ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the ways in which social scientists explore the effects of the social environment on individual and group behaviors. It describes some important studies in the last 100 years of social science research. The perspective adopted by the researcher will determine the types of questions the researcher asks as well as the methods used to answer these questions. Social science is a systematic practice where researchers study patterns of behavior among large groups of individuals and establish aggregate patterns of behavior. In addition to being systematic and focusing on aggregates, good social science research is also generalizable. Once researchers have formed these hypotheses, they make use of systematic social science research techniques to test the hypotheses and, based on the results, come to empirical generalizations about wider groups. Actually conducting the research is only the beginning of the process of social science research.