Information Package / Course Catalogue
| Political Science and International Relations | |||||
| Bachelor | Length of the Programme: 4 | Number of Credits: 240 | TR-NQF-HE: Level 6 | QF-EHEA: First Cycle | EQF: Level 6 |
Ders Genel Tanıtım Bilgileri
| School/Faculty/Institute | Faculty of Econ., Admin. and Social Sciences | ||||
| Course Code | POLS 429 | ||||
| Course Title in English | Logic and Practice of Social Scientific Methodology | ||||
| Course Title in Turkish | Logic and Practice of Social Scientific Methodology | ||||
| Language of Instruction | EN | ||||
| Type of Course | Flipped Classroom | ||||
| Level of Course | Advanced | ||||
| Semester | Spring | ||||
| Contact Hours per Week |
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| Estimated Student Workload | 130 hours per semester | ||||
| Number of Credits | 5 ECTS | ||||
| Grading Mode | Standard Letter Grade | ||||
| Pre-requisites | None | ||||
| Expected Prior Knowledge | None | ||||
| Co-requisites | None | ||||
| Registration Restrictions | Only undergraduate students. | ||||
| Overall Educational Objective | Upon successful completion of the course, the learner is expected to be able to: 1.To distinguish different research strategies and assess their strengths as well as weaknesses 2. To be equipped with the tools to conduct one’s own research 3. To identify the links between theoretical debates on research methods and different empirical strategies 4. To design a research in social sciences | ||||
| Course Description | This course will introduce students to the fundamentals of different empirical research methods in political science. We start with the basic philosophical debates regarding research paradigms, concept formation and measurement. After examining distinct stages (research question, literature review, proposal writing) in social science research we will discuss several quantitative and qualitative research techniques such as ethnography, surveys, archive reseach, large N analysis, content analysis. | ||||
| Course Description in Turkish | Siyaset biliminde ampirik araştırma metotlarının temellerinin tartışıldığı derse paradigma, kavram inşası ve ölçüm sorunlarıyla başlayacağız. Sosyal bilimler araştırmalarının araştırma sorusu, literatür taraması, araştırma önerisi gibi ayrı evrelerine odaklandıktan sonra etnografi, anket, arşiv çalışması, büyük N analizi, içerik analizi gibi bir dizi niceliksel ve niteliksel araştırma tekniğini ele alacağız |
Course Learning Outcomes and CompetencesUpon successful completion of the course, the learner is expected to be able to:1) To distinguish different research strategies and assess their strengths as well as weaknesses 2) To be equipped with the tools to conduct one’s own research 3) To identify the links between theoretical debates on research methods and different empirical strategies 4) Sosyal bilimlerde bir araştırma tasarlamak |
| Program Learning Outcomes/Course Learning Outcomes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1) Adequate knowledge of political history necessary to comprehend and effectively evaluate contemporary Political Science and International Relations issues. | ||||
| 2) Understanding of the fundamental concepts that exist in the fields of social and behavioral sciences as well as the correlation between these concepts | ||||
| 3) Ability to analyze the fundamental theories in the field Political Science and International Relations and to assess their reflections into practice | ||||
| 4) Ability to critically discuss different aspects of theories and developments in Political Science and International Relations both individually and in the course of group work during classroom discussions. | ||||
| 5) Ability to conduct research independently, or with a team, about the developments taking place in the international arena, make foreign policy analyses, develop research-based conflict resolution models, and prepare comprehensive reports using computers and relevant software | ||||
| 6) Ability to take decisions as well as to implement these decisions by using the knowledge about the field and the skills that have been acquired during the undergraduate studies | ||||
| 7) Ability to recognize the relations between scientific thought and ethical behavior; pay attention to being tolerant and properly defend different ideas, ideologies and belief systems | ||||
| 8) Ability to work in international institutions and multicultural environments, with the help of the knowledge on different cultures, societies, political systems as well as linguistic skills acquired during the undergraduate studies | ||||
| 9) Ability to display language skills in English at minimum B2 level enough for debating with colleagues on issues of Political Science and International Relations, and also display language skills in a second foreign language at minimum A2 level enough for communicating in daily life | ||||
| 10) Ability to pursue lifelong learning as well as perform advanced/graduate studies in the field Political Science and International Relations and other social sciences disciplines in academic institutions at home and abroad |
Relation to Program Outcomes and Competences
| N None | S Supportive | H Highly Related |
| Program Outcomes and Competences | Level | Assessed by | |
| 1) | Adequate knowledge of political history necessary to comprehend and effectively evaluate contemporary Political Science and International Relations issues. | N | |
| 2) | Understanding of the fundamental concepts that exist in the fields of social and behavioral sciences as well as the correlation between these concepts | H | Project |
| 3) | Ability to analyze the fundamental theories in the field Political Science and International Relations and to assess their reflections into practice | S | Project |
| 4) | Ability to critically discuss different aspects of theories and developments in Political Science and International Relations both individually and in the course of group work during classroom discussions. | S | Project |
| 5) | Ability to conduct research independently, or with a team, about the developments taking place in the international arena, make foreign policy analyses, develop research-based conflict resolution models, and prepare comprehensive reports using computers and relevant software | H | Project |
