Social Science Methods Research Articles

What makes randomized controlled trials so successful—for now? Or, on the consonances, compromises, and contradictions of a global interstitial field

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are a major success story, promising to improve science and policy. Despite some controversy, RCTs have spread toward Northern and Southern countries since the early 2000s. How so? Synthesizing previous research on this question, this article argues that favorable institutional conditions turned RCTs into “hinges” between the fields of science, politics, and business. Shifts toward behavioral economics, New Public Management, and evidence-based philanthropic giving led to a cross-fertilization among efforts in rich and poor countries, involving states, international organizations, NGOs, researchers, and philanthropic foundations. This confluence of favorable institutional conditions and savvy social actors established a “global interstitial field” inside which support for RCTs has developed an unprecedented scope, influence, operational capacity, and professional payoff. However, the article further argues that the hinges holding together this global interstitial field are “squeaky” at best. Because actors inherit the illusio of their respective fields of origin—their central incentives and stakes—the interstitial field produces constant goal conflicts. Cooperation between academics and practitioners turns out to be plagued by tensions and contradictions. Based on this analysis, the article concludes that the global field of RCT support will probably differentiate into its constituent parts. As a result, RCTs may lose the special status they have gained among social science and policy evaluation methods, turning into one good technique among others.

Redefining the boundaries of citizen social science to avoid a repackaging of common social science methods

Citizen science (CS) means including volunteers alongside professional researchers in the research process. CS is predominantly and traditionally used in natural sciences, but also increasingly in social sciences. The understanding of traditional CS is oftentimes completely transferred to citizen social science, which we argue is inadequate. As social sciences study human interactions, they involve people in their data collection all the time. Commonly used social science methods therefore already cover one type of CS that is defined by including volunteers mainly in data collection: contributory CS. This overlap creates an urgent need for redefining the boundaries of citizen social science. We argue for only calling those projects citizen social science that go beyond contributory projects to avoid the mere repacking of commonly used social science methods.

Exploring food poverty experiences in the German Twitter-Sphere

BackgroundThis study investigates the subjective perceptions of food poverty in Germany by analysing Twitter discourse using the German-language hashtag #IchBinArmutsbetroffen (#IamPovertyAffected) and examines the extent to which various dimensions of a multidimensional theoretical model of food poverty are represented in the discourse.MethodsEmploying a combination of computational social science and qualitative social research methods, the research identifies, and analyses tweets related to nutrition by applying a hierarchical dictionary search and qualitative content analysis. By examining the narratives and statements of individuals affected by food poverty, the study also investigates the interplay among different subdimensions of this phenomenon.ResultsThe analysis of 1,112 tweets revealed that 57.96% focused on the material dimension and 42.04% on the social dimension of food poverty, suggesting a relatively balanced emphasis on material and social aspects of food poverty in the narratives of those affected. The findings reveal that tweets on material food poverty underscore economic challenges and resource scarcity for food. Social food poverty tweets demonstrate widespread deprivation in social participation, leading to isolation, exclusion, and social network loss. Overall, the results elucidate intricate interconnections among subdimensions and multidimensional manifestations of food poverty.ConclusionsThis study contributes methodologically by presenting an approach for extracting food-related textual social media data and empirically by providing novel insights into the perceptions and multifaceted manifestations of food poverty in Germany. The results can aid in a better understanding of the phenomenon of food poverty as it currently manifests in Germany, and in developing targeted social, health-promoting, and political measures that address more effectively the empirically evident multidimensionality of the phenomenon.

Analyzing Translated Research Methods Books in Social And Educational Sciences from English to Turkish: Exploring the Reasons for Translation Through Even-Zohar’s Poly-System Theory

