Qualitative Methods in Social Research

This course introduces students to the various traditions, methodologies, and methods that inform qualitative research. Qualitative research helps researchers access deep aspects of lived experience and can address some of the elusive why questions of social life. Qualitative research highlights the complexity and richness of social life, which is typically inaccessible to large-scale social surveys. Students will encounter a wide range of qualitative research methods and perspectives, for example, feminist perspectives, symbolic interactionism, ethnography, discourse analysis, and qualitative interviews. Students will have the opportunity to test out some of these methods and will also develop skills in qualitative research design.