the practice of social research

THE PRACTICE OF SOCIAL RESEARCH

Chapter 2 – Paradigms, Theory, and Social ResearchEarl Babbie, The Practice of Social Research

CHAPTER OUTLINE Some Social Science Paradigms Elements of Social Theory Two Logical Systems Revisited Deductive Theory Construction Inductive Theory Construction The Links between Theory and Research Research Ethics and Theory Quick Quiz

Paradigms – a model or frame of reference through which to observe and understand.

“Patterns happen.”

Logical explanations are what theories seek to provide.1. Theories prevent our being taken in by flukes.2. Theories makes sense of observed patterns.3. Theories shape and direct research efforts.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS When we recognize that we are operating

within a paradigm, two benefits accrue.

1. We can better understand seemingly bizarre views and actions of others who are operating under different paradigms.

2. We can profit from stepping outside of our paradigm.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Paradigms play a fundamental role in

science.

Paradigms are neither true nor false.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Macrotheory – a theory aimed at

understanding the “big picture” of institutions, whole societies, and the interactions among societies. Examples: class struggles, international

relations, and interrelations between social institutions

Microtheory – a theory aimed at understanding social life at the intimate level of individuals and their interactions. Examples: dating behavior, jury deliberations,

student-faculty interactions

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Mesotheory – referencing an intermediate

level between macro and micro. Examples: studying organizations,

communities, and social categories

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Early Positivism

Comte: Society is a phenomenon that can be studied scientifically.

“Positive Philosophy” Theological Stage Metaphysical Stage Positivist Stage

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Social Darwinism

Darwin (1858): evolution through natural selection

Translation of Darwin’s theory into societies: over time, societies are improving.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Conflict Paradigm

Marx: social behavior is best explained as the process of conflict – the attempt to dominate others and to avoid being dominated.

Simmel: focused on small-scale conflict. Chossudovsky (1997): international and global

competition.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Symbolic Interactionism

Simmel – interested in how individuals interacted with one another, a micro approach.

Mead: “taking the role of the other” Cooley: “looking-glass self,” primary groups

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Ethnomethodology

Garfinkel: People are continually creating social structure through their actions and interactions, creating their realities.

Ethnomethology – methodology of the people.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Structural Functionalism

A social entity can be viewed as an organism. A social system is made up of parts, each of which contributes to the functioning of the whole.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Feminist Paradigms

Feminists call attention to aspects of social life that other paradigms do not reveal.

Concerned with the treatment of women and the experience of oppression.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Women’s Ways of Knowing

Silence Received Knowledge Subjective Knowledge Procedural Knowledge Constructed Knowledge

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Feminist Standpoint Theory – women have

knowledge about their status and experience that is not available to men.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Critical Race Theory

W.E.B. DuBois: roots in the civil rights movement African Americans lived their lives through a “dual

consciousness:” as Americans and as Black people. Bell (1980)

Interest Convergence – majority group members will only support the interests of minorities when those actions also support the interests of the majority group.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Rational Objectivity

Comte: society can be studied rationally and objectively.

SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS Asch Experiment

(1958) A group of subjects is

present with a set of lines on a screen and asked to identify the two lines that are equal in length.

Others in the group identify A or C as the correct answer, while you know that B is the correct answer.

ELEMENTS OF SOCIAL THEORY Observation – seeing, hearing, touching. Fact – a phenomenon that has been

observed. Laws – universal generalization about classes

of facts. Theory – a systematic explanation for

observations that relate to a particular aspect of life.

Concepts – abstract elements representing classes of phenomena within the field of study.

Variable – a set of attributes.

ELEMENTS OF SOCIAL THEORY Axioms or Postulates – fundamental

assertions on which a theory is grounded. Propositions – specific conclusions, derived

from the axiomatic groundwork, about the relationships among concepts.

Hypothesis – a specified, testable expectation about the empirical reality that follows from a more general proposition.

TWO LOGICAL SYSTEMS REVISITED The Traditional Model of Science

Theory Operationalization – developing operational

definitions, or specifying the exact operations involved in measuring a variable.

Operational Definition – the concrete and specific definition of something in terms of the operations by which observations are to be categorized.

Observation – specifying the exact operations involved in measuring a variable.

TWO LOGICAL SYSTEMS REVISITED The Traditional Image of

Science The deductive model of

scientific inquiry begins with a sometimes vague or general question, which is subjected to a process of specification, resulting in hypotheses that can be tested through empirical observations.

TWO LOGICAL SYSTEMS REVISITED Deductive and Inductive Reasoning

Deductive = Traditional Model of Science

A Case Illustration (Glock, Ringer, and Babbie, 1967) Comfort Hypothesis

Null Hypothesis

DEDUCTIVE THEORY CONSTRUCTION1. Specify the topic.2. Specify the range of phenomena your

theory addresses.3. Identify and specify your major concepts

and variables.4. Find out what is known about the

relationships among those variables.5. Reason logically from those propositions to

the specific topic you are examining.

INDUCTIVE THEORY CONSTRUCTION Observe aspects of social life and seek to

discover patterns that may point to relatively universal principles.

Grounded Theory Field Research

THE LINKS BETWEEN THEORY AND RESEARCH Deductive Model – research is used to test

theories. Inductive Model – theories are developed

from analysis of data.

QUICK QUIZ

CHAPTER 2 QUIZ1. The three main elements of the traditional

model of science are:

A. theory, operationalization, observation.B. operationalization, hypothesis testing,

theory.C. observation, experimentation,

operationalization.D. theory, observation, hypothesis testing.E. experimentation, hypothesis testing,

theory.

CHAPTER 2 QUIZAnswer: A.The three main elements of the traditional

model of science are theory, operationalization, observation.

CHAPTER 2 QUIZ2. Which of the following is the best example of a hypothesis?A. The greater the level of education, the greater the tolerance for alternative lifestyles.B. Socialization in childhood has a significant impact on adolescent gender-role identify.C. There are more female than male college students.D. Religiosity equals frequency of church attendance and praying.E. Actions are based on perceived costs and rewards.

CHAPTER 2 QUIZAnswer: A.The following is the best example of a

hypothesis: The greater the level of education, the greater the tolerance for alternative lifestyles.

CHAPTER 2 QUIZ3. The paradigm that accounts for the impact of economic conditions on family structures is:

A. symbolic interactionism.B. structural functionalism.C. positivism.D. conflict.E. exchange.

CHAPTER 2 QUIZANSWER: B.The paradigm that accounts for the impact of economic conditions on family structures is structural functionalism.

CHAPTER 2 QUIZ4. Which of the following is not a step in deductive theory construction?

A. Specify the topicB. Identify the major concepts and variablesC. Identify propositions about the relationships among those variablesD. Reason logically from those propositions to the specific topic one is examining

CHAPTER 2 QUIZANSWER: B.The following is not a step in deductive theory construction: identify the major concepts and variables.