In the last century, a paradigm shift in the scientific field has transformed our perspective on issues and events, our ability to discern cause-and-effect relationships, and our approach to them. This shift has led to radical changes in the scientific field and has accelerated the development of social and educational sciences, enabling such methods to become more prevalent than quantitative ones in the social and educational sciences. As a result, qualitative and mixed method approaches have increasingly replaced quantitative methods, giving rise to various new fields within the social sciences and providing diverse research opportunities. This evolution in research methods has also led to the proliferation of books on research methodologies in these fields. To reach a global audience, these books are predominantly written in English as the Lingua Franca and later translated into national languages if needed, or they are initially written in the native languages of the authors. The choice of translated books can be influenced by the preferences of researchers or translators, gaps in the national literature, the juvenile and unsettled nature of the national literature experiencing significant changes, or their unfamiliarity with current literary innovations. This article examines the justifications provided by translators and translation editors for translating books on research methods in social and educational sciences from English into Turkish within the framework of themes regarding the formation of poly-system theory, as coined by Itamar Even-Zohar as a functionalist pioneer in translation studies, newly emerging in social sciences in the last century. The content analysis, a qualitative research design for document analysis, was utilized in the research through using criterion sampling and maximum diversity, by selecting the prefaces of the translated versions of 20 research methods books by different authors and publishing houses between 2013 and 2022 and exclusively focusing on social sciences and educational sciences. Examining translators’ and editor’s statements deductively through the themes from the poly-system theory, we concluded that there are gaps and turning points in this field both in the national literature and in the world literature, that the relevant literature is not yet settled and trying to become primary and canonized via translated books, resulting in an increasing interest in the field.

Study on the Identity of Rule of Law China and Party Leadership

Party leadership is an essential feature of the socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics, and the study of the homogeneity between the rule of law in China and Party leadership is of profound significance to the understanding of the socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics. This paper stands in the field of Marxist scientific methodology, firstly, through the method of social cognition and evaluation, we answer the question of what the rule of law in China and the Party leadership are, and then, through the method of four Marxist social sciences, we argue why the two have the same nature. Then, through four Marxist social science methods, the paper argues "why the two have the same nature", namely: building a rule of law China and adhering to the Party's leadership are both based on the people's nature as a solid cornerstone; both have a strong socialist color with Chinese characteristics; in which building a rule of law China is an important content of the practice of adhering to the Party's leadership and the way to realize it; and adhering to the Party's leadership is a necessary principle of building a rule of law China and a strong guarantee. Finally, this paper also answers the question of "how to recognize and ensure the homogeneity of the two" from a practical point of view, i.e., to promote scientific legislation, strict law enforcement, fair justice and law-abiding by all people under the leadership of the Party.

Debt on the Ground: The Scholarly Discourse of Bankruptcy and Financial Precarity

A rich literature uses law and social science methods to better understand household financial distress and overindebtedness both inside and outside of bankruptcy. This scholarship contributes to several ongoing scholarly conversations, such as those on income and wealth disparities across race and class, how people live in circumstances of financial precarity, why people turn to the legal system to solve their problems, and how to improve access to justice so people can get the help they need. We first review the current literature about who files bankruptcy, the contributors to people's need to file bankruptcy, what happens to them in bankruptcy court, and what happens after their bankruptcy cases conclude. We then outline a research agenda of low-hanging fruit that will contribute to broader sociological and sociolegal research agendas, including economic mobility, aging, gender studies, health studies, family studies, social psychology, and policy work.

Identifying and promoting qualitative methods for impact assessment

ABSTRACT Qualitative methods for impact assessment (IA) represent a broad spectrum of approaches that are important for realising effective IA practice. The purpose of this paper is to identify and promote qualitative methods that are available for use in contemporary and future (next-generation) IA processes. From an extensive literature review, an international survey (145 responses), expert interviews (48 interviewees), and a workshop attended by 27 IA practitioners, 17 qualitative method categories were identified. These were further subdivided into three classes: conventional qualitative methods, highly participatory methods, and mixed methods. Each method is described, and an indication given of how each can be used in IA practice, including the specific stage of the IA process to which they might be applied. Whilst this paper seeks to stimulate practitioners to apply qualitative methods to enrich IA practices, the research also identifies a lack of expertise with social science methods as a significant barrier to the effective use of qualitative methods in IA practice.

Method in relational-explanatory geography

Human geography’s onto-epistemological expansion in recent decades has not been well matched by methodological development. Learning from the methodological pluralism in four relational approaches, this paper reflects on key issues in relational-explanatory theorizing before introducing a social science method of process tracing in relation to a comparative methodology. I argue that contrastive explanations can be developed through deploying comparable methodological practices as different ‘moments’ of a research process in appropriate evidential contexts. This research process-based comparative methodology can better trace actors and their relational networks through in situ research and generate explanatory theoretical insights into the complexity of socio-spatial life.

