Basic of Social Research (Paperback)

This thorough revision of Babbie's standard-setting text presents a succinct, straightforward introduction to the field of research methods as practiced by social scientists. Contemporary examples, such as terrorism, Alzheimer's disease, anti-gay prejudice and education, and the legalization of marijuana, introduce students to the "how-tos" and "whys" of social research methods. With increased emphasis on qualitative research and practical applications, this edition is authoritative yet student-friendly and engaging enough to help students connect the dots between the world of social research and the real world. CONTENTS Part One: An introduction to Inquiry 1. Human Inquiry and Science 2. Paradigms, Theory, and Research 3. The Ethics and Politics of Social Research Part Two: The Structuring of Inquiry 4. Research Design 5. Conceptualization, Operationalization, and Measurement 6. Indexes, Scales, and Typologies 7. The Logic of Sampling Part Three: Modes of Observation 8. Experiments 9. Survey Research 10. Qualitative Field Research 11. Unobtrusive Research 12. Evaluation Research Part Four: Analysis of Data 13. Qualitative Data Analysis 14. Quantitative Data Analysis 15. Reading and Writing Social Research