Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE ANT2058

 
TITLE Research Methods for Anthropologists

 
UM LEVEL 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course

 
MQF LEVEL 5

 
ECTS CREDITS 4

 
DEPARTMENT Anthropological Sciences

 
DESCRIPTION This Research Methods Study Unit for Anthropologists is designed to train students to think anthropologically by providing them with the necessary transferable skills to be able to explore the different ways a given social phenomenon can be tackled, analysed, probed, and explored.

Study-unit Aims:

1. Train anthropology students to recognize, generate, and use historical data (including libraries, databases, including local published /unpublished material
2. Find and realize the significance of what can be called “hard data”
3. Develop the skills and perception to generate hard data through anthropological fieldwork
4. To learn how to understand and use census data, and use this to generate, and test, some social observations
5. To develop sampling techniques and simple questionnaires
6. To create links between research projects and existing information and/or hard data in the public domain

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

1. Recognize and size-up a problematic that requires social investigation;
2. Have the necessary knowledge of the different research methods and techniques available, both singly and in conjunction, to explore, investigate and analyze a given social phenomenon;
3. Have the necessary knowledge and understanding to discriminate between the effectiveness and pertinency of different research methods available to anthropologists and social scientists generally, including SPSS.

2. Skills:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:

1. Recognize the historical dimensions of a social phenomenon, if relevant, and have the necessary skills t to search out relevant sources and data to comprehend the phenomenon being explored;
2. Find and realize the significance of what one can call “hard data”;
3. Generate hard data through their fieldwork;
4. Know how to use census data and generate some social observations;
5. Develop sampling techniques and simple questionnaires;
6. Create links between their research projects and existing information and/or hard data in the public domain.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

MAIN TEXT:

- Russell-Bernard, H. (2006). ‘Research Methods in Anthropology: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches’. London: Altamira Press.
Available for free online: http://www.antropocaos.com.ar/Russel-Research-Method-in-Anthropology.pdf Includes interesting sections on questionnaires and experimental thinking.

SUPPLEMENTARY READINGS:

- Evans-Pritchard ‘Anthropology and history’
- Alan Macfarlane ‘Historical Anthropology, Frazer Lecture

- Mitchell, J. C. (1983), Case and situation analysis. The Sociological Review, 31: 187–211. (An oldie but a goodie, I remember Paul C. used to give us this in one of his courses and I have kept re-using it ever since!)
- Burgess, R.G. (1984) ‘In the Field’ London: Unwin. Especially Chapter 8 ‘Recording and analyzing field data’.
- Castilla, Emilio J. (2007) ‘Dynamic Analysis in the Social Sciences’ Elsevier. (contains particularly good chapters on longitudinal analyses..and event history analysis if we are going down the statistics route…)
- Lofland J. (1971) ‘Analyzing social Settings’ New York, Wadsworth.

 
ADDITIONAL NOTES This study-unit is offered to B.A. (Hons) Anthropology and B.A. Anthropology students only.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Blended Learning

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Assignment Yes 100%

 
LECTURER/S Jean-Paul Baldacchino
Liberato Camilleri
Paul M. Clough
Ranier Fsadni
Paul Sant Cassia

 

 
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The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit