78160 - Methodology of Political and Social Research (F-N)

Academic Year 2021/2022

  • Moduli: Federica Santangelo (Modulo F-N ) Federica Santangelo (Modulo Gr123) Federica Santangelo (Modulo G123) Valerio Vanelli (Modulo Gr 4) Federica Santangelo (Modulo D.Ass)
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures (Modulo F-N ) Traditional lectures (Modulo Gr123) Traditional lectures (Modulo G123) Traditional lectures (Modulo Gr 4) Traditional lectures (Modulo D.Ass)
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Political, Social and International Sciences (cod. 8853)

Learning outcomes

This course provides an introduction to the most important methodological problems students of political and social science have to tackle constantly. It is designed to get participants acquainted with opportunities and limits of data-gathering and data-analyzing techniques. The objectives of the class are to discourage a mechanical and non-critical use of these techniques and to make students aware of the peculiar nature of the actors of social science analysis: human beings, their symbols, values, and institutions.

Course contents

The first part of the course begins with a study of the epistemological and gnoseological elements of human sciences and with the distinction between quantitative and qualitative tecniques.

The second part deals with the logic of social research and survey design: analysis units, variables, indicators, sampling procedures, data-matrix construction.

The third part is focused on the principles of statistical analysis: from the function of monovariate analysis to the logic of multivariate analysis

The course is organized in lectures and seminars, as detailed in the following program. Lectures (32 hours) aim to introduce students to the core tenets of the discipline. Seminars aim to provide occasions for in-depth discussions of class materials and exercises. The division into lessons and seminars is specified in the program that follows. For the seminar section, students will be divided into 4 groups according to their preferences and according to rules concerning the current pandemic emergency: three groups will do the seminar in classroom (14 hours) and one group will do the seminar remotely on MS TEAMS (14 hours). Therefore, a total of 46 classroom hours are scheduled for each student. Students are required to carefully read the assigned material before the session and - in the case of seminars - active participation through presentations of existing scholarship and exercises will also be expected.

The course will roughly observe the following pattern:

  • Lessons 1-10: Introduction to the course. The Scientific research, paradigms of social science research. Operational definitions and measurement. Lessons will cover the following chapters:
    • Lucchini., M (2018) Metodologia della ricerca sociale, Capp. 1,2,3,4. Milano, Pearson.
  • Seminars 11-14. deeper exploration of the characteristics of the basic paradigms of social research; exercise on the comparison between quantitative and qualitative research. Comparing quantitative and qualitative research. Students divided into groups (max 15 per group) will be asked to answer questions on empirical research.  Readings:
    • Perrotta D., (2011) Vite in cantiere, Capitolo 4 parr. 1-5, Bologna, Il Mulino.
    • Guetto R., Fellini I. (2019) Le traiettorie occupazionali degli immigrati nel mercato del lavoro italiano, in Mondi migranti:1, pp. 143-169
  • Deepening on the design of quantitative research; Exercises on Concepts and Indicators, Operational Definitions, Questionnaire Questions, Properties. Students divided into groups (max 15 per group) will be asked to exercise on questionnaires. Readings:
    • Lucchini, M. (2018) Metodologia della ricerca sociale, Cap. 5. Milano, Pearson
  • Lessons 15-20. Mono and bivariate analysis using STATA. Readings:
    • Lucchini., M (2018) Metodologia della ricerca sociale, Cap. 8 e Cap. 9 parr. 3-5. Milano, Pearson
    • Corbetta P., Gasperoni G., Pisati M. (2001) Statistica per la ricerca sociale, Cap. 4 e Cap. 5 Parr. 1-3 e Par. 4.1. Bologna, Il Mulino
  • Seminars 21-23. Exercises on data mining, data interpretation, and tabulations. Mono and bivariate analysis using STATA. Students divided into groups (max 15 per group) will be asked to write and present a report with data analysis, graphs tabulation and relative comments. Readings:
    • Corbetta P., Gasperoni G., Pisati M. (2001) Statistica per la ricerca sociale, Cap. 2 par. 1. Bologna, Il Mulino

Three weeks before seminar 21, a nine-hour lab will start. It will focus on the use of Excel and Stata and on data mining. Seminars 21-24 will take for granted the basic knowledge of STATA. Attending lab hours will be mandatory for attending students but it would be very useful also for non attending students.

