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1
Oral history is a type of qualitative research that is often used in ethnographic studies. Go to the website of the Oral History Society (http://www.oralhistory.org.uk/):
  1. Read the introductory information on this page. In your own words, explain what oral history is and how it can be used.
  2. You are urged on this page to become a member of the Oral History Society. In what ways might joining this organization be helpful to a sociologist? Would you ever consider joining this organization?
  3. Now click on "Practical Advice." If you were assigned to do oral history interviewing, what would be the focus or theme of your project? Why?
  4. How would you go about finding people to interview?
  5. Write a sample of five questions that you would ask.
2
Because it involves human beings, social science research can present very complex ethical problems. Visit the website of the Chronicle of Higher Education (chronicle.com/free/v49/i36/36a01001.htm) to read about and evaluate the issues that emerged when a social scientist became embroiled in a lawsuit over an artificial heart.
  1. Are the actions of Dr. Zink consistent with the guidelines in the ASA code of ethics? Based on that code, did Dr. Zink make the right choices?
  2. What do you think about the fact that Dr. Zink decided to become an advocate for Mr. Quinn in the months before his death?
  3. How did the American Anthropological Association react to the request for Dr. Zink's field notes? Did they support her decision not to turn over her notes? Do you think that the American Sociological Association would have responded similarly, if Dr. Zink had been a sociologist?
  4. The article mentions the Rik Scarce case you read about in Chapter 2. In what ways are the issues in the Dr. Zink case similar to or different from those faced by Rik Scarce?
  5. Dr. Zink is an anthropologist. In your view, should all social scientists be held to the same ethical standards, or is it appropriate that standards might vary somewhat from discipline to discipline?





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