Social Trends in American Life

Social Trends in American Life
Author: Peter V. Marsden
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 403
Release: 2012-08-26
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1400845564

Changes in American social attitudes and behaviors since the 1970s Social Trends in American Life assembles a team of leading researchers to provide unparalleled insight into how American social attitudes and behaviors have changed since the 1970s. Drawing on the General Social Survey—a social science project that has tracked demographic and attitudinal trends in the United States since 1972—it offers a window into diverse facets of American life, from intergroup relations to political views and orientations, social affiliations, and perceived well-being. Among the book's many important findings are the greater willingness of ordinary Americans to accord rights of free expression to unpopular groups, to endorse formal racial equality, and to accept nontraditional roles for women in the workplace, politics, and the family. Some, but not all, signs indicate that political conservatism has grown, while a few suggest that Republicans and Democrats are more polarized. Some forms of social connectedness such as neighboring have declined, as has confidence in government, while participation in organized religion has softened. Despite rising standards of living, American happiness levels have changed little, though financial and employment insecurity has risen over three decades. Social Trends in American Life provides an invaluable perspective on how Americans view their lives and their society, and on how these views have changed over the last two generations.

The NORC General Social Survey

The NORC General Social Survey
Author: James Allan Davis
Publisher: SAGE
Total Pages: 107
Release: 1992
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0803940378

The answers to questions on a wide variety of social and political issues from more than 25,000 respondents are contained in the General Social Survey (GSS) data base. The authors, who have directed the GSS since its inception, have set out to enable social scientists to exploit this large data set more effectively. The book outlines such topics as the recurrent, replicated `core' items suitable for trend analyses, the annual topical modules on subjects of current interest and the international modules produced in collaboration with the International Social Survey Programme.

Qualitative Research and Social Change

Qualitative Research and Social Change
Author: P. Cox
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2008-11-03
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 0230583962

Exploring the relationships between qualitative research and social change, this bookasks how social change is informed and influenced by research. Examples discussed are from research practice and experiences in the fields of sociology, social work, professional practice, education, criminal justice and anthropology."

Analyzing Inequalities

Analyzing Inequalities
Author: Catherine E. Harnois
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2017-01-30
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1506304125

Analyzing Inequalities: An Introduction to Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality Using the General Social Survey by Catherine E. Harnois is a practical resource for helping students connect sociological issues with real-world data in the context of their first undergraduate sociology courses. This worktext introduces readers to the GSS, one of the most widely analyzed surveys in the U.S.; examines a range of GSS questions related to social inequalities; and demonstrates basic techniques for analyzing this data online. No special software is required–the exercises can be completed using the Survey Documentation and Analysis (SDA) website at the University of California-Berkeley which is easy to navigate and master. Students will come away with a better understanding of social science research, and will be better positioned to ask and answer the sociological questions that most interest them.

Experimental Methods in Survey Research

Experimental Methods in Survey Research
Author: Paul J. Lavrakas
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 544
Release: 2019-10-08
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1119083745

A thorough and comprehensive guide to the theoretical, practical, and methodological approaches used in survey experiments across disciplines such as political science, health sciences, sociology, economics, psychology, and marketing This book explores and explains the broad range of experimental designs embedded in surveys that use both probability and non-probability samples. It approaches the usage of survey-based experiments with a Total Survey Error (TSE) perspective, which provides insight on the strengths and weaknesses of the techniques used. Experimental Methods in Survey Research: Techniques that Combine Random Sampling with Random Assignment addresses experiments on within-unit coverage, reducing nonresponse, question and questionnaire design, minimizing interview measurement bias, using adaptive design, trend data, vignettes, the analysis of data from survey experiments, and other topics, across social, behavioral, and marketing science domains. Each chapter begins with a description of the experimental method or application and its importance, followed by reference to relevant literature. At least one detailed original experimental case study then follows to illustrate the experimental method’s deployment, implementation, and analysis from a TSE perspective. The chapters conclude with theoretical and practical implications on the usage of the experimental method addressed. In summary, this book: Fills a gap in the current literature by successfully combining the subjects of survey methodology and experimental methodology in an effort to maximize both internal validity and external validity Offers a wide range of types of experimentation in survey research with in-depth attention to their various methodologies and applications Is edited by internationally recognized experts in the field of survey research/methodology and in the usage of survey-based experimentation —featuring contributions from across a variety of disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences Presents advances in the field of survey experiments, as well as relevant references in each chapter for further study Includes more than 20 types of original experiments carried out within probability sample surveys Addresses myriad practical and operational aspects for designing, implementing, and analyzing survey-based experiments by using a Total Survey Error perspective to address the strengths and weaknesses of each experimental technique and method Experimental Methods in Survey Research: Techniques that Combine Random Sampling with Random Assignment is an ideal reference for survey researchers and practitioners in areas such political science, health sciences, sociology, economics, psychology, public policy, data collection, data science, and marketing. It is also a very useful textbook for graduate-level courses on survey experiments and survey methodology.

Researching Social Change

Researching Social Change
Author: Julie McLeod
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Total Pages: 201
Release: 2009-04-08
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1412928877

This book provides a timely guide to qualitative methodologies that investigate processes of personal, generational, and historical change. The authors showcase a range of methods that explore temporality and the dynamic relations between past, present, and future. Through case studies, they review six methodological traditions: memory work, oral/life history, qualitative longitudinal research, ethnography, inter-generational and follow-up studies. It illustrates how these research approaches are translated into research projects and considers the practical as well as the theoretical and ethical challenges they pose. Research methods are also the product of times and places, and this book keeps to the fore the cultural and historical context in which these methods developed, the theoretical traditions on which they draw, and the empirical questions they address.

Research Justice

Research Justice
Author: Andrew Jolivétte
Publisher: Policy Press
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2015-07-22
Genre: History
ISBN: 1447324625

Challenging traditional models for conducting social science research within marginalized populations, -research justice- is a strategic framework and methodological intervention that aims to transform structural inequalities in research. This book is the first to offer a close analysis of that framework and present a radical approach to socially just, community-centered research. It is built around a vision of equal political power and legitimacy for different forms of knowledge, including the cultural, spiritual, and experiential, with the goal of greater equality in public policies and laws that rely on data and research to produce social change.