SOCI8010 Sociological Research: Design, Methods and Ethics

2016

4.5

1 x 2-hour lecture weekly
1 x 50-minute tutorial weekly

SOCI2005 has been successfully completed

Core topic Graduate Diploma in Sociology

This topic provides students with the core skills required to understand research and to evaluate the research efforts of others. The topic adopts a hands-on approach, focusing on developing and practising a number of research skills. On completion of the topic, students will understand basic issues in the design of social research, including sample selection and methods of data collection, analysis and interpretation. They will have foundational knowledge of interviewing, field research, designing questionnaires, and analysis of field, interview and questionnaire data. Students will be able to critically assess the research design, data collection and data analysis aspects of research carried out by others.

This topic aims to provide students with an introduction to a range of ways in which social and criminal justice research data can be collected, analysed and evaluated.

Students will be provided with the cores skills required to:

• design successful social / criminal justice research;
• evaluate the research of others and
• assess the relative merits of qualitative and quantitative research designs.

On successful completion of this topic students should be able to:

• develop familiarity with a range of social and criminal justice research methods
• apply appropriate research strategies to specific research questions
• analyse and evaluate the research of others