Social Sciences Research Methods Programme course timetable
Monday 29 January 2018
10:00 |
This module is an extension of the three previous modules in the Basic Statistics stream, and introduces more complex and nuanced aspects of the theory and practice of mutivariate analysis. Students will learn the theory behind the methods covered, how to implement them in practice, how to interpret their results, and how to write intelligently about their findings. Half of the module is based in the lecture theatre; the other half is lab-based, in which students will work through practical exercises using the statistical software Stata. Topics covered include:
To get the most out of the course, you should also expect to spend some time between sessions having fun by building your own statistical models. |
14:00 |
This module is an extension of the three previous modules in the Basic Statistics stream, and introduces more complex and nuanced aspects of the theory and practice of mutivariate analysis. Students will learn the theory behind the methods covered, how to implement them in practice, how to interpret their results, and how to write intelligently about their findings. Half of the module is based in the lecture theatre; the other half is lab-based, in which students will work through practical exercises using the statistical software Stata. Topics covered include:
To get the most out of the course, you should also expect to spend some time between sessions having fun by building your own statistical models. |
16:00 |
Stata and Data
Finished
This workshop will provide support for students who are working on their own projects, and who need a little extra help with their data analysis. Bring your data along to this session (bearing in mind considerations of data security) and our demonstrators will do their best to help you with:
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Tuesday 30 January 2018
14:00 |
Doing Qualitative Interviews
Finished
Face-to-face interviews are used to collect a wide range of information in the social sciences. They are appropriate for the gathering of information on individual and institutional patterns of behaviour; complex histories or processes; identities and cultural meanings; routines that are not written down; and life-history events. Face-to-face interviews thus comprise an appropriate method to generate information on individual behaviour, the reasons for certain patterns of acting and talking, and the type of connection people have with each other.
The first session provides an overview of interviewing as a social research method, then focuses on the processes of organising and conducting qualitative interviews. The second session explores the ethics and practical constraints of interviews as a research method, particularly relevant when attempting to engage with marginalised or stigmatised communities. The third session focuses on organisation and analysis after interviews, including interpretation through coding and close reading. This session involves practical examples from qualitative analysis software. The final session provides an opportunity for a hands-on session, to which students should bring their interview material (at whatever stage of the process: whether writing interview questions, coding or analysing data) in order to receive advice and support in taking the interview material/data to the next stage of the research process. Topics: 1. Conducting qualitative interviews 2. Ethics and practical constraints 3. Practical session: interpretation and analysis |
Introduction to Stata (Lent)
Finished
The course will provide students with an introduction to the popular and powerful statistics package Stata. Stata is commonly used by analysts in both the social and natural sciences, and is the statistics package used most widely by the SSRMC. You will learn:
The course is intended for students who already have a working knowledge of statistics - it's designed primarily as a ""second language"" course for students who are already familiar with another package, perhaps R or SPSS. Students who don't already have a working knowledge of applied statistics should look at courses in our Basic Statistics Stream. |
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16:00 |
Conversation and Discourse Analysis
Finished
The module will introduce students to the study of language use as a distinctive type of social practice. Attention will be focused primarily on the methodological and analytic principles of conversation analysis. (CA). However, it will explore the debates between CA and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), as a means of addressing the relationship between the study of language use and the study of other aspects of social life. It will also consider the roots of conversation analysis in the research initiatives of ethnomethodology, and the analysis of ordinary and institutional talk. It will finally consider the interface between CA and CDA. Topics:
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Wednesday 31 January 2018
10:00 |
This module is an extension of the three previous modules in the Basic Statistics stream, and introduces more complex and nuanced aspects of the theory and practice of mutivariate analysis. Students will learn the theory behind the methods covered, how to implement them in practice, how to interpret their results, and how to write intelligently about their findings. Half of the module is based in the lecture theatre; the other half is lab-based, in which students will work through practical exercises using the statistical software Stata. Topics covered include:
