TYPE OF COURSE UNIT	Compulsory Course
LEVEL OF COURSE UNIT	Bachelor's Degree
YEAR OF STUDY	2
SEMESTER	Third Term (Fall)
NUMBER OF ECTS CREDITS ALLOCATED	5
NAME OF LECTURER(S)	Associate Professor Haluk Karadağ
LEARNING OUTCOMES OF THE COURSE UNIT	At the end of this course, the students; 1) think systematically about issues, problems, puzzles, and questions relating to the political world 2) read, understand, and evaluate the academic literature that uses various research methods; 3) design and conduct their own research, which might be required by more advanced undergraduate and graduate courses. 4) Develop awareness of research ethics and apply it in their research and academic life.
MODE OF DELIVERY	Face to face
PRE-REQUISITES OF THE COURSE	No
RECOMMENDED OPTIONAL PROGRAMME COMPONENT	There is no recommended optional programme component for this course.
COURSE DEFINITION	The main objective of this research methods course is to make undergraduate students familiar with the philosophy of science, research design, research method traditions, and various data collection techniques in the International Relations and Political Science disciplines. The course is divided into three parts. We begin with an overview of key issues in the philosophy of social science (the problems of what we can know and how we can know it, in politics and in general). We, next, engage in the `how to? of research: how to find and formulate a good research question; how to engage with literature; how to construct a theoretical framework, and how to define concepts that provide help in answering the questions. Then, we examine qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-method approaches and overview various methods of data collection and analysis that can be used to answer research questions and discuss their strengths and weaknesses.
COURSE CONTENTS	WEEK TOPICS 1st Week Introduction of the Course and Course Policies 2nd Week Philosophy of Social Science and Social Science Research 3rd Week Formulating Good/Interesting Research Questions 4th Week Formulating Good/Interesting Research Questions 5th Week Research Design and Finding Answers: Conceptual/Theoretical Framework, Hypothesis, and How to Apply Them 6th Week Research Design and Finding Answers: Conceptual/Theoretical Framework, Hypothesis, and How to Apply Them 7th Week Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches in Social Science Research 8th Week Midterm Exam 9th Week Case Study 10th Week Interviewing and Focus Groups 11th Week Interviewing and Focus Groups 12th Week Quantitative Content Analysis 13th Week Quantitative Content Analysis 14th Week Experiments and Surveys
RECOMENDED OR REQUIRED READING	Halperin, Sandra, and Oliver Heath. 2020. Political Research: Methods and Practical Skills. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
PLANNED LEARNING ACTIVITIES AND TEACHING METHODS	Lecture
ASSESSMENT METHODS AND CRITERIA	Quantity Percentage(%) Mid-term 1 40 Quiz 1 20 Total(%) 60 Contribution of In-term Studies to Overall Grade(%) 60 Contribution of Final Examination to Overall Grade(%) 40 Total(%) 100
ECTS WORKLOAD	Activities Number Hours Workload Midterm exam 1 1 1 Preparation for Quiz Individual or group work 14 2 28 Preparation for Final exam 1 37 37 Course hours 14 3 42 Preparation for Midterm exam 1 35 35 Laboratory (including preparation) Final exam 1 1 1 Homework Presentation (including preperation) 1 8 8 Total Workload 152 Total Workload / 30 5,06 ECTS Credits of the Course 5
LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION	English
WORK PLACEMENT(S)	No