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Monday 7 ꟷ Friday 11 February 2022
2 hours of live teaching per day
15:00 ꟷ 17:00 CET
VIR: This is a virtual course
This seminar-type course provides a highly interactive online teaching and learning environment, using state of the art online pedagogical tools. It is designed for a demanding audience (researchers, professional analysts, advanced students) and is capped at a maximum of 12 participants so that the Instructor can cater to the specific needs of each individual.
This course focuses on the use of digital technologies for qualitative data collection, from a conceptual to an applied perspective, including logistical, technical and ethical issues.
Its purpose is to provide hands-on training in online qualitative data collection methods, covering methodological and practical aspects of online focus groups, online interviewing and virtual ethnography (online fieldwork).
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
3 credits Engage fully with class activities
4 credits Complete a post-class assignment
Bojana Lobe is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, where she teaches various methods courses, including Social Science Data Collection and Digital Technologies.
Her research interests include online qualitative research methods, integration of qualitative and quantitative methods online, qualitative comparative analysis, and researching children’s experiences online with mixed methods.
She is the author of the book Integration of Online Research Methods and of several chapters and articles on conducting online focus groups and interviews. She is a member of the research programme Social Science Methodology, Statistics and Informatics at the University of Ljubljana.
Since 2006, Bojana has been actively involved in researching the experiences of children and young people with internet and digital technologies through various projects:
We look at digital technologies as a social science data collection tool and as a space for online social formations. We introduce online qualitative research methods. We look into various temporal dimensions (synchronous, asynchronous), platform- or app-specific formats (text-based, audio, video-based), and discuss pros and cons of online data collection in general.
We discuss fundamentals of focus groups as a group-dynamic based method. We learn how to design an online focus group, from selection, recruitment, research design issues, and number of participants to moderation issues and how to effectively prepare question guidelines for online focus groups. We compare various formats of online focus groups (text-based, video-based) and do a hands-on exercise: conducting online focus groups.
We cover fundamentals of qualitative interviewing. We learn how to design online interviews and how to prepare online interview questions. We tackle critical issues for successful online interviewing: absence of social context cues, building rapport online, how to build and sustain interaction and how to address trust issues online. We look into various formats of online interviewing (text-based, video-based, one-on-one, and dyadic, informal, in-depth, expert) and do a hands-on exercise: conducting online qualitative interviews.
We discuss fundamentals of fieldwork method. We learn how to design a study with online fieldwork, discuss various online fields (venues), how to choose sites, temporal dimensions of online fieldwork and participant observation, documenting online, asking questions online, issues of covert/overt online fieldwork. We do a hands-on exercise: conducting online fieldwork.
We discuss Flexible Online Mixed Methods, a combination of online qualitative methods with web surveys, etc. We review various technological platforms and engage in a critical ethical discussion, tackling key ethical concepts in online research, such as privacy, anonymity, confidentiality, data security, withdrawal, debriefing, informed consent.
Independent, pre-course stage starting two weeks prior to the course
Five live days
Any prior knowledge of qualitative methods is an asset, but by no means a requirement.
Independent, pre-course stage starting two weeks prior to the course