Society is complex, and there are many different approaches researchers have taken to studying it. In fact there has been so much written – so many thousands of books and articles of research and theory on every aspect of how society works – that it can seem overwhelming. Where do we even start?
On this module, you will learn how we, as social scientists, study society. What is the difference between evidence and theory? How do we know when we know something, and how confident can be we in that knowledge? What are the different kinds of evidence social scientists use to investigate how people organise themselves?
After completing this module, you will have a much deeper understanding of how social scientists study society – how we gather, describe, and, importantly, evaluate social scientific knowledge. You will be able to make sense of the mass of social scientific information, and organise it to make clear, evidence-based arguments about vital social topics such as crime, gender, the environment, education, and culture.
Lectures 8 hours, Seminars 16 hours, Workshops 8 hours
Literature review (1000 words). Worth 40% of the total marks for the module.
Essay (1500 words) Worth 60% of the total marks for the module.
Reassessment Method: Single instrument100% written assessment (1,500 words)
For reading lists see the detailed module information on moodle.
On successfully completing the module, students will be able to:
1) Identify and evaluate academic evidence on social scientific topics, and be able to distinguish between academic and non-academic evidence, and between theory and empirical evidence
2) Interpret and accurately describe academic evidence relating to social scientific theories and hypotheses
3) Identify types of data gathering processes (quantitative and qualitative) as they are applied to answering social scientific questions, and evaluate the appropriateness of different methodological approaches to answering different types of social scientific questions
4) Apply fundamental qualitative and quantitative research principles (e.g. measurement) to assessing the validity of social scientific claims
5) Use academic evidence and theory to make structured, coherent, evidence-based arguments
University of Kent makes every effort to ensure that module information is accurate for the relevant academic session and to provide educational services as described. However, courses, services and other matters may be subject to change. Please read our full disclaimer.