Comprehensive Research Methodology and Design

Overview

Key facts:

• At the end of this Comprehensive Research Methodology and Design from University of Amsterdam, students will have a good understanding of the most important principles and practices of social science research. They will also be able to improve their knowledge and skills independently after the course, and thus pursue their substantive research interests without methodological hindrance. 
• This programme begins with the presentation and discussion of the most important qualitative methods for all students in the social and behavioural sciences. We then focus on the inferential possibilities and limitations of various research strategies, introducing students to the crucial issues of research design.
• The course starts with the presentation and discussion of the most important qualitative methods (participant observation as a key element of ethnographic research, the interview, and the focus group discussion), paying attention to their epistemological foundations and to their practical application in different disciplines such as anthropology, sociology or political science. 
• In these sessions, issues related to the collection, analysis and presentation of qualitative data will be discussed, and real-life research examples will be provided.
• The summer programme then focuses on the inferential possibilities and limitations of various case selection strategies, which will introduce students not only to a crucial issue of research design, but also to an essential topic in the vast domain of (comparative) case study research. A subsequent session will discuss the links between theory and data, with a focus on conceptualization, description, and causality.