Sociology 600: Qualitative Research Methods 1 Winter 2014

Transcription

1 Sociology 600: Qualitative Research Methods 1 Winter 2014 Class Location: Leacock 819 Class Meeting Time: Mondays 9:35-11:25 a.m. Professor: Elaine Weiner Office Address: Leacock 732 Office Hours: Mondays 12:00-2:00 p.m. or by appointment elaine.weiner@mcgill.ca Office Phone: (514) Course Description In this graduate seminar, students are introduced to various methods of qualitative inquiry such as participant observation, interviewing and focus groups via relevant readings and hands on training (i.e., student projects). All phases of qualitative inquiry are considered from research design to data collection and analysis. Practical skill development constitutes the main emphasis. Course Materials The coursepack is available for purchase at the McGill University bookstore. I will use MYCOURSES intermittently to make available course materials. Course Organization and Requirements Class format: Seminar format (supplemented by lab exercises). Course Requirements: Participation - 20% Discussion Facilitation - 20% Class Project - 60% includes Fieldwork Exercise #1 (Observation) due February 10 th Fieldwork Exercise #2 (Interviewing) due date flexible Coding Exercise due date flexible Analytic Memo due March 24 th Final Report - due April 14 th along with all other Class Project assignments I will provide written comments on all assignments associated with the Class Project ; they will not, however, be graded individually. At the end of the semester, all Class Project materials must be resubmitted along with the final report. In grading your Class Project, I will assess your development in terms of the course s main emphasis (see above). Note: If you have a disability and require any special accommodations, please let me know. Class Project You are required to carry out qualitative research as part of this course. This may entail work for your MA or PhD or may be a stand-alone project for the purposes of this course. Importantly, all research involving human subjects must be reviewed by one of McGill s Research Ethics Boards (REBs). You are not permitted to conduct any research UNTIL you have a McGill REB s approval (as well as any other necessary approvals). For this class, your project should ideally involve several interviews. Equipment & For interviewing purposes, you will likely require a digital recorder. If you do not have your own recorder, one Software can be borrowed from ICS (688 Sherbrooke, Room 1600).

2 2 For interview transcription, I recommend one of two software options EXPRESS SCRIBE, available for free download at or f4, available for free download at We will be using MAXQDA 10 for data analysis. We will spend some time in and outside the clasroom learning to use this software. You will also be given a 70-day student trial version of the software for home use. It is also available for use on computers located in the Ferrier building (840 Dr. Penfield) for up to five users at a time. As a graduate student, you must contact Sunny Galiza (sunny.galiza@mcgill.ca) with your name and student ID# to have access to that site. You may be billed a small fee for access to the computers in the Ferrier building. Participation Discussion Facilitation Class participation is an integral component of this course. The goal, for all of us, is to create a mutuallyrespectful space in which everyone feels comfortable sharing their ideas, asking questions, etc (even if they are not, in your estimation, particularly brilliant or profound). You should, of course, always bring the assigned reading materials to class because we will spend a great deal of our time and energy discussing the readings; having the materials on hand makes for easy reference and ultimately, a much more productive discussion. Every student is required to act as part of a discussion facilitation team once during the semester. Listed below are some guidelines as to how to prepare for this role. Guidelines: Facilitating a discussion requires that you be familiar with the assigned materials. Familiarity does not, however, mean mastery. The main purpose of class discussion is to move everyone together towards mastery. In order to prepare yourself to facilitate you should: read and study the assigned materials (e.g., underlining important and/or interesting points, writing notes/comments/questions in the margins) contemplate and jot down the main issues raised by the author(s) and a few questions relating to these issues (e.g., what do you find provocative, controversial, confusing, etc?) prepare a ~10-15 minute presentation which: o summarizes the main points/issues/arguments of assigned readings (providing an outline to your classmates may be helpful) o o relates the readings to ideas covered in previous discussions, etc ends with the identification of several discussion questions/issues in order to launch the class discussion (again, providing a list of questions/issues to your classmates might be beneficial in facilitating discussion) General Academic Policies McGill University values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offenses under the Code of Student Conduct and Disciplinary Procedures (see for more information). In accord with McGill University s Charter of Students Rights, students in this course have the right to submit in English or in French any written work that is to be graded.

