Social Science
Chart of the Day 4: European Union Membership versus Immigration, External Debt and Net International Investment Position
Chart of the Day is a series where I post an original graph produced from data I found interesting (without comment)
Disclaimer: correlation does not entail causation. This is not rigorous social research analysis, it may contain errors.
Retaining European Membership versus Attitudes towards Immigration
Source: ISSP National Identity Survey III
Chart of the Day 3: Attitudes towards Foreign Land Ownership and the Country’s Current Account Balance
Chart of the Day is a series where I post an original graph produced from data I found interesting (without comment)
Disclaimer: correlation does not entail causation. This is not rigorous social research analysis, it may contain errors.
Sources: GESIS International Social Survey Programme: National Identity III, IMF World Economic Outlook
Total sample size of all countries: n = 49,297
Feel free to comment and /or make a suggestion and what information you might be interested in.
How are quantitative and qualitative analysis similar, and how might they reasonably differ?
This piece compares and contrasts two case studies to discuss the ontological and epistemological differences between quantitative and qualitative analysis. The case studies are related to drug use and mental health. This discussion incidentally covers some issues that arise in philosophy of science, but its primary purpose is to evaluate the two different paradigms in social research. This essay is produced for a politics assignment and can be found here. The quantitative study can be found here, and the qualitative study can be found here.
Plato’s Cave – showing a simple relationship between what can be known and how we know it.
Comparative Evaluation of Quantitative and Qualitative Research: Two Case Studies
I Introduction
The divide between quantitative and qualitative social research (“research”) is both institutional and methodological.[1] Historically, researchers have tended to define themselves within one school, and elected to use one approach over another.[2] At a methodological level, Bryman states that quantitative and qualitative research has divergent underlying assumptions regarding method, methodology and perspectives about knowledge.[3]
The division between quantitative and qualitative research stems from a fundamentally different conception about the ontological nature of knowledge.[4] Quantitative research views knowledge as being objective and separate from the individuals who perceive this world. On the contrary, qualitative research views knowledge as being inseparable from the subjects which perceive it, hence its subjective nature.[5] The ontological nature of knowledge thus informs the epistemological approach adopted by each paradigm.[6]
Despite this fundamental difference, the goal of both methods is to produce knowledge, to discover the ‘truth’ about this world.[7] This means for both methods, the steps in the research cycle need to be sound. Accordingly, this paper will compare and contrast the ways which quantitative and qualitative research both have to meet similar criteria of research plausibility, authority and validity.
What is the relationship between education, age, and the level of support for civil liberties?
This blog analyses the Role of Government IV data set from the International Social Survey Programme in 2006 in New Zealand. The full report was conducted for a politics paper at the University of Auckland. This is a brief summary to share my findings. A disclaimer to everyone that I have not done any formal statistics at university, so the analyses may contain (accidental) errors and unfortunately it will not be at a super advanced level (partially self-taught). Hopefully the results will still be useful and interesting.
Background
Politicians and academics often talk about the importance of education, and it is often linked to developing a more tolerant, pluralistic and liberal society. If you want to be a bit more cynical, the conservative media also portrays higher education as a liberal indoctrination tool. This piece examines that relationship in New Zealand.
