This directed independent study (DIS) course focused on the nature and use of qualitative research methods in library and information science, helping me to gain an understanding of and learn about general, epistemological, and ethical issues with qualitative research; methods of data collection; techniques for data analysis; and evaluation of qualitative research. Members of my committee may wish to review the request form and learning contract signed by myself and the instructors prior to the beginning of the DIS.
Reading lists
Before the semester started, I constructed a proposed reading list for the entire DIS; this was then amended as necessary. In particular, I proposed a set of remaining readings approximately midway through the semester, and around the same time added four readings on ethics that I read at the end of the semester.
Reading summaries
As part of the DIS I wrote a brief summary and analysis of each reading I read, with an eye towards relating readings to each other and to determining which readings would be most useful for other library and information science students or researchers interested in qualitative methods. Broken down by topic in the order they were read, these summaries are linked below.
- General
- Data collection, coding, and analysis (general issues in these areas)
- Reliability, validity, and evaluation
- Ethnography
- Interviews
- Case studies
- Ethnomethodology
- Grounded theory
- Hermeneutics
- Focus groups
- Content analysis
- Discourse analysis
- Ethics
Syllabus
The final project for my DIS in qualitative methods was a proposed syllabus for a seminar course in qualitative methods, to be presented to the Doctoral Program Team at the FSU School of Library and Information Studies for possible offering in future semesters. You can view the final version of the syllabus that I completed during the DIS.