3 3 Course Schedule Week 1: January6 th Topic(s): Course Overview Week 2: January 13 th Topic(s): Ethics and Epistemology Allen, Charlotte Spies Like Us: When Sociologists Deceive Their Subjects. Lingua Franca 7(9): Becker, Howard The Epistemology of Qualitative Research. Pp in Ethnography and Human Development: Context and Meaning in Social Inquiry, edited by Richard Jessor, Anne Colby and Richard Shweder. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Blee, Kathleen and Ashley Currier Ethics Beyond the IRB: An Introductory Essay. Qualitative Sociology 34: Denzin, Norman and Yvonna Lincoln The Discipline and Practice of Qualitative Research. Pp in Collecting and Interpreting Qualitative Materials, edited by Norman Denzin and Yvonna Lincoln. California: Sage. Etherington, Kim Ethical Research in Reflexive Relationships. Qualitative Inquiry 13(5): Geertz, Clifford. [1973] Thick Description: Toward an Interpretive Theory of Culture. Pp in Contemporary Field Research: Perspectives and Formulations (second edition), edited by Robert Emerson. Illinois: Waveland. Haggerty, Kevin Ethics Creep: Governing Social Science Research in the Name of Ethics. Qualitative Sociology 27(4): Johnson, Tara Qualitative Research in Question: A Narrative of Disciplinary Power With/in the IRB. Qualitative Inquiry 14(2): Milgram, Stanley Some Conditions of Obedience and Disobedience to Authority. Human Relations 18(1): Shea, Christopher Don t Talk to the Humans. Lingua Franca 10(6) Whyte, William Foote Learning from the Field: A Guide from Experience. California: Sage. Wolcott, Harry Sneaky Kid and its Aftermath: Ethics and Intimacy in Fieldwork. California: AltaMira. Week 3: January 20 th Topic(s): Identity, Reflexivity and Responsibility Guest Speaker: Anahi Morales Hudon, PhD (Sociology) Baca Zinn, Maxine Field Research in Minority Communities: Ethical, Methodological and Political Observations of an Insider. Social Problems 27(2): McCorkel, Jill and Kristen Meyers What Difference Does Difference Make? Position and Privilege in the Field. Qualitative Sociology 26(2): Venkatesh, Sudhir Doin the Hustle: Constructing the Ethnographer in the American Ghetto. Ethnography 3(1): Arendell, Terry Reflections on the Researcher-Researched Relationship: A Woman Interviewing Men. Qualitative Sociology 20(3): Chacko, Elizabeth Positionality and Praxis: Fieldwork Experiences in Rural India. Singapore: Journal of Tropical Geography 25(1): Corbin, Juliet and Janice Morse The Unstructured Interactive Interview: Issues of Reciprocity and Risks When Dealing With Sensitive Topics. Qualitative Inquiry 9(3): Ellis, Carolyn Emotional and Ethical Quagmires in Returning to the Field. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 24(1): Hesse-Biber, Sharlene and Michelle Yaiser Feminist Perspectives on Social Research. New York: Oxford. Kelman, Herbert The Rights of the Subject in Social Research: An Analysis in Terms of Relative Power and Legitimacy. Pp in Fist-Fights in the Kitchen: Manners and Methods in Social Research, edited by George Lewis. Goodyear. Kvale, Stinar Dominance Through Interviews and Dialogues. Qualitative Inquiry 12(3): Mahoney, Dan Constructing Reflexive Fieldwork Relationships. Qualitative Inquiry 13(4):

4 4 Peritore, Patrick Reflections on Dangerous Fieldwork. American Sociologist 21(4): Taylor, Stephen Observing Abuse: Professional Ethics and Personal Morality in Field Research. Qualitative Sociology 10(3): Weiner-Levy, Naomi and Ariela Popper-Giveon Olive Oil, Chocolates and a Bright Blue Sweater: Power Relations and the Implications of Gifts in the Field. Qualitative Sociology 33: ***Assignment DUE: Submit Research Ethics Board-I Application*** (application materials are available on MYCOURSES or at please submit an electronic copy to me several days in advance of this deadline for my comment/feedback Week 4: January 27 th Topic(s): Designing a Qualitative Inquiry Creswell, John Five Approaches to Qualitative Inquiry. Pp in Qualitative Inquiry & Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches by John Creswell. California: Sage. Hannerz, Ulf Being There and There and There! Reflections on Multi-Site Ethnography. Ethnography 4(2): Silverman, David and Amir Marvasti What Counts as Originality? and Selecting a Topic. Pp in Doing Qualitative Research: A Comprehensive Guide by David Silverman and Amir Marvasti. California: Sage. Small, Mario Luis How Many Cases Do I Need? On Science and the Logic of Case Selection in Field- Based Research. Ethnography 10: Becker, Howard Sampling. Pp in Tricks of the Trade: How to Think about Your Research While You re Doing It by Howard Becker. