Henslin: Doing Sociological Research

In the world of sociological research, there are two major activities. One is conducting empirical research, and two is constructing a theoretical base. Empirical research is based on objective observation, which means that "sociologist must gather information that represents people's attitudes and behaviors accurately" (29-30). Because sociologist feels like one method of collecting empirical data is not enough, they start to combine methods to accomplish their goals. It includes conducting experiments, interviews, and using secondary sources or documents. The second activity is constructing theory. Sociologist must plant their data into visionary structures. These structures; in addition, will explain how facts are related to one another. Sociologist uses empirical research to match a theory; afterward, they would perfect the theory to match the real world. There are three prevailing theories in sociology are symbolic interactionism, functionalism, and conflict theory.    

The first theory, symbolic interactionism focuses on the study of how we communicate with one another through the use of symbols. Symbols, to us, is a representation of objects. One; human beings have a self; two, people construct meanings and act on the basis of meanings; and three, people take into account the possible reactions of others; these are the three main themes under symbolic interactionism. We as human beings use others as an example to reflect on ourselves and uses that reflection to see how others view us as a person. Functionalism, the second theory, believes that our society is a unified structure that is formed by many components. Each part of the structure supply a balance to society; if however, a component becomes unstable/dysfunctional it would affect other parts of the structure. The third theory, conflict theory, see's the component in society as always challenging one another. Racism, sexism, social class conflict and etc. is the outcome of the constant competition between social groups. 

When doing a research sociologist follows an eight steps research model.

1. Selecting a topic - What are you curious about?
2. Defining the problem - Develop a researchable question
3. Reviewing the literature - Make sure what you are curious about hasn't already been discovered
4. Formulating a hypothesis - A statement that you expect to find based on a theory
5. Choosing a research method - A way for you to collect data
6. Collecting data - Collect valid and reliable data, which may involve
• surveys
• secondary analysis
• documents
• experiments
• unobtrusive measures
• participant observations 
7. Analyze the results - From statistical test to content analysis analyze your data
8. Sharing the result - Write a report to share your discovery, and explain your procedures. Repeat your study.

Each method can deliver better results depending on the questions or topics of your research.