The Nature of Social Research
Similar to our everyday approach to the world, social scientists attempt to explain and
predict human behavior. They also take “educated guesses” about the nature of social reality,
although in a far more precise and structured manner. In the process, social scientists
examine characteristics of human behavior called variables—characteristics that
differ or vary from one individual to another (for example, age, social class, and attitude)
or from one point in time to another (for example, unemployment, crime rate, and
population)

Alittle of the social scientist can be found in all of us. Almost daily, we take educated
guesses concerning the future events in our lives in order to plan for new situations or experiences.
As these situations occur, we are sometimes able to confirm or support our
ideas; other times, however, we are not so lucky and must face the sometimes unpleasant
consequences.
Consider some familiar examples: We might invest in the stock market, vote for a
political candidate who promises to solve domestic problems, play the horses, take medicine
to reduce the discomfort of a cold, throw dice in a gambling casino, try to psych out
our instructors regarding a midterm, or accept a blind date on the word of a friend.
Sometimes we win; sometimes we lose. Thus, we might make a sound investment in
the stock market, but be sorry about our voting decision; win money at the craps table, but
discover we have taken the wrong medicine for our illness; do well on a midterm, but have
a miserable blind date; and so on. It is unfortunately true that not all of our everyday predictions
will be supported by experience.

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