To get the most out of the course, you should also expect to spend some time between sessions having fun by building your own statistical models. |
14:00 |
This module is an extension of the three previous modules in the Basic Statistics stream, and introduces more complex and nuanced aspects of the theory and practice of mutivariate analysis. Students will learn the theory behind the methods covered, how to implement them in practice, how to interpret their results, and how to write intelligently about their findings. Half of the module is based in the lecture theatre; the other half is lab-based, in which students will work through practical exercises using the statistical software Stata. Topics covered include:
To get the most out of the course, you should also expect to spend some time between sessions having fun by building your own statistical models. |
Monday 5 February 2018
14:00 |
This short two-hour course will provide an introduction to measurement issues in the social sciences. We design questions (or "survey instruments") to gain information on the concepts we are researching. Two prime considerations in whether an instrument is effective are validity (does our instrument actually measure what we want it to measure?) and reliability (does our instrument give consistent results across a range of different situations?) Considerations of validity and reliability are important across many areas of social science, including the measurement of personality and mental health; attitudes; ability tests; political behaviour; cultural differences and similarities between various groups; and consumer behaviour. The course will discuss what we mean by validity and reliability, the different ways we can think about the concepts, and different ways we can assess the quality of instruments using these criteria. We will also look at some statistical techniques for reliability and validity checks: Cronbach’s Alpha, Kappa coefficient, and Factor Analysis. |
16:00 |
Survey Research and Design
Finished
The module aims to provide students with an introduction to and overview of survey methods and its uses and limitations. It will introduce students both to some of the main theoretical issues involved in survey research (such as survey sampling, non-response and question wording) and to practicalities of the design and analysis of surveys. The module consists of four two-hour sessions, each of which has two parts. The first hour of each session will consist of a lecture. The four lectures cover: the background to and history of survey research (with examples mostly drawn from political polling); an overview of the issues involved in analysing data from surveys conducted by others and some practical advice on how to evaluate such data; issues of sampling, non-response and different ways of doing surveys; issues related to questionnaire design (question wording, answer options, etc.) and ethical considerations. These lectures are relevant for all students taking the module, irrespective of whether they will conduct surveys themselves or are 'passive' users of survey results. Students who have attended these lectures will be able to evaluate research that uses surveys, in particular to understand issues concerning sample selection, response bias and data analysis; to appreciate and understand basic principles of questionnaire design; and to trace appropriate sources of data and appropriate exemplars of good survey practice. The second hour of each session will focus more on the practical aspects of designing surveys and will feature some practical exercises. The focus will primarily be on issues directly related to questionnaires (and less on issues of sampling), such as the wording of questions, the order of questions, and the use of different answer options. Most of the exercises will be provided by the instructors (and we may provide opportunities to field successful exercises as part of YouGov surveys), but there will also be opportunities for students to bring in examples of surveys they would like to develop for their own research (and participants in the sessions may be asked to answer each other's surveys as a pilot test). We encourage all students registered for the module to attend these second parts of the sessions, but it will be of most direct relevant to who are using, or plan to use, surveys in their research. (It should also be noted that all students attending the second hour of the sessions are expected to participate and engage with the exercises.) |
Tuesday 6 February 2018
14:00 |
Doing Qualitative Interviews
Finished
Face-to-face interviews are used to collect a wide range of information in the social sciences. They are appropriate for the gathering of information on individual and institutional patterns of behaviour; complex histories or processes; identities and cultural meanings; routines that are not written down; and life-history events. Face-to-face interviews thus comprise an appropriate method to generate information on individual behaviour, the reasons for certain patterns of acting and talking, and the type of connection people have with each other.
