SHORT COURSE: Research Design in Qualitative Social Inquiry

[Guest guest]

AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH CENTRE IN SEX, HEALTH & SOCIETY

SHORT COURSE: Research Design in Qualitative Social Inquiry

DATES

2 - 6 September 2002

VENUE

La Trobe University, 1st floor, 215 lin Street, Melbourne Vic 3000

Australia

The Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe

University, offers a Short Course in Research Design in Qualitative Social

Inquiry to interested health professionals working in the public and

community sectors in Australia and from abroad.

The Short Course focuses on the principles and practices of designing social

and behavioural research, particularly using qualitative methodology.

THE CENTRE

The Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society at La Trobe

University, Melbourne, has a world-class reputation for social research on

sexual health, STIs and HIV/AIDS.

The Short Course recognises the need for applied research by public sector

and community sector agencies, and calls on the extensive experience of the

Centre in the conduct of social and behavioural research.

Agencies in the public and community sectors need to exert more research

effort in support of programs and in understanding whether program

objectives are being met. Research to meet these needs is now often

commissioned or 'contracted-out'. As a consequence, developing research

proposals and undertaking research proposal assessment is becoming an

important aspect of many agencies' activities.

Research has become particularly important in the fields of health promotion

and in policy formation, evaluation and outcomes measurement. The recent

demand for social and behavioural research in HIV/AIDS has stimulated an

increasing amount of research on sexuality and sexual health, and this

research has led to developments in research design and methodology, which

in turn is being called upon by researchers in allied fields.

WHY AN EMPHASIS ON RESEARCH DESIGN?

Much of the research knowledge and expertise in public and community

agencies has been developed through staff attending courses in research

methodology as part of professional training. These courses only rarely

address the foundational and preliminary stages of the research process -

the steps in project design.

With the increasing importance of research in the public and community

sectors, it is important to receive training not just in how to do research

(eg. designing a survey; conducting an interview) but also in applying

principles of good design in research. This can mean that research projects

are better geared to the needs of organisations and their clientele. It is

also important to understand the principles of research design in developing

objective criteria against which proposals can be assessed.

Issues of research design included in the Short Course are:

Selecting a research topic by identifying a general social problem, issue or

concern and refining it into a specific topic or focus.

Developing and clarifying such issues as:

- specific research aims and purposes

- populations, samples, or target group(s) to be involved in the research

- audience(s) for the research

- resources required for the research, including potential collaborators

- research outcomes and applications

- research project planning and management

- dissemination of findings

It is only at this point in the research process that questions of research

methodology, methods, and project implementation and management can be

addressed

WHAT DOES THE COURSE CONTAIN?

The Short Course builds upon the emphasis on research design by covering the

following:

- Capacities and objectives of social and behavioural research

- Strengths and weaknesses of qualitative and quantitative methodologies

- Applied social research in sexual health and related fields (including

HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis and STIs)

- The relationship between difficult health problems and do-able research

projects

- Research questions

- Methodology and its methods

- Uses of the literature

- Research ethics

- Practical research management

- Dissemination of findings

- Collaboration with affected communities

Morning sessions are devoted to presentations, with input from staff and

specialists. Afternoons are devoted to workshops where participants are

expected to design potential projects of their own, suitable to their

organisations and clientele. At the conclusion of the Short Course,

participants can aim to have a practical research proposal developed to the

point where it can be taken back to agencies to be considered for

implementation.

WHO WILL TEACH THE COURSE?

Associate Professor Dowsett, Deputy Director of Australian Research

Centre in Sex, Health & Society and Convenor of the Short Course.

WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THE COURSE?

Teaching is at a postgraduate level, and participants who will benefit from

this course are likely to have a degree in a related field or experience in

working in the public and community sectors in commissioning, designing,

assessing, evaluating, or using social and behavioural research in their

day-to-day work, as either health policy developers, health promotion

experts or educators.

No formal training in research methods as such is required, but an interest

in, and an understanding of, social research will be important.

A certificate of attendance is issued to course participants.

Participants who secure places in the course are provided with a reading

list to be discussed during the course.

REGISTRATION FEE

AU$1320.00* includes all course materials, lunch and morning and afternoon

tea for this five day course. A deposit of AU$300 is required in order to

reserve a place. Full payment of the registration fee must be received by 2

August 2002. *Fee inclusive of GST

Participants are advised to apply as soon as possible as enrolment will be

strictly limited to 15 places. Please forward this form with your payment to:

Short Course 2002, Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society

La Trobe University, 1st Floor, 215 lin Street, Melbourne Vic 3000

AUSTRALIA

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

Tel: +61 3 9285 5382

Fax: +61 3 9285 5220

Email: arcshspa@...

www.latrobe.edu.au/arcshs/

SHORT COURSE 2002 SCHOLARSHIPS

The following scholarships will be offered for the Research Design In

Qualitative Social Inquiry short course in 2002.

FULL SCHOLARSHIP FOR PARTICPANT FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRY

A full scholarship will be awarded to a participant from a developing

country who is working for a non-Government organisation in a field related

to this short course. The scholarship covers the full course fee, economy

airfares, and accommodation for seven nights.

Applicants should meet Australian Government Requirements for permission to

enter and study in Australia. If you are interested in applying you should

submit a one-page outline listing your qualifications and describing the

organisation you work for, your role within the organisation, and the reasons

why you should be awarded the scholarship.

HALF SCHOLARSHIP FOR AUSTRALIAN STUDENTS

A second scholarship covering half the course fee will be awarded to an

Australian student currently undertaking postgraduate studies in a field

related to this short course.

Applicants should submit a one-page outline of their academic history and

explain why they should be awarded this scholarship.

To be eligible for this scholarship applicants must be Australian citizens

or permanent residents.

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Myall

Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society

La Trobe University

1st floor, 215 lin Street

Melbourne Vic 3000 Australia

Ph: +61 3 9285 5103

Fax: +61 3 9285 5220

Email: ARCSHSPA@...

http://www.latrobe.edu.au/arcshs

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