Research Methods in Anthropology

Study Course Description

Course Description Statuss:Approved

Course Description Version:8.00

Study Course Accepted:21.03.2024 14:51:50

Study Course Information
Course Code:		KSK_002		LQF level:		Level 7
Credit Points:		4.00		ECTS:		6.00
Branch of Science:		Sociology; Social Anthropology		Target Audience:		Social Anthropology; Sociology
Study Course Supervisor
Course Supervisor:		Diāna Kiščenko
Study Course Implementer
Structural Unit:		Faculty of Social Sciences
The Head of Structural Unit:
Contacts:		Dzirciema street 16, Rīga, szfrsu[pnkts]lv
Study Course Planning
Full-Time - Semester No.1
Lectures (count)		6	Lecture Length (academic hours)		2	Total Contact Hours of Lectures		12
Classes (count)		18	Class Length (academic hours)		2	Total Contact Hours of Classes		36
Total Contact Hours								48
Study course description
Preliminary Knowledge:
Classical Anthropological Theories; Contemporary Anthropological Theories.
Objective:
To provide students with an intensive introduction to the principles, methods and ethical aspects of research in social anthropology. The course content is linked to the practical skills acquired in the course Principles of Ethnographic Work Practice.
Topic Layout (Full-Time)
No.	Topic			Type of Implementation		Number	Venue
1	Introduction to the Course. Basic Principles of Ethnographic/Field Research. Discussion of the Topics and Practical Issues of Mini-Ethnography as a Final Paper.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
				Classes		1.00	auditorium
2	Fieldwork, Note Taking and Analysis.			Lectures		2.00	auditorium
				Classes		1.00	auditorium
3	Semi-Structured and Unstructured Interviews. Types of Questions, Interview Guidelines, Preparation for an Interview, Principles of Conducting an Interview, Processing the Obtained Data.			Lectures		2.00	auditorium
				Classes		1.00	auditorium
4	Creative and Experimental Methods. Digital and Remote Ethnography.			Lectures		1.00	auditorium
				Classes		4.00	auditorium
5	Research Ethics. Emotions in Fieldwork.			Classes		4.00	auditorium
6	Work on the Text of a Mini-Ethnography.			Classes		4.00	auditorium
7	Presentation of Mini-Ethnographies.			Classes		3.00	auditorium
Assessment
Unaided Work:
Throughout the course, students independently study the required reading for each class topic. For each seminar class, students read the required reading and prepare for a discussion on the specified seminar topic. During the course, students must individually carry out the following independent work: 1) A small study must be conducted – a mini-ethnography using two to three of the methods covered in the course, with a minimum of 20 h of observation and/or participant observation. Finally, an ethnographic text of no more than 5000 words must be produced and uploaded to the e-learning environment. 2) A 1-2 page review of one other student’s research must be submitted and uploaded to the e-learning environment. The task of peer review is not only to point out errors and shortcomings, but also to be able to highlight the strengths of the work. 3) In the final class of the course, students must present their research. To assess the overall quality of the study course, the student must complete the course evaluation questionnaire on the Student Portal.
Assessment Criteria:
Text of the final paper – 50%; presentation of the final paper – 35%; final paper review – 15%.
Final Examination (Full-Time):		Exam (Written)
Final Examination (Part-Time):
Learning Outcomes
Knowledge:		The student is familiar with the methods, research principles and ethical considerations used in social anthropology to form the basis of their Master’s thesis.
Skills:		The student is able to: conduct observation/participant observation; make fieldwork notes; develop interview guidelines; conduct a semi-structured/unstructured qualitative interview; produce a digital ethnography; apply creative and experimental research methods; develop ethical guidelines for their research; analyse data obtained; produce an ethnographic text.
Competencies:		The student independently develops an ethnographic research design, analyses empirical material and presents the results in writing and orally.
