GDEV 4740 - Applied Qualitative Methods

(SBA-AG)

Spring. 3 credits. Student option grading.

Forbidden Overlap: due to an overlap in content, students will not receive credit for both GDEV 4740/GDEV 5740 and COMM 6830.
Co-meets with GDEV 5740.

D. Fei.

Researchers and practitioners in development studies often conduct qualitative research to understand the impacts of and people’s experiences with development projects. Then, how do we produce effective qualitative research questions? What data should we gather? How do we prepare for field research? What methods should we use? What do we do with the data collected? How do we link research questions, methods, and the literature to formulate arguments and make conclusions? The goal of the course is to give students hands-on experiences with qualitative research. Students will practice using qualitative research methods to collect data, analyze it, draw conclusions, and write research reports. Students will also learn about how identity, power, and politics interplay to influence the research process and outcomes.

Outcome 1: Explain how qualitative research contributes to scientific knowledge and enriches our understanding of development process and outcomes.

Outcome 2: Comprehend research ethics and know how to practice them.

Outcome 3: Identify the strengths and limitations of different qualitative methods.

Outcome 4: Formulate appropriate qualitative research questions for their selected topic of inquiry.

Outcome 5: Collect and analyze data using a mix of qualitative research methods.

Outcome 6: Deliver qualitative research results in written and oral formats.