Bloc Seminar/Winter Semester Room ZV 107 Tim Dertwinkel, Dipl.-Verw.Wiss.; M.P.S. Centre for Methods and Statistics University of Flensburg PhD candidate University of Essex / UK Office: HG Research Design & Research Methods in the Social Sciences

Agenda for today Welcome! –Who I am –Who You are Course logistics –Schedule –Requirements and grading –Readings Introduction –Course goals –The “science” in Social Science –Elements of the research process –What is research design? –What are research methods? –Why we need to be scientific: examples

Course logistics Schedule and Content –Mo, 27.Oct.2008: Intro –Mo, 12.Jan.2009: Day 1: Scientific Inquiry –Mo, 19.Jan.2009: Day 2:Research Design –Mo, 26.Jan.2009: Day 3:Research Methods –Mo, 02.Feb.2009: Day 4:Quantitative Data Analysis Requirements and Grading –50% class participation –50% written homework, due 28th February 2009 Readings –File with copies of all readings in Munketoft 14, Room 045 (EUS Office) from next week on See Syllabus for more details Room: ZV107

Introduction: course goals what you will learn –the basic assumptions and principles of the scientific method, and to distinguish that from nonscientific methods of inquiry –to accurately comprehend and use the language of scientific methodology –the concepts of theory, hypothesis, dependent/independent variable, experiment, quasi- and non-experimental designs, correlation, bias, sample, control group, reliability, validity, bivariate and multivariate hypothesis-testing, OLS-regression, and case studies, among others –how to convert an informal idea or question into a testable research proposition –how to design a simple but sound test of a hypothesis derived from theory –to understand the major limitations and potential weaknesses of quantitative research designs –to become well-informed consumers of social scientific research paper, articles, reports and books of international standards

Introduction: The “science” in Social Science General criteria for being scientific: –1. The goal is inference Making general statements –2. The procedures are public Methods are public, not private –3. The conclusions are uncertain Science is cumulative process –4. The content is the method Science uses a set of rules of inference We can use these to study virtually any social phenomena. The unity of all science consists alone in its method, not in its content See: King, Keohane, Verba (1994): 3-33

Introduction: elements of the research process …and probably of your M.A. thesis… research design / research strategy research question(s) and topic theories and hypotheses concepts, variables and measurements case selection data collection / research methods data analyses conclusions writing of report / paper / publication

Introduction: what is research design? first step in a research process, the logical structure and plan of research projects ensures that the evidence obtained enables us to answer the initial question as clearly as possible: –What will be studied? –Why will it be studied? –How will it be studied?

Introduction: what is research design? Research Design: components Research Question Theory: verbal or formal Collection of data: qualitative or quantitative Use of the data: methodological approach, qualitative (e.g. case studies) or quantitative (e.g. statistical analysis of many cases) or mix

Introduction: what are research methods? Tactics to collect and analyze quantitative or qualitative data through e.g. –Field research / Participant observation –Interviews, Surveys –Content analysis –Case studies –Statistical Analysis of many cases –…many more! Toolbox / skills for a social scientists to answer his/her research question –Mastering these tools has to be learned

Introduction: why we need to be scientific Some „common sense“examples: The more people get promoted, the higher the overall job satisfaction in an organization Men who live in the countryside are more satisfied with their lifes than men living in cities If divorce laws are liberal, less people are married in a society Plausible? Right or wrong? Plausible? Right or wrong?