Deck 4: Beginning a Research Project

Question 1

Personal experiences are a good starting point for choosing a research topic.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

A question whose answer is either yes/no is a good research question.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

One of the criteria for choosing a research topic is the ability to stay unbiased when collecting and reporting data on that topic.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

You should not choose a topic for research about which you have strong personal opinions.

Question 5

A good research question is one that is well-focused.

Question 6

Psychologists and sociologists share an interest in human behavior.

Question 7

Sociologists recognize that the identity of a person is affected by the groups of which that person is a member.

Question 8

Sociologists usually disregard inconsistencies in patterns of interactions as anomalies.

Question 9

Social patterns can occur across time and space.

Question 10

Societal changes are disregarded by sociological research because sociologists usually pay more attention to recognizing patterns.

Question 11

Whether a research question is empirical or ethical can depend on how the question is framed.

Question 12

Sociologists are best equipped to answer ethical questions.

Question 13

Ethical questions can be answered by real experience in the real world.

Question 14

Time and money are two factors which affect the sort of research that a person is able to conduct.

Question 15

Sociologists are trained to understand patterns of human morality and ethics.

Question 16

Empirical questions address moral opinions that people generally have.

Question 17

What you know about your research topic has little bearing on the questions you can ask about it.

Question 18

A good research question usually has more than one plausible answer.

Question 19

Sociology is the scientific study of humans in groups.

Question 20

A researcher's identity has little impact on the kind of research that he or she is able to conduct.

Question 21

Miriam,a basketball scout,is always under the impression that all the students from North Carolina University are good basketball players just because Michael Jordan passed out from that university.Miriam's impression is an example of a(n)_____.

A)bias
B)Social Abstract
C)discipline
D)research question
E)ethical question

Question 22

A person's place in society,generally determined by a combination of aspects of a person's identity such as race,ethnicity,gender,and sexuality is called _____.

A)Sociological Abstracts
B)discipline
C)replication
D)social location
E)anonymity

Question 23

A(n)_____ is most likely to ask this question: How does the presence of gangs influence a community's financial well being?

A)economist
B)philosopher
C)sociologist
D)political scientist
E)historian

Question 24

_____ are those that can be answered by real experience in the real world.

A)Questions based on religious beliefs
B)Moral questions
C)Empirical questions
D)Questions based on human values
E)Ethical questions

Question 25

Predilections toward a particular perspective that may cause one to neglect alternative perspectives are known as _____.

A)disciplines
B)social locations
C)Social Abstracts
D)biases
E)emprical questions

Question 26

One of the drawbacks associated with studying a topic about which you already have some prior knowledge or experience is that your research might end up becoming _____.

A)empirical
B)explanatory
C)objective
D)ethical
E)biased

Question 27

A(n)_____ is most likely to ask this question: How can we explain the origins and consequences of one specific gang-related incident?

A)economist
B)philosopher
C)sociologist
D)political scientist
E)historian

Question 28

A particular course of study; one division of several academic categories is known as a(n)_____.

A)predilection
B)Social Abstract
C)social location
D)bias
E)discipline

Question 29

Sarah has been dubbed a music junkie by her friends.She has an eclectic taste in music.She finds it interesting that most people like listening to only a few music genres.She is now planning to research the role of gender and culture in an individual's taste in music.This is an example of the _____ idea for choosing research topics.

A)"starting where you are"
B)"using a focus group"
C)"follow the trend"
D)"consulting your mentors"
E)"consulting your peers"

Question 30

Joseph used information such as race,ethnicity,and sexuality to determine Benjamin's position in the society.What exactly did Joseph determine?

A)Social location
B)Social Abstracts
C)Replication
D)Predilection
E)Anonymity

Question 31

A(n)_____ is most likely to ask this question: What traumatic personal experiences or emotional states drive a person to join a gang?

A)economist
B)philosopher
C)sociologist
D)psychologist
E)historian

Question 32

"Social Abstracts" is:

A)a particular course of social study.
B)a database that indexes published sociological research.
C)one division of several social academic categories.
D)a person's place in society,generally determined by a combination of aspects of a person's identity such as race,ethnicity,gender,sexuality,and social class status.
E)a type of predilection toward a particular perspective that may cause one to neglect alternative perspectives.

Question 33

A(n)_____ is most likely to ask this question: How have laws focused on gangs developed?

