so vital to the scientific perspective? Do you think you could carry out this aspect of the scientific process successfully—no matter how you feel about a topic? Why or why not?6 If you were to conduct a study to measure student satisfaction with a particular academic department on campus, what research method(s) would you use? Why? How would the method(s) you select vary according to (a) the size of the department and (b) the type of information you sought?
Key Terms
cause-and-effect relationship 42
conflict theory 35
content analysis 44
control group 44
controls 42
correlation 42
dependent variable 42
dysfunctions 34
empirical knowledge 40
evidence 40
experimental group 44
experiments 44
feminist theory 38
functions 34
hypothesis 40
independent variable 42
interviews 43
latent functions 34
manifest functions 34
means of production 34
objectivity 40
observational studies 44
public sociologists 47
questionnaires 43
rational choice theory 32
rationality 38
sample 41
secondary analysis 44
spurious relationships 42
structural-functional theory 34
symbolic interaction theory 31
symbols 31
theoretical perspective 30
theories 30
triangulation 45
variables 40
Contributing to Our Social World: What Can We Do?
At the Local (Micro) Level
Local volunteer coordinating organizations give creative outlets to students allowing them to demonstrate their awareness and learning of the world around them through different tasks, volunteering, civil engagement, and literary skills. Volunteer Match (www.volunteermatch.org) links volunteers to virtual opportunities both in nearby communities and across the globe. Virtual volunteering is an excellent way to extend humanitarian reach across the globe as well as locally. If your college or university has a service-learning office, it will offer connections to many service opportunities, sometimes linked to specific fields of study. Many colleges and universities also offer Academic Service Learning (ASL) credit in which course assignments include such community work under the supervision of the instructor.
At the Organizational or Institutional (Meso) Level
State agencies often have ongoing projects to gather data for more accurate information about the state and the needs of its citizens. Go to www.nationalservice.gov/about/contact-us/state-service-commissions to find volunteer opportunities through your state government.
At the National or Global (Macro) Level
The U.S. Bureau of the Census is best known for its decennial (every 10 years) enumeration of the population, but its work continues each year as it prepares special reports, population estimates, and regular publications (including Current Population Reports). Visit the bureau’s website at www.census.gov and explore the valuable and extensive quantitative data and other information available. Visit your local Census Bureau office or go to www.census.gov/about/census-careers/opportunities/programs/student.html to find volunteer and other opportunities for students at the Census Bureau.
Get the tools you need to sharpen your study skills. SAGE edge offers a robust online environment featuring an impressive array of free tools and resources.
Access practice quizzes, eFlashcards, video, and multimedia at edge.sagepub.com/ballantine7e
Descriptions of Images and Figures
Back to Figure
A quadrant model illustrates the cooperative versus competitive perspectives. They are as follows.
When humans viewed as cooperative, within parentheses, people interact with others on the basis of shared meanings and common symbols.
Macro analysis: Structural – Functional theory.
Micro analysis: Symbolic interactionism theory.
When humans viewed as competitive, within parentheses, behavior governed by self-interest.
Macro analysis: Conflict theory, within parentheses, group interests.
Micro analysis: Rational choice theory, within parentheses, individual interests.
Back to Figure
A figure shows a table, with a few comments on it to illustrate how to read a research table. The comments on the table are as follows:
Table 2.1 (1)
Title: Educational attainment by selected characteristics: 2017 [comment: The title provides information on the major topic and variables in the table.], for persons 25 years old and over, reported in thousands [comment: headnote, within parenthesis, or subtitle:
