Full Description
Revised and updated in its fifth edition, Approaches to Social Research is a rigorous yet clear and engaging introduction to research methods. Covering all of the fundamentals in a straightforward, student-friendly manner, it is ideal for undergraduate- and graduate-level courses across the social sciences and also serves as an indispensable guide for researchers. Striking a balance between specific techniques and the underlying logic of scientific inquiry, this book provides a lucid treatment of the four major approaches to research: experimentation, survey research, field research, and the use of available data. Richly developed examples of empirical research and an emphasis on the research process enable students to better understand the real-world application of research methods. The authors also offer a unique chapter (13) advocating a multiple-methods strategy.New to this Edition: * Many updated examples that are current and relevant to students' daily lives * New examples from an array of disciplines, including the use of experimental design in political science and economics * A revised chapter on ethics, which now appears earlier in the book (Chapter 3) * Extensively revised and updated chapters on survey research (9-10) and writing research reports (17) that incorporate new developments in methodology and technology * A new series of more than 100 key points, set off throughout the text * A more visually appealing interior design featuring tables, large text boxes, figures, and charts * New exercises in every chapter * Updated Instructor's Resource CD including ideas for lecture, discussion, and exercises; review questions; and test items * Companion Website (maintained by the authors) offering a glossary and the following material for each chapter: answers to selected text exercises, true/false and matching quizzes, suggested readings, and web resources
Contents
Chapters 2-17 end with a Summary; CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION; Why Study Research Methods?; Methodological Approaches to the Social World; Science as Process; Science: Ideal versus Reality; CHAPTER 3. RESEARCH ETHICS; Data Collection and Analysis; Treatment of Human Subjects; Making Ethical Decisions; The Uses of Research: Science and Society; II. RESEARCH Units of Analysis; Variables; Relationships; Formulating Questions and Hypotheses; Research Purposes and Research Design; Stages of Social Research; CHAPTER 5. MEASUREMENT; The Measurement Process; Levels of Measurement; Reliability and Validity; Reliability Assessment; Validity Assessment; A Final Note on Reliability and Validity; CHAPTER 6. SAMPLING; Why Sample?; Population Definition; Sampling Designs; Probability Sampling; Nonprobability Sampling; Other Sampling Designs; Factors Affecting Choice of Sampling Design; Factors Determining Sample Size; Final Notes on Sampling Errors and EXPERIMENTATION; The Logic of Experimentation; Staging Experiments; The Experiment as a Social Occasion; Experimentation Outside the Laboratory; CHAPTER 8. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGNS; Threats to Internal Validity; Pre-experimental Designs; True Experimental Designs; Factorial Experimental Designs; Quasi-experimental Designs; CHAPTER 9. SURVEY RESEARCH; General Features of Survey Research; The Uses and Limitations of Surveys; Survey Research Designs; Steps in Survey Research: Planning; Face-to-Face and Telephone Interviewing; Paper-and-Pencil Mailed Questionnaires; Computer-Assisted Interviews; Mixed-Mode Surveys; Field Administration; CHAPTER 10. SURVEY INSTRUMENTATION; The Survey as a Social Occasion; Materials Available to the Survey Designer; "Sketches" or Preliminaries; Filling in the Sketch: Writing the Items; Pretesting; CHAPTER 11. FIELD RESEARCH; The Potentials and Limitations of Field Research; Research Design and Sampling; Field Observation; Field Interviewing; Stages of Field Research; CHAPTER 12. RESEARCH USING AVAILABLE DATA; Sources of Available Data; Advantages of Research Using Available Data; General Methodological Issues in Available-Data Research; Historical Analysis; Content Analysis; CHAPTER 13. MULTIPLE METHODS; Triangulation; Multiple Measures of Concepts within the Same Study; Multiple Tests of Hypotheses across Different Studies; A Comparison of the Four Basic Approaches to Social Research; Meta-Analysis; CHAPTER 14. EVALUATION RESEARCH; Framework and Sample Studies; Types of Evaluation Research; Methodological Issues in Evaluation Research; The Social and Political Context of Evaluation Research; IV. DATA PROCESSING, ANALYSIS, AND INTERPRETATION; CHAPTER 15. DATA PROCESSING AND ELEMENTARY; DATA ANALYSIS; Preview of Analysis Steps; Data Processing; Data Matrices and Documentation; The Functions of Statistics in Social Research; Inspecting and Modifying the Data; Preliminary Hypothesis Testing; CHAPTER 16. MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS; Modeling Relationships; Elaboration: Tables and Beyond; Multiple-Regression Analysis; Other Modeling Techniques; CHAPTER 17. WRITING RESEARCH REPORTS; Searching the Literature; Using the Internet; Using the Library; Outlining and Preparing to Write; Major Headings; Other Considerations; Length
