Sociology 404: Research Methods in Sociology
Sociology third year sociology new syllabus 2075
(Theory and
Practical)
Full Marks: 100
(80+20)
Teaching hours:
150
Course
Description:
This
course aims to familiarize the students with fundamental research methods in
sociology. The course begins with introduction to social research and discusses
about the different components of research design; measurement and
relationships; selecting field, determining and selecting sample, collecting
data and analyzing them. Finally, it also aspire students doing field work and
writing field based research report.
Objectives:
The
main objective of this course is to familiarize the students with fundamental
research methods in sociology. It enables students to frame research design in
different nature of research whenever needed. Finally, it enables students to
write research report based on field from sociological perspectives.
Unit I: Social Research and Sociological Research (10hrs)
a) What
is social research?
b) Types
of social research
c) Sociological
perspectives on research
d) Making
research sociological
e) Developing
research proposal: focus on major components
Unit II: Theory
and Research (10hrs)
a) Theory
and research
b) Theoretical
considerations: objectivism and constructionism
c) Research
strategy: qualitative and quantitative
Unit III: Literature Review and Formulating Research Problem/Questions (20hrs)
a) What
is literature review?
b) Types
and process of literature review
c) Formulating
research problem/question/objectives
d) Identifying
unit of analysis
e) Theoretical
approaches and research protocol
f) Citing
references: following ASA style guide
Unit IV: Measurement and Relationship (10hrs)
a) Concept
b) Variables:
independent and dependent; intervening
c) Measurement
scale: nominal, ordinal, interval and ratio
d) Hypothesis:
types and formulation
e) Theory
construction: inductive and deductive
Unit V: Research
Designs (10hrs)
a)
Criteria in social research
b)
Research designs (with focus on overall
research plan): experimental, cross-sectional, longitudinal, case study,
historical comparative
Unit VI:
Sampling (10hrs)
a)
Census and sample survey
b)
Universe and sampling frame
c)
Sample size and its determination
d)
Probability sampling method: simple
random, systematic, stratified, cluster, multistage (concept and process only)
e)
Non-probability sampling method:
purposive/judgemental, accidental, quota, snowball (concept and process only)
Unit VII: Qualitative Research Methods: Data Collection and Analysis (20hrs)
Data collection:
a) Interview:
types and process
b) Case
study: process
c) Observation:
simple, participant, non-participant
d) Life
history: process
e) PRA
and RRA: social mapping, well being ranking
Data
Analysis:
a) Content
analysis: process
b) Conversation
analysis: process
c) Narrative
analysis: process
d) Discourse
analysis: process
Unit VIII:
Quantitative Research Methods: Data Collection and Analysis (30hrs)
Data Collection:
a)
Survey method: types and process
b)
Questionnaire: structured, unstructured
and semi-structured
Data
Analysis:
a) Frequency
distribution: univariate, bivariate and multivariate
b) Measures
of central tendency and dispersion: focus on application
c) Cross-tabulation:
frequency distribution and Chi-square test, Gamma-test
d) Application
of Correlation: Spearman’s Rank Order Correlation, Karl Pearson’s Correlation
Coefficient
Unit X: Ethics in Research and Writing a Research
Report (10hrs)
a) Ethics:
protecting human subjects and research integrity
b) What is
research report?
c) Major
components of research report
d) Academic/Scientific
writing
Unit XI: Practicum: Project Work and Report Writing (30hrs)
Teaching faculty will divide the
students into a number of groupsand will assign them writing report/paper, as
project work, either based on field work or secondary/archival resources
focusing on different course contents included in the sociology curriculum.
Each group of students will submit an independent research report analyzed
through sociological perspective under the guidance of assigned faculty in the
format provided by the department/campus. The student will present this report
in the viva-voce organized by the department/campus at end of academic year.
This viva-voce including the report submitted by the student will be the basis
of final evaluation of 20 marks allocated to this practicum.
