Qualitative Interviewing: Making Sense of Faith and Politics
SOCIOL 1207
Subject & Catalog Number
Course Information
Description
Few topics are as controversial and difficult to discuss as religion and politics. And yet, for many people, these concepts are central to how they understand themselves, their communities, and public life. As sociologists, we have tools to approach such charged topics respectfully and systematically through in-depth interviewing. This course introduces students to qualitative interviewing as a central methodology in sociology, with a substantive focus on religion and politics. Students will develop their own interview guides, conduct in-depth interviews with clergy in local faith communities, and collaboratively code and analyze their findings. We will also discuss topics such as building rapport, research ethics, and using qualitative data analysis software (i.e. NVivo). At the end of the course, students will use a shared dataset of coded interview responses to produce their own analyses to make original arguments about the intersections of faith and political life.
Class Notes
This course counts toward the Certificate for Civic Engagement (CCE), within the Mindich Program in Engaged Scholarship (MPES). The Certificate for Civic Engagement recognizes Harvard College students who have demonstrated sustained participation in public service and civic involvement during their undergraduate experience.
Recommended Prep
SOCIOL 1128: Models of Social Science Research
Not Available for Cross Registration
