Doing Research in the

Social Sciences
Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
THE OPEN SYSTEM OF THE
SOCIAL SCIENCES
Aljon F. Fegurasin
The Open System of the Social
Sciences
What constitutes the scientific method?
• Scientific method does not mean the rigid application of the methods of
physical sciences such as physics and chemistry.
• Unlike the natural sciences, social sciences are confronted with an open
system- that applies to society, politics, culture, and the world.
• Open systems refer to systems that interact with other systems or the
outside environment.
• Closed systems refer to systems having relatively little interaction with
other systems or the outside environment.
The Open System of the Social
Sciences
• The diversity of culture and social structures that define human
meanings make it challenging for social scientists to study culture,
society, and politics.
• They prefer the more humanistic tradition that sees society, culture, and
politics as unique in their own right.
• Today, social scientists recognize that social sciences cannot be as hard
and rigorous as the natural sciences.
• The humanistic side of the social sciences are shown in their capacity to
emphasize the particular, the admission of probabilistic generalization,
the acknowledgement of the role of values and ethical considerations as
well as the power in formulating and interpreting social scientific
findings.
TWO BASIC METHODS IN
THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
 SOCIAL RESEARCH
refers to the methods and techniques that go into the
investigation of social phenomena in order to
understand and interpret the occurrence of such
phenomena.
Two Basic Methods in the Social
Sciences
Quantitative Method

According to Jeanette Garwood (2006), quantitative method refers

to “research involving the collection of data in numerical form of
quantitative analysis. The numerical data can be durations, scores,
counts of incidents, ratings, or scales. Quantitative data can be
collected in either controlled or naturalistic environments, in
laboratories or field studies, from special populations or from
samples of the general population. The defining factor is the
numbers result from the process, whether the initial data collection
produced numerical values, or whether non-numerical values were
subsequently converted to numbers as part of the analysis process,
as in content analysis” (Jupp 2006, p. 251).
Two Basic Methods in the Social
Sciences
• Quantitative research allows the researcher to
familiarize herself with the problem or concept to
be studied, and perhaps generate hypotheses to be
tested.
• A quantitative researcher attempts to delimit
phenomena into measurable or common categories
that can be applied to all of the subjects or wider
and similar situations.
Two Basic Methods in the Social
Sciences
• Qualitative Method
•
• According to Maggie Sumner (2006), a qualitative research method refers to “Research
•
• that investigates aspects of social life which are not amenable to quantitative measurement.
•
• Associated with a variety of theoretical perspectives, qualitative research uses a range of
•
• method to focus on the meanings amd interpretation of social phenomena and social processes
•
• in the particular contexts in which they occur”.
•
• ● The goals of qualitative research are to understand processes, experiences and meanings
•
• people assign to things.
•
• ● There are a variety of methods that include interviews, participant observations, focused
•
ETHICS AND POLITICS
OF SOCIAL SCIENCE
RESEARCH