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Biernacki, Patrick and Dan Waldorf Snowball Sampling: Problems and Techniques in Chain Referral. Sociological Methods and Research 10(2): Blee, Kathleen Inside Organized Racism: Women in the Hate Movement. Berkeley: University of California Press. Burawoy, Michael The Extended Case Method. Pp in Ethnography Unbound: Power and Resistance in the Modern Metropolis. Berkeley: University of California Press. Churchill, Christian Ethnography as Translation. Pp in Writing Culture: The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography, edited by James Clifford and George Marcus. Berkeley: University of California Press. Collier, David and James Mahoney Insights and Pitfalls: Selection Bias in Qualitative Research. World Politics 49: Emerson, Robert, Rachel Fretz and Linda Shaw Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Marcus, George Ethnography in/of the World System: The Emergence of Multi-Sited Ethnography. Annual Review of Anthropology 24: Wacquant, Loic Scrutinizing the Street: Poverty, Morality and the Pitfalls of Urban Ethnography. American Journal of Sociology 107: Watters, John and Patrick Biernacki Targeted Sampling: Options for the Study of Hidden Populations. Social Problems 36(4): Wolcott, Harry Ethnography: A Way of Seeing (second edition). New York: Rowman & Littlefield. Week 5: February 3 rd Topic(s): The Practice of Qualitative Methods Gaining Entry and Building Rapport Guest Speaker: Zygmunt Alex Mochnacki, PhD Candidate (Sociology) Lareau, Annette Common Problems in Field Work: A Personal Essay. Pp in Journeys Through Ethnography: Realistic Accounts of Fieldwork, edited by Annette Lareau and Jeffrey Shultz. Colorado: Westview. Lofland, John. et al Getting In. Pp in Analyzing Social Settings: A Guide to Qualitative Observation and Analysis by John Lofland et al. California: Thompson. Shaffir, William Managing a Convincing Self-Presentation. Pp in Experiencing Fieldwork: An Inside View of Qualitative Research, edited by W. Shaffir and R. Stebbins. California: Sage. Obligacion, Freddie Managing Perceived Deception Among Respondents. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 23(1):

5 5 Warren, Carol and Tracey Karner Field Research: Setting and Entrée. Pp in Discovering Qualitative Methods: Field Research, Interviews, and Analysis by Carol Warren and Tracey Karner. California: Roxsbury. Week 6: February 10 th Topic(s): The Practice of Qualitative Methods Observation Becker, Howard How I Learned What a Crock Was. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 22(2): Emerson, Robert and Melvin Pollner Constructing Participant/Observation Relations in Contemporary Field Research: Perspectives and Formulations (second edition), edited by Robert Emerson. Illinois: Waveland. Harrington, Brooke Obtrusiveness as a Strategy in Ethnographic Research. Qualitative Sociology 25(1): Miner, Horace Body Ritual Among the Nacerima. American Anthropologist 58(3): Anderson, Elijah Code of the Street: Decency, Violence and the Moral Life of the Inner City. New York: W.W. Norton and Company. Fine, Gary. Toward a Peopled Ethnography: Developing Theory from Group Life. Ethnography 4(1): Assignment DUE: Fieldwork Exercise #1 (Observation) - Select a public venue such as a shopping mall, park or library. Make sure that you choose a peopled site. Be aware that limited site activity will likely provide you with limited data and/or potentially result in data contamination if people become aware that they are being watched. Choose a comfortable position from which to make your observations. Then, for 30 minutes, observe. In your fieldnotes record: date/time, description of setting, and what is going in the space. Here, your task is to take note of people s concrete, specific actions, not your interpretations of them. In other words, watch and take note of what people do; suppress your instinct to evaluate or