The first session provides an overview of interviewing as a social research method, then focuses on the processes of organising and conducting qualitative interviews. The second session explores the ethics and practical constraints of interviews as a research method, particularly relevant when attempting to engage with marginalised or stigmatised communities. The third session focuses on organisation and analysis after interviews, including interpretation through coding and close reading. This session involves practical examples from qualitative analysis software. The final session provides an opportunity for a hands-on session, to which students should bring their interview material (at whatever stage of the process: whether writing interview questions, coding or analysing data) in order to receive advice and support in taking the interview material/data to the next stage of the research process. Topics: 1. Conducting qualitative interviews 2. Ethics and practical constraints 3. Practical session: interpretation and analysis |
Introduction to Stata (Lent)
Finished
The course will provide students with an introduction to the popular and powerful statistics package Stata. Stata is commonly used by analysts in both the social and natural sciences, and is the statistics package used most widely by the SSRMC. You will learn:
The course is intended for students who already have a working knowledge of statistics - it's designed primarily as a ""second language"" course for students who are already familiar with another package, perhaps R or SPSS. Students who don't already have a working knowledge of applied statistics should look at courses in our Basic Statistics Stream. |
|
16:00 |
Conversation and Discourse Analysis
Finished
The module will introduce students to the study of language use as a distinctive type of social practice. Attention will be focused primarily on the methodological and analytic principles of conversation analysis. (CA). However, it will explore the debates between CA and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), as a means of addressing the relationship between the study of language use and the study of other aspects of social life. It will also consider the roots of conversation analysis in the research initiatives of ethnomethodology, and the analysis of ordinary and institutional talk. It will finally consider the interface between CA and CDA. Topics:
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Wednesday 7 February 2018
09:00 |
Time Series Analysis (Intensive)
Finished
This module introduces the time series techniques relevant to forecasting in social science research and computer implementation of the methods. Background in basic statistical theory and regression methods is assumed. Topics covered include time series regression, Vector Error Correction and Vector Autoregressive Models, Time-varying Volatility, and ARCH models. The study of applied work is emphasized in this non-specialist module. Topics include:
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14:00 |
Time Series Analysis (Intensive)
Finished
This module introduces the time series techniques relevant to forecasting in social science research and computer implementation of the methods. Background in basic statistical theory and regression methods is assumed. Topics covered include time series regression, Vector Error Correction and Vector Autoregressive Models, Time-varying Volatility, and ARCH models. The study of applied work is emphasized in this non-specialist module. Topics include:
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This module is shared with Geography. Students from the Department of Geography MUST book places on this course via the Department; any bookings made by Geography students via the SSRMC portal will be cancelled. This workshop series aims to provide introductory training on Geographical Information Systems. Material covered includes the construction of geodatabases from a range of data sources, geovisualisation and mapping from geodatasets, raster-based modeling and presentation of maps and charts and other geodata outputs. Each session will start with an introductory lecture followed by practical exercises using GIS software. |
Monday 12 February 2018
11:00 |
Factor Analysis
Finished
This module introduces the statistical techniques of Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) is used to uncover the latent structure (dimensions) of a set of variables. It reduces the attribute space from a larger number of variables to a smaller number of factors. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) examines whether collected data correspond to a model of what the data are meant to measure. STATA will be introduced as a powerful tool to conduct confirmatory factor analysis. A brief introduction will be given to confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.
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14:00 |
Public Policy Analysis
Finished
The analysis of policy depends on many disciplines and techniques and so is difficult for many researchers to access. This module provides a mixed perspective on policy analysis, taking both an academic and a practitioner perspective. This is because the same tools and techniques can be used in academic research on policy options and change as those used in practice in a policy environment. This course is provided as three 2 hour sessions delivered as a mix of lectures and seminars. No direct analysis work will be done in the sessions themselves, but sample data and questions will be provided for students who wish to take the material into practice. Session 1 Session 2 Session 3 |
Factor Analysis
Finished
This module introduces the statistical techniques of Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) is used to uncover the latent structure (dimensions) of a set of variables. It reduces the attribute space from a larger number of variables to a smaller number of factors. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) examines whether collected data correspond to a model of what the data are meant to measure. STATA will be introduced as a powerful tool to conduct confirmatory factor analysis. A brief introduction will be given to confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling.
