THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2015/2016

University Homepage

DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Social and Political Science : Sociology

Undergraduate Course: Dynamics of Social Inquiry (SCIL10078)

Course Outline
School	School of Social and Political Science	College	College of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate)	Availability	Available to all students
SCQF Credits	20	ECTS Credits	10
Summary	Dynamics of Social Inquiry explores key theoretical positions and issues relating to the character, dynamics and status of social scientific knowledge.
Course description	Dynamics of Social Inquiry explores key theoretical positions and issues relating to the character, dynamics and status of social scientific knowledge. The first issue is what exactly knowledge is. The first unit examines three important conceptualizations of knowledge which inform different approaches to sociological inquiry: knowledge as a representation of reality, knowledge as a social construction, and knowledge as an enactment and intervention into reality. The second set of issues examined relate to how the dynamics of social scientific inquiry shape the knowledge produced by inquirers. The second unit considers questions of value and reflexivity and also analyses continuities and clashes between the perspectives of social scientists and lay actors. Exploration of these issues is extended in the third unit through a consideration of the relation of social scientific knowledge to other political and cultural forms, such as comedy, and sociologyżs potential contribution to wider social life. The course will typically run by having one hour of lecture per week followed by one hour of student discussions and activities. The lectures will discuss the key ideas and reference points, staking out the territory of the course. Each topic is potentially wide in scope so the aim is to focus on key writers/ideas each week to help give students an understanding of central ideas and debates.

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites		Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisites	Visiting students should have at least 2 social science courses (such as Sociology, Politics, Social Policy, Social Anthropology, etc) at grade B or above. We will only consider University/College level courses
High Demand Course?	Yes

Course Delivery Information

Academic year 2015/16, Available to all students (SV1)		Quota: None
Course Start	Semester 2
Timetable	Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info)	Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 10, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 10, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 176 )
Assessment (Further Info)	Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment)	25%: This will be a short essay (1400-1600 words) 75%: This will be a long essay (3500-4000 word)
Feedback	The 25% assessment provides formative feedback to students, and will be due in week 5. Students will also be asked to submit a Long Essay plan by the end of Week 8 which feedback will be provided on
No Exam Information

Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to: Students will be able to identify different conceptions of knowledge and evaluate their strengths and weaknesses Students will be able to understand the way in which different kinds of objects of study pose different challenges for social scientists Students will be able to understand the significance of values in shaping research and have an ability to evaluate pieces of research in relation to the researcherżs reflexive recognition of these values Students will be able to evaluate the relationship between social scientific knowledge and other forms of understanding Students will be able to formulate a reasoned defence of the role of sociology in social life

Reading List
Indicative Readings ż Sayer, A. (1992) Method in Social Science, 2nd edition: London, Routledge ż Miller, L. (2000) żThe Poverty of Truth-Seeking: Postmodernism, Discourse Analysis and Critical Feminismż, Theory and Psychology, 10(3): 313-352 ż Woolgar, S. (1988) Science: The Very Idea, Chichester: Ellis Horwood ż Gergen, K. J. (1985) żThe Social Constructionist Movement in Modern Psychologyż, American Psychologist, 40(3) ż Haraway, Donna (1988) żSituated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspectiveż, Feminist Studies, 14(3): 575-599 ż Law, J. (2004) After Method: Mess in Social Scientific Research, London: Routledge ż Mol, A. (2002) The Body Multiple: Ontology in Medical Practice, Durham: Duke University Press ż Bhaskar, R. (1998) żSocietiesż, in The Possibility of Naturalism, 3rd edition, London: Routledge ż Lakatos, I. (1976) Proofs and Refutations, Cambridge: Cambridge UP ż Lather, P. (1993) żFertile obsession: Validity after Poststructuralismż, The Sociological Quarterly, 34(4): 673-693 ż Mauthner, N. S., & Doucet, A. (2003) żReflexive accounts and accounts of reflexivity in qualitative data analysisż, Sociology, 37(3): 413-431. ż Geuss, R. (1981) The Idea of a Critical Theory: Habermas and the Frankfurt School ż Stacey, J., & Thorne, B. (1985) żThe missing feminist revolution in sociologyż, Social Problems, 32(4): 301-316 ż Seidman, S. (1994) Contested Knowledge: Social Theory in the Postmodern Era, Blackwell: Oxford ż Said, E. (2003) Orientalism, 3rd edition, London: Penguin ż Harrington, A. (2004) Art and Social Theory: Sociological Arguments in Aesthetics, Cambridge: Polity ż Friedman, S. (2011) żThe cultural currency of a żgoodż sense of humour: British comedy and new forms of distinctionż, The British Journal of Sociology, 62(2): 347-370. ż Burawoy, M. (2005) żFor public sociologyż, American Sociological Review, 70(1): 4-28

Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills	This course will help foster studentsż sense of the value of enquiry given that it is concerned to promote understanding of the dynamics of knowledge. The course will contribute to studentsż sense of engagement between the university and the rest of the social world given its examination of the place of social science in wider social life. This in turn should promote studentsż ability to communicate with the interlocutors of the social sciences in wider society, be these social and political movements or representatives of other cultural traditions.
Keywords	Not entered

Contacts
Course organiser	Dr Stephen Kemp Tel: (0131 6)50 3978 Email: S.Kemp@ed.ac.uk	Course secretary	Miss Lizzie Robertson Tel: (0131 6)50 3079 Email: lizzie.robertson@ed.ac.uk

Navigation

Help & Information

Search DPTs and Courses

Regulations

Degree Programmes

Courses

Humanities and Social Science

Science and Engineering

Medicine and Veterinary Medicine

Other Information

Combined Course Timetable

Important Information

© Copyright 2015 The University of Edinburgh - 18 January 2016 4:50 am