Delivered at:: Department of Sociology

Course type:: Compulsory course

When:: 2 year, 1, 2 module

Instructors

Мацкевич Мария Георгиевна

Sinyavskaya, Yadviga

Full Syllabus

Abstract

The course covers the following general topics: - Planning and Designing Social research - Ethical issues in social Research - Interviewing and Questionnaire design - Content Analysis. Reading and discussion of some widely known studies is combined with practical exercises on development of research design and specific tools.

Learning Objectives

The course covers the following general topics: - Research design - Quantitative methodology - Qualitative methodology - Online studies - Research ethics
introduce students to the basics of research methodology in social sciences, and give a brief overview of the most relevant research methods.

Expected Learning Outcomes

Be able to formulate research question and choose appropriate methodology
Know the ethical requirements and limitations for different research methods
Know the main stages of a research
Understand the basic idea and the differences between main research methods: survey, anthropological/ biographical study, online research etc.
Understand the basic idea and the differences between main research methods: survey, anthropological/ biographical study, online research etc

Course Contents

Theory and Research
Planning and designing case studies
Ethical Issues in a Case Study
Interview and Questionnaire Design
Content Analysis
Methods of data collection
Observation
Survey in a quantitative study
Quantitative vs. Qualitative methods
Focus Group Method
Secondary Data Analysis
Research hypothesis
Research question
Research Problem

Assessment Elements

Activities in class
Home tasks
In case of the lack of class participation during the class, additional essays may be assigned in order to test the understanding of the topic. The grade for the essay will be included into home tasks grade.
Tests
Exam 1 year
As your exam, you'll receive a set of 3-5 questions. You need to answer two of them in a written form. Each question will raise a methodological problem. We expect you to express your own ideas and attitudes, that should be supported by examples and concepts from the course. Each submission will be checked for plagiarism. If any traces of plagiarism will be found, the submission will be graded with 0. If you are using ideas from other sources, you need to put a proper reference. Since there are two questions, you can get 5 points for each.
Midterm exam
Written summaries of the assigned readings
You need to submit a written summary of each reading assignment. The summary should include all the definitions and classifications presented in the reading. The summary should not contain plagiarism
Activities in class
Home assignments
Exam

Interim Assessment

2020/2021 3rd module
0.2 * Tests + 0.3 * Exam 1 year + 0.1 * Home tasks + 0.1 * Written summaries of the assigned readings + 0.3 * Activities in class
2021/2022 2nd module
0.4 * Exam + 0.4 * Home assignments + 0.2 * Activities in class

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

Hegde, D. S. (2015). Essays on Research Methodology. New Delhi: Springer. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=nlebk&AN=1001250
Maruyama, G., & Ryan, C. S. (2014). Research Methods in Social Relations (Vol. 8th ed). Malden, Mass: Wiley-Blackwell. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=798826

Recommended Additional Bibliography

Kothari, C. R. (2004). Research Methodology : Methods & Techniques (Vol. 2nd rev. ed). New Delhi: New Age International. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=277465
Rugg, G., & Petre, M. (2007). A Gentle Guide to Research Methods. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Education. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=234246

Bachelor’s Programme 'Sociology and Social Informatics'

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Methodology and Methods for Sociological Research