Social Research Methods in Practice

This seminar is practice-oriented, illustrating the methodological problems of social research through concrete research findings that students can also try out for themselves. The seminar is an introductory course: it prepares students for later, more advanced methodological studies. During the seminar, students become acquainted at a basic level with the general methodological questions of social research, individual data-collection methods, data analysis, and the basic criteria of publication. During the semester, with the instructor’s guidance, students carry out a joint research project (they put together a questionnaire and an interview outline, conduct interviews and administer questionnaires, and then jointly analyse the results obtained).

Literature:

– As a general handbook: Babbie, Earl: A társadalomtudományi kutatás gyakorlata [The Practice of Social Research]. Balassi Kiadó, 2003. (a more recent edition is also available)
– Research materials for class provided by the instructor

This course is particularly recommended for students who wish to prepare a TDK (Scientific Students’ Association) paper, but the knowledge acquired during the semester will also provide useful material for any student interested in research.

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Social Research Methods in Practice:

(Suggested topics for students’ mini-research projects)

1.
The global economic crisis’s appearance in the domestic and/or international media

2.
Student opinions on the crime characteristics of white and Roma people — a questionnaire survey among higher-education students

3.
Academic progress of Roma pupils — an empirical survey among primary school teachers (questionnaire and/or qualitative interview)
4.
Segregation in schools — a case study based on empirical research findings

5.
Social deviance in Hungary in light of statistical data — secondary analysis

6.
Social deviance in Hungary in light of student opinions — focus group

7.
Party preferences of higher-education students in Hungary — a questionnaire survey

8.

Do they have a firm party preference, are they undecided voters, or are they simply not interested in politics at all? Attitudes of higher-education students in Hungary toward the political system — a questionnaire survey

8.
Political attitudes of higher-education students — a focus group study

10.
Division or objective reporting? — Party preferences of daily newspapers in Hungary — quantitative content analysis