Title: Approaches to Sociological Research | Introduction to Sociology
Headings: Approaches to Sociological Research
Approaches to Sociological Research
Learning Objectives
The Scientific Method
Ask a Question
Research Existing Sources
Formulate a Hypothesis
Interpretive Framework
Summary
Section Quiz
Short Answer
Further Research
References
Glossary

Content: The scientific method involves developing and testing theories about the world based on empirical evidence. It is defined by its commitment to systematic observation of the empirical world and strives to be objective, critical, skeptical, and logical. It involves a series of prescribed steps that have been established over centuries of scholarship. The scientific method is an essential tool in research. But just because sociological studies use scientific methods does not make the results less human. Sociological topics are not reduced to right or wrong facts. In this field, results of studies tend to provide people with access to knowledge they did not have before—knowledge of other cultures, knowledge of rituals and beliefs, or knowledge of trends and attitudes. No matter what research approach they use, researchers want to maximize the study’s reliability, which refers to how likely research results are to be replicated if the study is reproduced. Reliability increases the likelihood that what happens to one person will happen to all people in a group. Researchers also strive for validity, which refers to how well the study measures what it was designed to measure.