New directions for Indigenous and local knowledge research and application in fisheries science: Lessons from a systematic review

AbstractSocial‐ecological systems like fisheries provide food, livelihoods and recreation. However, lack of data and its integration into governance hinders their conservation and management. Stakeholders possess site‐specific knowledge crucial for confronting these challenges. There is increasing recognition that Indigenous and local knowledge (ILK) is valuable, but structural differences between ILK and quantitative archetypes have stalled the assimilation of ILK into fisheries management, despite acknowledged bias and uncertainty in scientific methods. Conducting a systematic review of fisheries‐associated ILK research (n = 397 articles), we examined how ILK is accessed, applied, distributed across space and species, and has evolved. We show that ILK has generated qualitative, semi‐quantitative and quantitative information for diverse taxa across 98 countries. Fisheries‐associated ILK research mostly targets small‐scale and artisanal fishers (70% of studies) and typically uses semi‐structured interviews (60%). We revealed large variability in sample size (n = 4–7638), predicted by the approach employed and the data generated (i.e. qualitative studies target smaller groups). Using thematic categorisation, we show that scientists are still exploring techniques, or ‘validating’ ILK through comparisons with quantitative scientific data (20%), and recording qualitative information of what fishers understand (40%). A few researchers are applying quantitative social science methods to derive trends in abundance, catch and effort. Such approaches facilitate recognition of local insight in fisheries management but fall short of accepting ILK as a valid complementary way of knowing about fisheries systems. This synthesis reveals that development and increased opportunities are needed to bridge ILK and quantitative scientific data.

Embedding Democratic Values into Social Media AIs via Societal Objective Functions

Mounting evidence indicates that the artificial intelligence (AI) systems that rank our social media feeds bear nontrivial responsibility for amplifying partisan animosity: negative thoughts, feelings, and behaviors toward political out-groups. Can we design these AIs to consider democratic values such as mitigating partisan animosity as part of their objective functions? We introduce a method for translating established, vetted social scientific constructs into AI objective functions, which we term societal objective functions, and demonstrate the method with application to the political science construct of anti-democratic attitudes. Traditionally, we have lacked observable outcomes to use to train such models-however, the social sciences have developed survey instruments and qualitative codebooks for these constructs, and their precision facilitates translation into detailed prompts for large language models. We apply this method to create a democratic attitude model that estimates the extent to which a social media post promotes anti-democratic attitudes, and test this democratic attitude model across three studies. In Study 1, we first test the attitudinal and behavioral effectiveness of the intervention among US partisans (N=1,380) by manually annotating (alpha=.895) social media posts with anti-democratic attitude scores and testing several feed ranking conditions based on these scores. Removal (d=.20) and downranking feeds (d=.25) reduced participants' partisan animosity without compromising their experience and engagement. In Study 2, we scale up the manual labels by creating the democratic attitude model, finding strong agreement with manual labels (rho=.75). Finally, in Study 3, we replicate Study 1 using the democratic attitude model instead of manual labels to test its attitudinal and behavioral impact (N=558), and again find that the feed downranking using the societal objective function reduced partisan animosity (d=.25). This method presents a novel strategy to draw on social science theory and methods to mitigate societal harms in social media AIs.

A Call to Arms: Proposing the Use of Social Science Methods in Transnational Competition Law

Competition law enforcement is one of the cornerstones of sound business regulation; yet it faces a problem in the transnational context. Whereas transnational commerce seamlessly transcends borders, competition law has jurisdictional roots, lacking a true transnational response. Global frictions due to the enforcement of divergent domestic laws and policies seem inevitable yet are surprisingly rare. We argue this phenomenon cannot be fully explained by a doctrinal analysis of the global efforts towards policy or legal convergence. Instead, the focus should be on the competition law officials who operationalise the law in a transnational context. This ‘human element’ of the inquiry must embrace qualitative research methods, such as ethnographic studies commonly used in legal anthropology, to develop a comprehensive legal analysis in this context.

RIGHT TO A FAIR-TRIAL WHEN APPLYING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE - LESSONS AND EXPERIENCES FOR VIETNAM

