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Summary Research Methodology and Descriptive Statistics notes Test 1!
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Unit 1 - In this unit you will learn what kind of questions can be answered with empiricalresearch, where these questions come from and which steps need to be taken to answer the
questions.
Empirical research: research with observations and data.
Empirical questions: Empirical questions can be answered by giving facts or information
Logical and empirical support: it must make sense, and it must not contradict actual observation.
Agreement reality: Those things we “know” as part and parcel of the culture we share with those
around us. Accepting the reality of things they don’t personally experience
Epistemology: the science of knowing; systems of knowledge.
Methodology: science of finding out; procedures for scientific investigation.
In looking at ordinary human inquiry, a distinguish needs to be made between prediction and
understanding. If we can understand why, we can predict even better. Human inquiry aims to answer
‘’what’’ and ‘’why’’ questions and pursues the goals by observing and figuring out.
Tradition and authority can both assist and hinder human inquiry. We tend to trust the judgment of a
person with a special training and/or expertise. Although, this can be false as well.
Errors in inquiry and some solutions
- Inaccurate observations
People mistake in their observations -> making observation more deliberate can reduce error. Simple
and complex measurement devices help against inaccurate observations.
- Overgeneralization
When a few similar events occur, we assume that this is evidence of a pattern. This is
overgeneralizing on the basis of limited observations -> use a large sample. Replication of inquiry
provides a safeguard.
Replication: ‘’repeating an experiment to expose or reduce error’’.
- Selective observation
Overgeneralization can lead to selective observation. You tend to focus on future events and
situations that fit the pattern, and you’ll ignore those that don’t.
- Illogical reasoning
Example: ‘’ An evening of bad luck at poker may kindle the belief that a winning hand is just around
the corner’’ -> using systems of logic consciously and explicitly.
Two pillars of science: logic and observation. A scientific understanding must (1) make sense and (2)
correspond with what we observe.
Three major aspects of the overall scientific enterprise: theory, data collection, and data analysis.
Social science: how things are and why. Scientific theory cannot settle debates on value.
We can use social science to determine what ought to be, but only when people agree on the criteria
for deciding what’s better than something else.
Formal prescriptions (example; minimum age) are an example of creating regularities.
Social research has a recursive quality, in that what we learn about society can end up changing
things so that what we learned is no longer true.
‘’Social science theories try to explain why aggregated patterns of behavior are so regular, even when
the individuals participating in them may change over time. We could say that social scientists don’t
seek to explain people per se. They try instead to understand the systems in which people operate,
which in turn explain why people do what they do’’.
Video 1: the empirical cycle
Empirical research: systematically answering empirical questions (using observations).
Systematically: excluding the possibility that other answers are better than the answers we give.
Emperical: about things we can observe
,Procedure: Theory (thinking), research design (planning), data collection (observing), data analysis
(analysing).
Deduction: starting with theory and then researching.
Induction: starting with data analysis.
Video 2: empirical research questions in the context of decision making and design
Decision making:
1. Problem & need analysis (identify, describe and analyze a problem or opportunity)(how big is
the problem? What are its causes? What are its consequences?)
2. Find & design options (which options have been used by others?)
3. Ex ante options evaluation (can we expect the option to work?) (compare options)(
4. Choice (select a preferred alternative on the basis of the evaluation)
5. Implementation (did we do it as planned? Process evaluation)
6. Ex post choice evaluation (did the option have the expected outcome?)
Descriptive research questions
Explanatory research questions
Video 3: confirmation bias
Definition: ‘’Search for, analyze and recall information in a way that confirms pre-existing beliefs, while
giving disproportionately less consideration to alternative interpretations.’’.
Confirmation biases affect things we think that are ‘true’.
Why is confirmation bias so strong?
- Limitations
- Wishful thinking
- Consistency
Consequences of confirmation bias:
- Mistakes in knowledge
- Bad decisions
Avoid conformation bias:
- Systematic data gathering, being aware of what can go wrong
- Explicit and complete reasoning
- Follow the rules of scientific inquiry
Follow the rules of scientific inquiry:
- Make clear predictions/ statements (theory)
- Make a plan for testing these statements (research design)
- Collect and analyse data according to the plan you had (data collection and analysis)
- Take your conclusion seriously.
Recorded lecture:
Research questions are answered by thinking and observing.
Type of RQ’s:
1. Normative questions: should we allow euthanasia for demented people?
2. Conceptual questions: what is democracy?
3. Empirical questions: how many people support euthanasia for demented people? (needs
observations).
Two main types of empirical research questions:
Descriptive:
Explanatory (or causal):
Predictive questions: not descriptive and also not explanatory. Often for making predictions.
Decision making:
, 1. Problem & need analysis (how big is the problem? Descriptive. What are its causes?
Explanatory. What are its consequences? explanatory)
2. Find & design options (which options have been used by others? Descriptive.)
3. Ex ante options evaluation (can we expect the option to work? explanatory)
4. Choice
5. Implementation (did we do it as planned? Process evaluation. explanatory)
6. Ex post choice evaluation (did the option have the expected outcome? explanatory)
Way to find an answer on the research questions:
Theory (thinking), research design (planning), data collection (observing), data analysis (analysing &
conclude).
Wheel of science:
Unit 2
Key terms:
Research question
Normative
Conceptual
Empirical
Explanatory
Descriptive
Unit (of analysis)
Variable (attributes / values)
Setting
Learning objectives:
- identify units, variables (with their attributes / values) and settings in clearly formulated
descriptive and explanatory empirical research question;
- distinguish empirical questions from normative questions and from questions about concepts;
- differentiate between explanatory empirical questions from descriptive empirical questions.
Readings:
Babbie, Ch. 1 p. 17-27
Independent variables: The cause.
Dependent variables: The effect. A variable assumed to depend on or be caused by another.
Exploratory research: can dispel misconceptions and help focus future research. Causal research is
explaining something in terms of relationships.
Idiographic explanation: after this explanation, we feel that we fully understand the causes of what
happened in this particular instance. The scope of the explanation is limited to this case and situation
only. For example: I did not study because my books were eaten by a dog.
Nomothetic explanation: more general explanation, covering a wider range of experience or
observation. Seeks to explain a class of situations rather than a single one. Example: every time you
study with a group, you do better on an exam than when you study alone.
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