Question 1. When planning to do social research, it is better to:

a) Approach the topic with an open mind

b) Do a pilot study before getting stuck into it

c) Be familiar with the literature on the topic

d) Forget about theory because this is a very practical undertaking

Question 2. Which comes first, theory or research?

a) Theory, because otherwise you are working in the dark

b) Research, because that's the only way you can develop a theory

c) It depends on your point of view

d) The question is meaningless, because you can't have one without the other

Question 3. We review the relevant literature to know:

a) What is already known about the topic

b) What concepts and theories have been applied to the topic

c) Who are the key contributors to the topic

d) All of the above

Question 4. A deductive theory is one that:

a) Allows theory to emerge out of the data

b) Involves testing an explicitly defined hypothesis

c) Allows for findings to feed back into the stock of knowledge

d) Uses qualitative methods whenever possible

Question 5. Which of the following is not a type of research question?

a) Predicting an outcome

b) Evaluating a phenomenon

c) Developing good practice

d) A hypothesis

Question 6. What does 'sampling cases' mean?

a) Sampling using a sampling frame

b) Identifying people who are suitable for research

c) Literally, the researcher's brief-case

d) Sampling people, newspapers, television programmes etc.

Question 7. Which of the following is not a data-collection method?

a) Research questions

b) Unstructured interviewing

c) Postal survey questionnaires

d) Participant observation

Question 8. Why is data analysis concerned with data reduction?

a) Because far too much data is collected than is required

b) Because we need to make sense of the data

c) Because of the repetitions in answers to questionnaires

d) Because the sample size has been exceeded

Question 9. The core ingredients of a dissertation are:

a) Introduction; Data collection; Data analysis; Conclusions and recommendations.

b) Executive summary; Literature review; Data gathered; Conclusions; Bibliography.

c) Research plan; Research data; Analysis; References.

d) Introduction; Literature review; Research methods; Results; Discussion; Conclusion.

Question 10. Because of the number of things that can go wrong in research there is a need for:

a) Flexibility and perseverance

b) Sympathetic supervisors

c) An emergency source of finance

d) Wisdom to know the right time to quit