  • Final Take-Home Exam distributed

All students are invited to attend and actively participate to lessons. The main evaluation of the seminars will be on an individual basis. Active participation in seminars and group work is aimed at improving the understanding, reworking and application of concepts and methods.

 

 

 

Readings/Bibliography

Mandatory readings for attending students:

  • Lucchini., M (2018) Metodologia della ricerca sociale, Capp. 1,2,3,4,5 e 8; Cap 9 parr 3, 4 e 5. Milano, Pearson.
  • Corbetta P., Gasperoni G., Pisati M. (2001) Statistica per la ricerca sociale, Cap. 2 par. 1, Cap. 4, Cap. 5 Parr. 1-3 e Par. 4.1. Bologna, Il Mulino

Examples of empirical research:

  • Perrotta D., (2011) Vite in cantiere, Capitolo 4 parr.1-5, Bologna, Il Mulino.
  • Guetto R., Fellini I. (2019) Le traiettorie occupazionali degli immigrati nel mercato del lavoro italiano, in Mondi migranti :1, pp. 143-169

Mandatory readings for non attending students:

  • Lucchini., M (2018) Metodologia della ricerca sociale, Capp. 1-5,7,8; Cap. 9 parr. 3-5. Milano, Pearson.
  • Corbetta P., Gasperoni G., Pisati M. (2001) Statistica per la ricerca sociale, Capp. 1,2, 4, 5. Bologna, Il Mulino (in sostitution of the articles list and exercises for attending students)

Examples of empirical research:

  • Perrotta D., (2011) Vite in cantiere, Capitolo 4 parr.1-5, Bologna, Il Mulino.
  • Guetto R., Fellini I. (2019) Le traiettorie occupazionali degli immigrati nel mercato del lavoro italiano, in Mondi migranti:1, pp. 143-169

Further readings (not mandatory):

F. BIOLCATI-RINALDI, C. VEZZONI (2012) L’analisi secondaria nella ricerca sociale, Bologna, Il Mulino

Corbetta P., (2015) La ricerca sociale: metodologie e tecniche. I. I paradigmi di riferimento, Bologna, Il Mulino.

Corbetta P., (2015) La ricerca sociale: metodologie e tecniche. II. Le tecniche quantitative. Bologna, Il Mulino.

Corbetta P., (2015) La ricerca sociale: metodologia e tecniche. III. Le tecniche qualitative Bologna, Il Mulino

Readings could be modified till September.


    Teaching methods

    The course will be based on both traditional lectures and more interactive methods on the basis of peer instruction, according to which students study the material before (and not after) the classes. 

    Assessment methods

    For non-attending students

    Students will be assessed through a take-home written exam.the teacher will deliver the exam text on EOL 28 hours before the date of the exam indicated on Alma Esami, and the delivery will be fixed on the day of the exam, generally within 12 noon (the start time of the test and the delivery time will be indicated in the notes of each session). Students are required to register for the exam.

    The exam will consist of a critical reading of a scientific article, the examination of a questionnaire and its translation into a data matrix and, finally, a small data matrix will be provided (or asked to build) on which to perform monovariate and bivariate analyses (on variables chosen by the student) and relative comment.

    In consideration of the examination method, students need to be aware that questions requiring comments will have a greater weight than questions requiring calculations in the determination of final marks.

    Please note that upon delivery of the task an automatic plagiarism check will be performed by the COMPILATIO software.

    The valid mark is the last one obtained in a session. The mark can be refused only once: the passing mark obtained after the first refusal will be automatically recorded, according to the University regulations.

