Interpretive Research Methods

Key topics covered

The course covers different interpretive methods. You will learn to ‘read’ texts while becoming familiar with contemporary thinking about interpretation, narrative, and discourse.

The course focuses on narrative method, hermeneutics, phenomenology, discourse analysis, deconstruction method and genealogy. Its six objectives are to:

1. Examine the scientific criteria of interpretive research to teach you the basics of formulating an interpretive research question
2. Introduce issues of conceptualisation, theory, research design, and strategies of framing questions and selecting cases
3. Help you organise and process material through interpretive coding strategies
4. Teach you how to choose the best interpretation strategy for your research question
5. Explain how to condense and present interpretations
6. Draw conclusions from interpretive analyses.

Monday: Introducing interpretive methods

1. Welcome
2. Interpretation of what? Asking the ‘right’ question of the ‘right’ material
3. Selecting and collecting data suited to interpretation
4. Introduction of written assignment
5. Group exercise

Tuesday: Interpretive strategies, positions and methods I ‐ Hands-on strategies for interpretation and analysis 

1. Narrative methods
2. What’s your unit of analysis? Organising your data
3. What’s in your data? Reading your data
4. Group exercise on narrative, interpretive research strategies

Wednesday: Interpretive strategies, positions and methods II ‐ Hands-on strategies for interpretation and analysis

1. Narrative methods
2. What’s your unit of analysis? Organising your data
3. What’s in your data? Reading your data
4. Group exercise on narrative, interpretive research strategies

Thursday: Interpretive strategies, positions and methods III ‐ Hands-on strategies for interpretation and analysis

1. Discourse analysis
2. How to make sense of it?
3. Sorting your data using interpretive research strategies
4. Group exercise on contextualised, interpretive research strategies

Friday: Condensing and presenting interpretations ‐ Drawing conclusions from interpretive analyses

1. Presentation of interpretive analyses
2. You only know what you (can) show – citations and displays
3. Scientific criteria
4. Documentation
5. Publication
6. Group exercise on conclusion-drawing and presentation of interpretive analysis

How the course will work online

Live classes will be held daily for three hours on Zoom, allowing you to interact with both the instructor and other participants in real-time.

The course includes pre- and post-class activities, along with in-class presentations.

Before the course, reading material and pre-recorded lectures will be available on the learning management system for you to access at your own pace. Send your topic-related questions in advance to the Instructor.

In-class activities include short lectures, peer feedback, group exercises and presentations.

After the course, you can create presentations supported by Instructor feedback on your projects.

The instructor will conduct live Q&A sessions and offer designated office hours for one-to-one consultations.

Prerequisite Knowledge

None, though basic knowledge of qualitative methodology and methods would be an advantage. The commitment time is approximately 45 hours, including readings and on-site participation.

Learning commitment

As a participant in this course, you will engage in a variety of learning activities designed to deepen your understanding and mastery of the subject matter. While the cornerstone of your learning experience will be the daily live teaching sessions, which total three hours each day across the five days of the course, your learning commitment extends beyond these sessions.

Upon payment and registration for the course, you will gain access to our Learning Management System (LMS) approximately two weeks before the course start date. Here, you will have access to course materials such as pre-course readings. The time commitment required to familiarise yourself with the content and complete any pre-course tasks is estimated to be approximately 20 hours per week leading up to the start date.

During the course week, you are expected to dedicate approximately two-three hours per day to prepare and work on assignments.

Each course offers the opportunity to be awarded three ECTS credits. Should you wish to earn a 4th credit, you will need to complete a post-course assignment, which will involve approximately 25 hours of work.

This comprehensive approach ensures that you not only attend the live sessions but also engage deeply with the course material, participate actively, and complete assessments to solidify your learning.

Disclaimer

This course description may be subject to subsequent adaptations (e.g. taking into account new developments in the field, participant demands, group size, etc.). Registered participants will be informed at the time of change.

By registering for this course, you confirm that you possess the knowledge required to follow it. The instructor will not teach these prerequisite items. If in doubt, please contact us before registering.