Social Research Methods and Techniques

To transform reality, it is essential to have critical theories and powerful and diverse research methods.

The strength of critical thinking in Latin America and the Caribbean is based on a deep and vast methodological tradition that has successfully combined the advances of the social sciences with a commitment to social change, justice, and equality.

The diverse research methods used by researchers in the field of Social Sciences are a fundamental tool for documenting and making intelligible the social injustices and vulnerabilities experienced by our communities. Specialization continues and strengthens the trajectory of methodological rigor that critical research in our continent has maintained since its inception, enabling new generations to adopt these methods and techniques and apply them creatively in the production of social research that contributes to academic, social, and political debates for social change.

The purpose of the specialization and the international course is to:

• To provide a renewed overview of current methodological debates in the social sciences for a critical approach to social research and the construction of knowledge in the social sciences.
• To improve students' ability to formulate research projects.
• To update students on the use of research designs and techniques, contributing to improving the quality of their academic research.

The specialization and international course are aimed at undergraduate and postgraduate students in social sciences; researchers in training and professors and teachers interested in deepening and updating their knowledge and methodological skills for social research.

The specialization will last one year and requires for its accreditation the completion of the international course "Methodological problems and construction of scientific-social knowledge", 2 mandatory workshops, 2 optional seminars from the curriculum offer and the preparation of a final paper.

El curso internacional tendrá una duración de 12 meses y requiere para su acreditación la participación semanal en los foros de discusión.

Students will have the support of tutors who will accompany them through the virtual seminars and guide them in completing the final projects.

Once the seminars have concluded, students will have four months to submit their final project. If they have not yet completed a course, they will also have four months to complete the outstanding coursework.

Summary: This course aims to provide a contemporary perspective on methodological debates in the social sciences and to delve into the most widely used methods and techniques in this scientific field. To this end, a group of specialists has been invited to share their knowledge, insights, and experiences on each of these topics, which will then be systematically revisited in the Specialization Seminars.

Classes and teachers:

1. Epistemological Foundations of Contemporary Social Research – Sara Victoria Alvarado (Colombia)
2. Contemporary Methodological Debates – Irene Vasilachis (Argentina)
3. Methodological triangulation – Juan Piovani (Argentina)
4. How to make social science concepts observable - Fernando Cortés Alberto (Mexico)
5. Social surveys and their uses – Rosa María Rubalcava (Mexico)
6. Case studies and comparison – Alberto Riella (Uruguay)
7. Ethnography and reflexivity: the researcher as a tool of knowledge – Rosana Guber (Argentina)
8. The interview and its possibilities – Joan Miquel Verd (Spain)
9. Focus groups – Manuel Canales (Chile)
10. Biographical research – Ernesto Meccia (Argentina)
11. Big data and social research – Paolo Parra Saiani (Italy)
12. Ethics and social research – Marcos Supervielle (Uruguay)