Table of Contents
This weekās agenda
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- Learn the steps of the research process.
- Learn different kinds of sociological questions, including factual, theoretical, comparative, and development questions.
- Understand various research methods sociologists choose, such as survey, ethnography, and in-depth interviews, as well as experiments; and identify the strengths and shortcomings.
Required Reading
Textbook
- Approaches to Sociological Research in Ā Introduction to Sociology 2e
- Research Methods inĀ Introduction to Sociology 2e
Supplementary reading
- “Survey research controversy, white anti-racist activists, and supernatural beliefs” The Contexts Graduate Student Board in Context, 2009
- “How to Do Ethnography Right” by Syed Ali and Philip Cohen in Context, 2018
Study GuideĀ
Group Discussion/Activity
Group Discussion/Activity 1: The ChallengesĀ
In this short video, a sociologist, Jooyoung Lee talks about the challenges he faced during his research on hip hop in Black community. Identify what his challenges were and discuss how he overcame them. Do you have any strategies to bridge the gap between you, as a researcher, and research subjects, whose backgrounds are often different.
Group Discussion/Activity 2: Research EthicsĀ
Many social science and scientific research involve human subjects and raise concerns over research ethics. Learn more about the Tuskegee Study by reading “Tuskegee Syphilis Study Recruitment Letter” by Gwen Sharp in The Society Pages. The federal and state governments, thus, reinforce several laws in order to project research participants, who might face some risks. Discuss following questions.
- Watch this short video, “This Tuskegee Study Descendant Wants You to Get the COVID Vaccine,” and identify ethnical issues in the Tuskegee Study. Include the systemic racism in your discussion.
- Discuss the legacies of the Tuskegee Studies. How has this study affect Black Americans’ decision on the COVID vaccination?
