CMS.951
Workshop II: Qualitative Social Science Methods for Media Studies
Spring 2015
This course focuses on a number of qualitative social science methods that can be productively used in media studies research including interviewing, participant observation, focus groups, cultural probes, visual sociology, and ethnography. The emphasis will primarily be on understanding and learning concrete techniques that can be evaluated for their usefulness in any given project and utilized as needed. Data organization and analysis will be addressed. Several advanced critical thematics will also be covered, including ethics, reciprocity, "studying up," and risk. The course will be taught via a combination of lectures, class discussions, group exercises, and assignments. This course requires a willingness to work hands-on with learning various social science methods and a commitment to the preparation for such (including reading, discussion, and reflection).
Readings
- Course introduction, expectations, scope. Overview of basics around working with human subjects, ethics, consent.
- What different methods are good for, evidence and argumentation, social science and qualitative methods.
- Schwandt, Thomas. “Three Epistemological Stances for Qualitative Inquiry.” In The Landscape of Qualitative Research: Theories and Issues . 2nd ed. Sage Publications, 2003. ISBN: 9780761926948.
- Geertz, Clifford. “Thick Description: Toward and Interpretive Theory of Culture.” In The Interpretation of Cultures . Basic Books, 1977. ISBN: 9780465097197.
- Negotiating entry, self-presentation, fieldnotes, levels of involvement, exit.
- Berreman, Gerald D. “Behind Many Masks: Ethnography and Impression Management.” In Ethnographic Fieldwork: An Anthropological Reader . Wiley-Blackwell, 2006. ISBN: 9781405125925.
- Fetterman, David. “Walking in Rhythm: Anthropological Concepts.” In Ethnography: Step-by-Step. 2nd ed. Sage Publications, Incorporation, 1997. ISBN: 9780761913856.
- Ferrell, Jeff. “Criminological Verstehen: Inside the Immediacy of Crime.” In Ethnography at the Edge: Crime, Deviance, and Field Research . Northeastern University Press, 1998. ISBN: 9781555533335.
- Close read of a published ethnography.
- Condry, Ian. The Soul of Anime: Collaborative Creativity in Japan’s Media Success Story . Duke University Press Books, 2013. ISBN: 9780822353942.
- Recruiting / approaching, open-ended vs. structured, formal vs. informal, thematic, biographical, questioning, recording, transcribing, coding, organizing, synthesizing. Directed vs. semi-directed, marketing vs. social science.
- Spradley, James P. The Ethnographic Interview . Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1979, pp. 45–68, 78–91, 120–31, and 155–72.
- Morgan, David L. “Focus Group Interviewing.” In Handbook of Interview Research . Edited by Gubrium & Holstein. Sage Publications, Incorporation, 2001. ISBN: 9780761919513.
- Pascoe, C. J. “What If a Guy Hits on You?” In Dude, You’re a Fag: Masculinity and Sexuality in High School . UC Berkeley Press, 2007. ISBN: 9780520252301.
- Kendall, Lori. “How do Issues of Gender and Sexuality Influence the Structures and Processes of Qualitative Internet Research?” In Internet Inquiry: Conversations About Method . Edited by Markham and Baym. Sage Publications, Incorporation, 2008. ISBN: 9781412910019.
- Thinking about technology & values in social science work, non-human actors, “flat” ontologies, assemblage.
- Working with the visual as a node of social life, producing images within fieldwork, privacy & publics, using the visual for analysis and argumentation
- Pink, Sarah. “Classifying and Interpreting Photographic and Video Materials.” In Doing Visual Ethnography . Sage Publications Limited, 2013. ISBN: 9781446211175.
- ———. “Video in Ethnographic Research.” In Doing Visual Ethnography . Sage Publications Limited, 2013. ISBN: 9781446211175.
- Using documents, archives, 3rd party materials. Artifacts to capture and elicit data, activity-logs, time journals, use in creative design research vs. social science.
- Tilley, Christopher. “Ethnography and Material Culture.” In Handbook of Ethnography . Sage Publications Limited, 2001. ISBN: 9780761958246.
- Utilizing some basic observation and interview techniques for applied purposes.
- Microsoft User Research. Do-it-Yourself Usability: A Crash Course on User-Testing. GDC, 2005.
- Nader, Laura. “Up the Anthropolgoist—perspectives Gained from Studying Up.” In Reinventing Anthropology . Pantheon Books, 1972. ISBN: 9780876651131.
- Some additional techniques / tricks / approaches to analyzing material not previously covered in weekly sessions.
- Crang, Mike, and Ian Cook. “Analyzing Field Materials.” In Doing Ethnographies . Sage Publications Limited, 2007. ISBN: 9780761944461.
- Clarke, Adele. “Doing Situational Maps and Analysis.” In Situational Analysis: Grounded Theory After the Postmodern Turn. Sage Publications, Incorporation, 2005. ISBN: 9780761930563.
- Writing and the creation of truths, social fictions, generalizablity, thinking about audiences / uses of social science.
- Crang, Mike, and Ian Cook. “Writing Through Materials.” In Doing Ethnographies . Sage Publications Limited, 2007. ISBN: 9780761944461.
- Fine, et al. “For whom? Qualitative Research, Representations, and Social Responsibilities.” In The Landscape of Qualitative Research: Theories and Issues . 2nd ed. Sage Publications, 2003. ISBN: 9780761926948.
- Close Read of a Published Ethnography .
- Mills, C. Wright. “On Intellectual Craftsmanship.” In The Sociological Imagination . Oxford University Press, 1959. ISBN: 9780195000221.
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗Historical OpenCourseWare
- MIT OCW readings ↗
- MIT OCW syllabus ↗
- Historical MIT OpenCourseWare offering. Named reading entries and schedule topics are automatically extracted from the linked source pages.