Qualitative Research Methodology
POS 6707
Professor Anderson							Tuesday Periods 5-7											11:45-2:45

This is a course about how to use qualitative methods to collect different kinds of data.  It is useful for graduate students who think they may use qualitative methods in their own research.  The emphasis is upon doing research rather than reading about it.  The requirements are several.  In addition to doing the reading required for the course, students do a research project using one of these methods.  Additionally, you have a special assignment for the first class (see below).  At the end of the semester I have scheduled time for research presentations.  How much time we need will depend on how many students take this class.  We will talk about this scheduling when we are all together.  

Assignments

1) do all the reading by the date listed for each book or article
2) create, carry out, present, and write up an individual research project using any method on this syllabus.  The written part of this assignment should be 25 pages long
3) always attend class.  Acceptable excuses = illness or a professional conference.  

For a website on qualitative methods and small N research see: http://smalln.spri.ucl.ac.be/ 

books

These are books on specific qualitative methods (N=8)
1) Catherine Lutz and Lili Abu-Lughod, Language and the Politics of Emotion, Cambridge, 1990
2) Jane A. Edwards and Martin D. Lampert, Talking Data:  Transcription and Coding in Discourse Research 
3) David W. Stewart and Prem N. Shamdasani, Focus Groups:  Theory and Practice, Applied Social Research Methods Series, Vol 20, Newbury Park, CA, Sage, 1990
4) David L. Morgan, Focus Groups as Qualitative Research, Qualitative Research Methods Series 16, Newbury Park, CA, Sage, 1988
5) Richard A. Krueger, Focus Groups:  A Practical Guide for Applied Research, Newbury Park, CA, Sage, 1988 
6) Herbert J. Rubin and Irene S. Rubin, Qualitative Interviewing - The Art of Hearing Data, Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage, 1995
7) Uwe Flick, An Introduction to Qualitative Research
8) Grant McCracken, The Long Interview, Qualitative Research Methods Series 13, Newbury Park, CA, Sage, 1988

These are books that exemplify the use of these same qualitative methods (N=7)

9) Victor Klemperer, The Language of the Third Reich:  LTI:  Lingua Tertii Imperii: A Philologists Notebook, Althone Press, London, New Brunswick, NJ, 2000 (originally in French,LTI: La Langue du IIIe Reich: Carnets d’un Philologue, also available in German, LTI - Notizbuch Eines Philologen, Reclam Verlag, Leipzig, 1975)  This book exemplifies participant observation and discourse analysis.
10) Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing, In the Realm of the Diamond Queen:  Marginality in an Out of The Way Place, Princeton, 1993.  This book exemplifies participant observation.
11) James Scott, Domination and the Arts of Resistance:  Hidden Transcripts, Yale, 1990.  This book exemplifies participant observation and discourse analysis.
12) Press, Andrea L. and Elizabeth R. Cole, Speaking of Abortion:  Television and Authority in the Lives of Women. Chicago, 1999.  This book exemplifies focus groups.
13) E. Digby Baltzell, Puritan Boston and Quaker Philadelphia:  Two Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Class Authority and Leadership, Transaction Press, New Brunswick, 1996.  This book exemplifies archival research.
14) Nancy Scheper Hughes, Death Without Weeping.  This book exemplifies participant observation.
15) Kristen Renwick Monroe, The Hand of Compassion.  This book exemplifies in depth interviews.

The assigned books are a combination of methods books and books on a research issue that also exemplify a particular qualitative method.  The methods books are quite costly.  A list of prices for the methods books is below.  The substantive books can be had inexpensively on Amazon.  All of these books will be available on reserve.  

Date			Topic and Reading				

January 7		receive syllabus		no reading

January 14-21		Participant Observation	

Anna Tsing, In the Realm of the Diamond Queen

Special assignment:  Answer this question and bring your answer to class and share it:  What would a political scientist have done with these data, this method?  

January 28-February 4  Focus Groups

1) David W. Steward and Prem N. Shamdasani, Focus Groups:  Theory and Practice
2) David L. Morgan, Focus Groups as Qualitative Research, Qualitative Research Methods
3) Richard A. Krueger, Focus Groups:  A Practical Guide for Applied Research 
4) Andrea Press and Elizabeth Cole, Speaking of Abortion

February 11-18	Discourse Analysis		

1) Franell and Graham “Discourse Centered Methods” Chap 1 in Russell Bernard, editor, Handbook of Methods in Cultural Anthropology
2) Abu-Lughod and Lutz, “Introduction:  Emotion, Discourse and the Politics of Everyday Life,” Chap 1 in Lutz and Abu-Lughod, Language and the Politics of Emotion
3) Edwards, “Principles and Contrasting Systems of Discourse Transcription,” in Edwards and Lampert, Talking Data:  Transcription and Coding in Discourse Research
4) Du Bois and Schuetze-Coburn, “Outline of Discourse Transcription,” in Talking Data:  Transcription and Coding in Discourse Research	
5) James C. Scott, Domination and the Arts of Resistance:  Hidden Transcripts

February 25		Discourse Analysis continued				

1) White, “Moral Discourse and the Rhetoric of Emotions,” Chapter 3 in in Lutz and Abu-Lughod, Language and the Politics of Emotion
2) Lutz, “Engendered Emotion:  Gender, Power and the Rhetoric of Emotional Control in American Discourse,” Chap 4 in Lutz and Abu-Lughod, Language and the Politics of Emotion
3) Lampert and Ervin-Tripp, “Structured Coding for the Study of Language and Social Interaction,” in Talking Data:  Transcription and Coding in Discourse Research
4) Victor Kelmperer,  The Language of the Third Reich  
5) Nancy Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping

March 3		Spring Break

March 10		Begin In-depth Interviewing

1) Herbert J. Rubin and Irene S. Rubin, Qualitative Interviewing - The Art of Hearing Data, Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage, 1995

March 17-24		Continue Qualitative Interviewing

1) Uwe Flick, An Introduction to Qualitative Research
2) Grant McCracken, The Long Interview, Qualitative Research Methods Series 13, Newbury Park, CA, Sage, 1988
3) Kristen Renwick Monroe, The Hand of Compassion

March 31- April 7	Researching Culture

1) Digby Baltzell, Puritan Boston and Quaker Philadelphia
2) John F. Padgett and Christopher K. Ansell, “Robust Action and the Rise of the Medici, 1400-1434,” American Journal of Sociology, Vol 98, # 6, May 1993, p 1259-131

April 14-21	research presentations

April 28	research paper due