Using the examples on Internet use and social relations found in Chapter 1, define and describe the difference between quantitative and qualitative methods in social research. How did the researchers' choice of qualitative or quantitative methods strengthen their conclusions? Weaken them? Propose another study of Internet use in which you build on one of the previous studies but using triangulated methods.

What will be an ideal response?


Quantitative methods--numerical data used to report findings as percentages and other statistics that summarize the relationships among variables; quantitative methods often use motive for research such as explanation, description, or evaluation; quantitative methods are usually implemented to generalize to the larger public but does not provide detail on smaller, subgroups; qualitative methods--focuses on actual text and most often uses exploration as a motive; qualitative data give researchers a lot of information about a few people, but the findings cannot be generalizable to the whole population.

Political Science

You might also like to view...

All of the following are true regarding political ideology and its political impact EXCEPT a. research shows that individuals who tend to be conservative tend to vote Republican. b. those states that are more conservative and Republican tend to have policies that we associate with thatideology and party, such as stricter gay rights and gambling regulations

c. there is no correlation between policy, party, and ideology in Democratic-leaning states across the country. d. in most states, the ideology of citizens is translated pretty accurately through political parties into public policy.

Political Science

Which of the following does NOT appear to be a barrier to participation?

a. Gender b. Districting c. Race d. Registration

Political Science

The Vietnam War contributed to the high inflation of the 1960s because it __________

a. diverted money from the private sector b. increased spending without an increase in productivity c. led to higher taxes that pushed down the real value of wages d. pushed up interest rates as private borrowers competed with the government

Political Science

The political knowledge of many young adults changes from high school to college especially if professors encourage students to

A) respect authority.
B) organize third parties.
C) criticize the Constitution.
D) question authority.
E) train in traditional values.

Political Science