- •What is scientific method?
- •Defining the Problem
- •Reviewing the Literature
- •Formulating the Hypothesis
- •Figure 2-1 Causal Logic
- •Independent variable х
- •Collecting and Analyzing Data
- •Developing the Conclusion
- •Ideas for further research
- •M edia image
- •In Summary: Scientific Method
- •Participant Observation
- •Surveys
- •In preparing to conduct a survey, sociologists must exercise great care in the wording of questions (see Table 2-1). An effective survey question
- •Unobtrusive Measures
- •It is important to realize that research designs need not be viewed as mutually exclusive. As was
- •Ethics of research
- •Case Studies of Ethical Controversies
- •Current research
- •In order to study the lifestyle of homosexual males in tearooms, Humphreys acted as a participant observer by serving as a "lookout," warning patrons when police or other strangers ap-
- •Neutrality and Politics in Research
- •If possible, read your paper aloud. Doing so may be helpful in locating sections or phrases that do not make sense.
Reviewing the Literature
By conducting a review of the literature, researchers refine the problem under study, clarify possible techniques to be used in collecting data, and may avoid making unnecessary mistakes. When David Snow and his colleagues began considering mental illness among the homeless, they turned to two types of literature. First, they reviewed "popular" magazines such as Time, News-week, and People and found a consistent image of
CHAPTER TWO ♦ METHODS OF
SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
the homeless as "street people" who had previously spent time in mental hospitals. Second, they examined systematic studies done in Boston, New York, and Philadelphia which indicated that homeless persons coming to emergency shelters and psychiatric hospitals were usually found to have a diagnosable mental illness.
But were these studies representative of the homeless? Still further review showed that when researchers focused on the homeless in general— rather than solely on those treated by psychiatri-cally based agencies under emergency conditions—the proportions of homeless persons found to be mentally ill were much lower (Ohio Department of Mental Health, 1984; Roth et al., 1985; Snow et al., 1986:407-408). These conflicting findings called into question the common media image of the homeless as predominantly mentally ill. The researchers' review of the literature underscored the importance of thoroughly examining previous studies that use different techniques before proceeding with one's own research.
Formulating the Hypothesis
After reviewing earlier research concerning the homeless and drawing upon the contributions of sociological theorists, the researcher may develop an intuitive guess about the relationship between mental illness and homelessness. Such a speculative statement about the relationship between two or more factors is called a hypothesis.
A hypothesis essentially tells us what we are looking for in our research. In order to be meaningful, a hypothesis must be testable; that is, it must be capable of being evaluated. The statement "God exists" may or may not be true; it clearly cannot be scientifically confirmed. A research hypothesis must also be reasonably specific. "Young people have more fun" and "Florida is nicer than California" are statements that lack the kind of precision that sociologists need in order to collect suitable data.
As part of a study of homelessness, one possible hypothesis might be: "Most homeless persons are not mentally ill." In formulating a hypothesis, we do not imply that it is correct. We merely suggest that it is worthy of study, that the hypothesis
should be scientifically tested and confirmed, refuted, or revised, depending on the outcome of the study (G. Bogue, 1981:11).
A hypothesis usually states how one aspect оf human behavior influences or affects another. These aspects or (actors are called variables. A variable is a measurable trait or characteristic that is subject to change under different conditions. Income, religion, occupation, and gender can all be variables in a study. In the hypothesis presented above, there are two variables: "homelessness" and "mental illness."
In developing hypotheses, sociologists attempt to explain or account for the relationship between two or more- variables. If one variable is hypothesized to cause or influence another one, social scientists call the first variable the independent variable. The second is termed the dependent variable because it is believed to be influenced by the independent variable. In their study of the homeless, researchers were interested in the effect that a particular variable (mental illness) might have on homelessness. As the causal or influencing characteristic, mental illness is the independent variable. The variable that they were trying to explain, homelessness, is the dependent variable.
According to the hypothesis, homelessness is not typically the result of mental illness. As shown in figure 2-1, causal logic involves the relationship between a condition or variable and a particular consequence where one event leads to another. Under causal logic, the display of Black Panther bumper stickers on ones car may be directly related to or produce a greater likelihood of receiving a traffic ticket.
A correlation exists when a change in one variable coincides with a change in the other. Correlations are an indication that causality may be present; they do not necessarily indicate causation. For example, data indicate that working mothers are more likely to have- delinquent children than are mothers who do not work outside the home. This correlation is actually caused by a third variable: family income. Lower-class households are more likely to have a full-time working mother; at the same time, delinquency rates are higher in this class than in other economic levels. Consequently, while having a mother who works out-
PART ONE ♦ THEvSOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE