Admission requirements
Required course(s):
Successful completion of at least one 200 level methods course in the major (Qualitative Research Methods, Cultural and Visual Analysis or Historical Methods).
Please note: Due to the limited number of seats available in this course, CHS/HD students may choose to enroll in Research Design GPH (Block 4) instead. There is a overlap in content between the two courses and guest lectures by CHS staff will be incorporated in the Research Design GPH course to accommodate CHS/HD students, too. CHS/HD students may express a preference for either course through the course registration survey, but placement in either course is dependent on availability and (the scheduling of) students’ other classes.
Description
This course is geared to make you think as a researcher either in a research clinic, a course paper, your final capstone projects or later in life. Research is always and everywhere designed. This means that research design (RD) is the invisible framework that shapes the way in which knowledge is produced: What we study, why we do it, how we do it, with whom, under which condition and with what purpose, are among the fundamental questions you address whenever you design your research. This is also important: you design the process through which you’ll attain certain knowledge. Thus, paying attention to the design of your research is a crucial step in engaging in an interesting, inspiring, scientifically valid, ethical and ultimately enjoyable project.
This course is not a course that provides training in methodology, it rather complements what you study in the methods courses of the Culture, History and Society major. RD: CHS concentrates on the strengths and weaknesses of different kinds of research design in the humanities (history and arts) and social sciences (anthropology and sociology), examining how to weave the relation between epistemology (the multiple natures and forms of knowledge) and methodology (the proceedings associated with the production of evidence-based knowledge). Understanding the connection between these two components is crucial because both relate to questions about how the research should be carried out, what kind of evidence should/can be collected and analysed, and how to carry out the analysis in order for your research to be scientifically valid.
Course Objectives
The objective of this course is to acquaint students with the process of research design in the social sciences and humanities, helping them to develop the required skills to become ethical researchers, able to produce research work that is original, well-grounded epistemologically, theoretically and empirically.
By the end of the course students should develop the ability to:
Understand the basic principles of research design.
Recognize the importance of epistemology, and different epistemological perspectives, underpinning the range of methodological possibilities when doing research.
Create a robust design for their own capstone projects, starting by identifying a valid, interesting and feasible research question.
Determine the connection between their research question and the type of evidence required to address it, and the related epistemological approaches to describe, interpret and analyse it.
Learn how to effectively connect theory and practice in the various steps of their research projects, being able to defend their choices when confronted with a wider audience.
Recognize the importance of ethics in any form of research design, as ethical questions are inseparable from knowledge production.
Timetable
Timetables for courses offered at Leiden University College in 2021-2022 will be published on this page of the e-Prospectus.
Mode of instruction
This course will be taught as a seminar in person if the regulations allow it. The course is run as a seminar, and its is a practical course, highly dependent on student’s participation. This means your active engagement with the weekly material and tasks is essential part of the course and its developments.
Assessment Method
Three written assigments: 30% (10% each)
Group work: 20%
Individual final proposal: 50%
Reading list
A reading list is designed and available to all students prior the beginning of the course via the syllabus and the course’s Teams.
Registration
Courses offered at Leiden University College (LUC) are usually only open to LUC students and LUC exchange students. Leiden University students who participate in one of the university’s Honours tracks or programmes may register for one LUC course, if availability permits. Registration is coordinated by the Education Coordinator, course.administration@luc.leidenuniv.nl.
Contact
Dr. Daniela Vicherat Mattar
d.a.vicherat.mattar@luc.leidenuniv.nl
Remarks
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