Blog #2 The Essences of Sense and nonsense about surveys

  Social science survey data is commonly reported in the news, you read about the use of survey data in Howard Schuman’s article “Sense and Nonsense About Surveys” He explains It is rare to watch television news or read the paper without learning the results of a recent survey. Given the proliferation of surveys, it is important to know more about their characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. Schuman’s talks about surveys involving two distinct steps: selecting cases and then presenting those cases with a Predetermined set of questions.

The first step, often called "sampling," is critical. In most situations, we want to

Be able to make generalizations about a "population" (all the cases of interest) based on a subset of that population, our "sample." How we choose cases for our sample determines the confidence with which we can make statements about what is likely to be true of the population. But it is also important to attend to the questions that are asked in surveys.

 "Sense and Nonsense' it explained the difference surveys and outcomes but also it left me with the in depth view how survey takes place every day, in every aspects of our life's from simple conversations and social interactions, also it shed light that views and answers are always changing from different cities, gender, age, sex, etc., I learned that even though survey questions resemble questions we ask ordinary it still brings problematic because of wording and context of the questions that is asked   Howard, Schuman asserts understanding surveys is Critical to being informed citizen.

In chapter 2 it went in depth on how a sociologist warrants answer to a question and how sometimes one answer bring up another question, but also explained people reasoning to things. In the reading the idea of unquestioned acceptance of ‘common sense’ how it was okay for children to think Santa exist because it was traditional belief. It made me think back to a short story ‘The Lottery’ by Shirley Jackson. Jackson explore the idea that mankind follows traditions wilily and without question, and from a sociologist point a view I ask why.