Social Research: Theory, Methods and Techniques - Rilegato

Corbetta, Piergiorgio

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0761972528 ISBN 13: 9780761972525

Casa editrice: Sage Pubns Ltd, 2003

Riassunto

`This is an impressively detailed, clearly written book.... It is a book that I would like students to read' - Clive Seale, Goldsmiths College, London

Social Research: Theory, Methods and Techniques presents an understanding of social research practice through appreciation of its foundations and methods. Stretching from the philosophy of science to detailed descriptions of both qualitative and quantitative techniques, it illustrates not only `how' to do social research, but also `why' particular techniques are used today.

The book is divided into three parts:

Part One: Illustrates the two basic paradigms - quantitative and qualitative - of social research, describing their origins in philosophical thought and outlining their current interpretations.

Part Two: Devoted to quantitative research, and discusses the relationship between theory and research practice. It also presents a discussion of key quantitative research techniques.

Part Three: Examines qualitative research. Topics range from classical qualitative techniques such as participant observation, to more recent developments such as ethnomethodological studies.

Overall, the author offers an engaging contribution to the field of social research and this book is a reminder of the solid foundations upon which most social research is conducted today. As a consequence it will be required reading for students throughout the social sciences, and at various levels.

Su questo libro

L'autore:

Born in Milan, 11, January, 1941.Full professor of Methodology of Social Research in the Department of Sciences of Education, University of Bologna.Main research interests include methodology of social research, statistics applied to social research, political participation and electoral studies

Product Description:

Unlike most social research methods texts, which focus on either the theoretical underpinnings of social inquiry or research techniques, this text offers students an understanding of social research practice through appreciation of its foundations and methods. Stretching from the philosophy of science to detailed descriptions of both qualitative and quantitative techniques, it illustrates not only 'how' to do social research, but crucially 'why' particular techniques are used today. Social Research is divided into three parts: Part One: Illustrates the two basic paradigms - quantitative and qualitative - of social research, describing their origins in philosophical thought and outlining their current interpretations in the context of recent thinking. Part Two: Is devoted to quantitative research - discussing the relationship between theory and research practice, then an array of quantitative research techniques, in particular the experiment and the problem of causality; the survey method; scaling and the problem of measurement in the social sciences; official statistics and their use; sampling techniques and the problems involved in generalising results from a small number of cases to a larger population. Part Three: Examines qualitative research. Topics range from the most classical of qualitative techniques - participant observation - to more recent developments - such as ethnomethodological studies. The final part of this section also describes various kinds of qualitative interviews and the analysis of documents. Piergiorgio Corbetta offers an engaging contribution to a field increasingly dominated by texts merely focussing on practical issues. This book is a reminder of the solid foundations upon which most social research is conducted today, and as a consequence will be required reading for students, throughout the social sciences, at various levels.

Su questa edizione

• Editore: Sage Pubns Ltd
• Data di pubblicazione: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0761972528
• ISBN 13: 9780761972525
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero edizione: 1
• Numero di pagine: 272