Geography 5161
Research Design in Human Geography
Spring, 2008
108 Guggenheim
492-8310
Office Hours: Thursdays, 11:00 – 2:00 and by appt.
Overview:
This course is intended as an introduction to the process of research. The course mixes practical and abstract goals. At a practical level, you will write a research proposal that should serve as the foundation for the dissertation or thesis that you will be working on in the coming year(s). But to paraphrase Peter Gould, there is nothing so practical as good philosophy. As such, we will also engage more abstract discussions of research goals and methods. This reflects my belief that it is not enough to know “how to” do research; we must also understand the ways knowledge itself is constructed and the assumptions underlying these constructions. There is no inherently superior set of methods for research in human geography. It is important to understand the importance of matching research questions with research methods, and it is important to understand the assumptions about how the world works and how we understand our world that underlie those questions and methods. This approach may lead to the use of quantitative approaches in some situations, qualitative approaches in others, and a combination of approaches in still other situations.
After some initial weeks devoted primarily to discussions of readings, the class will be organized principally as a workshop. That means our focus in on discussing and critiquing each other’s work. Do not be shy about criticizing the work of your peers, but do be constructive in your criticisms. You are expected to work closely with your advisor as you develop the different components of your proposal.
In addition, there are several copies of successful NSF Doctoral Dissertation Improvement proposals in the file cabinet in the copy room. We will work with these occasionally during the course of the semester.
Required texts include:
Cloke, Paul J. et al (2004) Practising Human Geography.
Yin, Robert K. (2003) Case
Study Research: Design and Methods.
Requirements:
The primary requirement for the course is a research proposal modeled on the NSF DDRI Grant proposal guidelines. The general intent is for this proposal to serve as the basis of a thesis/dissertation proposal and/or a proposal for external funding. The proposal will be constructed in sections, with each section being discussed separately, during the course of the semester. Grades will not be assigned to these sections. Your final grade for the course will be based on the following considerations:
Participation in class (attending, being prepared and discussing assignments and reading): 40%
Meeting deadlines for distribution of assignments: 20%
Completeness and quality of final proposal: 40%
Should your performance overall or in any of these areas put you in danger of not passing the course with a B- or better, I will meet with you to discuss the situation.
To help you plan for the dates that your assignments will be due – and the times that you will have to allocate for comments – some deadlines will be particularly important:
Feb. 15th Research questions distributed to class list (hard copies in Oakes box)
Mar. 7th Revised research questions, and literature review / conceptual framework distributed to class list (hard copies in Oakes box)
April 4th Revised research questions, revised literature review / conceptual framework, and methodology distributed to class list (hard copy in Oakes box)
April 25th Complete proposal drafts distributed to class list (hard copy in Oakes box)
Please be sure that you post your assignment on time and that you allocate time to read and critique the work of your colleagues.
Course Schedule:
In this class, we will discuss research as a sociological phenomenon – a process that is shaped by social values, institutional contexts, and so forth.
Barnes, Trevor, 2001, ‘In the beginning there was economic geography’ – a science studies approach to disciplinary history, Progress in Human Geography, 25(4): 521-544. (online)
Demeritt, David, 2001, Scientific forest conservation and the
statistical picturing of nature’s limits in the Progressive-era
Hannah, Matthew, 2001, Sampling and the politics of representation in the US Census, Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 19(5): 515-534 (online).
This class will introduce different approaches and strategies for research. The main point is that the best research strategy depends almost entirely on the questions that you are asking. The readings from the text discuss the kinds of questions that can be addressed using various strategies.
Yin, Chapters 1-2
This session introduces several basic principles of social research including: theory building, inference, generalization, uniqueness, proof, objectivity, subjectivity, transparency, positionality, and rigor.
Harding, Sandra, 1991. Whose Science, Whose Knowledge? Thinking
From Women’s Lives (
King, Gary, Robert O. Keohane,
& Sidney Verba, 1994, Designing Social Inquiry:
Scientific Inference in Qualitative Research (
Women in the Field, 1994, The Professional Geographer, 46(1): 54-102 (online)
This class period will be devoted to discussions of the research questions and the strategies outlined in the exercise (described below). Discussants will be assigned prior to class. Please note that you must distribute the exercise to the class list the Friday before class.
