WEEK 2

SOCIOLOGY AS A SCIENCE/
OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH METHODS

PART I

SOC150H1S – WINTER 2025

I N T RO TO S O C I O L O G Y I I : S O C I O L O G I C A L I N Q U I R I E S

P RO F E S S O R S C OT T S C H I E M A N
U N I V E R S I T Y O F TO RO N TO 1
 REMINDER: TUTORIALS/EMAILS
The six (6) tutorial sessions will • [email protected]

take place during the following weeks: • All emails must be sent to this email
address. Other emails will not receive a reply.
• Tutorial 1: Week 5, February 3 – 5
• Emails will be answered within 2 business
• Tutorial 2: Week 8, March 3 - 5 days (not weekends).
• Tutorial 3: Week 9, March 10 - 12 • Before emailing with a question, check the
syllabus, Quercus course announcements, and
• Tutorial 4: Week 10, March 17 – 19 the FAQ document on Quercus.
• Tutorial 5: Week 11, March 24 – 26 – If your question is not covered by these resources,
use the Discussion board or ask your question
• Tutorial 6: Week 12, March 31 – April 2 during office hours.

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 HOW DO WE KNOW WHAT WE KNOW?

• Sociologists seek to contribute to and

enhance knowledge about the social world.
• Research Methods (Methodology):
– A systematic process of inquiry applied
to learning about the social world.
– The goal of research methods is to
construct a defensible version of reality.

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THE SCIENCE OF SOCIOLOGY
• Sociology is a science.
– What is science?
• A way of knowing that attempts to systematically collect
and categorize facts or truths.
• Twin pillars of science: logic and observation.
– Scientific research operates on the theoretical and empirical
levels. A scientific assertion must make sense and be supported
by empirical observation.
• Scientists gather information about facts in a way that is
organized and intentional and usually follows a set of
predetermined steps. 4
SOCIOLOGY AS A SCIENCE
• The scientific method is central to making the gathering of empirical evidence
(that is, evidence derived from observation) systematic because it…
– establishes parameters or specific guidelines that help ensure that the findings
are objective and accurate.
– provides boundaries that focus a study and organize its results.
– offers sociologists a shared basis for discussion and analysis.
• Why is this important?
– What is the peer review process? A word about revision.
• Sociologists should not be attached to any particular results. Research should be
independent of personal beliefs (examples? religion, politics, etc.).
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SOCIOLOGY AND THE RESEARCH PROCESS
• Sociological research aims to find patterns of
regularity in social life.
• Data collection methods are designed to detect these
social regularities.
• Data analysis techniques are used to interpret them,
and theory is used to help explain them.
• Let’s do a deeper dive into each of those elements…
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 SCIENCE AND THE RESEARCH PROCESS
• Specify the research question (example?)
• Review the scientific literature;
– “Knowledge is cumulative” (meaning?)
• Propose a theory/state hypotheses (example?)
– Interrelated ideas that provide a logical
explanation of empirical realities.
• Select a research design (what are examples?)
– A word about replication. (why do it?)
• Collect the data (cases, sample, population)
• Analyze the data (how?)
• Draw inferences/conclusions (generalization?)
• Disseminate results (peer review/public sociology) 7
PUBLIC SOCIOLOGY AND
SHARING THE RESULTS OF RESEARCH
• https://theconversation.com/canadians-are-losing-faith-in-the-economy-and-its-affecting-their-
perception-of-inequality-219794

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QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE METHODS

• Quantitative methods result in data that can be represented by

and condensed into numbers (aggregate, compare, summarize data).
– Less depth, more breadth—focus on a larger number of cases.
– Survey research- most common quantitative method in sociology.
• Qualitative methods are ways of collecting data that yield results
such as words or text (e.g., in-depth interviews).
– Gain in-depth understanding of a relatively small number of cases.
– Potential for greater richness in meaning than quantified data.
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QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE METHODS

