Sya 7933 Research Design and Practice

sya 7933 research design and practice

barbara zsembik

department of sociology and criminology & law

3109 Turlington Hall 2947190

spring 2015 mondays periods 3-5

office hours: Fridays 10am-12noon and by appointment

Course Website: http://lss.at.ufl.edu

Course Description: Required course for first-year graduate students in Sociology. It is the study of major social science research designs and techniques of conducting empirical inquiry into social phenomena. It is useful to more advanced sociology graduate students, and to graduate students in other social science programs, for development of a research agenda or development of a dissertation or thesis proposal.

Purpose of Course: The purpose of this course is to orient students toward the core research designs and techniques of social science, including contemporary debates and emergent techniques. The course is more practical than theoretical: the critical skills of evaluation of completed research and preparation to conduct original empirical research are emphasized. Course themes are the nature of social relationships, selecting observations, and conceptualization-measurement. Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods are covered.

Course Goals and/or Objectives:

Goals:

(1)  demonstrate broad understanding and application of sociological research methods

(2)  Demonstrate competencies in conducting independent empirical research with scientific integrity

(3)  Demonstrate competencies in applying substantive sociological knowledge in critical thinking, analysis, and communication

Student Learning Objectives:

Describe, explain, and compare-contrast multiple major research designs and analytical techniques

Engage in weekly discussions of key concepts, issues, and techniques in prominent and emergent research designs used by social scientists

Construct and deliver a team-led learning module about a major research design

Lead a discussion of empirical research that uses a distinctive research technique not covered in the course

Construct a portfolio of research activities that lead to a detailed research proposal

“Using Administrative Data as Collateral Support” : explore www.census.gov to find governmental data and reports to use in 1 of the 4 précis.

“Précis” : write 4 précis of potential projects.

“Research Proposal”: write a detailed proposal that builds from 1 of the 4 précis.

“Research Presentation” : Prepare and deliver a 20-minute presentation that outlines your research agenda and provides the details of your research proposal

Use research designs and analytical techniques to establishment a professional research identity and set of professional research skills

Conduct a content analysis of ASA job market postings

Serve on a peer-review panel to review course proposals

“Research Identity Worksheet” : specify core research questions, preferred analytical approaches, primary theoretical orientations, and ASA specialty areas

“Research Agenda Map” : diagram of completed, current and future projects

“Research Statement” : construct a 3 page research statement that is based on research projects and specifies your research agenda for graduate school and the first 2 years of a job or postdoctoral fellowship

Course materials :

Belcher, WL. 2009. Writing Your Journal Article in 12 Weeks. SAGE: Thousands Oaks CA.

Miles, MB, Huberman, AM, & Saldaña, J. 2014. Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook. Edition 3. SAGE: Thousand Oaks, CA.

In the course schedule, the chapter(s) to be read from Belcher is indicated by B and the chapter(s) to be read for Miles, Huberman and Saldaña is indicated by MHS.

All other materials will be available online.

Course Policies:

Attendance Policy: Approach this seminar (and all seminars) professionally. Career professionals attend all meetings, arrive on time, complete all work conscientiously and punctually, and arrive to meetings prepared to engage mindfully and civilly with colleagues.

other Policies: Details on course assignments (i.e., essay, proposal, etc) will be provided. Failure to complete assignments on time and according to specifications may result in grade penalties. Inadequate class participation will result in grade penalties.

UF Policies:

University Policy on Accommodating Students with Disabilities: Students requesting accommodation for disabilities must first register with the Dean of Students Office (http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drc/). The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who must then provide this documentation to the instructor when requesting accommodation. You must submit this documentation prior to submitting assignments or taking the quizzes or exams. Accommodations are not retroactive, therefore, students should contact the office as soon as possible in the term for which they are seeking accommodations.

University Policy on Academic Misconduct: Academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the University community. Students should be sure that they understand the UF Student Honor Code at http://www.dso.ufl.edu/students.php.

Grading Policies and assignments:

Grading Scale: A 93-100%, A- 90-92%, B+ 87-89%, B 83-86%, B- 80-82%, C 75-79%, E 0-74%

Course Schedule:

Disclaimer: [Include a statement that this syllabus is subject to change as the need arises.] This syllabus represents my current plans and objectives. As we go through the semester, those plans may need to change to enhance the class learning opportunity. Such changes, communicated clearly,are not unusual and should be expected.