Sociology Ch 2

Theory is important because it is a widely accepted idea or thought and theories are often being tested and used for research.

The scientific method is a research model used to obtain accurate knowledge. The steps are to identify the problem, review literature, form hypotheses, develop an experiment, collect data, and analyze data and share results and conclusion.

With subjective approach aspects of human social behavior is studied by ascertaining the interpretations of participants themselves. People develop a sense of appropriate behaviors. Studies must be done to determine what is going on in an individuals mind and to design an experiment they use the help of the scientific method. Scientific method and human subjectivity have both been used in research for a long time and have an honorable place in sociology.

Correlation is a statistical measure in which a change in one variable is associated with a change in another variable. Causation is the idea that events occur in a predictable, non-random way and that are one event leads to another. Correlation can be positive (both variables change in some direction) or negative (variables change in opposite direction). In causation events occur because of a combination of factors building up to it.

Sample is a limited number of cases drawn from a larger population. Population consists of all the people with the characteristics a researcher is studying. Most populations are too large and inaccessible to study all the members so a sample is studied to represent the entire population. A random sample is selected on the basis of chance, so that each member of a population has an equal opportunity of being selected. This is important so it represents the entire population equally and accurately.

Qualitative research is when research is done with variables that consist of variations in kind such as sex or marital