The Importance Of Social Science Research

Organizations gather information from a wide range of sources to better the marketing mixes of their expansive companies. Social science research is one of the methods of information gathering and is defined as- the study of individual or collective behaviors of people in groups, companies, and societies. Social science research seeks to explain social phenomena, and to build a knowledge base that can be used for marketing purposes by companies. The primary method of this type of research begins with a hypothesis, then the scientists compile set questionnaires in order to gather data, then analyze it. There are high degrees of error in this field of study due to a wide range of factors associated in each stage of the research process. These …show more content…
Sampling error is a common problem during social science research. As the researcher comes up with a hypothesis he needs validated by data, the next step would be to identify the target population. This stage is critical to getting accurate, and reliable data that can be used to explain the hypothesis the researcher has come up with. One of the most common problems during sampling is avoiding generating a biased procedure. It is important that when selecting a population to conduct a study, that it is representative of the entire population, or it may cause a high degree of variance. For example compare two identical studies using the same sampling methods, and population. The larger of the two studies statistically will have less sampling error than the smaller one. This is because as the size of the sample approaches the overall population size, as well as the true characteristics of the population. In contrast to unavoidable errors present in random samples, researchers may induce errors of their own design. This error is called sampling bias, and it is an error that occurs when data sampled is collected in a way that cause misleading results whether it be deliberate or not. There may be overrepresentations or underrepresentation of certain members in a study relative to the population. A survey may allow for self-selection which gives people the ability to have control over if they participate or not, which can …show more content…
This may be one of the most significant errors that is present in social research. Respondents are often not willing to report accurately on sensitive topics, which causes bias to what is socially acceptable. This error is especially prominent in face-to-face research gathering- one of the reasons it is not a popular method. Respondents typically feel unease in front of interviewers if their answers do not conform to norms or social expectations. There are ways that data collectors can mitigate the social desirability error. One of the common ways is to conduct research using web-based surveying which can help reduce the unease of respondents to answer without external factors. Wording of questions also plays a prominent role in causing desirability bias. By wording questions in ways in less threatening ways it decreases the embarrassment of a question and allow the respondent to consciously report their true beliefs and