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Definition
| The entire set of individuals of interest |
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Definition
Set of individuals selected from a population
Intended to represent the population |
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Definition
| Actual list of units to be selected |
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Definition
| Where the sample is selected from |
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Definition
| Summary description of a given variable in a population |
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Definition
Summary description of a given variable in a sample
Used to make estimates or inferences about population parameters |
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Definition
| Difference between the characteristics of a sample and characteristics from which it was drawn |
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Definition
| There is always some degree of sampling error. True or false? |
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Definition
Distribution is similar and not over- or under- represented
Looks like the population from which it was selected in all respects that are potentially relevant to the study |
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Definition
| The who or what being studied |
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Term
| relationship between sampling error and representativeness |
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Definition
| The larger the sampling error, the less representative of the population the sample is. |
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Term
| probability and non-probability |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| Method of selection in which each member of a population has a known chance or probability of being selected |
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Definition
| Method of selection other than probability sample |
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Definition
| The range of values within which a population parameter is estimated to lie (i.e. +/- reported in the news or on television) |
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Definition
Estimated probability that a population parameter lies within a given confidence interval
Tells us the degree of certainty (i.e. 95% or 99%) |
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Definition
| Every member of a population is listed and members are then randomly selected for questioning |
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Term
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Definition
Every member of a population is listed and then the (2nd, 4th, 21st, etc.) member is selected
Cause for some concern on selection bias |
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Term
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Definition
| The total population is divided into groups (or strata) and then members of each group are randomly selected (i.e. political survey, men vs. women) |
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Term
| disproportionate stratified sampling |
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Definition
Deliberately drawing a sample that over- or under- represents some characteristics of a population
May do this to ensure that we obtain a sufficient number of uncommon cases in our sample (i.e. violent crime in state, then in rural areas vs. large cities) |
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Term
| multi-stage cluster sampling |
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Definition
Compile a stratified group (cluster), sample it, then sub-sample that set
Useful when sampling frame is not available |
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Term
| non-probability sampling methods |
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Definition
Snowball
Purposive
Availability
Quota |
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Term
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Definition
Easy to find, convienent
Conducting a preliminary study
No systematic technique
Sample not representative of any population |
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Term
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Definition
Quotas are set to ensure sample characteristics are proportionate to their prevalence in population
Similar to stratified probability sampling (but less rigorous and precise in selection)
More similar to availability |
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Term
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Definition
Each element selected for a purpose
Use of judgment in whom to select (i.e. targeting knowledgeable people or
targeting certain offenders) |
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Definition
Hard to reach/hard to find populations
Interconnected populations
Gaining elements through informants |
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Definition
| Random sampling occurs in |
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Term
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Definition
| Random assignment occurs in |
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Term
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Definition
Appropriate to topics that seem to defy quantification
Verstehen Approach
Grounded Theory |
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Term
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Definition
Researcher attempts to understand phenomena from the standpoint of the actors
Comprehensive perspective
Often no precisely defined hypothesis |
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Term
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Definition
| Theory that is developed during the data gathering |
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Term
| characteristics of participant observations |
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Definition
Demands on time and personal cost
Observer must avoid over-socialization or “going native”
Observer must attempt to operate mentally on two different levels (become an insider or remain an outsider) |
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Term
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Definition
| Researcher not only joins in, but actually begins to manipulate the direction of, group activity |
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Term
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Definition
Researcher makes presence known and tries to objectively observe group activities
Part of the group and participates |
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Term
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Definition
Researcher makes presence known but does not actively participate
Not part of the group but may participate for the sake of undertanding |
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Term
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Definition
Researcher observes without becoming a participant
Group is unaware that they are being studied |
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Term
| preparing for the field (field research) |
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Definition
Access to formal organizations (i.e. sponsor, letter, phone call, meeting)
Access to subcultures (i.e. informant, snowball sampling) |
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Term
| ways of recording observation |
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Definition
Cameras and sound recorders
Field notes
Structured observations |
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Term
| cameras and sound recorders |
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Definition
| Capture actions and conversations |
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Term
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Definition
First, sketchy notes and then rewrite in detail
Include "unimportant details"
Mneumonics |
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Term
| examples of structured observations |
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Definition
Close-ended questionnaire
Environmental surveys |
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Term
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Definition
Structured observations in the field
Records what an observer sees in the field (on specially designed forms) |
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Term
| advantages of field research |
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Definition
Provides great depth of understanding
Less prejudgement, more flexible
High validity
More appropriate (than surveys) for measuring behavior |
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Term
| disadvantages of field research |
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Definition
Low reliability
Low generalizability
Time consuming
Typically can't use probability sampling
Ethical dilemmas
Observer bias |
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Term
| examples of methods for data collection |
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Definition
Counting crime
Self-reports
Perceptions and attitudes
Policy proposals
Targeted victim surveys
Other evaluation uses |
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Term
| reasons for popularity of survey research |
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Definition
| Versatile, efficient and generalizable |
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Term
| conducting survey research |
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Definition
Establish the goals of the project
