LPINT7267 Research Methods for Political Science

Course Overview

This course is aimed at developing the student’s ability to design, research and write up a high-quality dissertation in the field of Political Science (Extended Dissertation, 60 credits). The course involves study of a range of relevant research methods and methodological questions and provides a forum in which to think reflectively and critically about arguments over methodology in the study of Political Science, considering the relationship between research methods and research outcomes, in terms of relevance, significance and impact. Students will develop, reflect on and advance the design of their own proposed dissertation projects, in steps, throughout the course, and workshop-style sessions interspersed throughout the term will provide opportunities to test out ideas and developing research questions, discuss challenges, and receive feedback from both peers and members of faculty. The course culminates in the submission of a dissertation proposal.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding

Subject Specific Skills

Transferable and Professional Skills

Teaching and Learning

This course has a dedicated Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) page with a syllabus and range of additional resources (e.g. readings, question prompts, tasks, assignment briefs, discussion boards) to orientate and engage you in your studies.

The scheduled teaching and learning activities for this course are:

• Lectures
• Seminars
• Workshop sessions
• Office hours

Students can expect to receive a minimum of 16.5 scheduled hours per 15-credit course.

Faculty hold regular ‘office hours’, which are opportunities for students to drop in or sign up to explore ideas, raise questions, or seek targeted guidance or feedback, individually or in small groups.

Students are to attend and participate in all the scheduled teaching and learning activities for this course and to manage their directed learning and independent study.

Indicative total learning hours for this course: 150

Employability Skills

• Work independently, creatively, and to deadlines
• Conduct specialised independent research and explore relevant existing knowledge
• Analyse, contextualise, and interpret complex policy issues and multiple sources of evidence
• Synthesise and evaluate information against a backdrop of uncertainty
• Develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills

Assessment

Formative

Students will be formatively assessed during the course by means of set assignments that facilitate the structured development of the dissertation proposal. These do not count towards the end of year results, but will provide students with regular developmental feedback, for example, on the shaping of an initial literature review, the framing of a research question, and on a presentation of their proposed dissertation topic to members of the faculty in a workshop session, in advance of the submission of the dissertation proposal.

Summative

Feedback

Students will receive formal feedback in a variety of ways: written (including via email correspondence), oral (e.g. on an ad hoc basis) and directly or indirectly through discussion during seminars, workshops and other group sessions.

Feedback is provided on summative assessment and is made available to the student either via email, the VLE or another appropriate method.

Indicative Reading

Note: Comprehensive and current reading lists for courses are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative reading list provided below is used as part of the approval/modification process only.

Books

Blair, G., Coppock, A. and Humphreys, M., Research Design in the Social Sciences: Declaration, Diagnosis, and Redesign (Princeton University Press, 2023).

Box-Steffensmeier, J.M. et al. (eds)., Oxford Handbook of Political Methodology (Oxford University Press, 2008).

Curini, L. and Franzese, R. (eds.), SAGE Handbook of Research Methods in Political Science and International Relations (SAGE, 2020).

Franklin, A. and Blyton, P. (eds.), Researching Sustainability: A Guide to Social Science Methods, Practice and Engagement (Routledge, 2013).

Goodin, R.E. and Tilly, C. (eds.), Oxford Handbook of Contextual Political Analysis (Oxford University Press, 2006).

Hancké, B., Intelligent Research Design: A Guide for Beginning Researchers in the Social Sciences (Oxford University Press, 2009).

Harrison, L., Political Research: An Introduction (Routledge, 2001).

Johnson, J.B., Reynolds, H.T., and Mycoff, J.D., Political Science Research Methods, 9th edition (CQ Press, 2019).

Kellstedt, P.M. and Whitten, G.D., The Fundamentals of Political Science Research, 3rd edition (Cambridge University Press, 2018).

King, G., Keohane, R.O. and Verba, S., Designing Social Inquiry: Scientific Inference in Qualitative Research, new edition(Princeton University Press, 1994).

Lamont, C., Research Methods in International Relations, 2nd edition (Sage, 2021).

Marsh, D. and Stoker, G. (eds.), Theory and Methods in Political Science, 4th edition (Bloomsbury, 2017).

McNabb, D.E., Research Methods for Political Science: Quantitative, Qualitative and Mixed Method Approaches, 3rd edition (Routledge, 2020).

Panke, D., Research Design and Method Selection: Making Good Choices in the Social Sciences (Sage, 2018).

Pierson, P., Politics in Time: History, Institutions, and Social Analysis (Princeton University Press, 2004).

Quan-Haase, A. and Sloan, L., SAGE Handbook of Social Media Research Methods, 2nd edition (SAGE, 2022).

Schaffer, F.C., Elucidating Social Science Concepts: An Interpretivist Guide (Routledge, 2016).


Van Evera, S., Guide to Methodology for Students of Political Science (Cornell University Press, 1997).

Yanow, D. and Schwartz-Shea, P. (eds.), Interpretation and Method: Empirical Research Methods and the Interpretive Turn, 2nd edition (Routledge, 2015).

Journals

• American Political Science Review
• British Journal of Political Science
• British Journal of Politics and International Relations
• Comparative Political Studies
• Democratization
• European Journal of Political Research
• European Journal of International Relations
• International Journal of Social Research Methodology: Theory and Practice
• Journal of Common Market Studies
• Nations and Nationalism
• Political Science Research and Methods
• Political Theory
• West European Politics

Electronic Resources

Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. Division for Sustainable Development (DSD), United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA).

Available from: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/

APSA’s Qualitative and Multi-Method Research Section

Available from: https://www.maxwell.syr.edu/moynihan/cqrm/APSA_s_Qualitative_and_Multi-Method_Research_Section/

APSA’s Interpretive Methodologies and Methods Research Section

Available from: https://connect.apsanet.org/interpretationandmethod/

UNDP Library

Available from: https://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/librarypage.html

Indicative Topics

• Ontologies, Epistemologies and Methodologies
• Research Questions and Literature Reviews
• Concepts, Theories and Hypotheses
• Causality and Explanation in Political Science
• Qualitative vs Quantitative Research
• Use of Case Studies and Comparative Analysis
• Research Ethics
• Interpretation, Discourse and Critical Political Theory Methods
• Using Interviews in Research
• Discourse and Media Analysis
• Quantitative Research and Large-N Analysis
• Work in Progress/Methods and Proposal Workshop Sessions

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