WHY DO RESEARCH?agencies were replaced by political appointees, per-
sons committed to certain ideologies. Respected re-
search findings that contradicted ideological views
were removed from official health or environmen-
tal public information.^7
At one time, leading U.S. government officials
promoted antiscience beliefs. One top aide to Pres-
ident George W. Bush claimed to reject “the reality-
based community,” defined as people who “believe
that solutions emerge from your judicious study of
discernible reality” (Suskind, 2004).
For an example of how the alternatives would
explain an aspect of social life, see Table 1.WHAT RESEARCH INVOLVES:
A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH
Social science research is central in a “reality-based
community.” It relies on people carefully studying ex-
periences, events, and facts in social reality. While so-
cial research helps us answer questions about the
social world, it also raises new questions and may
change how we look at the world as well. It relies on
the process and evidence of science as such, and it can
differ from casual observation, common sense rea-
soning, and other ways to evaluate evidence, includ-
ing pure logical-rational reasoning (mathematical or
philosophical proof) or legal-judicial procedure. Wenext examine sciencein the context of doing social
science research.Science
When most people hear the word “science,” the first
image that comes to mind is likely to be a lab with
test tubes, electronic equipment and microscopes,
exotic space ships, and people in white lab coats.
These outward trappings are a part of science. The
physical and biological sciences—biology, chem-
istry, physics, and zoology—deal with the physical
and material world (e.g., rocks, plants, chemical
compounds, stars, muscles, blood, electricity).
These natural sciences are at the forefront of new
technology and receive a great deal of publicity.
Most people first think of them when they hear the
word “science.”
The social-cultural sciences (such as anthro-
pology, economics, human geography, psychology,
political science, and sociology) involve the study
of human social-cultural life: beliefs, behaviors, re-
lationships, interactions, institutions, and so forth.
Just as we apply knowledge from the physical and
biological sciences in related, more pragmatic
fields (such as agriculture, aviation, engineering,
medicine, and pharmacology), we apply social sci-
ence knowledge to practical concerns in relatedTABLE 1 Alternative Explanations to Social ResearchEXAMPLE ISSUE: WOMEN ARE MORE LIKELY THAN MEN TO DO LAUNDRY.Personal experience and common sense:In my experience, men just are not as concerned about clothing or
appearance as much as women are, so it makes sense that women do the laundry. When my friends and I were
growing up, my mother and their mothers did the laundry, and female friends did it for their boyfriends but never
did the men do it.
Experts and authority:Experts say that as children, females are taught to make, select, mend, and clean clothing
as part of a female focus on physical appearance and on caring for children or others in a family. Women do the
laundry based on their childhood preparation.
Popular and media messages:Movies and television commercials show women often doing laundry and enjoying
it, but men hate it and mess it up. So, women must be doing laundry because they enjoy it and are skilled at it. It
is what we see everywhere and what everyone says.
Ideological beliefs:The proper, natural place division of labor is for women to take charge of the home, caring for
children and overseeing household duties, including cooking, cleaning, and doing the laundry.