SOCIOL 3O03: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS Winter, 2012

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1 SOCIOL 3O03: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS Winter, 2012 Thursday 15:30-17:20 and Tuesday 16:30-17:20 in BSB/106 Professor: Dr. Melanie Heath Office hours: Th 2:00pm-3:00pm Office: KTH 638 (or by appointment) Office phone: ext Course Description Qualitative research has an extensive and prominent history in the social sciences. From the research of the Chicago school in the 1920s and 1930s to the more recent critical ethnography, qualitative research methods provide essential tools to study the social world. This course will cover the basics of collecting, interpreting, and analyzing qualitative data, paying particular attention to in-depth interviewing and observational/ethnographic approaches. We will analyze some intriguing examples of qualitative research to think critically about sociological questions of gender and racial inequality, poverty, youth culture, gay and lesbian identity, transformations in family life, the ex-gay movement, and others. In class, we will learn how to design, conduct, and write up qualitative research, including issues such as entering the field, ethical issues in qualitative research, dilemmas of reflexivity and voice, approaches to the analysis of qualitative evidence, oral and written presentation of, and evaluation and dissemination of qualitative research. A Note Generally speaking, students might find the expectations for this course to be more demanding than for other 3 unit courses. This is because this class requires original research. Required Readings The following required textbook is available at Titles Bookstore. You can rent this textbook online for $36.99 instead of buying it. See CourseSmart at: Bruce L. Berg and Howard Lune Qualitative Research Methods for the Social Sciences. Pearson. All other course readings are connected to links on A2L (under Resources). Method of Evaluation Assignments must be turned in at the beginning of class on the day they are due. All pages should be numbered and have one-inch margins on all sides. All text should be double-spaced in Times New Roman 12-point font. Failure to adhere to these guidelines will be reflected in the mark for the assignment. 1

2 Grading Out-of-Class Assignments 40% Assignment 1: Statement of Research Problem (10%) Due Assignment 2: Participant Observation (15%) Due Assignment 3: Interviews (15%) Due Quizzes and Attendance 20% Final Paper (Due at 3:30pm) 40% Quizzes and Class Attendance To participate effectively, students must complete the weekly reading assignments at the beginning of the week. Attendance is mandatory. Random quizzes (requiring short answer responses) will be given at the beginning of class to mark attendance and comprehension of assigned readings. The out-of-class assignments and final paper build on in-class exercises, so missing class will mean the inability to complete and do well on the assignments. Instructions for out-of-class assignments and final paper will be handed out in class. Class Research Projects Class assignments and the final paper require conducting qualitative research on human subjects. As we will discuss in full during class, conducting ethical research is of utmost importance. Any research subject must give their informed consent, indicated by their signature on a consent form (which will be distributed in class). No deception in our class research projects will be permitted. Interview questions must not include topics that are invasive, that would embarrass the person being interviewed, or that regard criminal behavior. No one may be pressured or coerced into participating. Further information on McMaster University's policy on ethics in sociology research can be found at For our qualitative research project, each student is required to complete a minimum of 24 hours conducting participant observation and doing at least three in-depth interviews either for a research topic on the McMaster campus or for an academic placement in the community (e.g. working with and/or assisting agencies who provide services to youth at-risk, immigrant and refugee communities, people who are homeless or living in poverty, etc.). For students who choose to do a placement, each must complete a Work/Education Placement Agreement Form. You must ensure that signatures from the three following parties are on the form: (1) you/the student, (2) your supervisor/a representative from the placement host organization, and (3) your instructor. This form must be completed before beginning your placement. Students must designate their placement by January 26, 2012 or they will need to find an alternative project on campus. Other Requirements and Expectations Classroom Etiquette: Please act respectfully and courteously toward all members of the class. This means not reading newspapers during class, not using cell phones (cell phones and pagers should be turned off during class meetings), not engaging in conversations with your classmates unless told to do so, not sleeping, and so forth. The instructor reserves the option of deducting points from your grade for persistent disrespectful behavior. 2

