Methodological practices in social movement research
Prerequisiti
All phd students (from 1 to 4th year) and master students
Programma
This course is based on a methodological pluralist approach to social sciences. Many important questions in political science and sociology cannot be addressed with quantitative methods. Often times, scholars cannot rely on suitable statistical data to answer their research questions, and many research questions in social science simply cannot be answered using quantitative data (requiring a more case- oriented approach rather than a variable- oriented one). Moreover, the limited resources of individual researchers frequently preclude the collection of a sufficient number of empirical observations required for statistical analysis. Therefore, qualitative methods of data collection and analysis are an important part of everyday research in our field.
In this course, with a particular attention on social movements field of enquire, each of the main methods of data collection and data analysis are presented with a practical approach, from research design to data collection, the use of information through to ethical issues. The sessions will include: protest Event analysis (PEA), frame and Discourse analysis, Focus groups, Case studies, process tracing, Grounded theory. Researcher positionality and ethics will be also addressed.
The practical details of a given methodological tool will be demonstrated with the help of examples and exercises drawn from empirical research. Exercises will include the practical construction in class of the tools of analysis (i.e. codebooks, questionnaires) necessary in order to applied the above mentioned research techniques. Position papers and assignments at home will complement the applied part of the course. The course will offer a systematic introduction to empirical research in social movement studies.
Obiettivi formativi
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Demonstrate an advanced understanding of methodological pluralism in political science and sociology.
- Critically assess the strengths, limitations, and epistemological assumptions of different research methods.
- Design research projects that align research questions, theoretical frameworks, and methodological choices.
- Apply key qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods approaches used in social movement research.
- Conduct and analyze in-depth interviews and focus groups.
- Employ discourse and frame analysis to investigate political narratives, identities, and mobilization processes.
- Use grounded theory to generate concepts and theoretical insights from empirical data.
- Understand the logic, applications, and limitations of protest event analysis and social network analysis.
- Apply visual methods and digital ethnography to the study of contemporary political activism and online mobilization.
- Develop practical research tools, including interview guides, questionnaires, coding schemes, and codebooks.
- Critically reflect on issues of researcher positionality, ethics, validity, and reliability in empirical research.
- Analyze empirical evidence and evaluate methodological choices in published social movement research.
- Present and discuss methodological approaches and research designs in an international academic environment.
- Strengthen their capacity to conduct independent doctoral research in the fields of political sociology, comparative politics, and social movement studies.
Riferimenti bibliografici
Reader Book, Methodological Practices in Social Movement Research, Edited by Donatella della Porta , Oxford, 2014