Introduction to Sociology BBA 1st Semester

Chapter Five
Methods of Study

Sociologists use many different designs and methods to study society and social
behavior. There are some popular social research study (models) is:

Cross‐sectional Study:
In this type, scientists study a number of individuals of different ages who have
the same trait or characteristic of interest at a single time.
OR
Cross-sectional study is defined as an observational research type that analyzes
data of variables collected at one given point of time across a sample population.

Examples of Cross –Sectional Study:

1. Health care - If you wanted to find the percentage of women who diagnosed
(‫ )تشخیص‬with breast cancer increases with age, how would you go about
answering this question? One way you could find the answer is to look at three
groups of women who are similar but of different ages. Let's say your three
age groups are 20-35 years, 36-50 years, and 51-65 years. You can then
calculate the percentage of women in each group that have been diagnosed
with breast cancer. This information can then be used to answer your
question.
2. Retail – In retail, a cross-sectional study can be conducted on males and
females between the ages 24-35 to check for spending or purchase trend
differences between genders.

Advantages of Cross-Sectional Study

The advantages of cross-sectional study include:

 Not costly to perform and does not require a lot of time.

 Captures a specific point in time.
 Contains multiple variables at the time of the data snapshot.
 The data can be used for various types of research.
 Many findings and outcomes can be analyzed to create new
theories/studies or in-depth research.

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Disadvantages of Cross-Sectional Study

The disadvantages of cross-sectional study include:

 Cannot be used to analyze behavior over a period to time.

 Does not help determine cause and effect.
 The timing of the snapshot (‫ )رسرسی تصویر‬is not guaranteed to be
representative.

Longitudinal Study:

A longitudinal study is an observational research method in which data is

gathered for the same subjects repeatedly over a period of time. Longitudinal
research projects can extend over years or even decades.

How to conduct Longitudinal Study – with Examples

A longitudinal study is useful not only in the field of science and medicine but in
many other fields. There are many reasons why a researcher might want to
conduct a longitudinal study. One of the important reasons is, longitudinal studies
give unique data that many other types of research fail.

For Example longitudinal data enable us to:

Track children’s development throughout childhood and teenage years, to

adulthood and beyond - including influences (‫)اثرات‬, aspirations (‫ )خواہشات‬and
‫ )علم ر ے‬outcomes. Study the links between family background,
cognitive (‫کھن واال‬
‫ی‬
educational achievements and later outcomes. Understand social mobility ( ‫سماج‬
‫ )نقل و حرکت‬and the inter-generational (‫ )نسل‬transmission. Identify drivers of
socio-economic inequality and effective interventions (‫ )مداخلت‬to increase social
mobility.

Types of Longitudinal Research

There are three major types of longitudinal studies:

 Panel Study: Involves sampling a cross-section of individuals.

 Cohort Study: Involves selecting a group based on a specific event such as
birth, geographic location or historical experience.

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Introduction to Sociology BBA 1st Semester

 Retrospective Study: Involves looking to the past by looking at historical

information such as medical records.

What Are the Advantages of Longitudinal Studies?

1. It allows for high levels of validity: For a long-term study to be successful there
must be rules and regulations in place at the beginning that dictate the path that
researchers must follow. So high levels of data validity are often available through
longitudinal studies.

2. The data collected is unique: Most research studies will collect short-term data
to determine the cause-and-effect of what is being researched. Longitudinal
studies follow the same principles, but extend (‫ )توسیع‬the period (‫مدت‬,‫ ) دور‬for
data collection on a dramatic scale. Long-term relationships cannot be discovered
in short-term research, but short-term relationships can be follow in long-term
research.

3. It makes it possible to identify developmental trends.

Whether in medicine, psychology, or sociology, the long-term design of a

longitudinal study makes it possible to find trends (‫ )رجحان‬and relationships within
the data collected. Multiple generations can have real-time data collected and
analyzed to find trends. Observational changes can also be made from past data
so it can be applied to future outcomes.

What Are the Disadvantages of Longitudinal Studies?

1. It takes time.

Researchers involved with longitudinal studies may never see the full outcome of
their work. It may take several years before the data begins producing observable
patterns or relationships that can be tracked. That means the ability to maintain
open lines of communication with all researchers is vitally important to the
eventual success of the study.