3 Computer use in the classroom is intended to facilitate learning in that particular lecture or tutorial. At the discretion of the instructor, students using a computer for any other purpose may be required to turn the computer off for the remainder of the lecture or tutorial. Late Assignments: The McMaster Student Absence Form ( is a self reporting tool for Undergraduate Students to report absences that last up to 5 days and provides the ability to request accommodation for any missed academic work. Please note, this tool cannot be used during any final examination period. You may submit a maximum of 1 Academic Work Missed request per term. It is YOUR responsibility to follow up with your instructor immediately regarding the nature of the accommodation. If you are absent more than 5 days, exceed 1 request per term, or are absent for a reason other than medical, you MUST visit your Associate Dean s Office (Faculty Office). You may be required to provide supporting documentation. This form should be filled out when you are about to return to class after your absence. In the absence of a vetted excuse, late assignments will be marked down 5 percentage points for each day late. Accommodations I am committed to making appropriate accommodations for students' observance of religious holidays. Please contact me as early in the term as possible to make individual arrangements. I am also committed to working with students with disabilities to make individualized accommodations according to your specific needs. All such arrangements must be made through the Centre for Student Development. Please drop by Professor Heath's office hours at the beginning of the term to make individual arrangements and to complete the necessary paperwork. All details regarding accommodation arrangements will be kept strictly confidential. Review of Marks We will be diligent in marking all assignments fairly and accurately. Nonetheless, occasionally students disagree with the marks they receive. When this occurs, we will be happy to review the mark of any assignment or exam, if the procedure outlined below is followed. Please note that when a mark is reviewed, the new mark may be lower than the original. To request a review of a mark, write a 1-page memo (on paper, not ) describing in detail the nature of the perceived marking error. Submit this memo, with the original marked assignment to your Teaching Assistant. You may submit requests for review no sooner than one week and no later than one month after assignments/exams are handed back to the class. The Teaching Assistant will review this mark and get back to the student with written feedback as his or her schedule allows. If, after this review, you continue to dispute the mark, you may submit an appeal to Professor Heath. Write a 1-page memo describing the dispute with the reviewed mark, and submit it along 3

4 with the original assignment and all written feedback from the Teaching Assistant. Professor Heath will not review any marks not already reviewed by the Teaching Assistant. Academic Dishonesty Academic dishonesty consists of misrepresentation by deception or by other fraudulent means and can result in serious consequences, e.g. the grade of zero on an assignment, loss of credit with a notation on the transcript (notation reads: "Grade of F assigned for academic dishonesty"), and/or suspension or expulsion from the university. It is your responsibility to understand what constitutes academic dishonesty. For information on the various kinds of academic dishonesty please refer to the Academic Integrity Policy, specifically Appendix 3, located at AcademicStudies/AcademicIntegrity.pdf The following illustrates only three forms of academic dishonesty: 1. Plagiarism, e.g. the submission of work that is not one's own or for which other credit has been obtained. 2. Improper collaboration in group work. 3. Copying or using unauthorized aids in tests and examinations. Turnitin.com In this course we will be using a web-based service (Turnitin.com) designed to reveal plagiarism. Students will be required to submit their work electronically and in hard copy so that it can be checked for academic dishonesty. Students who do not wish to submit their work to Turnitin.com must still submit a copy to the instructor. No penalty will be assigned to a student who does not submit work to Turnitin.com; however, papers that are not submitted to Turnitin will be graded last and subject to normal verification that standards of academic integrity have been upheld (e.g., on-line search). To see the Turnitin.com Policy, please go to Departmental/ University Policies Do NOT fax assignments. Please see your instructor for the most appropriate way to submit assignments. The Sociology staff do NOT date-stamp assignments, nor do they monitor the submission or return of papers. Students should check the web, the white board and the Undergraduate Bulletin board outside the Sociology office (KTH-627) for notices pertaining to Sociology classes or departmental business (eg. class scheduling information, location of mailboxes and offices, tutorial information, class cancellations, TA job postings, etc.). The instructor and university reserve the right to modify elements of the course during the term. The university may change the dates and deadlines for any or all courses in extreme circumstances. If either type of modification becomes necessary, reasonable notice and communication with the students will be given with explanation and the opportunity to comment 4

