Learning objectives
By the end of the course, students are able to navigate the paradigms of social research, know the logic and tools of the main qualitative research techniques, as well as the creative techniques of participatory research and design. They are also able to apply the methodological knowledge learned to the field of social work and outline a research project.
Prerequisites
- - -
Course unit content
The course will be structured in three parts. The first part will be devoted to the analysis of social research paradigms, the role of the researcher in the cognitive and transformative process of social realities, and reflective posture. The second will be devoted to the study of the main techniques of qualitative research by combining both 'classical' research techniques and facilities and creative and participatory methods. The third and final part will be devoted to the practical implementation of a collaborative multi-method social research under the professor's supervision.
Full programme
- The first part of the course will cover the paradigms of social research (positivism and interpretivism), the differences between quantitative and qualitative research, and the different types of qualitative social research with a focus on action research and participatory research.
- The second part will focus on research design, different qualitative research tools for data collection (both 'traditional' and creative), and approaches and techniques for their analysis and restitution.
- The third and final part will have a laboratory and operational focus and will engage the and the attending students in conducting social research on the perception of safety and the right to the city of women and gender minorities in the city of Parma under the supervision of the lecturer.
Bibliography
For attending students, the study bibliography will consist of handouts, scholarly articles as well as the slides used in class provided by the lecturer and uploaded to Elly during the course,
For non-attending students, the texts to be studied are:
David Silverman (2011) Handbook of Qualitative Social Research, Rome, Carocci (CHAPTERS 1, 2, 3 and 4)
Alberta Giorgi, Micol Pizzolati, Elena Vacchelli (2021) Creative Methods for Social Research. Context, practices and tools, Bologna, Il Mulino (CHAPTERS 1, 4, 5 and 6)
Also for non-attending students, the slides used during the face-to-face lectures, which will be periodically uploaded by the lecturer on the Elly platform, are an integral part of the teaching material.
Teaching methods
The course will combine face-to-face lectures aimed at dialogically exploring the concepts and vocabulary of social research, seminars with researchers and service workers to learn about social research that has been carried out, workshop classes aimed at 'testing' the resources and limitations of the various available data collection techniques, and hands-on experimentation to learn how to actually use these techniques in social research.
Assessment methods and criteria
For attending students who will have actively participated in the implementation of the collaborative research, the profit examination will be as follows:
- writing of a methodological paper outcome of the research course;
- oral test of discussion of the paper.
The grade will be composed 50% by the evaluation of the paper and 50% by the outcome of the oral test.
For non-attending students, the profit exam will be an interview covering all the texts indicated in the bibliography plus the professor's slides.
Other information
In this academic year, the course will involve conducting real social research as part of a project funded by the University CUG.
2030 agenda goals for sustainable development
Quality Education
