Deck 8: Qualitative Methods and Data Analysis

Question 1

The method of studying natural social processes as they happen, leaving them relatively undisturbed and minimizing your presence as a researcher, is ______.

A) complete observation
B) participant observation
C) participant as observer
D) covert participation

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Groups of individuals that are formed by a researcher and then led in group discussions of a topic are ______.

A) good for generalized information
B) focus groups
C) better known as participation groups
D) good for providing a means to develop reliable, well-known information

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Wyse (2018) conducted interviews with men over 50 that had been released from prison for a year or less and found that ______.

A) most had no problems adjusting to life after prison
B) they all felt connected to family and friends after their release from prison
C) they all faced substantial barriers including disconnections from family and friends and an inability to secure employment
D) her use of closed-ended questions aided in discovering feelings about disconnection

Answer 3

C

Question 4

In his research on how riots happen at sporting events, Geoff Pearson (2009) engaged in covert participation of 'hooligans' at ______.

A) a University of Kentucky Wildcats game after a loss to the University of Wisconsin
B) a NBA basketball game in Los Angeles
C) NFL Cowboys football games in Texas
D) English football (soccer) events

Question 5

The point at which subject selection is ended in intensive interviewing, when new interviews seem to yield little additional information is known as the ______.

A) tipping point
B) saturation point
C) point of no return
D) end point

Question 6

In his role as "watch queen" in his study of male homosexual behavior in a public restroom, Laud Humphreys was adopting the role of ______.

A) overt participant
B) participant as observer
C) covert participant
D) observer

Question 7

What is ethnography?

A) study of the ethos of related cultures
B) study of a culture or cultures that a group of people share
C) a set of methodological techniques to study people
D) quantitative expression of culture

Question 8

The field research role that involves informing at least some group members of their research interests is ______.

A) complete observer
B) participant as observer
C) complete participant
D) study overseer

Question 9

The systematic approach to sampling in participant observational research is known as ______.

A) theoretical sampling
B) the sampling frame
C) a census
D) random sampling

Question 10

The primary means of recording participant observation data is(are) ______.

A) jottings
B) theoretical notes
C) written field notes
D) a tape recorder

Question 11

The use of ethnographic methods to study online communities is known as ______.

A) computer-based ethnography
B) ethno-behavior analysis
C) netnography
D) social behavior analysis

Question 12

Qualitative data focuses on ______.

A) numbers
B) hard information
C) text
D) triangulated information

Question 13

When a researcher develops a standard form on which to record variation within the observed settings in terms of his/her variables of interest, he or she is utilizing

A) systemic observational techniques
B) personal dimensional format
C) systematic observation
D) a form to avoid "going native"

Question 14

Williams and Stahl (2008) examined whether race was a determining factor in ______.

A) the length of sentence for infractions
B) the amount of violence offered in searches
C) whether a driver was given a 'no contest' option
D) whether a driver was searched after a traffic stop

Question 15

In her study of community policing, which role did Susan Miller (1999) adopt?

A) complete observer
B) participant as Observer
C) complete participant
D) study Overseer

Question 16

Decker and VanWinkle's (1996) interview narrative illustrates how to

A) strategically get a participant to agree to their methods ahead of time
B) elicit information through direct probes
C) strategize throughout an interview to best achieve objectives while taking into account interviewees' answers
D) ask long, nondetailed follow-up questions

Question 17

One of the ways Peter St. Jean (2007) advanced the research of Sampson and Raudenbush was to use multiple methods including ______.

A) resident surveys
B) in-depth interviews with residents and offenders
C) video cameras mounted on each side of a vehicle while it was slowly driven through neighborhood streets
D) all of these

Question 18

The more involved researchers are in multiple aspects of an ongoing social situation, the more important personal issues become and the ______.

A) more important outside relationships become
B) greater risk of "going native"
C) less important the personal dimension
D) more likely one is to utilize random sampling techniques

Question 19

Intensive interviewing relies on ______.

A) open-ended questions
B) closed-ended questions
C) no question schedule
D) a presumption that interviewers know their subjects well

Question 20

In intensive interviewing, more details can be elicited through ______.

A) directed probes
B) objective probes
C) nondirective probes
D) general questions

Question 21

Qualitative methods may provide the only opportunity to learn about organized crime but they should ______.

A) not be used when potential risks can be determined to be less than half
B) be deemed acceptable when the researcher agrees to do it, even though his/her employer does not
C) not be used if the risks to the researchers are unacceptably high
D) only be used if local police agree

Question 22

In complete observation, researchers try to see things as they happen, without disrupting the participants.

Question 23

Participant observation is a method of study natural social processes as they happen in laboratory settings.

Question 24

A qualitative researcher's conclusions should be assessed by their ability to provide ______.

A) clear documentation of their abilities
B) refined explanations of the iterative processes
C) a credible explanation for some aspect of social life
D) valid reasons for why people do what they do

Question 25

Computer programs such as HyperRESEARCH, ATLAS.ti, and QSR NVivo ______.

A) "thinks" for the researcher
B) assist with text analysis, coding and preparation
C) allows the researcher to analyze data that doesn't have to be scanned into the program
D) does very little in terms of qualitative data analysis

Question 26

The natural history of the development of what went on in the field, how the researcher interacted with subjects in the field, and the problems he/she encountered, is termed ______.

A) conflexivity
B) reflexivity
C) superflexibility
D) truths

Question 27

Ethnography as a method refers to the process by which a single investigator immerses himself or herself in a group for a long time (often one or more years), gradually establishing trust and experiencing the social world as do the participants.

