................................................................................................................................81
Piloting and pre-testing questions.....................................................................................................................81
using existing questions.....................................................................................................................................82
key points...........................................................................................................................................................82
Chapter 20 – interviewing in qualitative research.........................................................................................83
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................83
Differences between the structured interview and the qualitative interview...................................................83
asking questions in the qualitative interview.....................................................................................................83
Feminist research and interviewing in qualitative research..............................................................................86
Qualitative interviewing versus participants observation.................................................................................87
Key points...........................................................................................................................................................88
Chapter 24 – qualitative data analysis.......................................................................................................... 89
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................89
General strategies of qualitative data analysis.................................................................................................89
Basic operations in qualitative data analysis.....................................................................................................92
Thematic analysis...............................................................................................................................................93
narrative analysis...............................................................................................................................................94
Secondary analysis of qualitative data..............................................................................................................94
Chapter 25 – Computer-assited qualitative data analysis: using NVivo..........................................................96
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................96
Is CAQDAS like qualitative data analysis software?...........................................................................................96
No industry leader..............................................................................................................................................96
, Lack of universal agreement about the utility of CAQDAS.................................................................................96
Learning NVivo...................................................................................................................................................96
Chapter 6 – ethics and politics in social research..........................................................................................97
Introduction........................................................................................................................................................97
Ethical principles................................................................................................................................................97
Ethics and the issue of quality............................................................................................................................99
The difficulties of ethical decision-making.........................................................................................................99
New media and difficult decisions....................................................................................................................100
Politics in social reseach...................................................................................................................................100
Key points.........................................................................................................................................................101
Chapter 26: Breaking down the quantitative/qualitative divide..................................................................101
Introduction......................................................................................................................................................101
The natural science model and qualitative research.......................................................................................102
Quantitative research and interpretivism........................................................................................................103
Research methods and epistemological and ontological considerations........................................................103
Problems with the quantitative/qualitative contrast......................................................................................104
Quantification in qualitative research..............................................................................................................106
Key points.........................................................................................................................................................107
Chapter 27: Mixed methods research: combining quantitative and qualitative research.............................108
Introduction......................................................................................................................................................108
The argument against mixed methods research.............................................................................................108
Two versions of the debate about quantitative and qualitative research.......................................................109
Approaches to mixed methods research..........................................................................................................109
Reflections on mixed methods research..........................................................................................................114
Key points.........................................................................................................................................................114
Chapter 29 – writing up social research...................................................................................................... 115
Introduction......................................................................................................................................................115
Writing up your research.................................................................................................................................115
Writing up quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods research.................................................................117
Academic writing..............................................................................................................................................119
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