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9699 · 2.3

Research issues — practice questions

Practice and worked examples for 9699 Research issues. Short previews only — attempt the full question in MarkScheme against the official scheme.

Worked example 1

Assess the ethical problems of using covert participant observation in sociological research. [15 marks]

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Covert PO defined: Researcher joins group without revealing role — high validity of natural behaviour.

Ethical problems: Deception violates informed consent; psychological harm if discovered; legal risk if witnessing crime; cannot debrief easily.

Examples: Humphreys — 'Tearoom Trade' — controversial deception of men; Venkatesh — gang research — consent issues.

Defence: Some settings impossible to access openly; public interest in exposing hidden behaviour; BSA allows limited deception if justified and harm minimised.

Evaluation: Covert PO may be last resort — overt PO or interviews often ethically preferable despite lower access.

Conclusion: Rarely justified unless no alternative and safeguards in place.

Worked example 2

A sociologist is studying the relationship between ethnicity and educational achievement in a school with 1,500 students. The school's ethnic breakdown is: White (60%), Asian (25%), Black (10%), Other (5%). The researcher obtains a sample of 200 students with the following composition: 130 White, 40 Asian, 20 Black, and 10 Other. Assess the representativeness of this sample.

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1. Define Representativeness: A sample is representative if its characteristics (e.g., ethnicity) mirror those of the target population in the same proportions. This is crucial for generalising findings.

2. Calculate Sample Percentages: Use the formula: (Number in sample category / Total sample size) * 100

  • White: (130 / 200) * 100 = 65%
  • Asian: (40 / 200) * 100 = 20%
  • Black: (20 / 200) * 100 = 10%
  • Other: (10 / 200) * 100 = 5%

3. Compare Population and Sample Percentages:

EthnicityPopulation %Sample %Difference
White60%65%+5% (Over-represented)
------------
Asian25%20%-5% (Under-represented)
Black10%10%0% (Representative)
Other5%5%0% (Representative)

4. Assessment and Conclusion: The sample is perfectly representative for students of Black and 'Other' ethnic backgrounds. However, it over-represents White students by 5 percentage points and under-represents Asian students by the same margin.

Implication: The sample is not fully representative. If educational achievement differs between White and Asian students, the study's findings will be skewed and lack external validity. For example, if the under-represented Asian group has higher average grades, the overall achievement measured in the sample might appear lower than the true average for the school. The sociologist cannot confidently generalise their findings to the entire school population without acknowledging this limitation. A stratified sampling method would have been more effective.

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