RESEARCH FINAL EXAM UNIT 1 Qualitative Field Research events etc direct observation o Observation methods used to collect primarily qualitative info about your subjects o Can get a deeper and fuller understanding of the subjects and phenomenon through o Ex you want to understand what causes offenders to recidivate Observe offenders Identify what factors are associated with higher re offense rates Quantitative Research statistical analysis o Goal is to collect data on your subjects to answer research questions through o Ex you want to understand what causes offenders to recidivate Collect data of the offenders demographic characteristics length of time in prison prior criminal record variables etc Statistically determine which variables are most predictive of the likelihood of reoffending 2 Areas to do Qualitative Field Research On o Events best understood within their natural settings Behaviors and events that one wont truly understand through data captured in a survey or through secondary data o Social processes over time Ex if you are studying riot and how they develop Observe events and interactions before during and after a riot to describe and understand the causes of a riot Quantitative would be like giving participants a survey worse Elements of Social Life o Practices o Episodes o Encounters o Roles Behaviors such as talking working making an arrest sentencing Events such as divorce crime and illness Two or more people meeting and interacting Analysis of positions people occupy and the behavior associated with those positions o Relationships Ex occupations family roles ethnic groups Behavior appropriate to pairs or sets of roles Mother son relationships Friendships Correctional officer inmates o Groups Small groups Such as friendship cliques athletic teams work groups o Organizations Roles Researchers Observers Can Play o Complete Participant Formal organizations such as hospitals schools police departments prisons Studies a social process as a participant Those in the setting believe you are part of their group True identity and purpose of researcher is not known to those he is studying Will influence what is being studied so you don t known how group would ve acted without the researchers presence Going Native When a researcher identifies too much with the group and becomes like a real member Results in biased perceptions Limited as to what the researcher can record o Participant as Observer Mutual relationship between observer and informants Informants can become too much of observer cuz of over identification with observes o Observer as Participant More formal observations Less change researcher will over identify with the informants o Complete Observer Studies a social process without becoming a part of it in any way Subjects have no idea they are being observed Less likely to influence what is being studied Less likely to go native But less likely to develop a full appreciation of what is being studied 5 Qualitative Research Paradigms o 1 Naturalism Based on the stories and accounts given by the people you re studying Take accounts at face value as the social truth of the social process Don t interpret their stories based on the way the researcher understands them They want to understand social life as the participants understand it Ex Dude who studied and Italian American neighborhood and the nature of gangs in the area o 2 Ethnomethodology occurs o 3 Grounded Theory Believe the researcher has to make sense of the accounts and stories told by the people under the study And interpret perceptions of the world They want to identify the methods through which their subject understanding Attempt to derive theories from an analysis of the patters themes and common categories discovered in the observational data Emphasis on systematic collecting and coding of data High level sof validity and reliability of data Used both qualitative quantitative data STEPS 1 Periodically step back and ask what is going on here 2 Maintain an attitude of skepticism don t blindly accept observation 3 Follow the research procedures eliminates bias o 4 Case Studies the Extended Case Method Focus attention on 1 or a few instances of some social phenomenon Like a particular village family gang Involves knowing beforehand with the full knowledge of existing theories to look for inconsistencies or contradictions that suggest modifications to the theories o 5 Participatory Action Research Typically involve disadvantaged groups Researcher learns about a group educations mobilizes them to improve Steps in Conducting Qualitative Field Research their situation o 1 Review relevant literature determine what is known and not known about subjects o 2 Make contact with the group to study o 3 Conduct interviews with flexible questionnaire conversation o Where researcher brings people into the lab for qualitative interviewing Focus Groups observations o 12 15 people brought together in a room for a guided discussion of some topic o 5 Advantages of Focus Groups 1 Technique is socially oriented research method capturing real life data in a social environment 2 Flexible 3 High face validity 4 Fast results 5 Cheap o 6 Disadvantages of Focus Groups 1 Less control than individual interviews 2 Data is difficult to analyze 3 Moderators require special skills 4 Some groups can be troublesome 5 Groups can be hard to assemble 6 Discussion must be conducted in a conducive environment Strengths of Qualitative Field Research o 1 Can study subtle nuances in behavior and attitudes o 2 Can examine and understand social processes over time o 3 Flexibility you can change your field research design at any time o 4 Inexpensive can be done by 1 researcher with a note pad o 5 High validity Weaknesses of Qualitative Field Research o 1 Cant get statistical descriptions of large populations o 2 Weak on reliability cuz of researcher bias UNIT 2 Ethics of conduct o Associated with morality what is right and wrong and conforming to the standards o Challenging in CJ cuz research frequently deals with illegal behavior No Harm to Study Participants o Psychological harm to participants Embarrassment for people who are asked to reveal info about themselves sex abuse Zimbardo s Simulated Prison Experiment Male undergrad students took roles of guards or prisoners Mock prison At Stanford University Humphrey s Tearoom Trade 1970 Researchers studied homosexual behavior by pretending to be a watch queen voyeur of this behavior in public restrooms
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