Module SGIA40G15: Full Stack Research Design

Department: Government and International Affairs

SGIA40G15: Full Stack Research Design

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• Learning to navigate research design in the social sciences, from formulating research questions, through data and method choices, to delivering the findings to a variety of audiences.

Content

• Indicative content is listed below and will be taught with reference to problems/scenarios within the social sciences:
• Data types, sources and their relevance;
• Computational measurement designs;
• Surveys and sampling;
• Causal inference in experimental and observational studies;
• Simulation as a research design tool.

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of the module students will have a working knowledge and understanding of the following areas:
• Types of research objectives and designs;
• Data types and sources;
• Strengths and limitations of different methods in social science.

• Critically appraising state of the art research in social science;
• Designing specialist research in social science;
• Communicating social science findings to a variety of audiences.

• These include:
• Critical appraisal of research design and evidence in social science;
• Application of research designs for exploration, description, forecasting, and causal inferences;
• Ability to interpret and communicate findings from social science research to different audiences, including specialised and wider audiences;

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• There are 10 Lecture-Seminar pairs with the seminar taking place later than its paired lecture.
• Lectures will demonstrate the conceptual foundations of applications of computational methods in social science. There are 10 lectures, 2-hour long.
• Seminars: enable students to explore and evaluate some of the key concepts discussed in the module. There are weekly seminars of 1-hour duration.
• Independent Reading: provides students with the opportunities to read widely, particularly in preparation for formative and summative assessments. Independent reading enables students to engage in debates within scholarly journals and research monographs, in ways that enhance a critical understanding and engagement with key issues in social data science.
• The formative essay requires students to discuss a social science topic and outline how they could contribute to the knowledge on this topic with an original research project.
• Summative research design proposal is designed to test the acquisition and articulation of knowledge and critical understanding, and skills of implementation and interpretation of classical and computational methods as applied to both synthetic and real social science data-related problems.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

1,500 words essay

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University