    The purpose of the take home exam is to verify the student's ability to apply the notions and knowledge learned, to make the necessary logical-deductive connections and to critically analyze the data. The determination of the final mark takes place on the basis of the following criteria:

    • 18-19: very poor knowledge of the course's contents
    • 20-24: poor knowledge of the course's contents and limited capacity to organize critical thoughts
    • 25-29: good knowledge of the course's contents and good capacity to organize critical thoughts
    • 30-30 cum laude: excellent knowledge of the course's contents and excellent capacity to organize critical thoughts

    For attending students

    • 3 tests will be carried out in class during the two thematic seminar blocks. Each test will consist of 5 or 6 multiple choice questions, each question will be worth 2 points, 0 if incorrect or not given, for a total of 16 questions on the 3 tests, equal to a maximum grade of 30 cum laude. The date of the tests was communicated in class. The tests are intended to ascertain the reading by the student of the material assigned and those covered by the lectures and in some cases also of their understanding. (The three tests contribute to 50% of the final grade). The vote will therefore correspond to the following:
      • Insufficient: most of the texts have not been read.
      • Grade 18-19: At least half of the texts have been read.
      • Grade 20-24: More than half of the texts have been read.
      • Grade 25-29: Almost all the texts have been read, and partially understood.
      • Grade 30-30L: All the texts have been adequately understood.
    • Participation and attendance in class and group activities (will contribute to 10% of the final grade). Active participation in class activities does not mean "providing the correct answer", rather, helping the discussion by exposing doubts, limits, perplexities, mistakes, from which the class can take inspiration to discuss. Attending students who for personal reasons prefer never to speak can contact the teacher to agree on an alternative method of assessment, even though they cannot exempt themselves from group work. The vote will correspond to the following:
      • Insufficient: the student was absent more than twice at the seminar lessons or at two of the laboratory lessons.
      • Grade 18-19: The student did not make more than two absences from the seminar lessons (and not all in the same thematic block) and no more than one from the laboratory lessons, but he never actively participated.
      • Grade 20-24: The student did not make more than two absences from the seminar lessons (and not all in the same thematic block) and no more than one from the laboratory lessons, he participated only sporadically in group and class activities.
      • Grade 25-29: The student did not make more than two absences from the seminar lessons (and not all in the same thematic block) and no more than one from the workshop lessons, he actively participated in group activities, occasionally those of the class.
      • Grade 30-30L: The student did not make more than two absences from the seminar lessons (and not all in the same thematic block) and no more than one from the laboratory lessons. He has always actively participated in group and class activities.
    • A Take-home written exam will be made available on the day of the test at 9am. Delivery is expected 28 hours later. The test involves the use of STATA. It will consist in the critical reading of a scientific article and in a report on data provided, based on what has been learned during the seminar lessons (The Take-Home test contributes to 40% of the final grade). The Take-Home assessment is equivalent to that of non-attending students.
    • At the end of the STATA laboratory lessons, attending students will be able to take a test that will give them 0 to 3 points to be added to the final average of the tests listed above.
    • To be considered attending students, no more than two absences are allowed in seminar lessons and the absences cannot all be in the same block of seminars. In addition, the 3 short tests, the test of the laboratory lessons and the final take-home exam must be taken. 
    • Attending students who have not passed the attending tests can choose for the whole winter session to continue taking the exam with the attending program and with the use of STATA (also taking advantage of the additional points obtained in the laboratory).
    • The attending student who refuses the mark of the intermediate tests will then be free to refuse once again a sufficient mark obtained in the official exams.
    • Attending students will be required to register for the final take home exam. Under no circumstances will teachers enroll students.  The mark obtained in the intermediate tests will be verbalizable by and no later than the September exam session.

    Please note that upon delivery of the task an automatic plagiarism check will be performed by the COMPILATIO software.

    Teaching tools

    PowerPoint and other technical tools.

    All students are invited to bring a laptop, tablet, or smartphone to in-class tests.

    Seminars 21-24 will require specifically a laptop with STATA.

    The course will widely use Virtuale, on which the mandatory texts (except the manual) and the power point's presentation will be uploaded. In Virtuale, students will be divided into 4 groups and a personalized calendar of lessons will be made available.

    The course module with the caption "Gr123 Module" indicates the seminar lessons. An adjunct professor will follow group 4 (Module Gr 4); the other lessons (Modulo F-N) are intended for ALL students. Modulo (D. Ass.) is for the lab lessons.

    In the first week of the course, a FORM link will be provided through which student will indicate their preference to attend the seminar lessons online or in person, taking into account that the online group cannot exceed 45 students.

    Office hours

    See the website of Federica Santangelo

    See the website of Valerio Vanelli

    SDGs

    Quality education Reduced inequalities

    This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.