Social Research Methods

Alan Bryman Social Research Methods Chapter 29: Writing up social research Slides authored by Tom Owens

Do quantitative and qualitative research reveal divergent approaches? The similarities are frequently more striking and apparent than the differences Many people find writing up research more difficult than carrying it out You must convince your readers about the credibility of the knowledge claims you make Good writing is to do with developing your style so that it is persuasive and convincing Issues in writing up social research Page 684

The study of rhetoric is fundamentally concerned with the ways in which attempts to convince or persuade an audience are formulated. Rhetoric is an essential ingredient of writing, because when we write our aim is to convince others about the credibility of our knowledge claims. The examination of rhetorical strategies in written texts based on business research is concerned with the identification of the techniques in those texts that are designed to convince and persuade. What is rhetoric? Key concept 29.1 Page 684

Tips for writing up your research Start early! Be persuasive. Get feedback. Avoid sexist, racist, and disablist language. Structure your writing: Title page – acknowledgements – list of contents – abstract – introduction - literature review - research methods – results – discussion – conclusion – appendices - references. Pages 685-691

Typical ways of constructing an argument Figure 29.1 Page 688

The article is a secondary analysis of survey data on religion in fifteen nations and was published in the American Sociological Review, with the following structure: Introduction; Theory; Data; Measurement; Methods and models; Results; Conclusion. Structure of the Kelley and De Graaf (1997) article (quantitative research) Pages 692, 693

The first sentence locates the article’s focus as addressing an important aspect of modern society that touches on many people’s lives. The second sentence notes that there is variety among Western nations in the importance of religion and that this is an area of interest to sociologists. The third sentence suggests that there is a problem with the issue of secularization, a research focus for many sociologists. The fourth sentence outlines the authors specific contribution to this area. 1. Introduction Page 693

In this section, existing ideas and research on the topic are presented, leading to the formulation of their hypotheses: Hypothesis 1. Contextual factors have an impact on religious beliefs. Hypothesis 2a. Family background will have a greater impact on a person’s religious beliefs in predominantly secular societies. Hypothesis 2b. In predominantly secular societies parents and other family members are more likely to try to isolate children from secular influences. 2. Theory Page 693

A general outline is given: of the data sets of the sampling procedures of sample sizes of response rates 3. Data Page 693

This section explains how the main concepts in their research were measured, including scoring procedures for indicating a nation’s religious or secular orientation on a five-point scale. 4. Measurement Page 694

This is a very technical section: outlining the different ways in which the relationships between the variables might be conceptualized Tracing the implications of using different multivariate analysis approaches for the findings 5. Methods and models Page 694

Here the authors provide a general description of their findings. Then they consider whether their hypotheses are supported and explore the significance of other contextual characteristics. 6. Results Page 694

This final section begins with a strong statement of the findings. Then they reflect upon the implications of having their hypotheses confirmed: for our understanding of the process of religious socialization and religious beliefs; and in terms of the impact on certain theories about religions beliefs in modern society. 7. Conclusion Page 694

Strong opening statements grab the reader’s attention and act as signposts to what the article is about The rationale of the research is spelled out clearly Research questions are spelled out very specifically The research methods, nature of data, measurement of concepts, sampling and data analysis are clearly and explicitly summarized The presentation of findings is oriented specifically to the research questions The conclusion spells out the implications of the findings for the research questions and the theories examined earlier in the paper Lessons to be learned from the article Pages 694, 695

This study of retired senior managers is based on semi-structured interviews and was published in Sociology, with the following structure: Introduction; Background; Methods; Findings; Discussion; Conclusion. Structure of the Jones et al (2010) article (qualitative research) Page 695

The first two sentences show that the research is concerned with the study of modernity in relation to the life course, The third sentence provides a specific research focus - the study of retirement and later life, The fourth sentence relates the theoretical issues raised to what the authors take to be an important social trend, The fifth sentence grabs our attention by showing a contrast between increasing fitness and health in later life couple with growing inequalities. 1. Introduction Pages 696, 697

Reviews existing theory and research on retirement. The literature is reviewed in the two topic areas outlined in the fifth sentence of the introduction. 2. Background Page 696

An outline of who was to be studied and why; How respondents were selected; The semi-structured interviewing approach; The number of people interviewed and the interview context; The approach to analysing the data - involving thematic analysis and using CAQDAS. 3. Methods Page 696

The chief findings are outlined according to the three main themes emerging from the analysis, each of which is supported by verbatim quotations from interviews. The authors point out that interviewees varied in their responses according to their acceptance or rejection of their new situation in life. 4. Findings Pages 696, 697

Here the authors discuss the findings in the light of the study’s research questions. The results are also related to many of the ideas introduced in the previous sections of the article. The limitations of the study are highlighted, including the purposive sampling method used. 5. Discussion Page 698

This final section returns to many of the ideas and themes that had driven their research, including an assessment of the implications of their findings for some of the main research concepts. 6. Conclusions Pages 699, 700

Strong opening sentences attract our attention and give a clear indication of the nature and content of the article. The rationale of the research is clearly identified. Research questions are specified but are somewhat more open-ended than in Kelley and De Graaf’s article. The research methods are outlined and an indication is given of the approach to analysis. The presentation of main themes is geared to the broad research questions that motivated the researcher’s interest. The discussion and conclusion elucidate in a more specific way the significance of the results for the research questions. Lessons to be learned from the article Page 699

Creswell and Plano Clark’s (2011) suggested structure: Introduction (in which the choice of a mixed methods approach is shown to be beneficial); Methods (including the rationale for the mixed methods choice); Results (quantitative and qualitative findings are best presented together – if shown sequentially, they will need to be merged in the Discussion section); Discussion (a summary and explanation of the results, emphasizing the mixed methods nature of the research. Advice on writing up mixed methods research Pages 700, 701

Key points Page 707

Checklist for writing up your research: 1. • Have you clearly specified your research questions? • Have you clearly indicated how the literature you have read relates to your research questions? • Is your discussion of the literature critical and organized so that it is not just a summary of what you have read? • Have you clearly outlined your research design and your research methods?

Checklist for writing up your research: 2. • Have you presented your data in a manner that relates to your research questions? • Does your discussion of your findings show how they relate to your research questions? • and on how they shed light on the literature that you presented? • Are the interpretations of the data that you offer fully supported with tables, figures, or segments from transcripts?

Checklist for writing up your research: 3. • Does your writing avoid sexist, racist, and disablist language? • Have you included all appendices that you need (interview schedule, communications with research participants)? • Have you checked that your list of references includes all the items referred to in your text? • and that it follows precisely the style that your institution requires?

Checklist for writing up your research: 4. • Have you ensured that your institution’s requirements for submitting projects are fully met in terms of word length (neither too long nor too short) and whether an abstract and table of contents are required? • Have you ensured that you do not quote excessively when presenting the literature? • Have you fully acknowledged the work of others so that you cannot be accused of plagiarism? Pages 706, 707

Social Research Methods