SOCIOLOGY (PS) 361/651: Social Science Research Methods

Fall 2007, M/W: 11:30-12:45 PM

Room: UC: 143

Professor: Karl T. Pfeiffer, Ph.D.

Telephone: 786-1746, Fax: 786-1737, E-mail: afktp@uaa.alaska.edu.

Office: Philosophy/Communications Dept. - ADM 264. Office Hours: F, 8:30 - 9:45 AM, or by appointment.

Web site: http://afktp.uaa.alaska.edu

Required Reading:

· American Sociological Association. 2007. ASA Style Guide.

· Babbie, Earl. 2008. The Basics of Social Research. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth:(ISBN: 9780495094685)

Recommended Reading:

· Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb and Joseph M. Williams. 2003. The Craft of Research. 2^nd Edition, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (ISBN: 978-0-226-06567-0)

· Hoover, Kenneth and Todd Donovan. (2003). The Elements of Social Scientific Thinking. 9^th Edition, New York: St. Martin’s Press. (ISBN: 978-0534614119)

· Richlin-Klonsky, J. and Strenski, E. (eds.) 2007. A Guide to Writing Sociology Papers. St. Martin's Press, New York. (ISBN: 978-0716776260)

Course Description: This course explores social science research methodology. The goal of this course is for students to develop practical research skills for the study of human social behavior. These skills include: summarizing and criticizing research literature, location of data sources, basic research design, survey construction, computer data analysis, and the writing of research reports. The course emphasizes a sociological perspective, however these skills are applicable to other behavioral sciences such as Anthropology, Political Science, and Psychology. They also have practical applications in Business, Education, Human Services, Evaluation Research, and Social Work.

Objective 1: Apply ethical scientific method to social research.

Objective 2: Assess social theory in relationship to empirical research.

Objective 3: Integrate research design, operationalization, measurement, and techniques of data sampling, collection and analysis in the conduct of a small-scale research project.

Course Requirements:

1. Attendance and participation are expected in accordance with university policy. Assigned reading should be completed prior to class. This is a seminar-style course. Consequently, informed discussion is required. Students should expect to spend a minimum of 10 hours per week outside of class, for this course.

2. There will be two (2) exams as noted on the class schedule below. Exam #1 is an essay-style open-book, open-note, take-home assignment. Essays must be typed. Handwritten exams will not be accepted. Exam #2 is a multiple-choice comprehensive exam covering all prior course material. These exams are worth a maximum of 100 points each toward the final grade.

3. There will also be two (2) projects due, as noted on the class schedule below. Project #1 is a research proposal including a review of relevant government documents and journal literature. Project #2 is a report on the completed research proposed for Project #1. This report is based on your primary data collection and analysis, but will include your literature review from Project #1, and follow standard research reporting format. (Babbie, Chapter 15, ASA Style Guide). Each project is worth a maximum of 50 points toward the final grade.

4. During most classes, students will have small group discussions, write brief short essays, complete quizzes, and engage in other in-class assignments. Class attendance is required for these in-class exercises, at the time that the exercise is done. Make-up work is not assigned when classes are missed, or when late arrivals or early departures prevent the completion of these assignments. It is highly recommended that students maintain a file of these exercises. These assignments range in point value from 1 to 20 points each. They are worth a maximum of 50 points toward the final grade.

5. Each student will write five (5) 2-4 page summaries of current journal articles or books specifically related to their selected final project. Each critique is worth a maximum of 10 points toward the final grade. Students will also complete five (5) computer-related project assignments that are also worth up to 10 points each. These papers and assignments are due as noted on the class schedule.

6. Students have the option of giving a 10-15 minute presentation on their final (Project #2) papers during class. Optional presentations earn up to 10 points extra credit toward the final grade.

7. Papers are due as noted on the class schedule. No late exams or papers are accepted. All exams and papers are due at the beginning of class on the date noted on the class schedule. In the event that a legitimate reason prevents the submission of assignments as required, it is the student’s responsibility to make sure the professor is contacted prior to the due date.

