Tutors: Christina Hughes, Cecily Jones and Srila Roy

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

RESEARCH PROCESS (WS920)

SPRING TERM 2002-2003

Thursdays 0900-1100 hours

Tutors: Christina Hughes, Cecily Jones and Srila Roy

Academic Aims

Research Process is a practical course designed to help students to plan an MA dissertation or research thesis. The course aims to give practical training in the formulation of researchable problems, issues and texts, and their translation into research design and implementation. It will be participative in approach and will focus on the needs and problems of MA students.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course, students will have:

· A practical understanding of research design as it is adapted to different kinds of research and to the time and resources available, enabling them to progress to independent research in relevant areas;

· Knowledge of the variety of research methods which may be adopted in interdisciplinary research;

· Practice in key research skills;

· Communication skills through oral, written and visual presentation of work.

Topics

1. Introduction

2. Research Design

3. Library and Textual Approaches (1)

4. Library and Textual Approaches (2)

5. Fieldwork Approaches (1)

6. Fieldwork Approaches (2)

7. Archival Research (1)

8. Archival Research (2)

9. Writing Up

10. Presentations

Assessment

During the course students will be asked to do practical work for the planning of their research project. This will take the form of `homework' that maps on to the topics being studied. At the end of the course students will be asked to submit a 5000 word research proposal for assessment. This proposal should describe the questions to be posed, the approach to be used and the methodological issues raised in the research project (also using material from the Comparative Methodologies course). MA students wishing to apply for research student status may submit for assessment a proposal for the MPhil/PhD programme but should take advice from the tutors on this.

Reading List

Each session also contains key readings. Copies of these are available from your lecturers. Where relevant, further resources are provided via Christina Hughes' home page (go to and click to `academic' staff and then click `Christina Hughes', then Teaching: Research Process) and this will facilitate independent study. However, the social research literature is vast and you are encouraged to search and source texts that focus on your particular interests. Nevertheless, a key text for this course is Seale, C (Ed) (1998) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage. You might consider purchasing this.

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· When starting there are a number of general textbooks that have been written for students that focus on the processes of dissertation and thesis research. Whilst most of these are concerned with the PhD, the following are still well worth a browse if you are writing an MA dissertation.

Berry, R (1994) The Research Project: How to Write It, London, Routledge

Brause, R (2000) Writing Your Doctoral Dissertation: Invisible Rules for Success, London, Falmer Press

Cryer, P (1996) The Research Student's Guide to Success, Buckingham, Open University Press

Leonard, D (2001) A Woman's Guide to Doctoral Studies, Buckingham, Open University Press (not in Warwick library but on order)

Murray, R (2002) How to Write a Thesis, Buckingham, Open University Press

Phillips, E and Pugh, D (2000) How to Get a PhD, Buckingham, Open University Press

Potter, S (2002) (Ed) Doing Postgraduate Research, London, Sage/Open University (not in Warwick library but on order)

· In addition, you might find it useful to consult the following for research on the teaching and learning experiences of overseas students:

British Council (1999) Studying and Living in the United Kingdom: A Guide for International Students, Plymouth, British Council in association with Northcote House (revised edition)

Chen, H-C (1997) The Listening Problems of Overseas Taiwanese Postgraduate Students at Warwick University, Coventry, University of Warwick (dissertation - res DIS (closed) 375.429/CHE)

Kinnell, M (Ed) (1990) The Learning Experiences of Overseas Students, Buckingham, Open University Press

McNamara, D and Harris, R (1997) Overseas Students in Higher Education: Issues in teaching and learning, London, Routledge

Okorocha, E (1997) Supervising International Research Students, London, SRHE

Stagg, G (1993) Study Skills for International Students, Leicester, De Montfort University (nb no classmark attached - ask librarian for details)

Tseng, C C (1998) A Study of Overseas Postgraduate Taiwanese Students' Attitudes and Difficulties, Coventry, University of Warwick (dissertation - res DIS 1998 51)

·For those of you planning to undertake primarily empirical social research, the following offer excellent overviews:

Bauer, M and Gaskell, G (2000) Qualitative Researching with Text, Image and Sound, London, Sage

Bell, J (1999) Doing Your Research Project: A Guide for first-time researchers in education and social science, Buckingham, Open University Press (Third Edition)

Blaxter, L, Hughes, C and Tight, M (2001) How to Research, Buckingham, Open University Press (Second Edition)

Denscombe, M (1999) The Good Research Guide, Buckingham, Open University Press

Denscombe, M (2002) Ground Rules for Good Research, Buckingham, Open University Press

Mann, C and Stewart, F (2000) Internet Communication and Qualitative Research: A Handbook for Researching Online, London, Sage

Pole, C and Lampard, R (2002) Practical Social Investigation: Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Social Research, Harlow, Prentice Hall

Seale, C (1998) (Ed) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage

· For those of you focusing on textual analysis:

