2014-2015 Academic Catalog

Nov 15, 2024

2014-2015 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

IDCE 305 - Qualitative Research Methods, Skills and Applications

Examines the purpose, scope and procedures of qualitative research, especially as applied to human geography. Emphasis is on epistemologies underlying various approaches to qualitative research. Readings will draw on a variety of work in the social sciences, especially anthropology, geography, sociology and women’s studies. We examine a range of qualitative methods, including interviews, participant and nonparticipant observation, ethnography, action research and discourse analysis. Through case-study readings, we examine how scholars employ these methods in different research contexts, with particular attention to the ethical and practical considerations of doing so. The course will engage theoretical debates relevant to qualitative research by addressing questions such as: How does qualitative research challenge the practice of social “science” and the search for “universal truths”? How do we represent the world or multiple understandings and perspectives of it? What are the implications of using qualitative data for the researcher, the research product and the “researched”? How do we interpret qualitative data and present it to scholarly audiences?