Question 28

The centerpiece of the analytic process is ______ relationships.

A) examining
B) categorizing
C) collecting
D) resistance of

Question 29

In field research, natural social processes are studied as they happen and left relatively undisturbed.

Question 30

One of the textbook authors is currently involved in a research project examining the factors related to ______.

A) desistance for a sample of drug-involved offenders
B) resistance to sampling drug-involved offenders
C) consistency in drug involvement
D) unrelated events and conditions the affect likelihood that individuals engage in crime

Question 31

Current ethical standards require ______.

A) that the researchers go above and beyond what they are required to do
B) informed consent of research subjects
C) very little in terms of lower educated individuals
D) that researchers not deceive research subjects at all

Question 32

The term for a code in NVivo is a(n) ______.

A) nodual
B) n-code
C) node
D) internal/external

Question 33

The first formal analytical step in qualitative data analysis is ______.

A) conceptualization
B) documentation
C) coding
D) examining relationships

Question 34

Direct harm to reputations or feelings of individuals may be avoided by ______.

A) maintaining confidentiality of research subjects
B) being cordial with research subjects
C) publicly offering to pay large sums of money to some but not to all participants
D) maintaining some sense of decorum with every other individual research subject

Question 35

Ensuring that participants are participating in a study voluntarily is not often a problem with ______ but is often a point of contention with ______.

A) children; observational research
B) adults; intensive interviews
C) casual observation; focus groups
D) intensive interviewing and focus groups; participant observation

Question 36

The grounded theory approach develops general concepts from careful review of text or other qualitative materials and then ______.

A) present what they have found to other researchers to figure out the relationships
B) can suggest plausible relationships between the concepts
C) can only suggest what they think might happen in the days ahead
D) present what they have found to an institutional review board for guidance

Question 37

Confidentiality is particularly important if ______.

A) the respondents don't know that they might be 'outed'
B) there is no chance that anything illegal might occur
C) there is no chance that offending behavior will be disclosed to friends/family
D) the research is uncovering deviant or illegal behavior

Question 38

In qualitative data analysis, theory development is ______.

A) done only at the beginning of the process
B) a deductive process, allowing researchers to answer questions along the way
C) a continual process
D) done only at the end of the process

Question 39

Netnography refers to the study of social safety nets as provided to communities for their protection.

Question 40

In qualitative research, the ______ of data and their ______ are not typically separate activities.

A) collection; conceptualization
B) conceptualization; collection
C) analysis; categorization
D) collection; analysis

Question 41

Often, the "text" that qualitative researchers analyze are the transcripts of interviews or notes from participant observation sessions.

Question 42

Qualitative research can raise some complex ethical issues.

Question 43

The steps involved in computer-assisted qualitative data analysis parallel those used traditionally to analyze such text was notes, documents, or interview transcripts.

Question 44

Theoretical sampling is a systematic approach to sampling in participant observational research.

Question 45

There are set standards for evaluating the validity or authenticity of conclusions in a qualitative study.

Question 46

Tape or digital voice recorders actively discourage subjects from elaborating on answers.

Question 47

An accounting by a qualitative researcher that describes the natural history of the development of the evidence is reflexivity.

Question 48

Brief field notes, called jottings, serve as memory joggers when writing the actual field notes at a later time.

Question 49

Random selection is rarely used to select respondents for intensive interviews.

Question 50

There is no formula for successfully managing the personal dimension of field research.

Question 51

With focus groups, the researcher asks specific questions and guides the discussion to ensure that group members address the questions.

Question 52

Intensive interviewing relies on closed-ended questions.

Question 53

The process of qualitative data analysis has been described as an art, or "dance" (Miller and Crabtree, 1999).

Question 54

The problems with entering the field in intensive interviewing are greatly increased, as compared with other types of interviewing.

Question 55

In the case study "Researcher as a Hooligan", Pearson (2009) first attempted to interview self-professed hooligans about their behavior but found their reports to be unreliable.

Question 56

Miller (1999) combined participant observation and intensive interviewing for her studies of community policing.

Question 57

Examining relationships is the centerpiece of the analytic process in qualitative research.

Question 58

The term 'participant observer' represents a continuum of roles.

Question 59

Levitt, Swanger, and Butler (2008) used a systematic grounded method of analysis to understand the perspective of male perpetrators of violence on female victims.

Question 60

Most field researchers adopt a role that involves some active participation in the setting.

Question 61

What are qualitative methods? How can they be used? Name and describe the three distinctive research designs.

Question 62

What are the origins of qualitative research?

Question 63

How does Qualitative Data Analysis compare with Quantitative Data Analysis?

Question 64

Becker (1958) notes at least three criteria for assessing data. Name and describe them.

Question 65

What is Netnography?

Question 66

What are some ethical issues with regard to covert participation in research?

Question 67

What is tacit knowledge? Why is it important in qualitative research?

Question 68

How is Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis accomplished? Describe the computer program QSR NVivo and how it was used by Bachman, Kerrison, O'Connell, & Paternoster (2013) in the case study: Narratives of Desistance From Crime and Substance Abuse.

Question 69

What are the steps to qualitative data analysis?

Question 70

What are some of the issues that must be dealt with when a researcher is enter the field or setting to do research? How did Rios deal with this?

Question 71

How are qualitative designs different from experimental and survey research methods?

Question 72

What is Participant Observation? Name and describe the three roles of observing and participating.

Question 73

What is grounded theory?

Question 74

What is reflexivity? Why is it important?

Question 75

How do researchers manage relationships in the field?