SOC 3900 Final Exam 2026–Graded A+
What is sociology? - systematic study of social life- always made up of 2 things: theory and research
In sociology, there is always the component: (sociological) theory, which is.. - a logically interrelated
set of propositions about empirical, social reality; complex explanations based upon empirical
research
In sociology, there is always the component: (sociological) research, which is... - the systematic
process in which people use specific principles and techniques to collect and analyse empirical data
in order to create knowledge about the social world- involves patterns and trends
what is sociological imagination? - anonymously used- the ability to understand history and
biography and the connection between the two- takes time to develop
there are two approaches to sociological research: ________ & _________ - deductive and inductive
The deductive approach to sociological research is: - begin with theory and test theory through the
research- EXPLANATORY- it's a step-by-step process; you can't go back- linear
The inductive approach to sociological research is: - beginning with research and develop theory in
the process, - EXPLORATORY- non linear path
Two types of sociological research: ________ & ________ - basic and applied
BASIC type of sociological research: - advances fundamental knowledge about social life- isn't being
applied to a specific issue
APPLIED type of sociological research: - takes place with very specific objective- often contracted
What are the four FORMS of research? - descriptive
evaluative
explanatory
, exploratory
what is the DESCRIPTIVE form of sociological research? - to describe a social phenomenon- all other
three forms have to involve description
what is the EVALUATIVE form of sociological research? - most related to applied type of sociological
research- to evaluate the effectiveness of a program or policy usually
what is the EXPLORATORY form of sociological research? - to explore a social phenomenon- is useful
when you don't really know a topic- ALWAYS inductive- begin with guiding questions to send
researcher in a certain direction
what is the EXPLANATORY form of sociological research? - to explain the relationship between things-
ALWAYS deductive- develop hypothesis
what are the steps in the research process? - theory
identifying a topic
research design
collecting data
analyzing data
interpreting data
disseminating findings
What are the differences between the steps in the research process for inductive and deductive? -
For deductive, it is a step-by-step process and the steps must go in order. (linear)
For inductive, the steps do not have to go in order- you are exploring (non linear)
what are the two forms of data? - qualitative & quantitative
what is quantitative data? - data in (or converted into) numeric form
what is qualitative data? - data that is not converted into numeric form (i.e. everything else)
What is sociology? - systematic study of social life- always made up of 2 things: theory and research
In sociology, there is always the component: (sociological) theory, which is.. - a logically interrelated
set of propositions about empirical, social reality; complex explanations based upon empirical
research
In sociology, there is always the component: (sociological) research, which is... - the systematic
process in which people use specific principles and techniques to collect and analyse empirical data
in order to create knowledge about the social world- involves patterns and trends
what is sociological imagination? - anonymously used- the ability to understand history and
biography and the connection between the two- takes time to develop
there are two approaches to sociological research: ________ & _________ - deductive and inductive
The deductive approach to sociological research is: - begin with theory and test theory through the
research- EXPLANATORY- it's a step-by-step process; you can't go back- linear
The inductive approach to sociological research is: - beginning with research and develop theory in
the process, - EXPLORATORY- non linear path
Two types of sociological research: ________ & ________ - basic and applied
BASIC type of sociological research: - advances fundamental knowledge about social life- isn't being
applied to a specific issue
APPLIED type of sociological research: - takes place with very specific objective- often contracted
What are the four FORMS of research? - descriptive
evaluative
explanatory
, exploratory
what is the DESCRIPTIVE form of sociological research? - to describe a social phenomenon- all other
three forms have to involve description
what is the EVALUATIVE form of sociological research? - most related to applied type of sociological
research- to evaluate the effectiveness of a program or policy usually
what is the EXPLORATORY form of sociological research? - to explore a social phenomenon- is useful
when you don't really know a topic- ALWAYS inductive- begin with guiding questions to send
researcher in a certain direction
what is the EXPLANATORY form of sociological research? - to explain the relationship between things-
ALWAYS deductive- develop hypothesis
what are the steps in the research process? - theory
identifying a topic
research design
collecting data
analyzing data
interpreting data
disseminating findings
What are the differences between the steps in the research process for inductive and deductive? -
For deductive, it is a step-by-step process and the steps must go in order. (linear)
For inductive, the steps do not have to go in order- you are exploring (non linear)
what are the two forms of data? - qualitative & quantitative
what is quantitative data? - data in (or converted into) numeric form
what is qualitative data? - data that is not converted into numeric form (i.e. everything else)
