2026 (Current Year) 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 F1A
- Academic unit or major
- Graduate major in Social and Human Sciences
- Instructor(s)
- Akira Watanabe
- Class Format
- Lecture
- Media-enhanced courses
- -
- Day of week/Period
(Classrooms) - Class
- -
- Course Code
- SHS.P465
- Number of credits
- 100
- Course offered
- 2026
- Offered quarter
- 3Q
- Syllabus updated
- Mar 13, 2026
- Language
- Japanese
Syllabus
Course overview and goals
First of all, this course is about "area studies". The lecturer, who started his research career by studying Mexican democratisation in 1990s, is a political scientist by discipline, but also a "Latinoamericanist" who is quite interested in Mexican studies which includes not just the Mexican politics but other disciplines such as history, literature, economics, anthropology, sociology and even migration and food studies. (Well, and perhaps more importantly, the lecturer is language teacher, who teaches Spanish language, which he leant during his fieldwork to make a living!)
This course is also about fieldwork, because the fieldwork and area studies are closely related. The instructor will try to share his fieldwork experience with students so that we can discuss the importance of the fieldwork.
In this course I will be trying to encourage students to acquire more knowledge about the area studies and the fieldwork. The lecturer believes that, even if the students' own research topics are not so closely related to area studies, at least they should realize the importance of the "interdisciplinary approach", which is quite important in area studies. I will also try to share my experiences as a teacher and researcher and will be eager to learn from students' suggestions and experiences, too.
Course description and aims
Students are expected to understand what is "area studies" and to be able to deepen her or his own research with the help of interdisciplinary approach. Students are also expected to improve their understanding about fieldwork as a research method, which is closely related to "area studies", the main topic of the course.
Keywords
Area studies / Mexico / United States / Fieldwork / Political science / Migration studies
Competencies
- Specialist skills
- Intercultural skills
- Communication skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Practical and/or problem-solving skills
Class flow
The instructor will try to explain his own experience as a researcher and field worker, who has always given much importance in his field of research, Mexico, at least as much as his discipline as a researcher, the political science. The instructor is also planning to invite one or two guest speakers, who would kindly share their own experiences and point of view, and/or to encourage students to give presentations about their own research, to widen the vision of the participating students.
Course schedule/Objectives
| Course schedule | Objectives | |
|---|---|---|
| Class 1 | orientation |
To understand the concept of this course |
| Class 2 | What is the "Area Studies"? |
To understand the concept of "area studies" |
| Class 3 | What is "Fieldwork"? |
To understand the concept of "fieldwork" |
| Class 4 | Fieldwork on migration |
To understand the importance of fieldwork in research about migration |
| Class 5 | Fieldwork on politics |
To understand the importance of fieldwork in research about politics |
| Class 6 | Guest session |
To deepen the understanding of the importance of fieldwork from the lecture(s) by the guest(s) |
| Class 7 | Final remarks |
To wrap up what students have learned during the course |
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)
Students will be asked to read instructor's papers, most of which are available at: https://researchmap.jp/akira_watanabe.
As for the textbook for the "fieldwork" session, we will read the following:
Ishioka, T. "Introduction to Ethnography," Tokyo: Chikuma, 2024 (in Japanese).
I am looking for some other books that are good examples of "area studies".
Those two books are candidates at the moment of writing this syllabus (Feb. 2026):
Maeshima, K. "Cancel Culture: the US or the divided society" Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2022 (in Japanese).
Mimaki, S. "Z generation Americans" Tokyo: NHK publishing, 2023 (in Japanese).
Reference books, course materials, etc.
To be indicated during the class.
Evaluation methods and criteria
feedback: 50%, final essay: 50%
Related courses
- SHS.P463 ： Graduate Methodologies in Politics, Law and Administration S1A
- SHS.P464 ： Graduate Methodologies in Politics, Law and Administration S1B
- SHS.P466 ： Graduate Methodologies in Politics, Law and Administration F1B
Prerequisites
Anyone who is interested in the objects of the course and expects this couse are useful for their research are welcome, regardless of their discipline or experience. The class will be conducted in Japanese.
Other
The course will be conducted in person, but please expect that some of the sessions will be held virtual. The will be an 8th and extra session where those who are particularly interested in the topic we discussed during the course may attend (where the participation is not mandatory). It is also worth mentioning that this is the first year the lecturer emphasizes the "area studies" as the topic. Thus, this will be a new course and I have to warn you that the comments you will receive from those who have taken my previous courses are perhaps not very relevant. So, please read this syllabus carefully before take your decision. I repeat, I welcome those who can take advantage of this course, regardless of your own speciality.