Social & Behavioral Research Laboratory
Offering survey research expertise and a fully automated survey research center with CATI* capability maintaining an emphasis on student learning and community service.
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(* Computer Aided Telephone Interviewing)
Mission
The mission of the SBRL is threefold: teaching, research,
and service.
The SBRL offers students a learning-centered environment as they discover
the nuances and practical realities of research in ways that traditional
classroom instruction could never teach them.
SBRL resources are also made available for course research and individual
student research on an “as needed” basis.
Additionally, the lab serves as a research platform for university
faculty members, especially those in the social and behavioral sciences, by
providing facilities and expertise for survey-based and experimental research
projects. One recent poll included
a series of questions designed to tap perceptions of risk for cancer as this
relates to media exposure for a book being written by two Winthrop faculty
members.
The service component may be conceived of as primarily
focusing on four general areas: university, community, region, and state.
The SBRL is committed to university service as a pedagogical tool for the
teaching of students in the social and behavioral sciences as well as an avenue
for resource needs assessments and other university projects.
Undergraduate and graduate students have the opportunity to gain first
hand experience in the design, execution, and analysis of survey-based and
experimental research. Students may also use the facilities for undergraduate
honor’s thesis research as well for master’s research.
The second and third areas of service are community and
region, respectively. These areas
of service include local and regional economic development studies and studies
of resource allocation. Recent
"Town & Gown," Economic Development, and Social & Racial
Issues surveys are a small scale
example of how the lab serves the community.
In addition to helping the university become aware of the attitudes of
Rock Hill residents about our university, such surveys also offer suggestions of
how our university, as well as public officials, might better serve the needs of
the community. The Economic
Development study, for example, went further by probing public opinion regarding how the city
of Rock Hill distributes its limited resources.
The SBRL is dedicated to serving the community. Data from SBRL surveys have been made available to the Rock Hill City Council, the York County Council, the Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation, Rock Hill School District 3, the Rock Hill Chapter of the NAACP, the Rock Hill Human Relations Committee, and the Rock Hill Taskforce on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday.
The fourth area involves service to the state.
While fulfilling needs in this area will likely be more of a long-term
goal, it is not difficult to envision avenues of service.
Examples might include analyses of statewide aging and senior-service
needs, studies of judicial equity and gender fairness, and public safety needs
assessments.
Naturally, many of the avenues for service afford unique research opportunities for Winthrop students and faculty. Learning opportunities such as this that leap “from the page to the practical” offer students a wealth of knowledge that they would otherwise miss.
For more
information on the Social & Behavioral Research Lab, please contact SBRL
Director, Dr. Scott H. Huffmon
Back to Dr.
Huffmon's Homepage