Researching Social Life

Nigel Gilbert is Professor of Sociology at the University of Surrey, Guildford, England. He is the author or editor of 34 books and many academic papers and was the founding editor of the Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation. His current research focuses on the application of agent-based models to understanding social and economic phenomena, especially the emergence of norms, culture, and innovation. He obtained a doctorate in the sociology of scientific knowledge in 1974 from the University of Cambridge and has subsequently taught at the universities of York and Surrey in England. He is one of the pioneers in the field of social simulation and is past president of the European Social Simulation Association. He is a Fellow of the UK Academy of Social Sciences and of the Royal Academy of Engineering.Paul Stoneman is Lecturer in Sociology, University of Surrey.

• FOUNDATIONS AND FIRST STEPSConceptualising Social Life - Geoff Cooper and Robert MeadowsResearch, Theory and Method - Nigel GilbertFormulating and Refining a Research Question - Nicola Green and Paul StonemanConducting Systematic Reviews in the Social Sciences - Karen Bullock and Daniel McCarthyCHOOSING YOUR RESEARCH STRATEGYQuantitative Research - Paul Stoneman and Ian Brunton-SmithGrounded Theory and Inductive Research - Paul HodkinsonMixed Methods - Victoria D. Alexander, Hilary Thomas, Ann Cronin, Jane Fielding and Jo Moran-EllisParticipatory Approaches to Social Research - Christina SilverEvaluation Research - Mike McGuireInternational Comparative Research - Linda HantraisThe Ethics of Social Research - Janet BoddyCOLLECTING DATADesigning and Collecting Survey Samples - Patrick SturgisQuestionnaire Design - Charles Leddy-OwenMeasuring Attitudes - Thomas J. ScottoQualitative Interviewing - Nigel Fielding and Hilary ThomasFocus Groups - Ann CroninEthnography - Nigel FieldingThe Internet and Research Methods - Christine HineANALYSING DATACoding and Managing Data - Jane FieldingAnalysing Survey Data - Paul StonemanComputer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis (CAQDAS) - Ann LewinsThematic Analysis - Alexander SealNarrative Analysis - Sarah Earthy, Alexandra Cuncev and Ann CroninApplying Conversation Analysis and Membership Categorisation Analysis to Qualitative Data - Andrew King and Lorraine LockeAnalysing Visual Materials - Victoria D. Alexander Digital Social Research - Christine HineWRITING ABOUT SOCIAL RESEARCH AND ITS IMPACTWriting about Social Research - Nigel GilbertThe Impact of Social Research - Paul Stoneman and Nigel Gilbert

′Researching Social Life remains the classic, essential guide to social research methods with updated and innovative chapters brought together by a superb team of editors and contributors′. Lisa Dikomitis, Department of Social Sciences, University of Hull, UK.