Readings:
Baker, T. L. 2014. Doing Social
Research. Third Edition. Chapter 5, pp. 133-165. New Delhi: McGraw Hill
Education.
Marvasti, Amir B. 2004. Qualitative
Research in Sociology: An Introduction. Chapter 5, pp. 81-90. New Delhi:
SAGE Publications.
Baker, T. L. 2014. Doing Social
Research. Third Edition. Chapter 9, pp. 266-299. New Delhi: McGraw Hill
Education.
Mishra,
Chaitanya. 2009. Making Research
Sociological. In Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology/Anthropology, Vol. III,
pp. 1-18.
Bryman, Alan. 2014. Social
Research Methods. 4th Edition. Reprinted. Chapter 1, 2 &3,
pp. 1-78. India: Oxford University Press.
Bryman, Alan. 2014. Social
Research Methods. 4th Edition. Reprinted. Chapter 29, pp.
683-70. India: Oxford University Press.
Dooley, David. 1997. Social
Research Methods. Third Edition. Chapter 7, pp. 122-150. New Delhi:
Prentice Hall of India.
Dooley, David. 1997. Social
Research Methods. Third Edition. Chapter 15, pp. 294-314. New Delhi:
Prentice Hall of India.
Kothari, C. R. 2009. Research
Methodology: Methods and Techniques. Second Revised Edition. Chapter 4
& 5, pp. 55-94.New Delhi: New Age International Publishers.
Kumar, Ranjit. Research
Methodology: A Step by Step Guide. New Delhi:
Dooley, David. 1997. Social
Research Methods. Third Edition. Chapter 2, pp. 17-38. New Delhi: Prentice
Hall of India.
Marvasti, Amir B. 2004. Qualitative
Research in Sociology: An Introduction. Chapter 5. New Delhi: SAGE
Publications.
Neuman, W. Lawrence. 2008. Social
Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. Sixth Edition.
Chapter 1, 2, 5, 6, 10, 12, 15, pp. 1-22; 49-77; 110-148; 149-174; 272-314;
343-377; 457-489. New Delhi: Pearson Education.
So405: Sociology of Democracy, Diversity and Inequality
(Theory and
Practical)
Full Marks: 100 (80+20)
Teaching hours:
150
Course
Description: Democracy has multiple
forms and many limits. One such limit, perhaps, is to effectively address the
issue of diversity and social inequality. Critics have begun to argue that
there is bourgeoning democracy, that democracy is highly eliticized, that there
is no local democracy, that democracy has confined itself to electoral
democracy. And, that democracy stands on the shoulder of capitalism, such that
it has not been able to address critical issues of diversity and inequality.
Hence, term like democratization is gaining momentum in public discourse
including academia, more than the term democracy itself. This course delves
partly in the debate of democracy and democratization, and thereby attempts to
unpack sociological puzzles of diversity and inequality. Then it turns to
public sociology incorporating contested issues from affirmative action to
federalism and constitution making.
Objectives: The basic objectives of the course are two-fold. First, the students will
be able to comprehend contemporary issues of the time that shape and influence
their lives (and their societies) variously, issues like democracy, diversity,
hierarchy and inequality. Second, they will develop a more nuanced
understanding on those issues from sociological vantage point. After the completion
of the course, they will develop engagement on those public policy issues, by
way of research and public debating.
Course Contents
Unit I. Democracy and
democratization
(25hrs)
·
Sociology of
democracy: How does democracy work?
·
Local
democracy as local governance
·
Democratization:
Capitalism as the root of democracy and the rise of ethnic politics
·
Constitution
making, federalism and inclusive democracy
Required readings:
Philip, G. (2011)
Democracy and Democratization
(Subject Guide), London: University of London, International Programmes, pp.
9-24, 25-34.
Heller, Patrick
(2011) “Towards a sociological perspective on democratization in the Global
South: lessons from Brazil, India and South Africa,” paper prepared for the
Comparative Research Workshop, Yale University, 8 February 2011.
