SOCIOLOGY HOMEWORK TASK

EXAM QUESTION I
READ ITEM A
THEN ANSWER ALL PARTS OF THE QUESTION THAT FOLLOW
ITEM A
The researchers carried out an investigation into the extent of poverty. It was based on whether or not individuals has a range of articles or possessions and, if they did not have them, whether this was because they could not afford them by choice. They interviewed 91 people between November 1989 and May 1990. They used a ‘quota sample’, selecting possible interviewees to obtain the groups they were looking for. All the interviews with the Asian families were conducted in their mother tongue of Urdu or Pakistani by Asian researchers. The interviews were lengthy and were tape recorded. The interview schedule was piloted in two areas similar to those in which the final study was conducted.
Adapted from R. Cohen, J Coxley and A, Sadiq Sandstar, Hardship Britain: Being poor in the 1990s
a) With reference to Item A, identify the kind of sample used by the researchers. Indicate why they used this technique? (2)
b) With reference to Item A, what were the two ways in which the researchers attempted to make the Asian families feel comfortable and able to communicate easily? (2)
c) Suggest one reason why the researchers piloted their interview schedule. Why might they have used areas similar to those in the final study? (2)
d) Suggest one reason why it might be better to use a relative rather than an absolute definition of poverty in this kind of study? (2)
e) Identify and explain one advantage to the researchers of tape recording the interviews? (3)
f) What advantages might face to face interviews have over postal questionnaires in this type of study? (8)