The Practice of Research

Edited by Shamus Khan and Dana R. Fisher

The Practice of Research

Edited by Shamus Khan and Dana R. Fisher

Description

This unique reader for research methods courses looks at how social scientists ask and answer questions. The Practice of Research presents a practical guide to doing research by excerpting well-known studies by some of the most distinguished social science researchers in the field today. The excerpts represent nine methodological approaches and are accompanied by reflections where authors reveal how they resolved some of the challenges that face almost all research projects.

Contributors include:

* Jessica Brown, University of Houston
* Shelley Correll, Stanford University
* Eszter Hargittai, Northwestern University
* Michael T. Heaney, University of Michigan
* Steven Hitlin, University of Iowa; J. Scott Brown, Miami University; and Glen H. Elder, Jr., University of North Carolina
* Ziad Munson, Lehigh University
* Mario Luis Small, University of Chicago

The personal reflections written by authors of each excerpted paper were prepared specifically for this volume. Focusing on the experience of actually doing research, The Practice of Research illustrates methods in action. This volume lets students not just read exemplary papers, but also gives students access to these authors as they personally narrate their practical solutions to common research challenges.

The Practice of Research

Edited by Shamus Khan and Dana R. Fisher

, List of contributors
Introduction: The Practice of Research
Chapter 1: Experimentation
Constraints into Preferences: gender, status, and emerging Career Aspirations
Reflection by Shelley Correll
Chapter 2: Survey Research
Digital Na(t)ives? Variation in Internet Skills and Uses among Members of the "Net Generation"
Reflection by Eszter Hargittai?
Chapter 3: Survey Research, Analyzing Social Networks
Partisans, Nonpartisans, and the Antiwar Movement in the United States
Reflection by Michael Heaney
Chapter 4: Field Observation/Ethnography
How Elite Students Think about "The Staff"
Reflection by Shamus Khan
Chapter 5: Field Interviewing
Running an Outsourced Canvass
Reflection by Dana R. Fisher
Chapter 6: Research Using Available Data
Racial Self-Categorization in Adolescence: Multiracial Development And Social Pathways
Reflection by Steven Hitlin, Scott Brown, and Glen Elder Jr.
Chapter 7: Research Using Available Data/Historical Analysis
Islamic Mobilization: Social Movement Theory and the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood
Reflection by Ziad Munson
Chapter 8: Research Using Available Data/ Content Analysis
"Close Your Eyes and Think of England": Pronatalism in the British Print Media
Reflection by Jessica Brown
Chapter 9: Multiple Methods/Mixed Methods
Why Organizational Ties Matter for Neighborhood Effects: A Study of Resource Access through Childcare Centers
Reflection by Mario Luis Small
, Glossary of Terms

The Practice of Research

Edited by Shamus Khan and Dana R. Fisher

Author Information

Edited by Shamus Khan, Columbia University, and Edited by Dana R. Fisher, University of Maryland

Shamus Khan is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at Columbia University. He is the author of Privilege: The Making of an Adolescent Elite at St. Paul's School (2011). Dana R. Fisher is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Director of the Program for Society and the Environment at the University of Maryland. She is the author of Activism, Inc. (2006) and National Governance and the Global Climate Change Regime (2004).

Contributors:

Jessica Brown
Assistant Professor of Sociology
University of Houston
450 Philip Hoffman Hall
Houston, TX 77204-3012
jabrown8@mail.uh.edu <mailto:jabrown8@mail.uh.edu>

Shelley Correll
Professor of Sociology
Stanford University
785 Coleman Ave
Menlo Park, CA 94025
scorrell@stanford.edu

Eszter Hargittai
Associate Professor of Communication Studies
Northwestern University
2240 Campus Dr.
Evanston, IL 60208
eszter@northwestern.edu

Michael Heaney
Assistant Professor of Organizational Studies and Political Science
University of Michigan
2136 Glencoe Hills Drive, Apt. 8
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
mheaney@umich.edu

Steven Hitlin
Associate Professor of Sociology
University of Iowa
W140 Seashore Hall
Department of Sociology
Iowa City, IA 52242
steven-hitlin@uiowa.edu

Ziad Munson
Associate Professor of Sociology
Lehigh University
305 N. 2nd St.
Emmaus, PA 18049
munson@lehigh.edu>

Mario Luis Small
Dean
Division of the Social Sciences
1126 E 59 St
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL 60637
mariosmall@uchicago.edu