• Sometimes qualitative and quantitative methods are discussed in a

way that suggests they are in opposition—this is an inaccurate and
unnecessarily limiting perspective.
• Researchers may prefer one approach, either because their own
research questions are better suited to one approach or because
they were trained more intensely in one specific method.
• Complementary, not competing: yes, these methodological
approaches differ…but it is more appropriate to see them as having
different goals, strengths, and weaknesses.
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 BASIC AND APPLIED RESEARCH
• Basic research: Sometimes researchers are motivated to conduct
research simply because they happen to be curious about a topic.
– The goal of the research may be to learn more about a topic or
test a theoretical perspective or solve an intellectual puzzle.
• Applied research refers to sociology that is conducted for some
purpose beyond or in addition to a researcher’s interest in a topic.
– Find solutions to problems or discover ways of living better, etc.
– Might involve research for a client.
– Evaluation research – often used to test the effectiveness of a
social policy or program (is it “successful” or not?) 11
VARIABLES
• Variable: a characteristic or measure of a social phenomenon that
can take different values
• When one variable causes another, we have what researchers call
independent and dependent variables.
• An independent variable is one that causes another.
• A dependent variable is one that is caused by another.
Dependent variables “depend” on independent variables.
RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN VARIABLES
• Relational statements connect two or more variables. Knowing the value of one
variable provides some information about the values of another variable.
• Probabilistic relationship: two variables go together with some degree or level
of regularity. As the level of one variable increases, the level of another variable
also tends to increase or decrease.
• To suggest causation, three criteria must be satisfied:
– There must be a relationship or correlation between the independent and dependent variables.
– The independent variable must be prior to the dependent variable.
– There must be no other variable that is responsible for producing the causal relationship—that is, some
other X predicts both the independent variable and dependent variable in a way that helps explain why
they are related.

• Let’s look at examples with a focus on concepts within a theoretical model.

Why do researchers use models in their studies? To systematically
explain social phenomenon. Let’s discuss this using the concepts and
relationships in the “Stress Process Model” as an example.
Introducing terms that we will continue
to discuss through the semester:
- positive relationship
- negative relationship
- reverse causality
- bidirectionality
- mediation
- Moderation

If a researcher can’t be confident that an

XàY relationship is “causal,” can a claim
about that XàY relationship be useful?
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OBSERVATION AND EVIDENCE
• Knowing through observation.
• Selective Observation:
– noticing only social patterns that one has experienced
directly or wishes to find; confirmation bias (seek out or
recall information that supports one’s existing views).
• Overgeneralization:
– assuming that broad social patterns exist based on very
limited observation (“vibes”).
– let’s look at a recent example. 15
OBSERVATION AND EVIDENCE

Operationalize job satisfaction:

All in all, how satisfied would you say
you are with your job? Would you say
very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, not
too satisfied, or not at all satisfied?

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OBSERVATION AND EVIDENCE: QUANTITATIVE
All in all, how satisfied would you say you are with your job?
100%

90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
somewhat/very satisfied not too/not at all satisfied
Personal

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Source: 2023 Measuring Employment Sentiments and Social Inequality Study
 OBSERVATION AND EVIDENCE
All in all, how satisfied would you say you are with your job?
100% How satisfied do you think most America workers are with their job?
90%

80%

70%

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
somewhat/very satisfied not too/not at all satisfied
Personal Americans

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Source: 2023 Measuring Employment Sentiments and Social Inequality Study
OBSERVATION AND EVIDENCE: QUALITATIVE

•You guessed that most American workers

are [not at all satisfied] with their job.
Please tell us why you answered that way.
What gives you that impression?

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 OBSERVATION AND EVIDENCE: QUALITATIVE
• “People always have something to complain about,” said a 66-year-old
automotive repair shop owner in Virginia.
• “I hear people complaining about their jobs a lot when I am out and
about,” said a 45-year-old nursing assistant in Indiana.
• “I hear everyone around me complaining,” said a 59-year-old arborist in
New York.
• “I have friends who are always complaining about the company they work
for,” said a 43-year-old IT director in Florida.
• “It seems like I hear and see plenty of complaining on social media,” said a
software engineer in Pennsylvania.
• “Almost everyone I know outside of work complains about their job in
person and online,” said a 23-year-old construction worker in Florida.
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 IMAGINE JOB SATISFACTION AS A DEPENDENT VARIABLE.
WHAT VARIABLES MIGHT PREDICT IT?
A word about:
All in all, how satisfied would you say you are with your job? Description
Comparison
100% Explanation (what accounts for
90%
differences?)

80%

70%

60%

50%
?
40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
somewhat/very satisfied not too/not at all satisfied
Personal
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Source: 2023 Measuring Employment Sentiments and Social Inequality Study