CATALOG DESCRIPTION: Consideration of the ways in which sociological questions are formulated and answered. Examination of and practice in conceptualization, theory construction, deductive and inductive reasoning, and other elements of sociological analysis, with an emphasis upon sociological research methods. Required for majors.

COURSE OBJECTIVES: This course is designed to inform students of the nature of sociological analysis. Attention will be directed to the range of research methodologies that are employed in the production of sociological knowledge. Course participants will acquire skills in research design, the collection of data, the analysis of data, and the presentation of findings. Our most fundamental objective is to prepare students to initiate research and to carry it through to successful completion.

METHOD OF INSTRUCTION: While I will be prepared to systematically address each of the topics introduced in this class, we will not be limited to only the lecture format. Our approach to the subject matter will include group exercises, field projects, and individual or group presentations of ongoing research development and outcomes.

COURSE CONTENT: In broad terms, we will be concerned with both theory testing and theory generation. Distinctive kinds of research methodologies tend to be associated with each of these contrasting approaches to sociological investigation. (The former often takes the form of hypothesis testing, refers to the experimental method as a basic frame of reference, and bears a considerable sympathy for quantitative data. The latter often strives to increase the likelihood of a new understandings unfettered by preconceived expectations or extant theory, is fundamentally exploratory in spirit, and is highly receptive to the use of qualitative data.) We will be concerned also with comparative historical methods as a third approach to sociological investigation.

TEXTS:

Huff, Darrell. 1954. How to Lie with Statistics. New York: W. W. Norton.

Neuman, W. Lawrence. 2004. Basics of Social Research: Qualitative And Quantitative Approaches. New York: Allyn and Bacon.

Recommended: Kuhn, Thomas S. 1996. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 3rd Ed

METHODS OF EVALUATING STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

• Attendance (Attendance at 90% of class meetings is a precondition for a course grade of "C" or better. Attendance at 75% of class meetings is a precondition for a grade greater than "F". For these purposes, attendance at a given meeting is defined as continuing to the conclusion of that meeting.)

• Midterm and final exams --- 60% of course grade (30% each)

• Term research project --- 30% of course grade

• Exercises and reaction papers ---- 10% of course grade

• In-class discussions --- quality of contributions can enhance overall assessment of one or more of the above-cited elements.

Comment on Attendance: For reasons that I will discuss during our first meeting, I regard attendance to be vital for most university classes and certainly for all classes that I teach. Attendance is even more important for a research methods class, such as this. Nevertheless, emergencies arise that interfere with a person's ability to attend certain class meetings (e.g., illness, required business trip, family emergency). If this happens, let me know in writing, either before or after the event. Such justifiably pressing circumstances will not be considered a deficit with relation to overall attendance.

Huff is at Northlight Books, in the Oliver's Shopping Center, E. Cotati Blvd; Neuman is at the SSU Bookstore.

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