Sisk, Timothy D.
and others (2001) “Concepts, challenges, and trends [of Local Democracy],” Democracy
at the Local Level, International Institute for Democracy and Electoral
Assistance, pp. 11-34.
Hangen, Susan I.
(2010) “Democratization, ethnic diversity and inequality in Nepal,” in The
Rise of Ethnic Politics in Nepal: Democracy in the Margins, London:
Routledge, pp. 21-33.
Mishra,
Chaitanya (2015) “Democratic revolution in Nepal with and around the
correlates,” in What Led to the 2006
Democratic Revolution in Nepal? MC Regmi Lecture Series, Kathmandu, pp.
32-63.
International IDEA (2015) “Writing New Constitution
(2006 – 2015),” in Nepal’s Constitution Building
Process: 2006-2015, Sweden: International Institute for Democracy and
Electoral Assistance, pp. 8-29.
Unit
II. Democracy and multiculturalism
(25hrs)
·
Politicization
of minority and ethno-cultural diversity
·
Justice in
democratic and constitutional states
·
Towards a
non-hierarchical multicultural society
·
Key issues for
Madhesh
Required readings:
Kymlicka, Will
and Raphael Cohenalmagor (2000) “Democracy and multiculturalism,” in R.
Cohen-Almagor (ed.), Challenges to Democracy: Essays in Honour and Memory of
Isaiah Berlin, London: Ashgate Publishing Ltd., Chapter 5, pp. xx-xx.
d'Entrèves,
Maurizio Passerin (1999) Multiculturalism and deliberative democracy, Working
paper number 163, Barcelona: Institute of Political and Social Sciences, pp.
2-9.
Pradhan,
Rajendra (2007) “Negotiating multiculturalism in Nepal: Law, hegemony,
contestation and paradox,” a paper presented at an international seminar on
Constitutionalism and Diversity in Nepal, Kathmandu: Centre for Nepal and Asian
Studies, Tribhuvan University, in collaboration with MIDEA Project and
ESP-Nepal, 22-24 August.
Bennett, Lynn,
Bandita Sijapati and Deepak Thapa (2013) “Current status and key issues for
Madheshsis/people of Tarai origin,” in Gender and Social Exclusion in Nepal,
Update, London: Routledge, Kathmandu: Himal Books, pp. 95-107.
Unit
III. Sociology of inequality
(25hrs)
·
Understanding
inequality sociologically
·
Dimensions of
inequality: Class, caste and ethnicity
·
Ethnic
diversity and the rise of ethnic politics in Nepal
·
Changing
dynamics of caste inequality in Nepal
Required readings:
Harris, Scott R.
(n.d.) Critiquing and expanding the sociology of inequality: Comparing
functionalist, conflict, and interactionist perspectives, St. Louis: Department
of Sociology and Criminal Justice, Saint Louis University, pp. 2-18.
(Retrieved: http://www.lsus.edu/Documents/Offices%20and%20Services/CommunityOutreach/JournalOfIdeology/HarrisCritiquingAndExpanding%20Final%20Version.pdf, on
18 January 2016).
Giddens, Anthony
(2001) “Class, stratification and inequality,” Chapter 10, Sociology, fourth edition, Cambridge: Polity Press, pp. 282-302.
Wright,
Erik Olin (2007) “Social Class,” forthcoming in Encyclopedia of Social Theory, George Ritzer (ed.) Sage
Publications, pp. 2-11.
-- One article on ethnicity to be added --
Luintel,
Youba Raj and Madhusudan Subedi (2014) “Caste and the dynamics of changing
livelihoods,” The Changing Dynamics of Inter-Caste Relations in Nepal: A
Grounded Sociological Study of Caste, a report submitted to the University
Grant Commission under its Institutional Research Grants, Sanothimi, Bhaktapur, Chapter 3, pp. 17-32.
