* Dr. Kuhn - Qualitative Research Methods

Syllabus

57.592/19.505 Qualitative Research Methods

Spring, 2003
Revised 3/25/2003
Department of Regional Economic and Social Development
College of Arts and Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell

Instructor Information:

Professor Sarah Kuhn Office hours:
O'Leary Library 500J, South Campus Thursdays 11-2 and by appointment.
Office telephone: (508) 934-2903
Electronic mail: Sarah_Kuhn@UML.EDU

Course Information: This course is a graduate level survey of qualitative research methods in the social sciences. We will be using reading, discussion, and in-class exercises to introduce you to the theory and practice of qualitative research. We will also spend time discussing such overarching issues as defining a research problem and selecting a research method

Thursdays 2-4:50 PM, O'Leary Library 500, South Campus
Three credits.

Course Requirements:

  • Weekly reading assignments
  • Weekly written "reflection"
  • Weekly class attendance and participation
  • Research design paper
  • Presentation of research design to class
How to reach me:
I welcome questions and comments from students. My office address, office hours, and telephone number are printed at the top of the first page of the syllabus. If you use electronic mail, that is also a good way to contact me, although you may not get an immediate reply. If you have an urgent question you may call me at home between 8 AM and 9 PM at (508) 879-7721. I am not on campus every day, and messages left for me on my office voice mail or in my mailbox won't reach me until the next time I am on campus. I urge you to email or call, use my office hours, make a special appointment with me, or speak to me after class-I want to be sure your questions are addressed, and the feedback I get from student questions and discussions helps me to plan the course.

Content Outline:
Course Calendar and Instructional Activities:
Please consider this schedule tentative. We may rearrange or add things if it improves the course to do so. I will always give you as much notice as possible about any changes, and you are likely to participate in decisions to change the course.

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WEEK 1 (JAN 23) Introduction
WEEK 2 (JAN 30) Qualitative Research-an overview

Reading:
1. E. Guba and Y. Lincoln, 'Competing Paradigms in Qualitative Research' in N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln (eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research, Sage, 1994. Chapter 6.

2. J. Maxwell, Qualitative Research Design: An Interactive Approach, Sage Applied Social Research methods Series vol. 41, 1996, Chapter 3 'Conceptual Context: What Do You Think Is Going On?'

3. F. Machlup, 'Are the Social Sciences Really Inferior?' in M. Martin and L. McIntyre, Readings in the Philosophy of Social Science. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. 1994.

WEEK 3 (FEB 6) Research Questions and Hypotheses

Reading:
1. J. Maxwell, Qualitative Research Design: An Interactive Approach, Sage Applied Social Research methods Series vol. 41, 1996, Chapter 4 'Research Questions: What Do You Want to Understand?'

2. Ray Rist 'Influencing the Policy Process with Qualitative Research.' In N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln (eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research, Sage, 1994. Chapter 34.

3. I. Seidman. Interviewing as Qualitative Research, Teachers College Press, 1998. Second Edition. Chapter 3: 'Proposing Research: From Mind to Paper to Action.'

WEEK 4 (FEB 13) Research Ethics, Confidentiality and Protection of Human Subjects

1. Pranee Liamputtong Rice and Douglas Ezzy, Qualitative Research Methods: A Health Focus, Chpt. 3. "Rigour, Ethics, and Sampling."

2. I. Seidman, "Affirming Informed Consent," Chapter 5 of Seidman, Interviewing as Qualitative Research, Teachers College Press, 1998. Second Edition.

3. Institutional Review Board, University of Massachusetts Lowell. Manual of Instrutions and Procedures for Research Projects Involving Human Subjects. (Skim) http://irb.uml.edu/

4. Office of Human Research Protections, US Department of Health and Human Services http://ohrp.osophs.dhhs.gov/index.htm

WEEK 5: NO CLASS FEBRUARY 20 - MONDAY CLASS SCHEDULE

WEEK 6 (FEB 27) Case Studies Due:

Research Design Paper, Phase 1

Reading:
1. R. Yin Case Study Research. Sage Publications, Chapter 1. (Chapter 2 supplied as an optional reading)

2. N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln (eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research, S/age, 1994. Chapter 14, Robert Stake, 'Case Studies'

WEEK 7 (MARCH 6) Interviews (and a touch of survey design)

Reading:
1. I. Seidman, Interviewing as Qualitative Research, Teachers College Press, 1998. Chapter 1 'Why Interview,' Chapter 2 'A Structure for In-Depth, Phenomenological Interviewing, and Chapter 6 'Technique Isn't Everything, But It Is a Lot.'

2. Survey Design Considerations http://www.websurveyor.com/pdf/designtips.pdf

Optional extras on survey design:
http://www.statpac.com/surveys/
http://www.surveysystem.com/sdesign.htm

WEEK 8 (MARCH 13) Observation, Participant Observation, and Ethnography

Reading:
M. Hammersley and P. Atkinson, Ethnography, Routledge 1993. Chapter 1, 'What Is Ethnography?' and Chapter 2, 'Research Design'

S. Traweek, Beamtimes and Lifetimes: The World of High Energy Physics. "Prologue: An Anthropologist Studies Physicists." Harvard University Press, 1988.

WEEK 9 NO CLASS MARCH 20-SPRING BREAK

WEEK 10 (MARCH 27) Action Research, Participatory Action Research, and Search Conferences

Due:
Research Design Paper, Phase 2

Reading:
1. William Foote Whyte, ed. Participatory Action Research. Sage Publications, Newbury Park, CA. 1991.

2. Brown, L. D., Tandon R (1983). "Ideology and political economy in inquiry: Action research and participatory research." Journal Applied Behavioural Science 19(3): 277-294.

