SOCI332 Statistics for Social Science
Week 1 Forum
Week 1 Forum – Introduction and Choosing a Topic
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***This week’s Forum requires you to respond to both the introduction prompt (Part 1) and the project topic prompt (Part 2) to receive full credit.***
Welcome everyone!
PART 1: First, for your initial INTRODUCTION post, introduce yourself to the class and tell us who you are. To introduce yourself, write a brief introduction about yourself using the prompts below.
1. What name would you like to use in class?
2. Statistics can be an intimidating course for many students! The great thing about statistics is that we engage with them every day without really realizing it (Consumer Reports data, the studies that support our physician’s health plans for us, comparison of schools in our district, and more). How might learning basic statistics connect with your educational or career goals (share your major and/or career field with us)?
3. Read the Syllabus for this course. Please state that you have read the syllabus and understand the course policies, expectations, and due dates.
PART 2: Be sure to read the Lesson for Week 1 prior to responding.
Choosing a topic: There are so many things around us that it can be difficult to focus on just one for a research project. Here are a few things to think about to find yours. First, we are in a sociology class, so your topic has to be sociological in nature. Wondering if a new diet helps people lose weight, for instance, wouldn’t work. Instead, think back on some of the topics you covered in other sociology classes (Intro Soc, Marriage and the Family, Soc Theory, etc.). Was there something in there that sparked your interest? You can also build on previous research that you have completed for a former class in theprogram or closely related field. This project will be the focus of your discussions for the next several weeks. It is highly recommended that you choose something that is of interest to you and can keep your attention for that long.
We will be using General Social Survey (GSS) 2016 data set for Weekly Discussions, Assignment 1 and the Final Project (paper and presentation). You should NOT collect your own data. All variables and data are required to be from GSS 2016 data set. To know more about GSS, you may visit its main website by clicking here. You can find GSS variables online via GSS Data Explorer (https://gssdataexplorer.norc.org/). Make good use of the attachment at the end of the grading rubrics to select relevant variables for your project.
The point of the discussion is that other students will ask you questions or make suggestions that may help you define your project better. Your instructor will also interact with each of you individually in this module and the next to help you refine your topic. Which means, remember to check your thread regularly!
As you present your topic in this discussion, think about how you would study it. What is your research question and your theory behind it? After writing your introduction, tell the class what your topic is, phrasing it as a research question. Your research question should preferably be more general and open-ended than a hypothesis. Then, identify variables which you have found in the GSS 2016 dataset. Be sure to identify the variable name AND the question asked in the survey. See screenshots tutorial for more details. Wrap up by explaining why you chose these variables for your project and why you think there is a correlation or a relationship. You are choosing one independent variable and one dependent variable.
In your replies to at least two posts from your classmates, think critically about what they are trying to do with their project, and offer them constructive feedback. This can be asking for clarification about their proposed topic, suggesting a direction for their research, suggesting sources they may want to check, or contributing your personal experience about this topic. Be sure to also answer at least one peer who responded to your initial post (and interact with the instructor as needed).
For your Week 1 “Choose a topic” initial posting, please list everything in the following list:
1. Describe what your topic is, phrasing it as a research question.
2. Identify variables (one DV, at least one IV) which you have found in the GSS dataset (see the attachment below).
a. identify variable names; for example, “childs” is a variable name. It stands for “Number of children.”
b. identify the question related to this variable that was asked in the survey (in verbatim). For example, GSS survey question for variable “childs” is as follows (in verbatim):
How many children have you ever had? Please count all that were born alive at any time (including any you had from a previous marriage).
3. Explain why you chose these variables for your project;
4. Explain why you think there is a correlation or a relationship.
Reiteration: we will be using the 2016 data set for our project. All variables in your project HAVE to come from this 2016 data set. The first announcement in the course tells you how to download both the SPSS software and the full 2016 GSS dataset to be uploaded into SPSS.
Forum Instructions: Each forum week, learners will post one initial post and three peer responses. This post must demonstrate comprehension of the course materials and the ability to apply that knowledge in the real world. Learners will engage with the instructor and peers throughout the learning week. To motivate engaged discussion, posts are expected to be on time with regular interaction throughout the week. All posts should demonstrate college level writing skills. To promote vibrant discussion as we would in a face to face classroom, formatted citations and references are not required. Quotes should not be used at all, or if necessary, used sparingly. If you quote a source, quotation marks should be used and an APA formatted citation and reference provided.
For weeks when the Forum is only text based, 250+ words are required for the initial post. For weeks when the Forum includes a text answer and statistical output, 150+ words are required.
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