DSAB 611 - Research Methods (3 Credits)

Prerequisite: None
This course will provide an overview of research methods including participant observation, in-depth interviewing, the use of personal narratives and other personal documents, and participatory action research. Students will be introduced to data analysis in disability research. The course will feature theoretical approaches and practical techniques. The application of these research methodologies to people with disabilities will be illustrated. The book for the course will be the classic disability research text Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods by Stephen Taylor and Robert Bogdan; additional readings will be utilized as well to complement the text. Students who complete the course will be able to: discuss the ethics of studying people and the special protections required when studying vulnerable populations; describe situations where approval is needed from the Institutional Review Board and the steps to secure IRB approval; contrast and compare quantitative and qualitative research methodologies and describe research scenarios where each would be appropriate; discuss various methodologies utilized to conduct qualitative research and describe the attributes of each; describe his or her experience in practicing various qualitative research methods and what he or she learned; participate in participant observation and write field notes describing it; describe the benefits of reflexive journaling while conducting research and issues around the biases we bring to research; conduct interviews with individuals and code them for content; analyze the results of participant observation and interviews research; develop a structured questionnaire; describe issues related to writing about research; contrast and compare several qualitative research studies; describe an area of investigation and develop a research question which addresses it; conduct a literature review and identify gaps in research; formulate a research proposal and present it to peers.

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