Description
The course is designed to help the students develop the skills needed for designing and evaluating a research study. Topics include the following: Formulating a research question; generating hypotheses; forming concepts; measuring variables, choosing research methods—quantitative, qualitative, or multi-method research designs—and recognizing each method’s strengths and limitations.
Methods of instruction
The course will be taught as a seminar, and the students are expected to actively participate in discussions of the readings and each others’ work.
Study material
The readings for the course include chapters from two books, a course reader, and articles available through the library’s online journals. There will be about 500 pages of readings.
Books:
Van Evera, Stephen. 1997. Guide to Methods for Students of Political Science. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Brady, Henry E., and David Collier, eds. 2004. Rethinking Social Inquiry: Diverse Tools, Shared Standards. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
King, Gary, Robert O. Keohane, and Sidney Verba. 1994. Designing Social Inquiry: Scientific Inference in Qualitative Research. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Examination
There will be no final in-class exam in this course. Instead, the students will be required to write a research design for a study on a topic of their own choosing. The research question must be approved by the instructor. During the course, the students will circulate and/or present components of their project to their fellow students to get feedback.
Time table
Tuesday March 31 till May 26, 13.00 – 15.00 p.m. in 1A37 (except May 5, Liberation Day)