Free Research Methods MCQs with Answers

• A. Experimentation
• B. Generalization
• C. All of these
• D. Prediction

Explanation: Experimentation helps test relationships, generalization extends findings beyond the studied cases, and prediction uses evidence to…

• A. causes and correlations are essentially the same
• B. correlations always lead to causal explanations
• C. correlations are one-way causal relationships
• D. causation cannot be inferred directly from correlation

Explanation: Correlation shows that two variables vary together, but it does not establish that one causes the other.

• A. they have been tested out by means of factual research
• B. the theorist has researched the literature thoroughly
• C. they are written in such a way as to be impossible to disprove
• D. they are shared by a large enough number of theoristsHire Grant Writers

Explanation: A sociological theory gains validity when its claims can be examined against evidence through factual or empirical research.

• A. it is difficult for sociologists to gain access to a research laboratory
• B. human behavior is meaningful and varies between individuals and cultures
• C. sociologists are not rational or critical enough in their approach
• D. we cannot collect empirical data about social lifePeople & Society

Explanation: Human conduct is shaped by meanings, intentions, and cultural contexts, so it cannot be interpreted exactly like physical phenomena.

• A. are exempt from the considerations of research ethics that govern biological researchers
• B. have not been able to agree on a code of ethics
• C. enjoy the same privileges as attorneys in protecting subject's privacy
• D. should obtain informed consent in cases where subjects may be exposed to risks of research that are greater than the risks of everyday life

Explanation: Sociologists must follow research-ethics rules, especially informed consent when participation may expose subjects to risks beyond…

• A. formulating a hypothesisSupport Disease Research
• B. choosing a research design
• C. selecting a researchable problem
• D. collecting data

Explanation: After reviewing existing literature, the researcher normally formulates a hypothesis that can be tested through data.

• A. it focuses on the researchers own experiences
• B. its knowledge is accumulated from many different research contexts
• C. it makes little distinction between the way the world is and the way it ought to be
• D. it is subjective and biased

Explanation: Sociological knowledge is built cumulatively through evidence gathered in varied research settings, allowing claims to be checked beyond…

• A. testing out new research methods to see which one works best
• B. using personal beliefs and values to decide what to study
• C. isolating and measuring the effect of one variable upon another
• D. interpreting date subjectively drawing on theoretical paradigms

Explanation: An experiment aims to isolate the effect of an independent variable on a dependent variable by comparing groups under controlled…

• A. all of the above
• B. places its main emphasis on concrete theories
• C. stresses that all human emotions are to be ignored all of the above
• D. is an approach to research which emphasizes inclusion fairness and humaneness?

Explanation: Feminist research methodology stresses inclusion, fairness, reflexivity, and humane treatment of participants, especially by challenging…

• A. may be unobtrusive or participant
• B. is not subject to the same controls that are applied to other methods
• C. requires the involvement of the researcher in the activity being studied
• D. is one of the easiest tools for sociological inquiry because it requires only good note taking

Explanation: Observation can be unobtrusive, where the researcher avoids influencing the setting, or participant, where the researcher takes part in…

• A. the contaminated group
• B. the experimental group
• C. the control groups
• D. the neutral standard

Explanation: The experimental group receives the change or treatment introduced by the researchers.

• A. Herbert Spencer
• B. Emily Post
• C. Harriet Martineau
• D. Emile Durkheim

Explanation: Harriet Martineau wrote How to Observe Manners and Morals, an early work explaining systematic observation and comparison in the study of…

• A. Observation
• B. Recollection
• C. Addition to already experimented material
• D. None of these

Explanation: Observation is the starting point for identifying a social fact or problem that can then be investigated through questions, hypotheses and…

• A. laboratory experiments
• B. human aspect of the world
• C. field experiment
• D. None of these

Explanation: Social sciences apply scientific methods to the human and social aspects of the world, including behaviour, institutions and…

• A. a piece of research trying out new methods
• B. a piece of research conducted in a laboratory
• C. an attempt to test a hypothesis under controlled conditions
• D. an attempt to deceive participants about the research's true purpose

Explanation: An experiment tests a hypothesis by controlling relevant conditions and observing the effect of changing one or more variables.

• A. being as precise as possible in defining an initial hypothesis
• B. seeking to manipulate the outcomes of a research processGet Study Guides
• C. supervising the data collection process as closely as possible
• D. holding some variables constant to look at the effects of others

Explanation: Research controls involve keeping certain variables constant so that the effect of the variable under investigation can be assessed more…

• A. sample
• B. population
• C. focus group
• D. respondents

Explanation: The population is the complete group targeted by a survey, whereas a sample is the smaller group actually selected to provide data.

• A. association
• B. correlation
• C. causation
• D. connection

Explanation: Correlation, association, and connection describe relationships or links between variables without necessarily proving cause and effect.

• A. it takes place outside the university campus
• B. it makes use of covert research methods
• C. the investigator is sympathetic to the activities that he is investigating
• D. it investigates workings of society that are different from official accounts

Explanation: Humphreys’s Tearoom Trade examined a hidden form of social interaction that differed from conventional or official accounts of public…

• A. research that aims to intervene in and improve social life
• B. research that is always multidisciplinary
• C. research that tries to contribute to the development of theory
• D. research based on government priorities

Explanation: Applied social research is conducted to address practical social problems and improve social conditions, rather than mainly to expand…