Unit information: Researching Society and Space in 2009/10

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Unit name Researching Society and Space
Unit code GEOGM0002
Credit points 20
Level of study M/7
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director Professor. Mayhew
Open unit status Not open
Pre-requisites

None

Co-requisites

All other courses on the MSc

School/department School of Geographical Sciences
Faculty Faculty of Science

Description including Unit Aims

This unit introduces key qualitative methodologies, juxtaposing social scientific approaches (relying primarily on in-depth interviews, ethnography, and historical-archival research) and those from the humanities (such as hermeneutics, genealogy and discourse analysis). The aims are both to teach methods and to raise broader questions about what constitutes &�method&� and the different practices so designated by different academic communities in human geography and cognate disciplines. The unit addresses the epistemological and practical implications of a range of qualitative methodologies; provides a practical introduction to selected qualitative methods; and introduces students to the different forms of evaluation appropriate to the use of particular research methodologies. The unit also addresses critical debates concerning the relationships among qualitative methodologies, the deployment of research methodologies in academic social science and the humanities, and the use of different methodologies in public policy debates.