5 on changes. It is the responsibility of the student to check his/her McMaster and course websites weekly during the term and to note any changes. Effective September 1, 2010, it is the policy of the Faculty of Social Sciences that all communication sent from students to instructors (including TAs), and from students to staff, must originate from the student s own McMaster University account. This policy protects confidentiality and confirms the identity of the student. It is the student s responsibility to ensure that communication is sent to the university from a McMaster account. If an instructor becomes aware that a communication has come from an alternate address, the instructor may not reply at his or her discretion. Forwarding in MUGSI: *Forwarding will take effect 24-hours after students complete the process at the above link. Course Outline Week 1. Jan. 5: Introductions Go over syllabus; introduce key concepts. Week 2. Jan 12: The Scientific Method and Sociological Inquiry Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp. 1-8; Jenness, Valerie From Policy to Prisoners to People: A ' Soft Mixed Methods Approach to Studying Transgender Prisoners. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 39: A2L Topics: What is the relationship of qualitative sociology and science? How do you construct a qualitative research project? Week 3. Jan. 19: Reviewing Literature and Composing a Research Question Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Blackstone, Amy Doing Good, Being Good, and the Social Construction of Compassion. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 38: Only pages A2L Eckstein, Susan Community as Gift-Giving: Collectivistic Roots of Volunteerism. American Sociological Review 66: Only pages A2L Topics: Using sociological theory to design research and create a research question. Week 4. Jan. 26: The Ethics of Qualitative Research Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Stein, Arlene Sex, Truths, and Audiotape: Anonymity and the Ethics of Exposure in Public Ethnography. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 39(5) A2L Topics: Ethical questions and controversies in conducting research. Week 5. Feb. 2: Ethnography and Participant Observation Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Topics: Entering the field; doing observation. 5

6 **FIRST OUT-OF-CLASS ASSIGNMENT DUE** Week 6. Feb. 9: Ethnography and Participant Observation II Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Berkowitz, Dana Consuming Eroticism: Gender Performances and Presentations in Pornographic Establishments. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 35: A2L Topics: Taking fieldnotes, negotiating insider/outsider concerns. Week 7. Feb. 16: Qualitative Methods and Action Research Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Amsden, Jackie, and Rob Vanwynsberghe Community Mapping as a Research Tool with Youth. Action Research 3: A2L Topics: The how and why of action research. Week 8. Feb. 23: MIDTERM RECESS Week 9. Mar. 1: Interviews: Developing Questions and Conducting Interviews Berg, Bruce L., and Howard Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp , Nenga, Sandi Kawecka Volunteering to Give up Privilege? How Affluent Youth Volunteers Respond to Class Privilege. Topics: Designing interview questions ** SECOND OUT-OF-CLASS ASSIGNMENT DUE ** Week 10. Mar. 8: Focus Group Interviews Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Topics: How, when and why to conduct focus group interviews. Week 11. Mar. 15: Analyzing Berg, B., and H. Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, pp Topics: Methods of analysis ** THIRD OUT-OF-CLASS ASSIGNMENT DUE ** Week 12. Mar. 22: Writing Berg, Bruce L., and Howard Lune Qualitative Methods for the Social Sciences, , Topics: Writing about research Week 13. March 29: Writing Workshop **BRING DRAFT OF FINAL PAPER TO CLASS ** ** FINAL PAPER DUE THURSDAY, APRIL 5 BY 3:30PM SUBMIT A COPY TO TURNITIN** 6