Objective: The article studies the application of AI in the field of criminal justice. Since then, the article evaluates the feasibility and offers solutions and recommendations to ensure the right to a fair trial when applying AI to criminal justice in Vietnam. Methods: To conduct research on the application of AI in criminal justice in Vietnam to ensure the right to a fair trial, the authors used traditional research methods of social science and legal science methods of analysis, synthesis, and case study to achieve the objective of the research. Results: Artificial intelligence (AI) and its application, in general, are a matter of concern in social life in general and law in particular. The application of artificial intelligence in criminal justice to digitize the judicial field is being applied in many parts of the world such as the United States and European countries. Based on the theory of the order of justice before the law, the authors analyzed and assessed the impacts and effects of AI and found that the application of AI in criminal justice can negatively affect the right to a fair trial. Conclusion: Through this study, we propose the following contents to effectively apply AI in Vietnamese criminal justice as follows: (i) The principle of the right to a fair trial must be respected when applying AI in decision-making; (ii) Enhancing the role of investigators, prosecutors, and judges in AI predictive decision-making; (iii) Building a database and AI system development agency in Vietnam; (iv) Upgrading technology infrastructure and databases at Criminal Justice Agencies; (v) Developing communication and training plan on technology and human rights content; (vi) Integrating the right to a fair trial systematically into every stage of the design, development, implementation, and ongoing monitoring of products, services, and systems using AI; (vi) Establishing the Department of AI Development and Use. In the future, the completion of the legal framework to ensure human rights under the influence of AI and legal issues on AI are issues that need to be further studied in Vietnam.

Mismatch between conservation higher education skills training and contemporary conservation needs

AbstractScholars have detailed the range of skills required for conservation and voiced concerns that training is not fit for purpose. Still, we have little understanding of what skills conservation education aims to teach. This study uses survey data and content analysis of online module descriptions to examine skills and methods teaching in conservation higher education across the United Kingdom and Australia. We found most conservation‐specific modules aimed to develop disciplinary and communication skills, but fewer than half aimed to develop interpersonal or project management skills. Social science methods training was absent from the core offering of over half of the conservation degrees reviewed. To prepare students for conservation careers and the complex problems they will encounter, the conservation education sector should further focus on building essential nonacademic skills and provide training on the breadth of methods that contribute to effective conservation science. This analysis can help educators to reflect on teaching aims and forge a curriculum that will best prepare students for contemporary conservation challenges.

TRANSFORMATION OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE EDUCATION AS A BASIS FOR THE FORMATION OF LINGUODIGITAL CULTURE OF STUDENTS AT SECONDARY SCHOOL

The article considers the possibilities of effective response of the Russian society to great challenges taking into account the interaction of man and nature, man and technology, social institutions at the present stage of global development, including applying the methods of humanities and social sciences. The modern world is changing very quickly, technological progress and digitalisation affect all spheres of human activity, including education. The formation and development of a modern child is increasingly taking place in a kind of virtual reality created by a variety of devices. The research problem is to identify what are the theoretical, methodological and scientific-methodological bases for creating the model of the effective formation of linguodigital culture of students at different levels of compulsory and additional foreign language education with the use of digital resources and technologies, taking into account the risks and opportunities (by the example of the English language teaching). The aim of our work is to develop theoretical, methodological and scientific-methodological foundations of the strategy of forming linguodigital culture of students through digital resources and technologies in the process of teaching English and its experimental verification. The research was conducted on the basis of the authentic materials in English. The research methods used - the theoretical analysis of literature, study of normative documents, the observation of the teaching process, comparative analysis. The author came to the conclusion of the effectiveness of application of the developed programme for the purpose of the formation of this category of culture in the context of continuous foreign language education; the prospects of research in the direction of the project are defined.

Using interview excerpts to facilitate focus group discussion

The use of interviews and focus groups is well-established in the social science methods literature. However, discussion on how research can combine these two methods in creative ways is less common. While researchers are generally aware of the potential of focus groups for further probing issues that emerge in one-on-one interviews, few studies detail how this might be achieved in practice. In this article, we describe and reflect on a focus group elicitation strategy that uses individual interview excerpts to facilitate discussion in group settings. In our reflection, we draw on a study that investigated the sharing of embryo images in fertility treatment. The article contributes to the methods literature firstly, by reflecting on the novel use of individual interview material in focus groups and secondly, by discussing the re-enactment of interview excerpts as an effective audio elicitation tool to be used in the later stages of research.

How to measure political polarization in text-as-data? A scoping review of computational social science approaches

ABSTRACT The rise of political polarization within western societies has been portrayed by events such as the United States Capitol riot or the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union. In this context, we argue that computational social science (CSS) methods offer a scalable and language-independent fashion to measure political polarization, enabling the processing of big data. In this vein, this article offers the first scoping review of the application of CSS methods to analyzing political polarization through text as data. We propose a categorization framework and reflect on the advantages and disadvantages of the different models used in the literature. Additionally, we underline the importance of filling research gaps, such as considering the temporal characteristic of political polarization, using a mathematical approach to analyze the use cases, and avoiding location and platform bias. We also provide recommendations for future research.

