| Unit name | Research Methods in Anthropology |
|---|---|
| Unit code | ANTHM0016 |
| Credit points | 40 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Professor. Gibson |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | Department of Anthropology and Archaeology |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Teaching aims • To acquaint students with methods of research used in anthropology. • To make students aware of the ethical guidelines published by some of the main professional bodies in anthropology. • To reflect critically on the experience of fieldwork and the relationship between ethnography and text, via published accounts. • To discuss practical issues concerning time-management, methods of recording data, physical health and safety in the field. • To learn about various types of archival material. • To appreciate the role of applied anthropological research within the social sciences. To plan and execute a piece of empirical research. • To gain skills and experience which come from presenting this research in a seminar. To prepare for the Masters dissertation or Doctoral thesis.
Learning outcomes • Students will be aware of the specific research methods and ethics associated with anthropology as a profession. • Students will gain a greater practical understanding of visual and audio recording techniques, qualitative data sets, handling data and forms of presentation. • Students will be familiar with the work of ethnographers and the contribution anthropology can make to multi-disciplinary research. • Students will have the opportunity to plan, carry out, present and get feedback on project design. • Students will gain research experience relevant to their dissertation. • Students will learn to use an on-line learning environment as a part of their course. Students will develop skills in accessing and retrieving a wide range of data.
Ten 3-hour sessions including lectures, seminars and practical workshops.
The unit is assessed by a 3,000 word research proposal (65% of total mark); a 2,000 word Participant Observation exercise (20% of total mark); and a 1,500 word interviewing exercise (15% of total mark).
Agar, Michael H. (1980) The Professional Stranger: An Informal Introduction to Ethnography. London: Academic Press.
Bateson, Gregory (1973) Steps to an Ecology of Mind
Caplan, Pat (ed.) (2003) The Ethics of Anthropology: Debates and Dilemmas. London: Routledge.
Davies, Charlotte Aull (1999) Reflexive Ethnography: A Guide to Researching Selves and Others, London: Routledge.
Strang, Veronica (2009) What Anthropologists Do. Oxford: Berg.
