Programme/Approved Electives for 2020/21
None
Available as a Free Standing Elective
No
This module aims to introduce you to both the principles of developing research strategies and to the strengths and weaknesses of different data collection methods used within sociology and criminology. The lectures will be concerned with examining the criteria that can be used to judge the advantages of different research approaches, as well as introducing you to the assumptions that underpin different modes of data collection. There will also be a focus on the ethics of social research.The workshops will help develop further the understanding gained through the lectures. They will be more practically focused. Workshops will entail you demonstrating skills in the use of bibliographic data bases, evaluating existing research and exploring alternative methodologies for collecting relevant data within the constraints of specified research resources.The module will consist of lectures and workshops. The workshops will based and concerned with applying the concerns of the lectures to specific research problems, the discussion of specific methodological issues or the development of research skills.
Aims
To enable students to:appreciate the range of different research methods used in sociology and assess their strengths and weaknessesknow how to formulate a research question, building on existing sociological literature and researchunderstand criteria for evaluating the adequacy of different data for sociological explanationunderstand the construction of research strategies and be able to identify the different elements of the processappreciate ethical guidelines in the conduct of research
Talis Aspire Reading ListAny reading lists will be provided by the start of the course.http://lists.lib.keele.ac.uk/modules/soc-20046/lists
Intended Learning Outcomes
analyse the strengths and weaknesses of different data collection procedures in sociology for different research problems: 1create critical methodological reviews of published research: 1review major ethical dilemmas of social research and have knowledge of relevant professional codes of ethics: 1explain the relationship between empirical data and theory production and testing within sociology: 1evaluate the research strategies used by sociologists: 1
12 lecture contact hours 12 workshop contact hours72 hours tutorial preparation54 hours assessment preparation150 hours
Students taking this module are barred from also taking CRI-20020
Description of Module Assessment
1: Essay weighted 100%A 2500 word research proposalIn this assignment you will be required to design a research project, based around a given research problem, alternatively you may negotiate a topic with the module tutor. Students will define a research question, outline and evaluate a research method, and consider the ethical implications of their proposed project.
You will draw on information provided in the lectures, discussions from the seminars, and your wider reading and literature searches.