Annotation
After completing the master's degree in history, a number of students are well acquainted with modern methods and approaches of historical sciences, but they are not oriented in the methodology and techniques of social sciences, although their use is essential and often crucial for the research of contemporary history. Many students who could use it thoroughly cannot perform secondary analysis of existing sources at an adequate level, let alone create their own qualitative or even quantitative data.
The task of the course is to acquaint students with the methods of qualitative and possibly quantitative procedures with an emphasis on data analysis. The main space is devoted to the creation and analysis of interviews, while the emphasis is placed on critical work with sources and the possibilities and limitations of specific analytical procedures.
The seminar focuses on five basic social science methodological approaches of qualitative research: narrative, phenomenological, grounded theory, ethnographic, and case study. In case of demand – resulting from specific research topics of the students – space will also be devoted to basic familiarization with quantitative data, the possibilities of their creation, and, above all, secondary analysis.
Part of the course is familiarization with software suitable for analyses: ATLAS.ti or SPSS.