One way I like to introduce students to social research is through articles about social research that appear in the news.  I find that these reports are more accessible because they use less technical jargon and because they often connect the research to current events.  News reports often also pull together findings from several different related studies, which allows us to begin comparing different kinds of data.

I’m particularly fond of the following:

• “Wonk Blog” at The Washington Post. Check out Christopher Ingraham
• “Hidden Brain” with Shankar Vedantam at National Public Radio
• “The Upshot” at The New York Times. Check out Claire Cain Miller on gender, family, and work; Patricia Cohen on the U.S. economy; Aaron E. Carroll on health; Nate Cohn on politics; and Emily Badger on cities and urban policy