The course is dedicated to the methodological problems of empirical social research, which are considered from the standpoint of the most widespread of research techniques: the social survey.
Students will be led through the entire series of phases composing the design and conduction of a survey.
Data gathering devices and elementary data analysis procedures will be presented and discussed.
First Module:
M.C. Pitrone Sondaggi e interviste, Milano: Franco Angeli 2009 capp. 3-8; cap.12.
Second Module:
A. Marradi L'analisi monovariata, Milano: Franco Angeli, 1993
A. Marradi Linee guida per l'analisi bivariata dei dati nelle scienze sociali, Milano: Angeli 1997 (esclusi parr. 1.4 e 2.4).
Third Module:
M. Rosenberg La logica dell'analisi trivariata, Milano: Franco Angeli, 2003.
Learning Objectives
1. To give a systematic understanding and known-how about the conduction of a social survey.
2. To present the main procedures of univariate and bivariate data analysis. Application and excercises will be conducted on data analysis software.
3. To introduce the logic and functions of trivariate data analysis and helping students to learn how o read and interpret trivariate crosstabulations, through practical applications on a data analysis software.
Prerequisites
Elementary notions of social theory ad descriptive statistics.
Teaching Methods
Frontal lessons and seminars; workshop activitities.
Further information
Some lessons of the third module of the course will be dedicated to a workshop on data analysisi wiith a specific software.
More information about the schedule of the workshop will be published on the internet page of the course as soon as they are available.
Type of Assessment
Oral exam. For each of the main themes presented in each module, the student will have to answer a question or solve a problem of application of the analytical tools acquired.
Specifically, the student will have to:
- show his capacity to deal with problem of construction and management of a standarized survey questionnaire;
- demonstrate his acquaintance with elementary techniques of univariate and bivariate data analysis;
- be able to interpret statistically and theoretically a trivariate cross tabulation.
Course program
The first module states the basic methodological assumptions of the social survey and illustrates the sampling and data gathering procedures, with a particular focus on the wording of questionnaires.
The second module discusses the basic procedures of univariate and bivariate data analysis, with applications and examples conducted with a data anlaysis software.
The third module is an introduction to multivariate data analysis, conducted by showing examples of trivariate crosstabulation techniques and discussing their logic and functions: examples are drawn with a data analysys software.