presume motive. "Friendly smile," "in a hurry," "flirting," and "nervous" are interpretations, not actions. Look at behavioral details like patterns of movement through space, hand gestures, posture, positions of legs or arms, amount of talking, etc. For example, it is better to record four people standing single file in line, holding trays horizontal at waist height, advancing several steps when the cashier says Next! than four people waiting in line to pay for their meal. Also, do not make prejudgments as to what is or is not important; take notes in as much detail as possible. Any additional personal, theoretical or methodological comments you want to make during your observation should be kept separate from your description. Type up your fieldnotes in a comprehensible fashion. They should be based on your rough notes but should incorporate any corrections, further comments, etc that occurred to you after leaving the site. Submit both rough and rewritten notes. NOTE: You may observe at your individual project site, if this is feasible (i.e., you have REB approval). Week 7: February 17 th Topic(s): The Practice of Qualitative Methods Interviewing and Focus Groups Lofland, John et al Data Logging in Intensive Interviewing: Guide and Write-Ups. Pp in Analyzing Social Settings: A Guide to Qualitative Observation and Analysis by John Lofland et al. California: Thompson. Morgan, David Focus Groups. Pp in Approaches to Qualitative Research: A Reader on Theory and Practice, edited by Sharlene Hesse-Biber and Patricia Leavy. New York: Oxford. Rubin, Herbert and Irene Herbert Designing Main Questions and Probes. Pp in Qualitative Interviewing: The Art of Hearing Data (second edition) by Herbert Rubin and Irene Rubin. California: Sage. Dick, Hillary What to do with I Don t Know : Elicitation in Ethnographic & Survey Interviews. Qualitative Sociology 29(1): Gordon, Raymond Basic Interviewing Skills. Illinois: Waveland. Litoselliti, Lia Using Focus Groups in Research. New York: Continuum. Roy, Beth Some Trouble with Cows: Making Sense of Social Conflict. Berkeley: University of California Press. Warren, Carol et al After the Interview. Qualitative Sociology 26(1): Assignment DUE: Design an interview guide that is, a list of questions and/or topics that you intend explore with a respondent as part of your research project.

6 6 NOTE: Should you not have a research project that involves interviewing, please see me. Week 8: February 24 th Topic(s): Analyzing Qualitative Data Coding (NOTE: we will spend class in LEA 738) Richards, Lyn Coding. Pp in Handling Qualitative Data: A Practical Guide by Lyn Richards. California: Sage. Miles, Matthew, A. Michael Huberman and Johnny Saldana Fundamentals of Qualitative Data Analysis. Pp in Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook by Matthew Miles, A. Michael Huberman and Johnny Saldana. Sage: California. Aeurbach, Carl and Louise Silverstein Qualitative Data: An Introduction to Coding and Analysis. New York: NYU Press. Bird, Cindy How I Stopped Dreading and Learned to Love Transcription. Qualitative Inquiry 11: Rubin, Herbert and Irene Rubin Qualitative Interviewing: The Art of Hearing Data. California: Sage. Assignment DUE: Fieldwork Exercise #2 (Interviewing) - Conduct at least one interview by March 3 rd related to your individual project using the interview guide that you designed. Transcribe the interview using transcription software such as EXPRESS SCRIBE or f4. Interview transcriptions should include date/time of interview, place of interview and anything else that occurs during the interview aside from your conversation with the respondent. Bring a copy of your transcribed interview (in RTF format) to class on either a flash drive or CD-ROM. READING WEEK MARCH 3-7 Week 9: March 10 th Topic(s): Analyzing Qualitative Data Coding (continued); Analyzing Qualitative Data From Themes to Theory (NOTE: we will meet for only one hour on March 10 th, LEA 212 will be available on Friday, March 14 th from 9:00-11:30 a.m. for you to work on coding your data) Birks, Melanie and Jane Mills Essentials of Grounded Theory. Pp in Grounded Theory: A Practical Guide by Melanie Birks and Jane Mills. Sage: California. Charmaz, Kathy Qualitative Interviewing and Grounded Theory Analysis. Pp in