Social science involves the study of people. Social research methods are based on a systematic approach to studying social phenomena. Social sciences include anthropology, sociology, economics, psychology, political science, communications, and history. Researchers in each of these disciplines are interested in pursuing explanations for human social behavior. Sociologists and anthropologists, in particular, are interested in
Research on verbal accounting examines how language is used to retrospectively explain or make sense of events. Citing one’s motive or describing the context may serve to portray events in a different way – as understandable, excusable, or less culpable. An accounting can range from a lengthy discourse (a narrative or courtroom cross-examination) to a
Internet research ethics (IRE) attempts to clarify and resolve ethical dilemmas encountered by researchers who use the Internet as a medium for their research – for example, doing online surveys – and/or focus on the various forms of interactions observable online, such as virtual communities, social networks like MySpace, web pages, instant messaging, and other
Almost by definition, cultural anthropology is cross-cultural research. The search for an understanding of what culture is has meant undertaking research with an eye for comparing ethnographic data generated in different societies. Anthropological fieldwork has been driven as much by the desire to test a particular theory about culture as it has been about documenting
Derived from anthropological research, emic and etic describe two broad approaches to analyzing language and culture. The emic–etic duality has influenced the ways in which fields as diverse as personality psychology, consumer behavior, organizational science, and intercultural communication study cultural systems. The terms also refer to distinctive research strategies, particularly in the context of ethnographic
As the field of ethics addresses the philosophical foundations for standards of behavior and treatment of others when personal, social, and professional values conflict, social science researchers in general and communication researchers in particular are required to consider ethical implications of their work. Ethics is a process of deliberation that helps illuminate the dimensions and
The term “online research” refers to two different concepts which are often confused: (1) applying online methods in social research, and (2) social research of online phenomena. The first part of the article sketches the most important empirical methods and their online version. The second part briefly illustrates how selected online phenomena or research questions
Readership research employs empirical methods to investigate print media usage, focusing mainly on magazines and newspapers that appear periodically. Of primary importance in this context are readership analyses that ascertain findings on print-media coverage (reach or cumulative audience) and readership structure (composition of readership to describe print-media target groups). These methods are supplemented by reception
When considering how the lessons learned from science can be used by those audiences who might benefit from them, the term “research dissemination” (Lomas 1993) has been coined to focus on the active process by which information gleaned from science is actively communicated to those audiences who are thought to be most likely to benefit
Field research is a somewhat dated term that is used to describe research conducted under the naturally occurring contingencies of unmanipulated or naturally manipulated contexts. In this usage it is contrasted with laboratory research, which is to be conducted under highly controlled circumstances and in fully manipulated contexts. In this contrast, field research is considered
A specific comparative research methodology is known in most social sciences. Its definition often refers to countries and cultures at the same time, because cultural differences between countries can be rather small (e.g., in Scandinavian countries), whereas very different cultural or ethnic groups may live within one country (e.g., minorities in the United States). Comparative
Audience research is a broad term that, in principle, denotes the systematic study of any audience for any purpose. In practice, the term usually connotes efforts to describe and analyze patterns of media consumption, often for some commercial or administrative purpose. Such research became commonplace in the early twentieth century as new forms of mass
Communication research is intimately related to politics, especially if politics is understood widely as the deliberate management of society. Research on media and other aspects of communication such as election campaigns has typically been inspired and financed by political motives. On the other hand, research has influenced politics by producing concepts and findings about how
Alongside theories, research methods shape academic disciplines such as communication. Whereas theories determine the subject matter (i.e., the part of reality a discipline is looking at), methods determine how a discipline gathers information about its subject matter. Which methods are acceptable and how methods are applied is subject to an ongoing debate and communication process
Linkage research identifies the relationship between employee perceptions of the work environment and objective measures of business performance (e.g., productivity) and other relevant organizational outcomes (e.g., customer satisfaction). Workplace perceptions are typically gathered through employee surveys, and measures of business performance are selected on the basis of what outcomes are relevant to the firm’s strategy.
