WritingaResearchReport.ppt

Writing a Research Report If research was not “written up,” did it really occur? Writing a Research Report Academic sociologists conduct research to discover facts, truths, and explanations about the social world. They write research reports to convey theirs and others’ research findings. The point is to provide useful information to others. Writing a Research Report Sociologists’ articles, papers, or research reports convey: Facts and/or theories others in the research community generated (research reviews) Facts and/or theories the research community generated and one’s own findings generated from a research project (research article or book) And rarely, only one’s findings generated from a research project (applied research) Writing a Research Report A sociological article, paper, or report generally covers only one important topic of interest and conveys evidence and interpretations of evidence. Research reports are NOT creative writing, opinion pieces, poems, novels, letters, musings, memoirs, or interesting to read. What do sociologists do? Answer People’s Questions How extensive is illicit immigration? Does the “welfare to work” program work? Describe social world Generate and test theories or explanations about the social world Use sociological knowledge to guide policies What do Sociologists Do? Quantitative vs. Qualitative Qualitative Research Designed to capture social life as participants experience it Emphasis on subjective, meanings Quantitative Research Designed to measure social variables, numerically Emphasis on numerical summaries and interrelationship of phenomena So when sociologists write, they: State why the research is so important sociologically. They only make claims that are backed empirical evidence. They document carefully sources of ideas and claims. They are extremely descriptive, impersonal, and matter-of-fact. Writing a Research Report A sociological article, paper, or report generally takes a structure or form that seems diffic