Bibliography
No.	Reference
Required Reading
1	Bernard, H. R. 2017. Research methods in anthropology: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.
2	Mārtinsone, K. un Anita Pipere, A., sast. 2021. Zinātniskās darbības metodoloģija: starpdisciplināra perspektīva. Rīga: RSU (latviešu plūsmai)
3	O'Reilly, K. 2012. Ethnographic methods. 2nd edition. New York: Routledge. (Akceptējams, kvalitatīvs un viegli uztverams avots par etnogrāfisko metodi.)
4	Iphofen, R. 2021. Research Ethics in Ethnography/Anthropology by European Commission.
5	Meijerhofa, B. 2002. 'Ko Jūs no mums īsti gribat?' Kentaurs XXI, 27, 98-126. (Akceptējams avots latviešu valodā.) (latviešu plūsmai)
6	Stodulka T, S. N and Mattes D. 2018. Affective Scholarship: Doing Anthropology with Epistemic Affects. Ethos 46(4). Berkeley: 519–536. DOI: 10.1111/etho.12219.
7	Harding, J. 2019. Qualitative Data Analysis. 2nd edition. London: SAGE Publications.
8	Cimdiņa, A. 2023. Ilgtspējas meklējumi Arābijas tuksnesī. Tirgus un naftas antropoloģija. Rīga: Jāņa Rozes apgāds (latviešu plūsmai)
9	Praspaliauskiene, R. 2022. “Enveloped Lives: Practicing Health and Care in Lithuania,” Medical Anthropology Quarterly, 30, 4: 582-589.
10	Denzin, N., Lincoln, Y.S. ed. 2023. SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research. 6th edition. London: SAGE Publications.
11	Pink, S., et al. 2016. Digital Ethnography. Principles and Practice. London: SAGE Publications.
Additional Reading
1	Emerson, R. M., Fretz, R., I., and L., S. L. 2011. Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes. 2nd edition. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
2	Jenkins, T. 1994. 'Fieldwork and the perception of everyday life.' Man , pp. 433-455.
3	Behar, R. 2022. The Vulnerable Observer. Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart. Boston: Beacon Press.
4	Davies, C.A. 2008. Reflexive ethnography. A guide to researching selves and others. 2nd edition. London and New York: Routledge.
5	Coffey, A. 1999. The Ethnographic Self. Fieldwork and the Representation of Identity. London: SAGE.
6	Dewalt, K. M., and B. R. Dewalt. 2011. Participant Observation. A Guide for Fieldworkers. Lanham & Oxford: Altamira Press.
7	Kromrey, H. 2000. Empirische Sozialforschung. Modelle und Metoden der standartisierten Datenerhebung und Datenauswertung.
8	De Soto, H. G., and N. Dudwick. Editors. 2000. Fieldwork dilemmas: anthropologists in postsocialist states. Madison, Wis.: University of Wisconsin Press.
9	Ryang, S. 2000. Ethnography or Self-cultural Anthropology? Reflections on Writing About Ourselves. Dialectical Anthropology 25:297-320.
10	Rosaldo, R. 1986. "From the Door of His Tent," in Writing Culture. The Poetics and Politics of Ethnography. Edited by J. Clifford and G. Marcus, pp. 77-97. Berkeley: University of California Press.
11	Robben, Antonius C.G.M, and Jeffrey J. A. Sulka. 2011. Ethnographic fieldwork : an anthropological reader. 2nd edition. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub.
12	Riessman, C. 1993. Narrative analysis. London: Sage Publications.
13	Reed-Danahay, D. 2001. "Autobiography, Intimacy and Ethnography," in Handbook of Ethnography. Edited by P. Atkinson, A. Coffey, and S. Delamont, pp. 407-425. London: Sage Publications.
14	Lūse, A. (red). 2002. Cilveks, dzive, stastijums: rakstu krajums. Riga: Latvijas antropologu biediba; Latvijas Universitates Literaturas folkloras un makslas instituts. (latviešu plūsmai)
15	Kleinman, S., and M. Copp. 1993. Emotions and Fieldwork. Newbury Park: SAGE Publications.
16	Hemment, Julie. 2004. ‘Strategizing Gender and Development: Action Research and Ethnographic Responsibility in the Russian Provinces’ in Kathleen Kuehnast and Carol Nechemias (eds) Post-Soviet Women Encountering transition. Nation
17	Gupta, A., and J. Ferguson. 1997. "Discipline and Practice: "The Field" as Site, Method, and Location in Anthropology," in Anthropological Locations. Boundaries and Grounds of a Field Science. Edited by A. Gupta and J. Ferguson, pp. 1- 46. Berkeley: University of California Press.
18	Makaremi, C. 2008. 'Engaging with Silence. Interview with Vincent Crapanzano', Altérités 5, 2, 33-45.