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Abstract
Quantitative methods (QM) are characterised as ‘hard to teach’ and often marginalised in undergraduate Sociology curricula particularly in the UK, due to many factors, including students’ attitudes towards numbers. This can lead QM to be viewed by students as not mainstream Sociology. This article argues that QM can support Sociology graduate futures due to clear transferable skills. But QM must be taught in a way that does not ‘trigger’ students’ negative dispositions towards the subject. This article, using the example of a large introductory undergraduate QM module, outlines a pedagogic approach that addresses students’ attitudes to QM, while building learner confidence. Key elements of this approach to QM include storytelling, relevance, support and value. This article ends with a discussion of the efficacy of this framework based on a two-year evaluation.
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Numbers are "triggering" because they describe objective reality, which leaves no room for "lived experience."
Playing dice with criminal sentences: the influence of irrelevant anchors on experts' judicial decision making
Judicial sentencing decisions should be guided by facts, not by chance. The present research however demonstrates that the sentencing decisions of experienced legal professionals are influenced by irrelevant sentencing demands even if they are blatantly determined at random. [...] Expertise and experience did not reduce this effect. This sentencing bias appears to be produced by a selective increase in the accessibility of arguments that are consistent with the random sentencing demand: The accessibility of incriminating arguments was higher if participants were confronted with a high rather than a low anchor.
Englich, B., Mussweiler, T., & Strack, F. (2006). Playing dice with criminal sentences: the influence of irrelevant anchors on experts' judicial decision making. Personality & social psychology bulletin, 32(2), 188–200. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167205282152
Sociological theory is a set of interrelated ideas that allow for the (1) systematization of knowledge of the social world (2) the explanation of that world, and (3) predictions about the future of that world, and which are falsifiable through empirical research.
Theory provides a possible answer to questions like, “why did this happen?” or, “why did they do that?” This means theory is speculation, not fact, but unlike “ideas” generally, theory is speculation driven by a more formal, systematic, process, which incorporates the work of previous theorists and research findings.
The Sociological Canon
Some theories are more popular than others. Some theories, while unpopular, are considered “pivotal” to the foundation of sociology. The “sociological canon” helps us identify the “popular” and “pivotal” theories.
The sociological canon is defined as the theories, ideas, and texts that are widely considered as the most important in the field of sociology (Ritzer and Stepnisky 2018)
“I’m not a regular mom theory, I’m a cool mom theory!”
The canonized theories are sort of like the “cool mom” in Mean Girls (oshowing my age here, the original 😘) – others exist, but these are the ones we tend to think of first when we think of “the mom in Mean Girls” (or, in this case, “sociological theory”).
Critics of the canon argue that the canon is not a neutral construction; rather, it is affected by power and the politics of the theory. To some degree, they are right.
The field of sociology has historically privileged theories that have testable hypotheses, known as “positivist” theories, and theories produced by white men faculty. In this, we can see that the canon, and relatedly, the field of sociology, have tended to reflect power structures in society more broadly. Which means that, yes, technically the canon is full of theories created by old white dude philosophers in Europe in the late 1800s to early 1900s. Nowadays, though, most sociologists agree that the canon includes much more than Marx, Weber, and Durkheim.
Meaning the canon is now considered to include theories from other classical theorists writing during the same time as Mark/Weber/Durkheim, like W.E.B. DuBois and Ida B. Wells. The canon has also expanded in the last 40 or so years to include contemporary theories, such as emancipatory, feminist, and queer theories. These expansions were important steps towards accounting for the reality of the field as it presently exists, and to correctly reflect the field’s foundations which expand far beyond whiteness, masculinity, and western imperial culture. Presently, women make up the (quantitative) majority of sociology faculty, and while this women majority was historically white, the number of women, including and especially women of color, in sociology continues to grow, substantially outpacing white men.
Sociological Theory and Empirical Research
Empirical research is rooted in theory.
Sometimes these theories are the driving force behind research, constituting the research question for an empirical study. You begin with the possible answer to the question, the theory, and you investigate to see if it holds up–your results may call into question some or all of the theory’s propositions. This is called “deductive reasoning.”
Theory is not always the starting point of research, though. Sometimes theory is generated from research. This process is called “inductive reasoning.” In this case, you begin with observations, draw conclusions, and from those conclusions, generate new ideas about the social world.
Deductive reasoning is often linked with quantitative research. Quantitative researchers usually have some idea of theory before forming their research question, and some quantitative research is constructed with the goal of testing (falsifying) theoretical propositions. Qualitative research, in contrast, often uses inductive reasoning, beginning with observation and developing theory as part of the study’s conclusions. This is not always the case with qualitative research, though.
One approach to creating contemporary sociological theory assumes the “best” theory is constructed via inductive reasoning, and thus, begins with observation, absent of pre-existing ideas. This is known as a “grounded theory” approach, because it produces theory that is “grounded” in observation of tangible facts instead of based upon pre-existing abstract ideas. The sociologists Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss are often credited with popularizing the “grounded theory” approach, which they outlined in their 1967 book “The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research”.
Other approaches to qualitative research, like content analysis, may start with theory or observations.
Alicia Santoso. [@aliciasannn]. (2021, 03/18). like i rly didn’t know that psych deals with lot of numbers 👁👄👁. [sic] [Video]. TikTok. https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPdMTEUWu/
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