Methods of Social Research: Paradigms, Epistemology, and Reflexivity

This course is designed to introduce you to the major types of research methods and methodologies that sociologists employ in their empirical studies of social life. We will overview: (1) the ways that sociologists plan their research, and (2) how they gather, analyze, and present their evidence.  We will cover the range of processes involved in translating an idea you may have, or an observation that you make about the world into an empirical study. We will walk through the various steps of this procedure, including (a) finding and using sociological literature, (b) research design, and (c) issues ofconceptualization, measurement, and sampling. We will survey the variety of methods/techniques used by sociologists, such as surveys, ethnography, interviewing, and historical comparison/archives. However, this class will take the view that methods alone are not sufficient for you to begin your own research, but that you must also develop a working understanding of the basic epistemological paradigms of knowledge in the social/human sciences. To these ends, you will learn about key paradigms of sociological research, which we will classify as positivist, constructivist, and critical, and how these have developed as part of the intellectual history of the sociological field in relation to other fields of knowledge. This will allow you to better decide which approach you wish to take in terms of method, while simultaneously allowing you to understand the implications of your own/others’ approach. Therefore, the underlying thread we will draw throughout this course is that of reflexivity, a critical process of recapitulation on how one goes about understanding and representing the social world, as well as the role of the researcher in it. 

By the end of this course, you will have developed the tools necessary to effectively critique and engage with research by sociologists, as well as others in the social sciences and humanities, and you will have been exposed to a variety of methods you can employ to answer your own research questions. Ultimately, this course is designed to give you access to the broad conversation in sociology about social life, and the toolkit to begin your own contribution to our discipline.