Scientific Reasoning and Theory
September 10, 2007

Assigned Readings
 Crix, Ch. 4, 5 & 6

Comparison of Three Paradigms Bring this to class with you.

Levels of Theories Bring this to class, too.

Anfara, V.A., Jr. & Mertz, N.T. (2006) Theoretical Frameworks in Qualitative Research. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA. Introduction, p. xiii-xxxii. e-reserve

Parsons, K. (2002) Scientific civlization and its discontents: further reflections on the science wars. Philosophy of Science 69, 645-651.

Recommended Readings
 Shoemaker et al., Ch. 9

Discussion Guide
 Discussion Guide to Scientific Reasoning & Theory

Advance Preparation

A. Review the conceptual model of a theory before class. Bring it to class with you.

B. Review Assignment 2 before class and bring a copy to class with you. I strongly encourage you to read the Guide to Selecting and Analyzing Research Reports before you try to complete this assignment.

C. Bring a copy of Assignment 4 to class with you. Look this assignment over very carefully before you try to complete Assignment 2. Assignments 2 and 3 will all directly contribute to successful completion of Assignment 4. Assignments 4-6, in turn, provide the basis for successfully completing Assignments 7-9. Look now at what you will need to do for Assignments 7-9!.

D. Work in groups of two or three (maximum) for this preparation. You may select your own group members. Read any one of the following articles prior to class. All members of your group should read the same article. All you have to do prior to class is read the article. Sign up in class for an article. Each group must read a different article.

1. Hulme, D. (2004) Thinking 'small' and the understanding of poverty: Maymana and Mofizul's story. Journal of Human Development 5(2), 161-176.

2. Lwanga-Ntale, C. & McClean, K. (2004) The face of chronic poverty in Uganda from the poor's perspective: constraints and opportunities. Journal of Human Development 5(2), 177-194.

3. Burger, J. (2005) Fishing, fish consumption, and knowledge about advisories in college students and others in central New Jersey. Environmental Research 98, 268-275.

4. Gentry, Q.M., Elifson, K. & Sterk, C. (2005) Aiming for more relevant HIV risk reduction: a black feminist perspective for enhancing HIV intervention for low-income African American women. AIDS Education and Prevention 17(3), 238-252.

5. Williams, C.B. (2005) Counseling African American women: multiple identities -- multiple constraints. Journal of Counseling and Development 83(3), 278-283.

6. Dunn, K.M., Forrest, J., Burnley, I. & McDonald. A. (2004) Constructing racism in Australia. Australian Journal of Social Issues, 39(4), 409-430.

7. Zaffani, S., Cuzzolin, L., Meneghelli, G., Gangemi, M., Murgia, V., Chiamenti, G. & Benoni, G. (2005) An analysis of the factors influencing the paediatrician-parents relationship: the importance of socio-demographic chracteristics of the mothers. Child: Care, Health & Development 31(5), 575-580.

8. Ho, C., Sasidharan, V., Elmendorf, W., Willits, F.K., Graefe, A. & Godbey, G. (2005) Gender and ethnic variations in urban park preferences, visitation and perceived benefits. Journal of Leisure Research 37(3), 281-306.

9. Gillum, R.F. (2005) Frequency of attendance at religious services and cigarette smoking in American women and men: the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Preventive Medicine 41 (2), 607-613.

10. Martin, G.P. (2005) Narratives great and small: Neighbourhood change, place and identity in Notting Hall. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 29 (1), 22-88.

11. Elbaz-Luwisch, F. (2004) Immigrant teachers: stories of self and place. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education 17 (3), 387-414.

Assignment
 Assignment 2: Theory
Research Reports
 Examples of reports of original research with well developed theoretical foundations 

Charles, N. & Davies, C.A. (1997) Contested communities: the refuge movement and cultural identities in Wales. The Sociological Review 45(3), 416-436.

Gould, R.G. (1993) Collective action and network structure. American Sociological Review 58, 182-196.

Heong, K.L., Escalada, M.M., Sengsoulivong, V. & Schiller, J. (2002) Insect management beliefs and practices of rice farmers in Laos. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 92, 137-145.

Lee, M.R. & Bartkowski, J.P. (2004) Love thy neighbor? Moral communities, civic engagement, and juvenile homocide in rural areas. Social Forces 82(3), 1001-1035.

Zekeri, A.A. (1997) Community action in Alabama's Black Belt timber-dependent communities. Social Indicators Research 39, 203-228.

Schmitt, M.T., Branscombe, N.R. & Kappen, D.M. (2003) Attitudes toward group-based inequality: social dominance or social identity? British Journal of Social Psychology 42, 161-186.

Sharp, J.S. (2001) Locating the community field: a study of interorganizational network structure and capacity for community action. Rural Sociology 66(3), 403-424.

Examples of reports of original research with poorly developed theory

 Arber, S. (2003) Gender, marital status, and ageing: linking material, health and social resources. Journal of Aging Studies 18, 91-108.

Chettri, G.B.; Ghimiray, M. and Floyd, C.N. (2003). Effects of Farmyard Manure, Fertilizers and Green Manuring in Rice-Wheat Systems in Bhutan: Results from a Long-Term Experiment. Experimental Agriculture 39: 129-144.

