Tag: positivism
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Victimology
Victimology for A-Level sociology students studying the crime and deviance option
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Qualitative Data – Strengths and Limitations
A summary of the theoretical, practical and ethical strengths and weaknesses of qualitative data sources such as unstructured interviews, participant observation and documents. Examples of Qualitative Data Open question questionnaires Unstructured interviews Participant observation Public and private documents such as newspapers and letters. Theoretical strengths Better validity than for quantitative data More insight (Verstehen) More…
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Assess the Usefulness of Positivist Approaches to Social Research (30)
Just a few thoughts on how you might go about answering this question… if it comes up on paper 3 of the A level sociology exam Paragraph one – outline the key ideas of Positivism Positivists believe that sociology can and should use the same methods and approaches to study the social world that “natural”…
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Evaluate the View that Theoretical Factors are the most Important Factor Influencing Choice of Research Method (30)
Just a few thoughts on how you might answer this in the exam. Introduction – A variety of factors influence a Sociologist’s decision as to what research method they use: the nature of topic, theoretical, practical and ethical factors. Theoretical factors – Positivism vs Interpretivism – Positivists are interested in uncovering the underlying general laws…
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Is Sociology A Science?
Positivists argued that sociologists should study society using ‘objective’ quantitative scientific methods. Interpretivists and others argue that sociology should not and cannot be scientific and that it should be more humanistic with multiple interpretations, and they also question whether science itself is truly objective!