Question 1

By whom was "value neutrality" in social science research initially advocated?

Accepted Answer

Max Weber initially advocated for "value neutrality" in social science research, emphasizing that researchers should remain objective and avoid letting personal biases influence their work.

Question 2

What is the term for the single most common value in a series of scores?

Accepted Answer

The mode is the term used to describe the most frequently occurring value in a set of data.

Question 3

Individuals who have divorced parents are more likely to divorce than individuals who have parents who did not divorce. Of what is this statement an example?

Accepted Answer

This statement is an example of correlation, as it describes a relationship between two variables: having divorced parents and the likelihood of getting divorced. It does not imply causation.

Question 4

What is one of the major challenges of participant observation?

Accepted Answer

Maintaining a degree of detachment is challenging because researchers must immerse themselves in the group while avoiding bias and maintaining objectivity.

Question 5

A group of researchers designs a study to examine the effect of homeschooling on the academic performance of students in university. The researchers control for parental income and for gender. What is the independent variable in this study?

Accepted Answer

The independent variable is the one that is manipulated or categorized to observe its effect on the dependent variable. In this study, homeschooling is the independent variable as it is the factor being examined for its impact on academic performance.

Question 6

Information on the top names for newborns in Canada and Quebec illustrates which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Parents in Quebec often choose names that reflect their cultural identity, which can differ from the naming trends in the rest of Canada.

Question 7

Your class is doing a research study on the academic success of college and university students. It has been suggested that two of the issues that many students face today which may affect their level of academic success are being employed in order to pay tuition, and peer pressure to party. Answer the following five questions designed to assess your ability to apply steps in the research process. Identify from the following list which represents the independent and dependent variable respectively.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Your class is doing a research study...

Question 8

What is the conventional operational definition of education given by the textbook?

Accepted Answer

The conventional operational definition of education in many studies is the number of years of schooling completed, as it provides a standardized measure of educational attainment.

Question 9

What was the source of the data collected in the research example, given in the text, on education and income?

Accepted Answer

The text specifies that the data on education and income was collected from the Census of Canada.

Question 10

A researcher conducts a study and the results support neither his hypothesis nor his  moral standpoint. Because of this, he decides to suppress his findings. This runs contrary  to which of the following principles?

Accepted Answer

Value neutrality refers to the obligation of researchers to remain unbiased and objective, reporting findings truthfully regardless of personal beliefs or hypotheses. Suppressing findings contradicts this principle.

Question 11

What is the term for research that collects information about a group through direct  researcher participation?

Accepted Answer

Observation involves the researcher directly participating or immersing themselves in the environment of the group being studied to collect information.

Question 12

Your class is doing a research study on the academic success of college and university  students. It has been suggested that two of the issues that many students face today which  may affect their level of academic success are being employed in order to pay tuition, and peer pressure to party. Answer the following five questions designed to assess your ability to apply steps in the research process.  Which of the following methods would feminist researchers suggest best allows the voices of the subjects to be heard?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Your class is doing a research study...

Question 13

What is the most common type of qualitative research?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is the most common type of...

Question 14

Sociologists do research, primarily, to do what?

Accepted Answer

Sociologists test their hypotheses through research to determine if they are supported or not.

Question 15

By whom was the code of ethics for the discipline of sociology in Canada developed?

Accepted Answer

The Canadian Sociological Association (CSA) is the professional association responsible for developing the code of ethics for sociologists in Canada.

Question 16

What is a variable?

Accepted Answer

A variable is a measurable trait or characteristic that can change under different conditions, often used in research to observe and measure changes.

Question 17

Which of the following is true of valid research measures?

Accepted Answer

They accurately measure the phenomenon under study

Question 18

Which of the following is true of most sociologists performing research?

Accepted Answer

They often do not rely on experiments because the presence of a social scientist may affect the behaviour of the people being studied.

Question 19

Which of the following statements is NOT true about the contributions of feminist scholars?

Accepted Answer

Feminist scholars often consider the influence of men and gender dynamics in their research to provide a comprehensive understanding of societal structures.

Question 20

Which of the following survey questions will likely give the researcher the best results?

Accepted Answer

The most specific question will likely give the researcher the best results.

Quiz 1: The Sociological Imagination, and Sociological Research