Two issues in the assessment of the adequacy of formal sociological models of human behavior

Article Abstract:

Models are used in sociology, and they need to be assessed in terms of how well they fit empirical data. There is a debate as to whether these models should be evaluated in terms of aggregated or individual data, or whether this depends on the circumstances, and how simplifying assumptions should be dealt with. Aggregate analysis should be used where minimal actor models are involved and there are no individual variables likely to influence the behavior being modeled. The robustness of models to the failure of these assumptions should be the key issue, rather than whether the models are true.

Models, Human behavior, Goodness-of-fit tests

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Measuring subgroup variation in social judgment research: A factorial survey approach

Article Abstract:

Factorial survey research is becoming increasingly popular as an efficient tool for measuring social judgments.The impact of subgroup, or respondent characteristics is also often researched, although the systematic differences among subgroups is not revealed in literature on subgroup variations. Results of a study of whether subgroup attributes contribute to the differences in social judgments, indicated that subgroups often do not vary in social judgments.

Observations, Social science research

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Is trust in others declining in America? An age-period-cohort analysis

Article Abstract:

This article examines changes in the level of interpersonal trust in the United States during the end of the twentieth century. Findings indicate that young Americans have the lowest levels of trust and that trust declined significantly in every generation born after 1940.

United States, Social aspects, Statistical Data Included, Research, Social change, Trust (Psychology)

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