| 6) | Ability to take decisions as well as to implement these decisions by using the knowledge about the field and the skills that have been acquired during the undergraduate studies | N | |
| 7) | Ability to recognize the relations between scientific thought and ethical behavior; pay attention to being tolerant and properly defend different ideas, ideologies and belief systems | S | Project |
| 8) | Ability to work in international institutions and multicultural environments, with the help of the knowledge on different cultures, societies, political systems as well as linguistic skills acquired during the undergraduate studies | N | |
| 9) | Ability to display language skills in English at minimum B2 level enough for debating with colleagues on issues of Political Science and International Relations, and also display language skills in a second foreign language at minimum A2 level enough for communicating in daily life | S | Presentation |
| 10) | Ability to pursue lifelong learning as well as perform advanced/graduate studies in the field Political Science and International Relations and other social sciences disciplines in academic institutions at home and abroad | S | Project |
| Prepared by and Date | BARIŞ ÇETİN CAN EREN , January 2024 |
| Course Coordinator | CANSU GÜLEÇ |
| Semester | Spring |
| Name of Instructor | Öğr. Gör. BARIŞ ÇETİN CAN EREN |
Course Contents
| Week | Subject |
| 1) | The Motivation |
| 2) | Paradigms and Social Science Research |
| 3) | Facts and Interpretations |
| 4) | The process: Concept formation, operationalization and measurement |
| 5) | Proposal writing, Conducting Literature Reviews |
| 6) | Fieldwork |
| 7) | Historical Analysis |
| 8) | Örneklem ve Deney Metodu |
| 9) | Survey |
| 10) | Collecting data through qualitative methods |
| 11) | Research in the field of International Relations and Historical Analysis |
| 12) | Analysis of qualitative data |
| 13) | Nicel verinin analizi |
| 14) | Content Analysis |
| Required/Recommended Readings | • Almond, Gabriel; Stephen J. Genco. "Clouds, Clocks, and the Study of Politics" World Politics, Vol. 29, No. 4. (Jul., 1977), pp. 489-522 • Berg, B.L. Qualitative Research Methods • Darici, Haydar. 2011. Politics of privacy: forced migration and the spatial struggle of the Kurdish youth. Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies. Vol 13. No 4. • Hirschman, A. O., 1970 (April). “The Search for Paradigms as a Hindrance to Understanding,” World Politics, 22 (3): 329-43 • Howarth and Stavrakis. Introducing discourse theory and political analysis in Howarth, Norval and Stavrakis eds. Discourse Theory and Political Analysis. • Hyde, S.D. 2007. The Observer Effect in International Politics: Evidence from a Natural Experiment. World Politics. 60. • Jackman, Robert W. 1973. "On the Relation of Economic Development to Democratic Performance." American Journal of Political Science 17 (3):611-21. • Johnson, J. 2002. “How Conceptual Problems Migrate: Rational Choice, Interpretation, and the Hazards of Pluralism” Annual Review of Political Science, Volume 5, 223-248. • Lin, A. C. 1998. “Bridging Positivist and Interpretive Approaches to Qualitative Methods” Policy Studies Journal. 26(1): 162-180. • Lijphart, A. “The Comparable Cases Strategy in Comparative Research” Comparative Political Studies, 8: 158-177. • Manheim et al 2018, Empirical Political Analysis • Mitchell, A. 2013. “Escaping the ‘Field Trap’: Exploitation and the Global Politics of Educational Fieldwork in ‘conflict zones’” Third World Quarterly, 34(7): 1247-1264. • Putnam, Robert D. et al. 1983. "Explaining Institutional Success: The Case of Italian Regional Government." American Political Science Review 77 (1):55-74. • Schatz, E. 2009. Ethnographic Immersion and the Study of Politics. in Edward Schatz, ed., Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power • Tavits, M. 2007. Clarity of Responsibility and Corruption. American Journal of Political Science. Vol 51 No.1. • Tickner, J. A. (1995) What Is Your Research Program? Some Feminist Answers to International Relations Methodological Questions. International Studies Quarterly 49(1):1–22. • Trachtenberg. The Craft of International History. Chapter 7. Writing it Up. P. 183-197 • Waever, O. (1996) The Rise and Fall of the Inter-Paradigm Debate. In International Theory: Positivism and Beyond, edited by S.Smith, K.Booth, and M.Zalewski. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. • Wallace, W. (1996), ‘Truth and Power, Monks and Technocrats: Theory and Practice in International Relations’, Review of International Studies, 22/3: 301–21. • Wolin, Sheldon – Politics and Vision Chapter 1 - Political Philosophy and Philosophy • Wood, E.J. 2009. “Field Research” in Boix and Stokes eds. Oxford Handbook of Comparative Politics. • Zirakzadeh, C.E. 2010. “When Nationalists are not Separatists” in Edward Schatz, ed., Political Ethnography: What Immersion Contributes to the Study of Power (Chicago, 2009). | ||||||||||||||||||
| Teaching Methods | The course will be a combination of lectures and in class debates based on the reading material. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Homework and Projects | Students are expected conduct a research and will analyze its results in a research project submitted at the end of the semester | ||||||||||||||||||
| Laboratory Work | |||||||||||||||||||
| Computer Use | |||||||||||||||||||
| Other Activities | |||||||||||||||||||
| Assessment Methods |
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| Course Administration |
erenc@mef.edu.tr MEF university values academic integrity. Therefore, all students must understand the meaning and consequences of cheating, plagiarism and other academic offences under the code of student conduct and disciplinary procedures. Any improper behavior, academic dishonesty or plagiarism is subject to the YÖK Disciplinary Regulation. |
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ECTS Student Workload Estimation
| Activity | No/Weeks | Hours | Calculation | ||||
| No/Weeks per Semester | Preparing for the Activity | Spent in the Activity Itself | Completing the Activity Requirements | ||||
| Course Hours | 14 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 84 | ||
| Homework Assignments | 1 | 7 | 1 | 8 | |||
| Midterm(s) | 2 | 8 | 2 | 20 | |||
| Final Examination | 1 | 16 | 2 | 18 | |||
| Total Workload | 130 | ||||||
| Total Workload/25 | 5.2 | ||||||
| ECTS | 5 | ||||||