OL233/CC233/HS233
Introduction to Social Science Research Methods
0.5 Credit

Building on BF290, this course provides an introduction to social science research methodologies that is designed to enable students to read, understand, and critically evaluate social science research as well as to prepare students for more specialized courses in qualitative and quantitative research. Students will learn the philosophical (i.e., ontological and epistemological) basis for quantitative, qualitative, deductive and inductive research, how to frame research questions, operationalize concepts, and design studies suitable to quantitative and qualitative research and the limitations and advantages of various research designs (e.g., cross-sectional, experimental, case studies, ethnographies). The relationship between theoretical concepts, constructs and variables will be examined. Students will be introduced to current issues regarding research ethics. For quantitative research, students will become familiar with different forms of data collection and the following concepts: levels of measurement, the central limit theorem, measures of central tendency and variance, hypothesis testing, the standard error and probability sampling. For qualitative research, students will become familiar with different forms of data collection (e.g., observations, interviews, textual analysis) and basic strategies to categorize and code qualitative material. (Cross-listed as CC233 and HS233.)