2. The data gathered by longitudinal studies is not always accurate or reliable.

It only takes one piece of unreliable (‫ )ناقابل اعتبار‬data to possibly invalidate the
findings that the longitudinal studies produce. Because humans have their own

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َ َ
personal bias (‫طرف داری‬, ‫ َ)يک طرفہ ُرجحان‬toward certain subjects, the researcher
processing the data may unconsciously ( ‫ )الشعوری طور پر‬change the data to
produce results.

3. Large sample sizes are required to make the research meaningful.

To develop relationships or patterns, a large amount of data must be collected
and then mined (‫کن‬ ‫ )کان ے‬to create results. That means a large sample size is
required so the amount of data being collected can meet expectations. When the
subjects being studied are people, it can be difficult to find enough people who
are willing to honestly participate in the longitudinal studies.

4. There is a direct cost that is higher than other forms of research:

Longitudinal research requires a larger sample size, which means there is a larger
cost involved in contacting subjects to collect data. It is also a long-term form of
research, which means the costs of the study will be extended for years, or
decades, when other forms of research may be completed in a fraction (‫ )کرس‬of
that time.

5. One person can change a long-term outcome.

‫ے‬
Because there is such a reliance on individual interpretations ( ‫ترجمان‬, ‫ر‬
‫)ترسی ح‬
within longitudinal studies, it is possible for one person to inadvertently ( ‫نادانستہ‬
‫ )طور پر۔‬alter the data being collected.

Laboratory study

Research done in a laboratory. A laboratory study may use special equipment and
cells or animals to find out if a drug, procedure, or treatment is likely to be useful
in humans. It may also be a part of a clinical trial, such as when blood or other
samples are collected. These may be used to measure the effect of a drug,
procedure, or treatment on the body.

Advantages of Laboratory Study:

 Allow more control than naturalistic ( ‫ )قدرن‬observation.

 Allow use of sophisticated (‫ )نفیس‬equipment.

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Disadvantages of Laboratory Study:

 Allow researcher only limited control of the situation.

 Observations may be biased.
 Does not allow firms conclusions about cause and effect.

Field Study:

A field study is a general method for collecting data about users, user needs, and
product requirements that involves observation and interviewing.

Investigators in field studies observe users as they work, taking notes on

particular activities and often asking questions of the users. Observation may be
either direct, where the investigator is actually present during the task, or
indirect, where the task is viewed by some other means like a video recorder set
up in an office. The method is useful early in product development to gather user
requirements. It is also useful for studying currently executed tasks and
processes.

The advantages of Field Experiments over Lab Experiments

Better external validity – The big advantage which field experiments obviously
(‫ )ظاہر ہ‬have better external validity than lab experiments, because they take
place in normally occurring social settings.

Larger Scale Settings – Practically it is possible to do field experiments in large

institutions – in schools or workplaces in which thousands of people interact for
example, which aren’t possible in laboratory experiments.

The disadvantages of Field Experiments compared to Lab Experiments

Practical Problems – Access is likely to be more of a problem with lab

experiments. Schools and workplaces might be reluctant (‫ )ہچکچاہٹ‬to allow
researchers in.

Ethical Problems – Just as with lab experiments – it is often possible to not inform
people that an experiment is taking place in order for them to act naturally, so the

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issues of deception and lack of informed consent apply here too, as does the issue
of harm.

Observational study:
An observational study is a study in which the researcher simply observes the
subjects without interfering. That is, the researcher has no control over any
treatments the subjects may be given or which groups the subjects may be
separated into, etc. They just observe the subjects and record data based on their
observations

Advantages of Observation:

1. Simplest Method
2. Greater Accuracy
3. Access to large group of participants
4. Lower Costs
5. Faster data collection
6. Universal Method: Observation is a common method used in all sciences,
whether physical or social. So it has greater universality of practice. As a
common method, it is very easily followed and accepted.

Limitations of Observation:
1. Some of the Occurrences may not be Open to Observation:
There are many personal behaviors or secret activities which are not open for
observation. For example, no couple will allow the researcher to observe their
sexual activities. In most of the cases people do not allow the outsider to study
their activities.
2. Not all Occurrences Open to Observation can be Observed when Observer is
at Hand: For example, the quarrel and fight between two individuals or groups
is never certain. Nobody knows when such an event will take place.
3. Faulty Perception:
4. Personal Bias of the Observer:
5. Slow Investigation:
6. Inadequate Method: According to P.V. Young, “the full answers cannot be
collected by observation alone”. Therefore many suggested that observation
must be supplemented by other methods also.

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