METHODOLOGIES OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH
- Academic year
- 2023/2024 Syllabus of previous years
- Official course title
- METODOLOGIE DELLA RICERCA ANTROPOLOGICA
- Course code
- LM5270 (AF:448628 AR:254264)
- Modality
- On campus classes
- ECTS credits
- 6
- Degree level
- Master's Degree Programme (DM270)
- Educational sector code
- M-DEA/01
- Period
- 2nd Semester
- Where
- VENEZIA
- Moodle
- Go to Moodle page
Contribution of the course to the overall degree programme goals
The course gives center stage to the ethnographers, with their affiliations, gender and personal specificities, as fundamental players in the research with human and non-human interlocutors, offering the opportunity to collect and interpret ethnographic data through a short field exercise to be presented in class and to be developed in a written essay which is part of the exam. In the classes, the course presents and, where possible, allows students to experience the main methods for data collection (participant observation, informal conversations, interviews, focus groups, online ethnography) paying particular attention to the intersubjectivity of the ethnographic encounter and to different types of writing in the field (notes as mnemonic help, extended notes, field diary, transcript of informal interviews, recordings) and final writing. The use of photography and video will not be approached specifically as they are covered by the course in visual anthropology.
The objective of the course is to provide theoretical and practical knowledge relating to:
1. learning the fundamentals of data collection in ethnographic research;
2. setting up and conducting a research;
3. making a suitable bibliography;
4. interpret data in the light of the selected literature;
5. write ethnographically.
Expected learning outcomes
1. Knowledge and understanding:
- being familiar with the data collection methods that characterise the anthropological research
- being familiar with the debates that characterize data collection and its methods
2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding:
- learning how to set up a field research (identifying the general topic, choosing a case study, formulating research questions, considerince the ethical needs, writing a research project)
- being aware of one's own positionality in relation to the interlocutors, the themes and the research materials
- knowing how to use data collection methods in field research according to the basic ethical criteria
3. judgment skills:
- knowing how to formulate the research themes and identify the appropriate bibliography
- contextualising and interpreting the ethnographic data collected in the light of the identified literature
- developing a critical approach to literature
4. Communication Skills:
- being able to present the research, both orally (presentations during classes) and in written form (final essay)
- developing skills of synthesis and specialized language (terminology and formal expression)
5. Learning skills:
- specialized knowledge of ethnographic data collection
- ability to critically reflect on one's role as researcher and analyst
- ability to develop autonomy in anthropological research
Pre-requirements
Students who consider they lack the necessary knowledge may complement the study with:
Hendry J. 'An Introduction to Social Anthropology. Sharing Our Worlds'. Palgrave, 2016 (third edition).
Eriksen T.H. 'Small Places, Large Issues: An Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology'. Pluto Press, 2015 (fourth edition).
Contents
Per un'etnografia anti-coloniale e ecologica: corpo, genere, posizionalità, partecipazione e interlocutori "più che umani"
La relazione in etnografia: intersoggettività, mutualità, risonanza
L’etica della/nella ricerca
La definizione del tema di ricerca, la ricerca dei materiali bibliografici e la scrittura del progetto di ricerca
L'osservazione partecipante, i colloqui informali
Le note e il diario di campo, le registrazioni
L'intervista etnografica, il gruppo focale e l'intervista di storia di vita
L’antropologia della/nella rete
Referral texts
Articles and book chapters made available in moodle.
Assessment methods
In addition to the written essay, non-attending students will undertake an oral examination concerning the topics covered in the course, based on a brief discusison of the essay and on the assessment of the contents of the course manual (see the Readings section) and of the articles/book-chapters made available in moodle (one text for each course topic, see moodle). Non-attending students are required to agree the theme of research and essay with the instructor via email, delivering a short research project.
Further indications for the realization of the essay will be made available in the appropriate section in moodle.
Teaching methods
Students' presentations consist of:
1. Oral and written presentation (500 words) of the research project.
2. Oral presentation of the research results, which includes the type of data collected, the methods used and the tentative theoretical framework to be adopted for interpretation. The presentations are followed by a short discussion in which other students and the instructor explore themes and methods and provide comments to develop the final essay.
3. The 3500 words essay (appendixes and references exluded, but notes included) must be delivered in pdf format at least 10 days before the exam session through the specific delivery page in moodle.
4. During the field exercise, students must keep a field diary in which take note of the collected data. The diary must be attached to the final essay as an appendix.
Teaching language
Type of exam
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals
This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Human capital, health, education" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development