Exercise: This
is a 3 paragraph assignment: First,
write a one-paragraph description of your research question and the problem to
which it relates. Then, write a
paragraph explaining why this research is significant: why should anyone care
about your research? Finally, outline
the strategy you think you will follow in your research; include in this final
paragraph a brief description of general methods, data sources, tools of
analysis, and schedule. Your main goal
for this final paragraph is to provide some kind of answer to the
question: “How do you intend to find an
answer to your research questions and how will you evaluate whether yours will
be the best answer to your research questions?”
Distribute these paragraphs to
the class list by 3 pm, Friday, Feb.15th.
In this session we will examine the literature review and conceptual framework sections of several grant proposals, discussing strengths, weaknesses and writing strategies. The focus will be on developing an overall argument for why your research questions are important, and why your strategy is necessary for answering those questions.
Mar. 4 Data Collection Strategies
This session will introduce some of the various strategies for data collection and their strengths and weaknesses. Once again, the “appropriateness” of a strategy depends largely on the question that is asked. Data quality and management are also critical to the success of any project, and you will need to plan this in advance of your actual project. Various ways of organizing information, ensuring data quality, and record-keeping will be discussed.
Cloke et al, Chapters 2-6
This session will be devoted to comment on and discussion of literature reviews and conceptual frameworks. Discussants will be assigned prior to class. Please note that you must distribute the exercise to the class list the Friday before class.
Exercise: In
no more than 6 double-spaced pages (not including reference list), write a
literature review and conceptual framework based on your (revised) research
questions. Include your research
questions with this assignment. Distribute this exercise to the class list
by 3 pm, Friday, Mar. 7th.
In order to ensure that you collect the appropriate data, you need to know how you are going to use your information. The readings for this week describe many different strategies that you might consider.
Cloke et al, Chapters 7-11
Howard, Jennifer, 2006, Oral history under review, The Chronicle of Higher Education 53:12 (November 10th) (e-distribution).
This session will be devoted to discussing your research methodologies. Discussants will be assigned prior to class. Please note that you must distribute the exercise to the class list the Friday before class.
Exercise: In
no more than 8 double-spaced pages, write the methodology section of your
proposal. This section should include a
description of the nature and sources of your data (which may also include a
description of the field site, if appropriate), data collection strategies, and
data analysis. Be sure and make clear
how your data and analysis will specifically address your research
questions. Distribute this exercise to the class list by 3 pm, Friday, April 4th.
Apr, 15 No
Class – AAG Week
Michael
Jackson, At Home in the World
(Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1995), pp. 9-15
Keith Basso, “Shades of Shit,” from Wisdom Sits in Places: Landscape and Language Among the Western Apache (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1996), pp. 23-27.
Tim Oakes, “Langde: home of rebels and the true Miao, from Tourism and Modernity in China (London & New York: Routledge, 1998), pp. 193-204
Tim Oakes, The story of secretary
Wang – hero, savior, liar, scoundrel. In
Narratives of the Chinese Economic
Reform: Individual Pathways from Plan to Market, ed. D. Solinger (
Tim Oakes, fieldnotes excerpts from 1994
Tim Oakes, fieldnotes excerpts from 2004
Apr. 29 Final
Proposals Discussed
This session will be devoted to discussion of final proposals. Discussants will be assigned in advance. Please note that you must distribute the exercise to the class list the Friday before class.
Exercise: Turn in your final, revised, and
complete proposal. Necessary sections
include: Project Summary (2
double-spaced pages), Project Description (20 double-spaced pages, includes the
following sections: introduction, research questions, literature review /
conceptual framework, methodology, significance of the research, qualifications
of the Researcher), List of References (no page limit), Budget &
Justification (1 page for the Budget and 2 pages for the Justification). Distribute
to the class list by 3 pm, Friday, April
25th.