A)economist
B)philosopher
C)sociologist
D)political scientist
E)historian

Question 34

_____ and sociologists share a desire to understand beliefs about the nature of good and bad.

A)Philosophers
B)Historians
C)Political scientists
D)Economists
E)Psychologists

Question 35

Which of the following is true of sociology and ethics?

A)Questions about sociologists' professional behavior seldom vary from sociological research questions.
B)Empirical questions in sociology can be answered by real world experience.
C)Sociologists are best equipped to answer ethical questions.
D)Sociologists usually refrain from considering questions of ethics.
E)Sociologists gather ethical facts about moral phenomena.

Question 36

A(n)_____ is most likely to ask this question: Are members of some upper classes more likely than others to join gangs?

A)economist
B)philosopher
C)sociologist
D)political scientist
E)historian

Question 37

A(n)_____ is most likely to ask this question: What logical principles make up a good or a bad society?

A)economist
B)philosopher
C)sociologist
D)political scientist
E)historian

Question 38

Which of the following is a benefit of studying a topic close to your heart?

A)You seldom suppress data not supporting your views.
B)You are likely to design the project to support your perspective.
C)The study seldom reveals the accuracy of your peers' viewpoint.
D)The topic is likely to keep you motivated the most.
E)You seldom have trouble accepting perspectives other than your own.

Question 39

Sociologists are best equipped:

A)to answer empirical questions.
B)to answer questions based on religious beliefs.
C)give out moral opinions.
D)to answer ethical questions.
E)to answer questions based on values.

Question 40

Which of the following is a sociological research question?

A) How can we explain the origins and consequences of one specific gang-related incident?
B) What traumatic personal experiences or emotional states drive a person to join a gang?
C) How does the presence of gangs in a community affect perceptions of that community as good or bad?
D) How have laws focused on gangs developed?
E) How does the presence of gangs influence a community’s financial well being?

Question 41

"Do social settings and peers and the place of stay influence a college student's exercise and eating habits?" Which of the following is a strength of the preceding sociological research question?

A)It is written in the form of a question.
B)It has one plausible answer.
C)It is a focused yes or no question.
D)It focuses on a single concept.
E)It is not a yes or no question.

Question 42

Pose an empirical question on the topic of illegal immigration.

Question 43

"Do children's books teach us about gender norms in our society?" Which of the following is a weakness of the preceding sociological research question?

A)It is written in the form of a statement.
B)It is a question that exhibits gender bias.
C)It is a focused yes or no question.
D)It is a question that lacks clear focus.
E)It tries to focus on many aspects of a problem.

Question 44

Pose an ethical question on the topic of illegal immigration.

Question 45

How can having strong feelings about a research topic might be detrimental to a researcher?

Question 46

_____ is a person's place in society.

Question 47

_____ may not be answerable in reference to the real world.

Question 48

"Why do so few college-aged men volunteer?" Which of the following is a strength of the preceding sociological research question?

A)It is written in the form of a statement.
B)It is socially relevant.
C)It is a focused yes or no question.
D)It focuses on multiple concepts.
E)It contains only one plausible answer.

Question 49

Sociologists are like paparazzi in that both need to:

A)correlate the subjects of research.
B)classify the subjects of research.
C)criticize the subjects of research.
D)analyze the subjects of research.
E)focus on the subjects of research.

Question 50

A way of framing a scientist's particular problem of interest is known as a(n)_____.

A)research question
B)social location
C)Social Abstract
D)discipline
E)placebo effect

Question 51

_____ is a database that indexes published sociological research.

Question 52

What characterizes empirical questions?

Question 53

What makes sociology a unique discipline?

Question 54

Which of the following is a feature of a good sociological research question?

A)It should be written in the form of a statement.
B)It should contain just one plausible answer.
C)It should be a focused yes or no question.
D)It should consider relationships among multiple concepts.
E)It should try to focus on many aspects of a problem.

Question 55

How does sociology differ from psychology?

Question 56

Compare and contrast empirical and ethical questions.

Question 57

How can having strong feelings about a research topic might be advantageous to a researcher?

Question 58

How is "starting where you are" relevant to finding a sociological research topic?

Question 59

_____ are the questions that can be answered by real experience in the real world.

Question 60

What are the features of a good sociological research question?

Question 61

A(n)_____ is a way of framing a scientist's particular problem of interest.