3. Chisholm, R. F., Elden M (1993). "Features of Emerging Action Research." Human Relations 46(2): 275-298.

WEEK 11 (APRIL 3) Participatory Design

Reading:
1. Pelle Ehn "Scandinavian Design: On Participation and Skill" In Paul S. Adler and Terry A. Winograd, eds. Usability: Turning Technologies into Tools. Oxford University Press, New York. 1992.

2. Michael Muller, Jean Hallewell Haslwanter, and Tom Dayton, "Participatory Practices in the Software Lifecycle," 1998. Handbook of Human Computer Interaction.

WEEK 12 (APRIL 10) Program Evaluation

Reading:
1. C. Fitz-Gibbon and L. Morris, How to Design a Program Evaluation, Sage Publications Inc. 1978. Chapter 1, "An Introduction to Evaluation Design" and Chapter 2, "The Elements of Design."

2. Recommended (skim): J. Greene, "Understanding Social Programs Through Evaluation." In N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln, eds. Handbook of Qualitative Research, Sage Publications Inc., 2000. Second Edition.

WEEK 13 (APRIL 17) Focus Groups and Visual Methods

Reading:
1. D. Morgan, , Focus Groups as Qualitative Research, , Sage Publications, 1988. Sections 1-5. READ Sections 1 and 2, SKIM the rest.

2. D. Harper, "Reimagining Visual Methods" in N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln, eds. , Handbook of Qualitative Research, , Sage Publications Inc., 2000. Second Edition.

3. M. Ball and G. Smith, , Analyzing Visual Data, , Sage Publications Inc. 1992. Section 2, "Analyzing the Content of Visual Representations."

4. Recommended (skim): E. Madriz, "Focus Groups in Feminist Research," in N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln, eds. , Handbook of Qualitative Research, , Sage Publications Inc., 2000. Second Edition.

WEEK 14 (APRIL 24) Data and Content Analysis, Organizing and Processing data

Reading:
1. G. Ryan and H. Bernard, "Data Management and Analysis Methods," N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln, eds. Handbook of Qualitative Research, Sage Publications Inc., 2000. Second Edition.

2. E. Weitzman, "Software and Qualitative Research," in N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln, eds. Handbook of Qualitative Research, Sage Publications Inc., 2000. Second Edition.

3. Recommended (skim): P. Manning and B. Cullum-Swan, 'Narrative, Content, and Semiotic Analysis,' in N. Denzin and Y. Lincoln (eds.), Handbook of Qualitative Research, Sage, 1994.

WEEK 15 (MAY 1) Student Presentations OR open class, topic to be jointly decided

WEEK 16 (MAY 8) Student Presentations Due: Final Research Design Paper

Grading Procedures and Policies:

Grades will be calculated according to the following formula:

25% Weekly written "reflection"

15% Weekly class participation

Research design paper:

10% Phase 1
10% Phase 2
30% Final Paper

10% Presentation of research design to class

You Can Also Participate By:

  • Bringing to class examples of good research in your field
  • Bringing to class examples of research you would like to discuss or question from a qualitative methods point of view
  • Bringing to class your questions and experiences from your work/student life


    Written Work:
    When you turn in written work, I will do everything in my power to return your work with grades and comments within one week. If you ever want more detailed comments on your work, I always welcome the chance to give them. In most situations I also allow students to rewrite work. While I cannot guarantee that rewriting will improve your grade, students who have in the past done a careful job of rewriting based on feedback from me have found that their grades improved. If you rewrite you may have to wait more than a week for me to grade your work, since I carefully plan my semester to give priority to scheduled assignments.

    I expect that all work you submit is yours and yours alone, except where an assignment explicitly states that collaboration is expected. I encourage students to study together, but not to write together (again, except where assignments call for group work). Using the words of others, or drawing extensively on their ideas, without clearly stating that they are not your work (by using quotation marks, and references to the cited work) is plagiarism, a very serious academic offense.

    I assume that all students have a good command of written and spoken English, and I cannot give good grades to poorly written work. I am happy to work with you on your writing, including allowing you to rewrite papers under some circumstances, but I am not a trained writing teacher. Please speak to me about help that might be available if you need assistance with writing.

    • Weekly Written Reflection
    57.592 Qualitative Research Methods

    Every week I will ask you to write a SHORT email reacting to the readings. Your email can consist of a short paragraph for each reading, giving your reaction to that reading, or a longer comment on the overall topic for the upcoming class. I am NOT asking you to summarize or write an abstract of the readings. Instead, I want your reflections on what you have read. Was the article comprehensible, helpful, wrongheaded? What especially surprised or pleased or angered you in what you read? Does the article cause you to re-think your approach in some way? Does the article make you want to stay as far as possible from this topic or method; if so, why? The comments I am looking for are your personal reflections, grounded in your experience and in the content of the article. Thoughtful criticism is welcome, and often more useful than praise.

    Timetable:
    Your comments are due
    24 hours before the start of each class meeting for which reading is assigned.

    Where to send your comments: Please email your comments to the class listserver, so that we can all read each other's comments. I will be emailing you with the address of the class listserver once it is established.

    Grading: I will grade your comments each week using the following system:

    • 0- No comment submitted
    • 1- Comment submitted, but showed inadequate reflection/understanding
    • 2-- Comment was of expected quality
    • 3-Comment exceeded expectations

    Unless you tell me to do otherwise, I will reply to your email with your grade for that weekly reflection. Don't worry-I'll reply only to you!

    Late comments are welcome but will receive a lower grade since they will not be useful in informing our class discussion.