Investigating the Social World - International Student Edition

Russell K. Schutt, PhD, is professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Massachusetts Boston, where he received the 2007 Chancellor’s Award for Distinguished Service and taught from 1979 to 2022. He is also a Clinical Research Scientist I at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and a Lecturer (part-time) in the Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School. He completed his BA, MA, and PhD degrees at the University of Illinois at Chicago and was a postdoctoral fellow in the Sociology of Social Control Training Program at Yale University. In addition to ten editions of Investigating the Social World: The Process and Practice of Research and seven editions of Making Sense of the Social World, with Daniel F. Chambliss, PhD, as well as coauthored versions for criminal justice, psychology, and education, his other books include Homelessness, Housing, and Mental Illness (2011), Social Neuroscience: Brain, Mind, and Society (coedited, 2015), and Organization in a Changing Environment (1986). He has authored and coauthored more than 70 peer reviewed journal articles, as well as more than 30 non-refereed articles and book chapters on social support, mental and physical health, health services, organizations, homelessness, law, and teaching research methods. His research has been funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), the National Science Foundation, the Veterans Health Administration, the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Mental Health, the Fetzer Institute, and state agencies. Details are available at https://blogs.umb.edu/russellkschutt/.

• About the AuthorPrefaceAcknowledgmentsSection I. Foundations for Social Research1. Science, Society, and Social ResearchLearning About the Social WorldAvoiding Errors in Reasoning About the Social WorldScience and Social ScienceStrengths and Limitations of Social ResearchAlternative Research OrientationsConclusions2. The Process and Problems of Social ResearchSocial Research QuestionsSocial TheoriesSocial Research FoundationsSocial Research StrategiesSocial Research OrganizationsSocial Research StandardsConclusions3. Research Ethics and Research ProposalsHistorical BackgroundEthical PrinciplesThe Institutional Review BoardSocial Research ProposalsConclusionsSection II. Fundamentals of Social Research4. Conceptualization and MeasurementConceptsFrom Concepts to IndicatorsFrom Observations to ConceptsMeasurementLevels of MeasurementEvaluating MeasuresConclusions5. Sampling and GeneralizabilitySample PlanningSampling MethodsSampling DistributionsConclusions6. Research Design and CausationResearch Design AlternativesCriteria and Cautions for Nomothetic Causal ExplanationsComparing Research DesignsConclusionsSection III. Basic Social Research Design7. ExperimentsHistory of ExperimentationTrue ExperimentsQuasi-ExperimentsValidity in ExperimentsEthical Issues in ExperimentalConclusions8. Survey ResearchSurvey Research in the Social SciencesWriting Survey QuestionsCombining Questions in IndexesDesigning QuestionnairesOrganizing SurveysEthical Issues in Survey ResearchConclusions9. Quantitative Data AnalysisIntroducing StatisticsPreparing for Data AnalysisDisplaying Univariate DistributionsSummarizing Univariate DistributionsAnalyzing Data Ethically: How Not to Lie With StatisticsCross-Tabulating VariablesRegression AnalysisPerforming Meta-AnalysesAnalyzing Data Ethically: How Not to Lie About RelationshipsConclusions10. Qualitative MethodsFundamentals of Qualitative MethodsParticipant ObservationIntensive InterviewingInterviewing OnlineFocus GroupsGeneralizability in Qualitative ResearchEthical Issues in Qualitative ResearchConclusions11. Qualitative Data AnalysisFeatures of Qualitative Data AnalysisTechniques of Qualitative Data AnalysisAlternatives in Qualitative DataVisual SociologySystematic ObservationParticipatory Action ResearchComputer-Assisted Qualitative Data AnalysisEthics in Qualitative Data AnalysisConclusionsSection IV. Complex Social Research Designs12. Mixed MethodsHistory of Mixed MethodsTypes of Mixed MethodsStrengths and Limitations of Mixed MethodsEthics and Mixed MethodsConclusions13. Evaluation and Policy ResearchHistory of Evaluation ResearchEvaluation BasicsQuestions for Evaluation ResearchDesign DecisionsPolicy ResearchEthics in EvaluationConclusions14. Research Using Secondary Data and “Big” DataSecondary Data SourcesChallenges for Secondary Data AnalysesBig DataEthical Issues in Secondary Data Analysis and Big DataConclusions15. Research Using Historical and Comparative Data and Content AnalysisOverview of Historical and Comparative Research MethodsHistorical Social Science MethodsComparative Social Science MethodsDemographic AnalysisContent AnalysisEthical Issues in Historical and Comparative Research and Content AnalysisConclusions16. Summarizing and Reporting ResearchWriting ResearchDisplaying ResearchReporting ResearchEthics, Politics, and Research ReportsConclusionsAppendix A: Questions to Ask About a Research ArticleAppendix B: How to Read a Research ArticleAppendix C: Table of Random NumbersGlossaryBibliographyIndex