Anthony Giddens | Sociology 5th Edition | Student Resources

Student Resources

Chapter 3 - Asking and Answering Sociological Questions

Tearoom Trade is typical of the questions asked by sociologists because:
a) it takes place outside the university campus
b) it makes use of covert research methods
c) it investigates workings of society that are different from official accounts
d) the investigator is sympathetic to the activities that he is investigating
Bias in research practice refers to:
a) the investigator being committed to a particular ideology
b) the research team prejudging the meaning of the data
c) the data being unbalanced by the design or execution of the research
d) incorrect interpretations being applied to the results
When in sociology we speak of researchers 'using controls', we mean:
a) being as precise as possible in defining an initial hypothesis
b) holding some variables constant to look at the effects of others
c) supervising the data collection process as closely as possible
d) seeking to manipulate the outcomes of a research process
An association between two variables which is in fact caused by other factor(s) is called a: a) multiple regression
b) causal mechanism
c) spurious correlation
d) multinomial distribution
Which of these terms is the odd one out?
a) causation
b) correlation
c) association
d) connection
One strength of ethnography is that:
a) the influence of specific variables can be controlled by the investigator
b) it usually generates richer and more in-depth information than other methods
c) it is essential when a study is primarily historical or has a historical dimension
d) it can only be used to study relatively small groups or communities
In survey research the group of respondents targeted for the questionnaire is called:
a) sample
b) respondents
c) focus group
d) population
Which of these is NOT viewed as a strength of surveys?
a) they are often undertaken by specialist agencies
b) they offer an appearance of precision
c) the data is easy to quantify and analyse
d) large numbers of people can be studied
An experiment can be defined as:
a) an attempt to test a hypothesis under controlled conditions
b) a piece of research conducted in a laboratory
c) a piece of research trying out new methods
d) an attempt to deceive participants about the research's true purpose
Which one of these is a measure of dispersion?
a) parameter
b) range
c) median
d) mean

Anthony Giddens — Sociology, 5th Edition

Anthony Giddens • Sociology 5th Edition

Student Resources

Chapter 3 - Asking and Answering Sociological Questions