METHODOLOGY AND TECHNIQUES OF SOCIAL RESEARCH
METODOLOGIA E TECNICHE DELLA RICERCA SOCIALE
| A.Y. | Credits |
|---|---|
| 2016/2017 | 10 |
| Lecturer | Office hours for students | |
|---|---|---|
| Terenzio Fava | Wednesday h. 3-5 p.m. |
| Teaching in foreign languages |
|---|
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Course with optional materials in a foreign language
This course is entirely taught in Italian. Study materials can be provided in the foreign language and the final exam can be taken in the foreign language. |
Assigned to the Degree Course
| Date | Time | Classroom / Location |
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Learning Objectives
The course aims at developing qualitative and quantitative approach within the main theoretical framework of the methodology of social research. According to both approaches discourse will turn on the main techniques used for social research for collecting data: i.e. surveys, interviews, ethnographic research and such. On this basis the course will then undertake analysis issues based the most important collection data techniques commonly used for social research. In addition to that students will be asked to undertake specific research activities
Program
The course is framed around the two main approaches: qualitative and quantitative.
Under the qualitative view it will focus on the following topics: the ethnographic approach and the participant observation, the interview outline and the use of unstructured interviews, secondary analysis and the use of mixed documents. Within the quantitative paradigm the course will discuss the following issues: translating concepts into variables, theories and research topics, the quantitative research project frame, polls and questionnaires, surveys and sampling, scaling techniques, secondary analysis and official datasets, data matrix, frequencies and graphs, univariate analysis of quantitative variables, as well as analysis of two-dimensional contingency tables.
Students will be also asked to practice the overall methodological issues and different research techniques upon both approaches. Exercises and empirical activities will move around the following topics: building a questionnaire, framing an interview outline, doing an unstructured interview, analyzing quantitative and qualitative datasets.
Lastly, during the course different lecturers and experts will teach classes focused on the use datasets oriented on elections, youth and crime.
Bridging Courses
Although there are no mandatory prerequisites for this course, students are strongly recommended to take it after attending the following course: Methodology of Human Sciences, and Social Statistics
Learning Achievements (Dublin Descriptors)
By attending the course students will acquire fully mastery and knowledge over the development of methods and research techniques within Sociology field; students will be familiar with the main methodological issues and with the selection of the proper research techniques; students will learn how to discuss around specific methodological issues and over social research topics. They will acquire the ability to analyze social phenomena according to a sociological perspective and to design and conduct a quantitative or quantitative research.
Teaching Material
The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it
Teaching, Attendance, Course Books and Assessment
- Teaching
Frontal lessons and practice research activities
- Attendance
Attendance to at least ¾ of the lessons (22 classes), active participation within the research activities, and the study of the course books
- Course books
Piergiorgio Corbetta, Metodologia e tecniche della ricerca sociale, Il Mulino, Bologna, 2014 (except Chapter IV)
- Assessment
At the end of the course students may attend a final written exam or sit the final exam
- Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)
Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.
To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.
Additional Information for Non-Attending Students
- Attendance
Attendance to less than ¾ of the lessons (missing for more than 8 classes), non participation to the research activities, and the study of the course books
- Course books
Piergiorgio Corbetta, Metodologia e tecniche della ricerca sociale, Il Mulino, Bologna, 2014
- Assessment
Exam consists of an outlined conversation over text books’ main topics
- Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)
Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.
To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.
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