Connell, D.J. & Wall, E. (2004) Profiling economic capacity. Journal of Extension 42(4), 13-26.

Ritchie, D., Parry, O., Gnich, W. & Platt, S. (2004) Issues of participation, ownership and empowerment in a community development programme: tackling smoking in a low-income area in Scotland. Health Promotion International 19(1), 51-59.

Salahuddin, A., Baldersheim, H & Jamil, I. (2003) Talking back! Empowerment and mobile phones in rural Bangladesh: A study of the Village Phone System of Grameen Bank. Contemporary South Asia 12(3), 327-348.

Smith, B. (2003) The impact of community development corporations on neighborhood housing markets. Urban Affairs Review, 39(2), 181-204.

Tubb, K.N. (2003) An evaluation of the effectiveness of interpretation within Dartmoor National Park in reaching the goals of sustainable tourism development. Journal of Sustainable Tourism 11(6), 476-498.

Places to start looking for articles

You are responsible for finding your own article to review for this and all other assignments. I usually do try to give you some leads to follow, based on your interests. The following articles do not necessarily meet the requirements for this assignment. Several do meet the requirements, but some of them do not because they are literature reviews or thought pieces. However, these articles do give you a place to start. They are recent articles published in research journals and they can help put you on the trail of the literature for a particular topic. If you decide that you want to review one of these articles, you are responsible for making sure that the article meets the requirements for the assignment. My objective is simply to give you some recent publications that will give you a place to start a bibliographic search. The articles listed for the group exercise in class are also good places to start your search for an appropriate article for review.

Anthias, F. (2001) The concept of "social division" and theorising social stratification: looking at ethnicity and class. Sociology 35(4), 835-854.

Arena, J. (2003) Race and hegemony: the neoliberal transformation of the black urban regime and working-class resistance. American Behavioral Scientist 47(3), 352-380.

Becker, M. G. & Barlth, R. P. . (2000) Power through choices: the development of a sexuality education curriculum for youths in out-of-home care. Child Welfare 79(3), 269-282.

Brodsky, A.E. (1996) Resilient single mothers in risky neighborhoods: negative psychological sense of community. Journal of Community Psychology 24(4), 347-363.

Campbell, A. L.. (2002) Self-interest, social security and the distinctive participation patterns of senior citizens. American Political Science Review 96(3), 565-574.

Cattell, V. (2001) Poor people, poor places and poor health: themediating role of social networks and social capital. Social Science and Medicine 52, 1501-1516.

Caudwell, J. (2003) Sporting gender: women's footballing bodies as sites/sights for the (re) articulation of sex, gender and desire. Sociology of Sport Journal 29, 371-386.

Caughy, M.O., Campo, P.J. & Muntaner, C. (2003) When being alone might be better: neighborhood poverty, social capital and child mental health. Social Science and Medicine 57(2), 227-237.

Codd, H. (2002) "The ties that bind": feminist perspectivs on self-help groups for prisoners' partners. The Howard Journal 41(4), 334-347.

Dominguez, S. & Watkins, C. (2003) Creating social networks for survival and mobility: social capital among African-American and Latin-American low-income mothers. Social Problems 50(1), 111-135.

Hyyppa, M.T. & Maki, J. (2003) Social participation and health in a community rich in stock of social capital. Health Education Research 18(6), 770-779.

Jagger, E. (2001) Marketing Molly and Melville: dating in a postmodern, consumer society. Sociology 35(1), 39-57.

Lacy, M. J. (2003) War, cinema and moral anxiety. Alternatives 28, 611-636.

McKie, L., Bowlby, S. & Gregory, S. (2004) Starting well: gender, care and health in the family context. Sociology 38(3):593-611.

Miner, D. C. (2003) Jamaican families. Holistic Nursing Practice 17(1), 27-35.

Nash, K. (2001) The "cultural turn" in social theory: towards a theory of cultural politics. Sociology 35(1), 77-92.

Nettle, D. (1996) Language diversity in West Africa: an ecological approach. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 15, 403-438.

O'Donnell, M. H. (2003) Radically reconstituting the subject: social theory and human nature. Sociology 37(4), 753-770.

Punch, S. (2003) Childhoods in the majority world: miniature adults or tribal children? Sociology 37(2, :277-295.

Smith, P. (2003) Narrating the Guillotine. Punishment technology as myth and symbol. Theory, Culture & Society 20(5), 27-51.

Stanton-Salazar, R.D. & Dornbusch, S.M. (1995) Social capital and the reproduction of inequality: information networks among Mexican-origin high school students. Sociology of Education 68(2), 116-135.

Sullivan, A. (2001) Cultural capital and educational attainment. Sociology 35(4), 893-912.

Tschann, J. M., Flores, C., Marin, B.V. Pasch, L. A., E. Baisch, M. & Wibbelsman, C.J. (2002). Interparental conflict and risk behaviors among Mexican American adolescents: a cognitive-emotional model. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology 30(4), 373-385.

Updegraff, K. A., Madden-Derdich, D.A., Estrada, A.U., Sales, L.J. & Leonard S. A. (2002) Young adolescents' experiences with parents and friends: exploring the connections. Family Relations 51, 72-80.

Vasi, I. B. & Macy, M. (2003) The mobilizer's dilemma: crisis, empowerment and collective action. Social Forces 81(3), 979-998.

BACK