Research Methodology

Recommended Prerequisites

Basic notions concerning the nature and the history of social scientific knowledge.

Teaching Methods

There will be a theoretical systemization and a presentation of the underlying themes of the curricular unit, as well as the promotion of debate surrounding its bibliography. Different types of practical work will be proposed: students will elaborate written commentaries concerning general epistemological and methodological issues, followed by collective debate; they will apply the formal procedures concerning academic works; they will write texts related to the first steps of social research (from the research problem to the analysis model), followed by collective debate. Students will present and discuss some of the contents related to the steps of the empirical dimension of the research process.

Learning Outcomes

Overall objectives

a) to recognise the epistemological issues of social science; b) to understand the social research process; c) to use the logic of social science in the context of academic works.

Specific objectives

a) to recognise the criteria of appropriateness in the realm of social sciences; b) to acquire a vision of social research as a process; c) to understand the steps of the research process; d) to know the basic rules that guide the production of academic works.

Generic competencies

a) to recognise the logic and methodology of social sciences; b) to understand  the process of combining theory, methods and empirical work; c) to understand and to apply the procedures concerning academic works.

Specific competencies

a) to understand the epistemological acts; to recognise the modes of social intelligibility; b) to be able to do a research project; c) to acquire the basic knowledge about the empirical dimension of social research; d) to be able to do adequately academic works.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

1) Social research – epistemological and methodological issues: epistemological acts and obstacles; the process of articulating theory, methods and data; models of explanation and observation work; the relationship between personal problems and public problems; the importance of historical and cultural diversity consciousness; 2) presentation, organization and discussion of academic works: using a bibliographic system of references; structuring reports and communications; 3) the research process – from epistemological rupture to construction: the research question; reviewing the literature and establishing a theoretical framework; the model of analysis; 4) the research process – empirical verification: the observation – the research methodological design and the methods used in order to collect data; the data analysis – describing and summarizing data, the analysis of the relationship between variables, methods used in order to analyse data; conclusions.

Head Lecturer(s)

Sílvia Margarida Violante Portugal Correia

Assessment Methods

Continuous assessment
Participation in classes: 25.0%
Individual presentation, in classes, about the research methodological design or about the methods of data collection or of data analysis: 25.0%
Group research project: 50.0%

General regime
Exam: 100.0%

Bibliography

ALASUUTARI, Pertti (1998) – An Invitation to Social Research. London: Sage Publications.

BECKER, Howard S. (1986) — Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish your Thesis, Book, or Article. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

BECKER, Howard S. (2008) — Segredos e truques da pesquisa. Rio de Janeiro: Jorge Zahar Editor.

BELL, Judith (2004) — Como realizar um projecto de investigação. Lisboa: Gradiva.

JAVEAU, Claude (1998) – “O Trabalho Sociológico” in idem, Lições de Sociologia. Oeiras: Celta, pp.69-104.

O’ LEARY, Zina (2010)— The Essential Guide to Doing your Research Project. London: Sage Publications.

QUIVY, Raymond; CAMPENHOUDT, Luc Van (2005) — Manual de Investigação em Ciências Sociais. Lisboa: Gradiva.

SHAW, Martin (1997) – “From Public Issues to Personal Troubles” in Jon Gubbay, Chris Middleton e Chet Ballard (eds.), The Student’s Companion to Sociology. Malden: Blackwell Publishers, pp. 31-38.