Longitudinal research involves the collection and analysis of comparable data at more than one point in time. The exact number of time points and the interval between time points depend on the nature of the investigation. A longitudinal design is desirable for many research investigations because it enables an assessment of change over time. The
Qualitative research is an approach to inquiry that refers to a broad umbrella domain of various research traditions and investigative and analytic practices employed by researchers in a wide range of subject disciplines. One way of understanding the variety is to understand qualitative inquiry from the perspective of three broad philosophical paradigms that represent various
Quantitative research approaches increase our knowledge by gathering data that can be manipulated mathematically. This allows us to answer questions about the meanings of psychological concepts, as well as to deter-mine their levels and variability as well as the relationships among them. Quantitative research approaches may be contrasted with qualitative approaches, which tend to collect
Qualitative research in psychology is a versatile and indispensable methodology characterized by its in-depth exploration of human phenomena within their natural context. This article provides an overview of qualitative research, outlining its defining characteristics, data collection and analysis methods, and diverse applications in psychology. Despite its merits, qualitative research faces criticisms and challenges that demand
Research in industrial-organizational psychology is increasingly being conducted across cultural boundaries to test the generalizability of Western findings and to train managers to be more effective in multicultural contexts. Although cross-cultural research involves many of the same methods that are used in typical I/O research, many unique issues arise in the cross-cultural research process—from the
Longitudinal research refers to research that investigates events or phenomena over an extended period of time. Longitudinal research studies can be as brief as 1 or 2 years, for example, when evaluating the effects of a particular learning strategy, technique, or treatment. They can also run over several decades, as when examining changes in adult
Attitudes Definition Attitudes refer to our overall evaluations of people, groups, and objects in our social world. Reporting an attitude involves making a decision concerning liking versus disliking or favoring versus disfavoring an attitude object. Attitudes are important because they affect both the way we perceive the world and how we behave. Indeed, over 70
Control Definition The term control has a long history in social psychology and has been used in a variety of ways. At the most general level, control can be defined as influence, whether it be over internal states (as in emotional control or self-control) or over external aspects of the environment, including control over outcomes (i.e.
Emotions Definition Emotions can be defined as psychological states that comprise thoughts and feelings, physiological changes, expressive behaviors, and inclinations to act. The precise combination of these elements varies from emotion to emotion, and emotions may or may not be accompanied by overt behaviors. This complex of states and behaviors is triggered by an event
Group Definition There is no consensus among social psychologists on the defining characteristics of a group. Nearly all definitions, however, emphasize that a group is not a mere aggregation of individuals. Rather, two or more individuals become a group to the extent that they are bonded together in some way, which generally means that they
Personality Definition Personality is an individual’s typical way of feeling, thinking, and acting. Given that personality is typical, it is fairly stable over time. Social behavior refers to a person’s feelings, thoughts, or actions as he or she relates to other people. These two definitions have a very close relationship. Knowing something about an individual’s
Prejudice Definition Prejudice is defined as an attitude toward people based on their membership in a group (e.g., their racial group, gender, nationality, even the college they attend). Critical to prejudice is an inflexibility in the reaction to the target person whereby the responses to the target are not based on the target’s behaviors or
Self Definition In psychology, the notion of the self refers to a person’s experience as a single, unitary, autonomous being that is separate from others, experienced with continuity through time and place. The experience of the self includes consciousness of one’s physicality as well as one’s inner character and emotional life. People experience their selves
The longitudinal method examines one group of people repeatedly over time, whereas the cross-sectional method examines several groups of people at one point in time. For example, if you investigated changes in social behavior in 20-, 30-, and 40-yearolds all measured at one point in time, you would be conducting a cross-sectional research study. In
The Abecedarian Research Project was an intensive research program designed to study the effect of high-quality educational child care on children from low-income families. Researchers selected infants from low-income families who were found to be at particularly high risk for educational failure because of low maternal educational levels. The participants received full-time, high-quality educational intervention
Ethical issues in social science research are of crucial importance not only to the individuals involved, but also to society. An understanding of what is and is not permissible arose through decades of debate beginning immediately after World War II, when information regarding how Nazi scientists treated prisoners in their care became general knowledge due
Historiography refers to the philosophy and methods of doing history. Psychology is certainly guided by underlying philosophies and a diversity of research methods. A behaviorist, for example, has certain assumptions about the influence of previous experience, in terms of a history of punishment and reinforcement, on current behavior. And the methods of study take those
Psychologists typically study contemporary events (behaviors and mental processes), whereas historians study events of the distant past. Both might be interested in the same behavior, but the time frame and the methods are usually distinct. Psychologists are interested in marriage, for example, and they might study marriage using surveys, ex post facto methods, or quasi-experimental
In the mid-1960s, a critical mass of sorts was achieved for those interested in teaching, research, and scholarship in the history of psychology. Within the span of a few years, two major organizations appeared: Cheiron: The International Society for the History of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, and Division 26 (Society for the History of