Handbook of Interview Research: Context and Method, edited by Jaber Gubrium and James Holstein. California: Sage. Charmaz, Kathy Grounded Theory. Pp in Approaches to Qualitative Research: A Reader on Theory and Practice, edited by Sharlene Hesse-Biber and Patricia Leavy. New York: Oxford. Kendall, Judith Axial Coding and the Grounded Theory Controversy. Western Journal of Nursing Research 21(6): Assignment: Coding Exercise - Continue to transcribe and then code your data. Turn in a printout of your code system once you have coded at least two interviews. Also, bring a copy of your saved MAXQDA 10 project to class either on a flash drive or CD-ROM. Week 10: March 17 th Topic(s): Analyzing Qualitative Data From Themes to Theory (cont.) Rubin, Herbert and Irene Rubin The First Phase of Analysis and Analyzing Coded Data. Pp in Qualitative Interviewing: The Art of Hearing Data by Herbert Rubin and Irene Rubin. California: Sage. Saldana, Johnny Writing Analytic Memos. Pp in The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers by Johnny Saldana. California: Sage. Snow, David, Calvin Morrill and Leon Anderson Elaborating Analytic Ethnography: Linking Fieldwork and Theory. Ethnography 4(1): Wilson, Holly, Sally Hutchinson and William Holzemer Reconciling Incompatibilities: A Grounded Theory of HIV Medication Adherence and Symptom Management. Qualitative Health Research 12(2):

7 7 Alford, Robert Foreground Interpretive Arguments. Pp in The Craft of Inquiry: Theories, Methods, Evidence by Robert Alford. New York: Oxford. Silverman, David Interpreting Qualitative Data: Methods for Analyzing Talk, Text and Interaction. California: Sage. Week 11: March 24 th Topic: Analyzing Qualitative Data From Themes to Theory (cont.) Guest Speaker: Julie Moreau, PhD (Political Science) Weiner, Elaine The Post-Socialist Purgatory of Czech Female Factory Workers. Social Problems 42(4): Assignment DUE: Analytic Memo - Submit a memo that reflects on a relationship between different pieces of your data. For instance, if studying a social movement, you might interview several organizational leaders. Your memo might compare their leadership styles and potentially relate your observations to the literature on leadership in social movements. Week 12: March 31 st Topic(s): Drawing Quality Conclusions Bloor, Michael Techniques of Validation in Qualitative Research: A Critical Commentary. Pp in Context and Method in Qualitative Research, edited by G. Miller and R. Dingerwall. California: Sage. Goodwin, Jeff and Ruth Horowitz Introduction: The Methodological Strengths and Dilemmas of Qualitative Sociology. Qualitative Sociology 25(1) Miles, Matthew, A. Michael Huberman and Johnny Saldana Drawing and Verifying Conclusions. Pp in Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook by Matthew Miles, A. Michael Huberman and Johnny Saldana. Sage: California. Tracy, Sarah Qualitative Quality: Eight Big-Tent Criteria for Excellent Qualitative Research. Qualitative Inquiry Aunger, Robert. On Ethnography: Storytelling or Science? Current Anthropology 36(1): Adock, Robert and David Collier Measurement Validity: A Shared Standard for Qualitative and Quantitative Research. American Political Science Review 95(3): Buford Rueben, May and Mary Pattillo-MacCoy Do You See What I See? Examining a Collaborative Ethnography. Qualitative Inquiry 6(1): Hammersley, Martin What s Wrong With Ethnography? Methodological Explorations. New York: Routledge. Schwalbe, Michael Unlocking the Iron Cage: The Men s Movement, Gender Politics and American Culture. New York: Oxford. Week 13: April 7 th Topic(s): Course Wrap Up NO READINGS Assignment DUE by April 14 th along with all other Class Project assignments: Final Report Write a candid accounting (13-15 pages, double-spaced) of your qualitative research experience (i.e., the ups and the downs) gleaned via your Class Project. Among the topics you might address are: how your research focus developed and potentially evolved, how you designed your inquiry (e.g., sampling), how you gained access and built rapport, the nature of your relationships with respondents (e.g., reflexivity, identity), whether any ethical issues arose, how much data you collected, and emerging themes. Focus on the research process here, NOT on substantive findings.