Social Research - all you need to know (Other Sociology Textbooks)

Member Name: gibbon

Product:	Other Sociology Textbooks
Date:	14/05/01 (39 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent layout, Excellent content

Disadvantages: None really

Social Research - Issues, Methods and Process by Tim May is one of the best books in the field. The second edition was published in 1997 as the book was such a success.

It is excellent for both undergraduate and postgraduate students and I found it useful during my first degree and now during my PhD. My supervisor (a professor) also thinks it's one of the best books in the field.

The book is well structured and you can dip into it easily. Part I is about issues in social research. Chapter 1 gives a good introduction to various perspectives from positivism to postmodernism.
Chapters 2 and 3 address how theory links to research and how values and ethics impact on research.

Part II looks at methods of social research, the remaining chapters each tackling a means of research:
Chapter 4: Official Statistic
Chapter 5: Social surveys
Chapter 6: Interviewing
Chapter 7: Participant observation
Chapter 8: Documentary research
Chapter 9: Comparative Research

I found chapter 5, social surveys, to be particularly useful in designing a questionnaire survey. The chapter gives an overview of the stages within conducting a survey:
* sampling
* types of questionnaires
* types of questions
* coding
* analysis

It highlights potential pitfalls that can be made when conducting this type of survey and I found it much more accessible that many other books on questionnaire design.

Each chapter is well structured, giving background to each topic, and flagging up issues and dangers with each approach. Each chapter concludes by highlighting the key issues, summarising the chapter, giving a few questions for reflection and then some recommended further reading.

The two parts work well together, giving it much more depth that a how to.... book. The book is easy to read and has an excellent layout but this does not compromise its academic rigour. It's a must have for any
sociologist!

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