Trust matters: The Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy in Europe Study.

This article presents the design of a seven-country study focusing on childhood vaccines, Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy in Europe (VAX-TRUST), developed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study consists of (a) situation analysis of vaccine hesitancy (examination of individual, socio-demographic and macro-level factors of vaccine hesitancy and analysis of media coverage on vaccines and vaccination and (b) participant observation and in-depth interviews of healthcare professionals and vaccine-hesitant parents. These analyses were used to design interventions aimed at increasing awareness on the complexity of vaccine hesitancy among healthcare professionals involved in discussing childhood vaccines with parents. We present the selection of countries and regions, the conceptual basis of the study, details of the data collection and the process of designing and evaluating the interventions, as well as the potential impact of the study. Laying out our research design serves as an example of how to translate complex public health issues into social scientific study and methods.

Exotic pet owners’ preferences for different ectothermic taxa are based on species traits and purchase prices in the United States

The exotic pet trade has resulted in substantial invasion and disease risks, owing to the release of pets into new environments. Scientists have conjectured that pet owners acquire and release species with undesirable traits because they are imperfectly informed about the traits of these animals. However, few studies have used social science methods to elicit pet owners’ preferences for exotic pets. In 2019 we administered a best-worst choice survey to 1,055 exotic pet owners in the United States (who own pet reptiles, amphibians, fish, or invertebrates) to examine how human preferences and incomplete information may contribute to the risks of the exotic pet trade. Respondents preferred colorful and patterned species. On average, respondents preferred medium-sized amphibians and reptiles, small fish, and large invertebrates, although they demonstrated heterogeneity in preferences with respect to the adult size of pets. Respondents also preferred amphibians and reptiles with medium life expectancies and fish and invertebrates with long life expectancies, although they again demonstrated heterogeneity in preferences with respect to pets’ life span. Respondents preferred docile animals, and were more likely to purchase lower-cost pets. We found some evidence that respondents’ decision to purchase exotic pets depended on whether these animals were native, rare, had unusual morphological features, and breed easily. Respondents’ decision to purchase specific taxa as exotic pets also depended on their age, education, and housing. Most respondents stated that they searched for information on pets’ diet, behavior, adult size, life span, costs of care such as equipment or veterinary costs, and whether the animal was captive bred before purchasing these animals. Excepting pets’ diets, fewer than half of respondents had been offered information on pets’ traits by sellers. On average, respondents rated the information they had been offered as average. Respondents typically obtained additional information about pets from online searches. Our results suggest that certification systems that provide critical information on exotic pets’ behaviors, adult size, longevity, fecundity, and husbandry needs should be implemented to prevent pet owners acquiring animals that they may subsequently abandon.

A Peasant’s Satire of the Politics of Debt (Luke 16:1–8a)

This article reads the parable of the unjust steward (Luke 16:1–8a) using a social-scientific method, particularly the anthropology of agrarian patron-client relations. Here I delineate a model of the erosion of patron-client bonds, based on the work of James C. Scott and others, and the emergence of horizontal solidarity and mutual aid (“balanced reciprocity”). I relate this model to the peasant’s burden of debt, particularly in Jesus’ world. As commercialization develops in an agrarian society patron-client bonds begin to erode, and peasants begin to understand these bonds as relations of exploitation. Consequently, subversive ideology develops, evident in peasant folktales directed against the wealthy and powerful. Accordingly, I argue that the parable of the unjust steward is a satire aimed at landlord-patrons who perpetuate the burden of debt.

Reflections on the design and application of ‘Surveypura’: a simulation-based pedagogical tool for quantitative research methods in public health and social sciences

It has been reported from various contexts that learning quantitative methods for public health and social research is challenging for students. Based on our observations of these challenges, we designed a simulation-based pedagogical tool called Surveypura to support classroom-based learning of quantitative research methods. The tool includes a large illustration of a fictional village with 155 houses, alongside data for each of the households. The features of the houses, household characteristics, and the village have been carefully designed to give the visual feel of an actual village and better assist the pedagogical process. The tool was used by five facilitators with their masters’ students at our university in courses on social research and epidemiology. Our observations of the sessions and interactions with facilitators and students suggested that the tool supported more engaged learning of quantitative research methods in a non-intimidating manner. We believe that Surveypura can be a useful simulation-based pedagogical tool to teach quantitative research methods in epidemiology and social sciences even in other contexts.