The Mutual Construction of Statistics and Society: 2 (Routledge Advances in Research Methods)

ISBN 10: 0415873703 / ISBN 13: 9780415873703

Published by Routledge, 2010

About this Item

What we choose to count, what we choose not to count, who does the counting, and the categories and values we choose to apply when counting, matter. This title addresses why and how students and scholars must become more aware of the power and the limitations of statistics. Editor(s): Saetnan, Ann Rudinow; Hammer, Svein; Lomell, Heidi Mork. Series: Routledge Advances in Research Methods. Num Pages: 314 pages, 6 black & white illustrations, 5 black & white tables, 3 black & white halftones, 3 black. BIC Classification: PBT. Category: (UP) Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly. Dimension: 239 x 163 x 24. Weight in Grams: 550. . 2010. 1st Edition. hardcover. . . . .

Seller Inventory # V9780415873703

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Mutual Construction of Statistics and Society: 2 (Routledge Advances in Research Methods)
• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication Date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0415873703
• ISBN 13: 9780415873703
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Statistics are often seen as simple, straightforward, and objective descriptions of society. However, what we choose to count, what we choose not to count, who does the counting, and the categories and values we choose to apply when counting, matter. This volume addresses the ways in which statistics and numbers are gathered and applied in social science research. The contributors argue that we must become more aware of the power and the limitations of statistics. Learning statistics needs to be about more than simply mastering the techniques of using the tool; it needs to also be about learning the dangers of that tool and learning to control it within social and ethical bounds. These dangers lie in the routines through which statistics are applied; the discourses from which they emerge and into which they are deployed; the power relations created by those discourses; and the assumptions, meanings, and categories statistics carry with them in those discourses. This volume will be necessary reading for students and scholars using quantitative data within the social sciences.

About the Author

Ann Rudinow Sćtnan is Professor of Sociology at the Department of Sociology and Political Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Svein Hammer is a Post-doc in the Department of Sociology and Political Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Heidi Mork Lomell is Post-doctoral research fellow at the Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law, University of Oslo.