Geoff Payne & Judy Payne 
Key Concepts in Social Research [EPUB ebook] 

`This clearly written and user-friendly book is ideal for students or researchers who wish to get a basic, but solid grasp of a topic and see how it fits with other topics. By following the links a student can easily and efficiently build up a clear conceptual map of social research′ –
Malcolm Williams, Reader in Sociology, Cardiff University

`This is a really useful book, written in an accessible manner for students beginning their study of social research methods. It is helpful both as an introductory text and as a reference guide for more advanced students. Most of the key topics in methods and methodology are covered and it will be suitable as a recommended text on a wide variety of courses′ – Clive Seale, Brunel University

At last, an authoritative, crystal-clear introduction to research methods which really takes account of the needs of students for accessible, focused information to help with undergraduate essays and exams. The key concepts discussed here are based on a review of teaching syllabi and the authors′ experience of many years of teaching. Topics range over qualitative and quantitative approaches and combine practical considerations with philosophical issues. They include several new topics, like internet and phone polling, internet searches, and visual methods. Each section is free-standing, can be tackled in order, but with links to other sections to enable students to cross-reference and build up a wider understanding of central research methods.

To facilitate comprehension and aid study, each section begins with a definition. It is followed by a summary of key points with key words and guides to further reading and up-to-date examples.

The book is a major addition to undergraduate reading lists. It is reliable, allows for easy transference to essays and exams and easy to use, and exceptionally clearly written for student consumption. The book answers the needs of all those who find research methods daunting, and for those who have dreamt of an ideal introduction to the subject.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Action Research

Association and Causation

Attitude Scales

Auto/Biography and Life Histories

Bias

Case Study

Coding Qualitative Data

Community Profiles

Community Studies

Content Analysis

Contingency Tables

Documentary Methods

Ethical Practice

Ethnography

Ethnomethodology and Conversational Analysis

Evaluation Studies

Experiments

Feminist Research

Fieldwork

Grounded Theory

Group Discussions/Focus Groups

Hawthorne Effect

Hypothesis

Indicators and Operationalisations

Internet and Other Searches

Internet Polling

Interviewing

Key Informants

Levels of Measurement

Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Studies

Methods and Methodologies

Objectivity

Observation

Official Statistics

Participant Observation

Positivism and Realism

Qualitative Methods

Quantitative Methods

Questionnaires

Reflexivity

Reliability

Sampling

Estimates and Size

Sampling

Questions of Size

Sampling

Types

Secondary Analysis

Social Surveys

Telephone and Computer-Assisted Polling

Unobstrusive Methods and Triangulation

Validity

Visual Methods

Über den Autor

Mrs. Judy Payne is Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher Educator in the department of Adolescent, Career, and Special Education. She is also the Career and Technical Education program coordinator.

Mrs. Payne earned her B.S. in Home Economics Education (1962) and M.S. in Home Economics Education (1967) from Southern Illinois University – Carbondale. She has taken additional graduate courses at Southern Illinois University – Carbondale and through Oregon State University. Before coming to the College of Education (2000), Mrs. Payne was a faculty member in the department of Home Economics, later renamed the department of Family & Consumer Studies. Her other teaching experiences include 3 years of middle school in Maryland, 2 years of secondary school in Illinois, and 3 years of middle/secondary school teaching in Oregon.