Unit IV. Sociology
and public policy
(25hrs)
·
Understanding
social policy, social spending and public policy
·
Equality and
social justice
·
From public
policy to public sociology
Required readings:
Dean,
Hartley (2012) “What is social policy?” Chapter 1, Social Policy: Short Introductions, second edition, Cambridge:
Polity Press, pp. 1-12.
Cochran, Clarke E., Lawrence C. Mayer, T.R. Carr and
N. Joseph Cayer (2009) “Public Policy: An Introduction,” American Public Policy: An Introduction, Ninth edition, Publisher:
Michael Rosenberg, pp. 1-19.
Patterson, Orlando (2007) “About public sociology,”
in Dan Clawson et al. (eds.) Public Policy: Fifteen Eminent Sociologists
Debate Politics and the Profession in the Twenty-first Century, Berkeley:
University of California Press, pp. 176-194.
Coffey, Amanda (2004) “Social policy, equality and
difference,” Reconceptualizing Social
Policy: Sociological Perspectives on Contemporary Social Policy, Berkshire:
Open University Press, pp. 59-75.
Unit V. Policy
response to diversity and inequality
(25hrs)
·
India’s
affirmative action program: drawing lessons
·
Reservation as
a tool of cultural politics
·
Inclusive
policy and reform measures in Nepal
·
Caste/ethnic
Classification in Nepal and India and its critique
·
Sociological,
comparative and socio-legal perspectives on
affirmative action in Nepal
Required readings:
Deshpande, Ashwini (2009) “Social justice through
affirmative action in India,” a paper based on the monograph “Affirmative
Action in India,” part of the Oxford India Short Introductions series, Oxford
University Press, New Delhi, forthcoming 2012.
Gupta, Dipankar (n.d.) Democratic potentials in
cultural politics: Caste based reservations and the issues of citizenship, pp.
1-20. (Accessed: http://www.sasnet.lu.se/EASASpapers/DipankarGupta.pdf, on
18 January 2016).
Awasthi, Ganga Datta and Rabindra Adhikary (2012) Changes
in Nepalese Civil Service after the Adoption of Inclusive Policy and Reform
Measures,
Kathmandu: Support to Participatory Constitution Building in Nepal
(SPCBN)/UNDP, pp. 1-2 and 5-23.
Paudel, Balananda (2013) “Policy and legal provision
for inclusive civil service,” Chapter 3, and “Issues on promotion of
inclusiveness in civil service,” Chapter 4, in Inclusion in Civil Service: Issues and Initiatives, Kathmandu:
Ministry of General Administration, Government of Nepal and Project to Prepare
Public Administration for State Reforms (PREPARE/UNDP), pp. 10-18 and 19-24.
Middleton, Townsend and Sara Shneiderman (2008)
“Reservations, federalism and the politics of recognition in Nepal,” Economic & Political Weekly, vol.
43(19), pp. 39-45.
Toffin, Gérard
(2007) “Affirmative action from a sociological and comparative
perspective,” a paper presented at an international seminar on
Constitutionalism and Diversity in Nepal, organized by Centre for Nepal and
Asian Studies, TU in collaboration with MIDEA Project and ESP-Nepal, 22-24
August 2007, Kathmandu.
Bhandari, Narishwar (2012) “Affirmative action as an
effective tool for ensuring substantive equality in Nepal,” NJA Law Journal, Special issue 2012,
Access to Justice for the Poor and Marginalized Groups in Nepal, pp. 35-49.
Unit VI: Practicum: Project Work and Report Writing (25hrs)
Teaching faculty will divide the
students into a number of groups and will assign them writing report/paper, as
project work, either based on field work or secondary/archival resources
focusing on democracy, diversity and inequality in Nepal. Each group of
students will submit an independent research report/paper analyzed through
sociological perspective under the guidance of assigned faculty in the format
provided by the department/campus. The student will present this report in the
viva-voce organized by the department/campus at end of academic year. This
viva-voce including the report submitted by the student will be the basis of
final evaluation of 20 marks allocated to this practicum.
***
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