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16:00 |
Meta Analysis
Finished
In this module students will be introduced to meta-analysis, a powerful statistical technique allowing researchers to synthesize the available evidence for a given research question using standardized (comparable) effect sizes across studies. The sessions teach students how to compute treatment effects, how to compute effect sizes based on correlational studies, how to address questions such as what is the association of bullying victimization with depression? The module will be useful for students who seek to draw statistical conclusions in a standardized manner from literature reviews they are conducting. Aims: Session 1: Computational formulas for effect sizes and their variance: fixed/random models |
Survey Research and Design
Finished
The module aims to provide students with an introduction to and overview of survey methods and its uses and limitations. It will introduce students both to some of the main theoretical issues involved in survey research (such as survey sampling, non-response and question wording) and to practicalities of the design and analysis of surveys. The module consists of four two-hour sessions, each of which has two parts. The first hour of each session will consist of a lecture. The four lectures cover: the background to and history of survey research (with examples mostly drawn from political polling); an overview of the issues involved in analysing data from surveys conducted by others and some practical advice on how to evaluate such data; issues of sampling, non-response and different ways of doing surveys; issues related to questionnaire design (question wording, answer options, etc.) and ethical considerations. These lectures are relevant for all students taking the module, irrespective of whether they will conduct surveys themselves or are 'passive' users of survey results. Students who have attended these lectures will be able to evaluate research that uses surveys, in particular to understand issues concerning sample selection, response bias and data analysis; to appreciate and understand basic principles of questionnaire design; and to trace appropriate sources of data and appropriate exemplars of good survey practice. The second hour of each session will focus more on the practical aspects of designing surveys and will feature some practical exercises. The focus will primarily be on issues directly related to questionnaires (and less on issues of sampling), such as the wording of questions, the order of questions, and the use of different answer options. Most of the exercises will be provided by the instructors (and we may provide opportunities to field successful exercises as part of YouGov surveys), but there will also be opportunities for students to bring in examples of surveys they would like to develop for their own research (and participants in the sessions may be asked to answer each other's surveys as a pilot test). We encourage all students registered for the module to attend these second parts of the sessions, but it will be of most direct relevant to who are using, or plan to use, surveys in their research. (It should also be noted that all students attending the second hour of the sessions are expected to participate and engage with the exercises.) |
Tuesday 13 February 2018
16:00 |
Conversation and Discourse Analysis
Finished
The module will introduce students to the study of language use as a distinctive type of social practice. Attention will be focused primarily on the methodological and analytic principles of conversation analysis. (CA). However, it will explore the debates between CA and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), as a means of addressing the relationship between the study of language use and the study of other aspects of social life. It will also consider the roots of conversation analysis in the research initiatives of ethnomethodology, and the analysis of ordinary and institutional talk. It will finally consider the interface between CA and CDA. Topics:
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Wednesday 14 February 2018
09:00 |
Social Network Analysis
Finished
This introductory course is for graduate students who have no prior training in social network analysis (SNA). The course overviews the literature on SNA, and teaches how to handle databases, run network statistics, and visualise graphs. Topics covered
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14:00 |
This module is shared with Geography. Students from the Department of Geography MUST book places on this course via the Department; any bookings made by Geography students via the SSRMC portal will be cancelled. This workshop series aims to provide introductory training on Geographical Information Systems. Material covered includes the construction of geodatabases from a range of data sources, geovisualisation and mapping from geodatasets, raster-based modeling and presentation of maps and charts and other geodata outputs. Each session will start with an introductory lecture followed by practical exercises using GIS software. |
Social Network Analysis
Finished
This introductory course is for graduate students who have no prior training in social network analysis (SNA). The course overviews the literature on SNA, and teaches how to handle databases, run network statistics, and visualise graphs. Topics covered
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