Burns, E and Burns, T (1973) (Eds) Sociology of Literature and Drama, Harmondsworth, Penguin

Coser, L (1963) (Ed) Sociology through Literature: An Introductory Reader, Englewood Cliffs, Prentice Hall

Eagleton, T (1983) Literary Theory, Oxford, Blackwell

Filmer, P (1998) Analysing Literary Texts, in C Seale (Ed) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage, pp 275-284

Hall, J (1979) The Sociology of Literature, London, Longman

Laurenson, D and Swingewood, A (1972) The Sociology of Literature, New York, Schocken

Milner, A (1996) Literature, Culture and Society, London, UCL Press

Thomas, J (2001) (Ed) Reading Images, Basingstoke, Palgrave

· Texts that focus on feminist methods:

Hughes, C (2002) Key Concepts in Feminist Theory and Research, London, Sage

Kitzinger, C and Wilkinson, S (1996) (Eds) Representing the Other, London, Sage

Lury, C and Summerfield, P (2000) (Eds) Feminism and Autobiography: texts, theories, methods, London, Routledge

Maynard, M and Purvis, J (1994) (Eds) Researching Women's Lives from a Feminist Perspective, London, Taylor and Francis

Oakley, A (2000) Experiments in Knowing: Gender and method in the social sciences, Cambridge, Polity Press

Ramanazoglu, C with Holland, J (2002) Feminist Methodology: Challenges and Choices, London, Sage

Reinharz, S with Davidman, L (1992) Feminist Methods in Social Research, Oxford, Oxford UP

Ribbens, J and Edwards, R (1998) (Eds) Feminist Dilemmas in Qualitative Research, London, Sage

Roberts, H (1980) (Ed) Doing Feminist Research, London, Routledge and Kegan Paul

Stanley, L (1990) Feminist Praxis, London, Sage

Vaz, K (1997) (ed) Oral Narrative Research with Black Women, Thousand Oaks (Calif), Sage

Winddance Twine, F and Warren, J (20000) (Eds) Racing Research and Researching Race, New York, New York UP

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

RESEARCH PROCESS (WS920)

SPRING TERM 2002-2003

ASSESSMENT

Assessed Research Proposal

Tutors: Christina Hughes, Cecily Jones and Srila Roy

The assessment for this module is a 5,000 word research proposal. This should be handed to the Postgraduate Secretary before 11.00 a.m. on Monday 28 April 2003.

Using the work you have done on the initial research design for your project, the bibliography and the literature review, write a 5,000 word research proposal. Give it a title, and introduce the project, giving relevant background information and explaining why this is a worthwhile and timely topic. Your review of the literature should examine the conceptual approaches that others have used to look at your topic, identifying the benefits as well as the criticisms of the way these other studies have approached the topic.

A discussion should emerge from this review of the literature in respect of how you see your research problem, a justification of the specific research question/s that you will be addressing, and the conceptual framework that you intend to analyse the problem. Specify what kind of research design you intend to use: eg a library project based on the analysis of different kinds of texts and documentary evidence, such as theoretical texts, literary and cultural texts, official and unofficial documents, statistical material; an archival project based on the search for and analysis of historical documentation; a fieldwork project based on the analysis of evidence you have observed or collected from the field; or some combination.

Describe and justify the research methods you will use to investigate the problem or question/s, specifying which particular sources of evidence you will use: eg which theoretical, literary or cultural texts, which historical records, what kind of fieldwork materials, oral history interviews, survey data or statistical records, etc; how and why you will select or collect the materials you have chosen; and how you will analyse them.

Discuss any methodological problems raised by the research, referring to issues discussed in the Comparative Methodology course. Include a bibliography at the end. Finally, propose a realistic timetable for the various stages involved in the research.

The proposal should therefore include the following sections, although they do not have to be labelled in this way:

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· Title

· Introduction

· Literature Review

· Research Problem and Question/s

· Conceptual Framework

· Research Design and Methods

· Methodological Issues

· Bibliography

· Timetable

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

RESEARCH PROCESS (WS920)

SPRING TERM 2002-2003

OVERVIEW

Tutors: Christina Hughes, Cecily Jones and Srila Roy

Week One: Introduction: Christina Hughes

What is the nature of research? What are the processes and procedures through which feminist knowledge is generated? This first session introduces students to a number of models of research and builds on the distinction between method and methodology. The term Method can be understood to relate principally to the tools of data collection or techniques such as questionnaires and interviews. Methodology has a more philosophical meaning and usually refers to the approach or paradigm that underpins the research. This would include, for example, positivism, post-positivism, critical, postmodern and so forth.

Key Reading

Students should follow this session by reading:

Hughes, C (1997) Mystifying through coalescence: the underlying politics of methodological choices, in K Watson (Ed) Educational Dilemmas: Debate and Diversity, London, Cassell, pp 413-420

Brunskell, H (1998) Feminist Methodology, in C Seale (Ed) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage

Resource Package

This session is supported by a web based package: Introduction: What is Research?

