THEORY AND METHODS OF SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
Academic Year 2024/2025 - Teacher: Liana Maria DAHERExpected Learning Outcomes
The class explicitly aims to provide students with the main theoretical and empirical foundations of sociology. Therefore, it will provide an overview of the classics of sociology and fundamental contemporary theories. Going in depth through the theoretical frame it will be asked about the reading and comment of a classics of sociology (as explained below). In order to complete the construction of the above theoretical frame the most important American and European theories on collective action will be studied, as to provide students with a critical and in-depth framework on collective phenomena. Moreover, the class aims at training students in the methods and techniques of sociological research, making use of the research approach of those who continually throw doubt on the validity and reliability of the object to explain social phenomena; good knowledge of methods and tools for social research will therefore be essential to learn the construction of the research design, in both standard and non-standard approach.
The monographic section focuses on theoretical and empirical approaches to social movements: starting from the conceptualization of the object up to exemplifying the various possible research routes.
The class aims, finally, to explore topics related to the ecological issue addressed through classical and contemporary sociological theories.
Course Structure
The course will be divided into lectures and a series of seminar meetings on the main topics of the program. It will be also scheduled ongoing evaluations.
Required Prerequisites
Attendance of Lessons
Detailed Course Content
INSTITUTIONAL SECTION: 1) What is society?; Individual and collective social actors, and identity; Social structures: institution and organization; 2) The relationship between theory and research; Emile Durkheim; Georg Simmel; Karl Marx; Max Weber; The symbolic interactionism; The exponents of contemporary society (Pierre Bourdieu, Raymond Boudon, Anthony Giddens); 3) Reading of a classic of sociology (see texts below). 4) Aspects and functions of sociological research; Developing research questions; Comparing quantitative and qualitative methods; The sampling; The interview; Questionnaire and survey. MONOGRAPHIC SECTION: 4) Defining social movements; Conceptualization dilemmas; The Italian empirical research.
Textbook Information
Titles are translated from the Italian editions, not edited in English.
1) Crespi F., Cerulo M., The sociological thought, il Mulino, 2002, Bologna, pp. 13-73; 87-105; 193-209; 231-239.
2) To choose among the list uploaded to Studium: file Classics Sociology - reference texts 2022-23).
4) Daher L.M., Notes on sociological research methods (pamphlet upload on Studium), pp. 3-24, and Marradi A., Methodology of social sciences, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 79-204.
4) Daher L.M., Researching social movements in Italy. Past, present, and future, FrancoAngeli, 2012, Milano.
Course Planning
| Subjects | Text References | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduzione. Le sfide della nuova modernità | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 13-16. |
| 2 | Emile Durkheim | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 19-28. |
| 3 | Karl Marx | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 29-45. |
| 4 | Max Weber | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 47-60. |
| 5 | Georg Simmel | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 61-73. |
| 6 | Talcott Parsons | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 87-105. |
| 7 | L'interazionismo simbolico | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 193-209. |
| 8 | Gli interpreti della società contemporanea I (Bourdieu, Boudon, Giddens) | Crespi F., Cerulo M., Il pensiero sociologico, il Mulino, 2022, Bologna, pp. 231-239. |
| 9 | Individuazione e formulazione del problema | Daher L.M., Appunti di metodologia della ricerca sociologica, 2015, pp. 3-6. |
| 10 | Approcci standard e non-standard alla scienza | Marradi A., Metodologia delle scienze sociali, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 79-93. |
| 11 | Tecniche quantitative e tecniche qualitative a confronto | Daher L.M., Appunti di metodologia della ricerca sociologica, 2015, pp. 7-11. |
| 12 | L’intervista nelle scienze sociali | Daher L.M., Appunti di metodologia della ricerca sociologica, 2015, pp. 12-15. |
| 13 | Strategie di campionamento | Daher L.M., Appunti di metodologia della ricerca sociologica, 2015, pp. 16-19. |
| 14 | Il questionario nell’inchiesta campionaria | Daher L.M., Appunti di metodologia della ricerca sociologica, 2015, pp. 20-24. |
| 15 | La matrice dei dati e le sue righe: popolazione e campione | Marradi A., Metodologia delle scienze sociali, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 95-104. |
| 16 | Le colonne della matrice dalle proprietà alle variabili | Marradi A., Metodologia delle scienze sociali, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 105-121. |
| 17 | Classificazione, conteggio, misurazione, scaling | Marradi A., Metodologia delle scienze sociali, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 123-164. |
| 18 | Indicatori, validità, costruzioni di indici | Marradi A., Metodologia delle scienze sociali, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 165-189. |
| 19 | Le relazioni tra variabili | Marradi A., Metodologia delle scienze sociali, il Mulino, 2007, Bologna, pp. 191-213. |
| 20 | Introduzione | Daher L.M., Fare ricerca sui movimenti sociali. Passato, presente e futuro, FrancoAngeli, 2012, Milano, pp. 7-11. |
| 21 | Definire il movimento sociale | Daher L.M., Fare ricerca sui movimenti sociali. Passato, presente e futuro, FrancoAngeli, 2012, Milano, pp. 13-55. |
| 22 | Dilemmi di concettualizzazione | Daher L.M., Fare ricerca sui movimenti sociali. Passato, presente e futuro, FrancoAngeli, 2012, Milano, pp. 56-98. |
| 23 | La ricerca empirica in Italia: Il post-Sessantotto, dagli anni Ottanta ad oggi, Il “movimento dei movimenti” | Daher L.M., Fare ricerca sui movimenti sociali. Passato, presente e futuro, FrancoAngeli, 2012, Milano, pp. 99-214 |
| 24 | Conclusioni: quale futuro? | Daher L.M., Fare ricerca sui movimenti sociali. Passato, presente e futuro, FrancoAngeli, 2012, Milano, pp. 215-233. |
Learning Assessment
Learning Assessment Procedures
The assessment of the examination will take into account the candidate's mastery of the content and skills acquired, linguistic accuracy and lexical propriety, as well as his/her argumentation ability and critical thinking
Examples of frequently asked questions and / or exercises
Sample questions
The notion of interpretative interaction, according to Blumer, tends to:
a. make people the same
b. make people different
c. give the image of the group
Simon distinguishes the concept of rationality in:
a. simple and complex
b. substantive and procedural
c. economic and social
What does Durkheim mean by "social morphology"?
a) A series of elements connected to the space in which the company was structured;
b) A series of elements connected to the single individuals that make up society;
c) A series of elements related to time.
The interview aims to:
a) investigate emotions;
b) evaluate skills;
c) collect situations, behaviors, attitudes, and opinions.
What did the school represent for Marx in bourgeois society?
a) The expression of the ideologies of the ruling classes and had no other function than to reproduce the established order;
b) The place par excellence where it was possible to possess a critical reworking of traditional culture;
c) The place where meanings are reproduced