Determine the sample
Choose survey methodology
Create questionnaire
Pre-test questionnaire
Conduct interviews
Enter data
Analyze the data |
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Term
| examples of questionnaire construction |
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Definition
Open-ended
Restricted (close-ended, ranked scale)
Partially open-ended
Rating scale |
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Term
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Definition
Uses filter questions and a skip pattern
Relevant only to some respondents (answers based on their previous responses) |
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Term
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Definition
| Same set of answer categories used by multiple questions |
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Term
| maximizing validity in survey research |
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Definition
Write clear, meaningful questions
Response choices should be mutually exclusive
Response categories should be exhaustive
Respondents must be willing and able to answer
Short items are best
Avoid biased items and terms |
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Term
| potential issues with survey research questions |
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Definition
Question-order effect
Assumption of knowledge
Leading questions
Double-barreled questions
Response sets |
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Term
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Definition
| Use of specialized jargon in questions |
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Term
| double-barreled questions |
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Definition
| One question asks about two concepts |
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Term
| elements for gaining cooperation of survey research |
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Definition
Cover letter
Timing
Interviewer |
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Term
| cover letter (for optimal research cooperation) |
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Definition
Increase response rate and honesty
Make it credible and personalized |
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Term
| timing (for optimal research cooperation) |
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Definition
Avoid holiday seasons
Household v. business surveys |
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Term
| interviewer (for optimal research cooperation) |
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Definition
Confident/assertive
Business-like
People person |
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Term
| five aspects of interviewer behavior |
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Definition
Presenting the study
Asking the question
Probing
Recording answers
Interpersonal relations |
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Term
| low validity of survey research |
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Definition
Hard to get the real content you're after
Not as accurate as observing directly |
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Term
| high reliability of survey research |
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Definition
Same survey goes out to everyone
Especially true for computer-assisted interviewing |
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Term
| approaches to data analysis |
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Definition
Analyzing previously collected data
Content analysis |
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Term
| previously collected data |
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Definition
Data from agency records
Data from other researchers (secondary data) |
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Term
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Definition
| Learn about a society by analyzing it's social artifacts |
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Term
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Definition
| Data collected first-hand |
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Term
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Definition
| Data that has already been collected |
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Term
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Definition
| The reanalysis of data that was originally gathered or compiled for other purposes |
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Term
| Freedom of Information Act |
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Definition
| Unless essential to national security, data should be available for legitimate research (concerning general access to secondary data) |
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Term
| advantages of secondary analysis |
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Definition
Cheap and fast
Benefit from work of skilled researchers
Typically no IRB |
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Term
| disadvantages of secondary analysis |
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Definition
Data might not be appropriate to your research question
Least useful for evaluation studies
CAN NOT make causal inferences |
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Term
| data that has been gathered for agency purposes, not research (as a limitation of agency records) |
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Definition
Record keeping is a social process
Incomplete data
Misinterpretation of codes |
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Term
| reliability and validity issues (as a limitation of agency records) |
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Definition
Changes in operational definitions of key terms over time
Changes in procedures over time
Data entry errors |
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Term
| unit of analysis (in agency records) |
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Definition
Be aware of match or mismatch between units of analysis
You can go from individual to aggregate BUT YOU CAN NOT go from aggregate to individual
Otherwise, risk committing an ecological fallacy |
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Term
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Definition
Systematic study of messages
Method for quantifying behavior must be defined
Well suited to answer “who said what, to whom, why, how, and with what effect?” |
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Term
| performing a content analysis |
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Definition
Determine your research question
Determine your universe
Determine your unit of analysis and sampling frame
Determine your sample |
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Term
| things to remember when choosing research participants |
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Definition
Not everyone can participate
Interpretation of the data depends on how participants were selected |
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Term
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Definition
| Collection of information from a sample of individuals through their responses to questions |
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Term
| examples of survey research |
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Definition
Self-administered surveys
In-person interview surveys
Telephone Surveys |
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Term
| advantages of self-administered surveys |
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Definition
Can get a large sample size
Good for sensitive issues
Low cost |
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Term
| disadvantages of self-administered surveys |
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Definition
Inflexible
Low response rate
Electronic (acquiring a sampling frame) |
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Term
| advantages of in-person interview surveys |
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Definition
High response rate
Good if literacy is an issue
High completion rate |
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Term
| disadvantages of in-person interview survey |
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Definition
High cost
Reliability issues (interviewer training is a must) |
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Term
| advantages of telephone surveys |
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Definition
Interviewer convenience
Ability to monitor interviewers
Good if literacy is an issue
Low cost |
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Term
| disadvantages of telephone surveys |
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Definition
Ease of "hang up" for interviewee
Reliability issues (interviewer training is a must) |
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Term
| quantitative data analysis |
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Definition
Conducting experiments
Evaluating policy innovations
Data in the form of numbers, can be statistically analyzed |
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Term
| qualitative data analysis |
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Definition
Theory- or hypothesis- generating activity
Data is in the form of words, pictures or objects |
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Term
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Definition
| Ratio of a) time working on field notes to b) actual time in the field |
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