Course Objectives:

The seminar will introduce students to qualitative methods, which are those research techniques concerned broadly with non-mathematical, naturally occurring and non-experimental research practices that look to uncover the meanings and significance of the wide variety of evidence that social researchers collect. Qualitative research includes a broad range of approaches and research techniques. The purpose of the course is to introduce students to a number of the most commonly used approaches and techniques.

Upon completing the course students will acquire a basic overview of qualitative methods, how to utilise these methods, the advantages and disadvantages of each approach. Students will understand the relevance of methodology for academic writing and the relationship between methodology and theory. Students will conclude the course by putting their knowledge to action, in the creation of their research project.

Assessments:

Grading: excellent (A) 100-90%, very good (B) 89-80%, good (C) 79-70%, satisfactory (D) 69-60%, (E) 59-50%, unsatisfactory (F) < 50%

Type of Assessment	Description	Percentage of Final Grade
active participation in seminars	-students are expected to attend each seminar[1] -during the seminar students should actively input thoughts from personal reflections and reading material	20%
short presentation	-the topics are provided -the presentations will be done in groups of two -presentations should be between 10-15 minutes in length –students should present the assigned reading and clearly explain why it is a good example of the research method used	15%
topic for research project	Due November 15^th -please send a single e-mail briefly outlining your topic and stating your research question to both of the course instructors	0%
preliminary literature review	-the review should be between 1000-1500 words -it should not only be a summary, but it should also include critical analysis -the review is due: November 29^th	15%
presentation of your research project	-the project involves 2 parts: 1 - the presentation of your project (10-12 minutes of presentation, followed by 5 minutes of questions) Sign up for: December 6^th/13^th/20^th ^{______________________________________________________________________________} 2 - a written research project (approximately 1500-words) due on January 4^th -The research project should follow the ‘Thesis Proposal’ outline provided -this is an opportunity to ‘try-out’ your first ideas for your MA thesis and receive constructive feedback	25% for the presentation of the research project 25% for the written research project

Course Programme:

Session	Date	Topic	Presentations	Required Readings
1	October 4^th, 2018	Course Introduction	none	none
2	October 11^th, 2018	Electronic Databases	none	none
3	October 18^th, 2018	Nature of social research and conducting a literature review	Haldén (focus on the literature review)	Bryman (Chapters 1 and 5) Haldén, P. (2011) The past, present and future(s) of environmental security studies. Cooperation and Conflict 46(3): 406-414.
4	October 25^th, 2018	Research Problem and Design	Eidlin (focus on the research problem and design)	Bryman (Chapters 3 and 4) Eidlin, F. (2011) The Method of Problems versus the Method of Topics. PS: Political Science and Politics 44(4): 758-761.
5	November 1^st, 2018	Concepts and Variables	Brubaker and Cooper (focus on the concepts and variables)	Bryman (Chapters 7 and 17) Brubaker, R. and Cooper, F. (2000) Beyond “identity”. Theory and Society 29: 1-4
6	November 8^th, 2018	Case Studies	Lewis (focus on the case study)	Selections from: Blatter, J., & Haverland, M. (2012). Designing case studies: Explanatory approaches in small-N research. Palgrave Macmillan. Lewis, J (2005) The Janus Face of Brussels: Socialization and Everyday Decision Making in the European Union. International Organization 59: 937-978.
7	November 15^th, 2018	Content analysis Discourse analysis *topic due	Graham et al. (focus on discourse analysis)	Bryman (Chapter 22) Graham, P. et al. (2004) A Call to Arms at the End of History: A Discourse–Historical Analysis of George W. Bush’s Declaration of War on Terror. Discourse & Society 15 (2-3): 199-211.
8	November 22^nd, 2018	Elite Interviews and Focus Groups	Saldaña (focus on coding interviews)	Bryman (Chapter 20 and 21) Saldaña 2013 pp. 1-40
9	November 29^th, 2018	Ethnography *preliminary literature review due	Densely (covert ethnography)	Bryman (Chapter 19) Densley (2012) Street Gang Recruitment: Signaling, Screening, and Selection." Social Problems 59, no. 3 301-21.
10	December 6^th, 2018	Student Presentations	n/a	none
11	December 13^th, 2018	Student Presentations	n/a	none