Week Two: Research Design: Christina Hughes

Research design is the basic plan for a piece of research. This plan includes four main ideas. These are:

· The strategy - how will I proceed from initial identification of research questions through to collecting data and evidence and writing up?

· Conceptual framework - what kinds of theories or assumptions am I bringing to my analysis?

· Who or what will be studied?

· Which tools and procedures will I use to undertake my research?

Whilst research design represents the first stage of a project it involves thinking through the whole process of research from beginning to end. For this reason, a key aspect of research design is that of evaluation as you will want to know how adequate the research you intend to undertake is. Most textbooks on issues of evaluation and design focus primarily on the more positivist approaches in these areas. You should note, nonetheless, that a critical understanding of evaluation and design cannot be developed without recognising the assumptions that are brought to bear about the nature of social reality and the purposes of research.

Key Reading

Kelly, M (1998) Writing a Research Proposal, in C Seale (Ed) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage

Resource Package

This session is supported by a web based package: Research Design

Week Three: Library and Textual Approaches (1): Christina Hughes

The ability to carry out a competent literature review is an important skill for the researcher. It helps to place your work in the context of what has already been done, allowing comparisons to be made and providing a framework for further research. Spending some time reading the literature relevant to your research topic may prevent you from repeating previous errors or redoing work that has already been done, as well as giving you insights into aspects of your topic which might be worthy of detailed exploration. Putting together a literature, however, not only involves compiling a list of key texts. It also involves critical reading, critical thinking and critical assessment. These refer to a considered and justified examination of what others have written or said regarding the subject in question. An important skill at the heart of these processes is the ability to recognise, analyse and evaluate the reasoning and forms of argumentation in the texts and articles that you will read. This skill is called critical reasoning. Developing a systematic approach to the analysis of the arguments of others is an essential research skill.

Key Reading

Bond, M, Hughes, C and Owen, K (1996) In the field, in the library: methodological analogies for library-based researchers, Teaching in Higher Education, 1, 3, pp 373-383

Hart, C (1998) Doing a Literature Review, London, Sage, Chapter One

Thomson, A (1996) Critical Reasoning: A Practical Introduction, London, Routledge, Chapter One

Resource Package

This session is supported by a web based package: Literature Reviews

Week Four: Library and Textual Approaches (2): Christina Hughes

Interpretive textual analyses include semiotics, rhetorical analysis, ideological analysis and psychoanalytic approaches among many others. These forms of analysis seek to get beneath the surface meanings and examine more social meanings. Using Filmer (1998) as a key source this session focuses on the analysis of literary texts in two ways. First, it will examine how research can illuminate the social context within with texts are produced. Second, it will show how researchers can analyse the structures of relations within the text.

Key Reading

Filmer, P (1998) Analysing Literary Texts, in C Seale (Ed) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage, pp 275-284

Morrison, T ( ) Recatatif, in M Golden and S Shreve (Eds) Skin Deep: Black Women and White Women Write about Race, New York, Anchor Books

Further Sources

For internet sources try Daniel Chandler's mass media site

Week Five: Fieldwork Approaches (1): Christina Hughes

There is a strange mythology in the research methods literature. This is that feminists don't do statistical research. This session has two inter-related aims. The primary aim is to develop students' literacy in the use and reading of research that uses quantitative data. The second is to enhance students' confidence in their understandings of such approaches. To achieve these aims the session will introduce students to a number of basic statistical techniques that are used in social research. In addition the session will explore some common concepts that underpin quantitative social research.

Key Reading

Pugh, A(1990) My statistics and feminism - a true story, in L Stanley (Ed) Feminist Praxis, London, Routledge

Slater, D (1998) Using Official Statistics, in C Seale (Ed) Researching Society and Culture, London, Sage

Stanley, L (1990) A Referral was Made, in L Stanley (Ed) Feminist Praxis, London, Routledge

Resource Package

This session is supported by a web based package: Developing Literacy in Quantitative Methods. Those students who are planning to combine qualitative with quantitative methods might also want to consult the package Qualitative-Quantitative Research.

Week Six: Fieldwork Approaches (2): Christina Hughes

This session introduces students to qualitative approaches to research. Qualitative research is concerned with the study of people in their natural settings. Qualitative researchers use a variety of tools and techniques in order to develop deep understandings of how people perceive their social realities and in consequence, how they act within the social world. They seek to make connections between events, perceptions and actions so that their analyses are holistic and contextual. Beyond these broad assumptions, qualitative researchers are very careful to stress the multiplicity and variety of qualitative approaches.

Key Reading

Hughes, C (1992) A stranger in the house: researching the stepfamily, in R Burgess (Ed) Studies in Qualitative Methodology: Learning from Fieldwork, London, JAI Press, pp 33-62