2021 Faculty Courses School of Environment and Society Department of Social and Human Sciences Graduate major in Social and Human Sciences

Graduate Methodologies in Politics, Law and Administration S1

Academic unit or major: Graduate major in Social and Human Sciences
Instructor(s): Shinji Kawana / Takeshi Nakajima
Class Format: Lecture
Media-enhanced courses: -
Day of week/Period (Classrooms): 3-4 Fri
Class: -
Course Code: SHS.P461
Number of credits: 200
Course offered: 2021
Offered quarter: 1-2Q
Syllabus updated: Jul 10, 2025
Language: Japanese

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

【１Q】
Understanding the methods in the fields of social science, political science, law and public administration.
Understanding basics of public survey and its research design, designing practical survey plan.

【２Q】
We represent others through fieldworks and observations. And we analyze and describe various phenomena based on an academic point of view. However, in this act, dangerous violence is hidden. In this class, we think about the problem of "knowledge and power". And we think the possibility and problem of representation.

Course description and aims

【１Q】
About social science : discussing, understanding, expressing on recent public survey of social science. Students will be able to design research plan, make participants to understood the intention and improve the plan considering feedback by participants.

【２Q】
１, Understand the difficulty of representing others and know the danger.
２, Understand about “knowledge and power” and develop the ability to apply to specific policy.

Keywords

【１Q】
case study, research design

【２Q】
Representation of others, Knowledge and power

Competencies

Specialist skills
Intercultural skills
Communication skills
Critical thinking skills
Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

【１Q】
students can study about the methodlogy of social science.

【２Q】
Combining class and discussion

Course schedule/Objectives

	Course schedule	Objectives
Class 1	introduction	none
Class 2	epistemology	Understanding textbooks（in Japanese）
Class 3	hypothesis, method, theory	Understanding textbooks（in Japanese）
Class 4	explanation	Understanding textbooks（in Japanese）
Class 5	induction, deduction, abduction	Understanding textbooks（in Japanese）
Class 6	process tracing	Understanding textbooks（in Japanese）
Class 7	case study	Understanding textbooks（in Japanese）
Class 8	fieldwork	Learn about fieldwork
Class 9	Agency, daily practice, resistance	Learn about the subject
Class 10	Politics and subject	Learn about fieldwork from Delhi slum cases
Class 11	Representation of the Vulnerable- Subaltern Studies	Learn about Subaltern Studies
Class 12	Representation of culture, Representation of tradition	Edward W. Said "Orientalism"
Class 13	Gender / Sexuality	Learn about Gender / Sexuality
Class 14	Summary	Summary and discussion

Study advice (preparation and review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

see Japanese

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Temporary distributed.

Evaluation methods and criteria

【1Q】
class discussion(60%) and presentation(40%).

【2Q】
class discussion(40%) and report (60%)

Related courses

SHS.P441 ： Graduate Lecture in Politics, Law and Administration S1A
SHS.P442 ： Graduate Lecture in Politics, Law and Administration S1B
SHS.P443 ： Graduate Lecture in Politics, Law and Administration F1A
SHS.P444 ： Graduate Lecture in Politics, Law and Administration F1B
SHS.P462 ： Graduate Methodologies in Politics, Law and Administration F1

Prerequisites

It is desirable to have certain knowledge about social science

Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).

shinji.kawana[at]ila.titech.ac.jp
tnakajima[at]ila.titech.ac.jp

Other

Be sure to prepare the textbooks.