Oberlin College and Conservatory

Professor Christie Parris

Fall 2025

Table of Contents:

Syllabus

SOCI 301 - Social Research Methods Syllabus Fall 2025.pdf

SOCI 302 Syllabus Fall 2025.pdf

Overview

“This course introduces students to the analytical logic and skills required for research in sociology. We will cover every step of the sociological research process, including crafting a research question, using library resources, creating data collection instruments (e.g., surveys and in-depth interviews), analyzing data and interpreting findings, and presenting findings to peers. Students will develop their own mixed-methods project and collect and analyze data accordingly. We will also focus on the importance of data literacy, as many of you do not wish to become statisticians. This includes the evaluation of the appropriateness, reliability, and accuracy of different types of information; development of familiarity with sources of available data; generation of new data; and interpretation of empirical information within a theoretical framework.

                                                                                                                                                                                                               -Oberlin SOCI Department

Learning Goals

• Use library databases to locate scholarly sources
• Obtain qualitative data by conducting in-depth interviews
• Access and process quantitative survey data (secondary sources)
• Code and analyze qualitative interview data
• Calculate and interpret univariate and bivariate statistics
• Organize quantitative and qualitative research findings into a coherent oral and visual presentation

Relevant Work