Course syllabus autumn 2014
Course syllabus autumn 2014
Title
Advanced Research Methodology
Swedish title
Advanced Research Methodology
Course code
KA713E
Credits
7.5 credits
Grading scale
UA / Excellent (A), Very Good (B), Good (C), Satisfactory (D), Pass (E) or Fail (U)
Language of instruction
English
Decision-making body
Faculty of Health and Society
Syllabus approval date
2012-08-21
Syllabus valid from
2013-09-02
Entry requirements
1. Bachelor’s degree with a major in social- or behavioural science or medicine.
2. English B.
Level
Advanced level
Main field
Criminology
Progression level
A1N
Progression level in relation to degree requirements
The course is given in the second term of the Masters Program in Criminology and is a course within the main field of study that may be counted toward the Masters Degree in Criminology. The course is also offered as an independent course.
Course objectives
The aim of the course is for the student to acquire knowledge on fields of criminological research. An additional aim is for the student to develop knowledge of data collection and analysis methods that may be used for studying interaction effects of individual and environmental factors for criminality and ill-health.
Course contents
Criminological research fields and methods used to study these different fields are discussed in the course. Different research designs and data collection methods that are used to study individual- and environmental factors are also presented. Instruments for measuring relevant individual and environmental factors and methods for studying interactions between the two are discussed.
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to
1. plan a study of relevance for the contents of the course,
2. assess different designs and data collection methods that are used to study individual and environmental factors, both in isolation and in interaction,
3. construct instruments for the measurement of relevant individual and environmental factors, and
4. motivate how the use of a multi-level perspective may contribute to research on health and ill-health, antisocial behaviour and crime.
Learning activities
The teaching takes the form of lectures, seminars, group assignments and discussions.
Assessment
The assessment of the students’ performance will be made on the basis of their participation in lectures, group discussion, and on their individual paper as well as the obligatory peer-review of the paper. Absence on a small number of occasions may be compensated for following an agreement with the examiner. The following elements will constitute the basis for the examination in the course:
a) an individual paper – addressing learning outcome 1 and 3,
b) oral peer review of a fellow student’s paper,
c) active participation in discussions at the seminars – addressing learning outcome 2 and 4.
Right to re-examination
A student who fails to achieve a passing grade in the course examination will be given the opportunity to be re-examined twice according to same course content and with the same requirements. In addition, students also have the right to be examined on the same course the next time the course is offered according to the same regulations. If the course has been discontinued or undergone major changes, the student has a right to re-examination on two occasions within one year, based on the syllabus that was in place at the time the student registered for the course. Examination and re-examination take place at the times specified in the course guide.
Course literature and other study material
Janson, C-G (2000) The longitudinal study. In Janson, C-G (Ed), Seven Swedish longitudinal studies in behavioral sciences. Stockholm: FRN, s 29-43. 15 sidor.
King, R & Wincup, E (2007) Doing research on crime and justice (2d edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 500 sidor.
Nagin, D, Farrington, D & Moffitt, T (1995) Life-course trajectories of different types of offenders. Criminology, 33: 111–139. 27 sidor.
Sampson, R J (2008) Moving to Inequality: Neighborhood Effects and Experiments Meet Social Structure. American Journal of Sociology, 114 (1):189–231. 40 sidor.
Raudenbush, S, Johnson, C & Sampson, R J (2003) A Multivariate, Multilevel Rasch Model with Application to Self-Reported Criminal Behavior. Sociological Methodology, 33: 169-211. 40 sidor
Raudenbush, S W & Sampson R J (1999) Ecometrics: toward a science of assessing ecological settings, with application to the systematic social observation of neighborhoods. Sociological methodology, 29:1-41. 40 sidor.
Singer, J D & Willet, J B (2003) Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis. Modeling change and event occurrence. New York: Oxford University Press, s 3-15. 13 sidor.
Wikström, P-O H, Ceccato, V, Hardie, B & Treiber, K (2010) Activity Fields and the Dynamics of Crime. Advancing knowledge about the role of the environment in crime causation. Journal of Quantitative Criminology. 26(1):55-87. 30 sidor.
Additional articles from scientific journals will also be included, approx. 100 pages.
Course evaluation
The course coordinator/examiner is responsible for ensuring that a summary course evaluation is conducted at the end of the course. The coordinator will relay these results to the students at a prearranged time. Memory notes from the feedback, including proposals for changes to the course, will be documented and made available on the course website, and will also be relayed to the students who begin the course the next time it is given.