Grades will be based on the following total scores:

418 - 450 points = A (93 -100%)

378 - 417 points = B (84 - 92%)

315 - 377 points = C (70 - 83%)

270 - 314 points = D (60 - 69%)

0 - 269 points = F (less than 60%)

Class Schedule

8/27	Review syllabus. Babbie: 1-3, 15	10/22	Assignment #4 Due. Babbie: 12-14
8/29	Assignment #1 Due. Babbie: 1-3, 15	10/24	Babbie: 12-14
9/5	Babbie: 1-3, 15	10/29	Babbie: 12-14
9/10	Assignment #2 Due. Babbie: 1-3, 15	10/31	Babbie: 12-14
9/12	Babbie: 1-3, 15	11/5	Assignment #5 Due.
9/17	Summaries: 1 & 2 Due. Babbie: 4-7	11/7	Review
9/19	Babbie: 4-7	11/12	Review
9/24	Summaries: 3-5 Due. Babbie: 4-7	11/14	Exam #2
9/26	Babbie: 4-7	11/19	Project Discussions.
10/1	Assignment #3 Due. Breath.	11/26	Project Discussions.
10/3	Babbie: 8-11, and 15.	11/28	Project Discussions.
10/8	Exam #1 Due.	12/3	Project #2 Due.
10/10	Babbie: 8-11, and 15.	12/5	Presentations.
10/15	Project #1 Due. Peer Reviews.	12/12	Presentations. 10:00 AM
10/17	Babbie: 12-14

Sociology 361: Research Summaries

Instructions: The following outline is provided as a guideline for submitting research summaries of books or journal articles that are specifically related to behavioral science research. Summaries are worth a maximum of 10 points each toward your final grade.

Select a book, or an article from a journal that is specifically related to your project topic. (Journals such as Social Problems, The American Journal of Sociology, and the American Sociological Review are examples of this kind of journal, and they are available in the library. Articles from Cosmopolitan, Newsweek, Time, Psychology Today, and similar media do not usually qualify for this assignment.) Read and summarize it as outlined below. Reviews must be typed, and submitted with a photocopy of the original article. It should be no more than four (4) pages long (Max 1.5 inch margins, 12 point font, and double spaced), and should use ASA format.

Summary: (Author. date. “Title.” Journal volume number or Issue: pages.)

Summarize the article in your own words. What was the author’s purpose for writing the book or article? What background information or influences are noted or implied? Is there a theoretical frame of reference? What are the sources of data used by the author? Make sure you note the author(s) conclusions. Abstracts at the beginning of articles are helpful for doing this. Direct quotes from the article may be used, if appropriately referenced, however your summary should make sense without extensive copying of the original work.

Additional issues or topics that may be addressed include strengths and/or weaknesses you see in the article. Was it convincing? Do you see biases? Do you think it has valid conclusions? Do you see it using reliable methods; namely, if you replicated the study, do you think you would get similar results? Is the research important? Or is it trivial in your opinion? Was it written well enough to understand easily, or was it full of jargon and technical information? Would you read other articles by this author?

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Sociology 361: Coursework Due Dates

Coursework	Date	Comments
Assignment #1 (10 points)	8/29/07	E-mail the instructor a brief description of what you are interested in doing for a research project.
Assignment #2 (10 points)	9/10/07	This assignment will be given as an e-mail response to Assignment #1.
Journal Summaries: 1-2 (20 points)	9/17/07	See above.
Journal Summaries: 3-5 (30 points)	9/24/07	See above.
Assignment #3 (10 points)	10/1/07	Draft of Project literature review sent as an e-mail attachment.
Exam #1 Due. (100 points)	10/8/07	Take-Home Exam.
Project #1 Due. (50 points)	10/15/07	Research Proposal.
Assignment #4 (10 points)	10/22/07	E-mail plan for computer data set and descriptive statistics exercise.
Assignment #5 (10 points)	11/5/07	Submit hard copy data set and descriptive statistics assignment.
Exam #2 (100 points)	11/14/07	In-Class Comprehensive Exam.
Project #2 (50 points)	12/3/07	Final Research Project Report Due.

*Total possible points: 400 for specified coursework and 50 points for in-class activities. Grades are based upon 450 possible points.