The NSF Summer Institute
Right on the
Off on its own private island, just like
A picture of the Duke Marine lab taken from the sound side.
Co-Directed by Jeffrey C.
Johnson (East Carolina University), Susan Weller (University of Texas Medical
Branch at Galveston), and H. Russell Bernard (U. of Florida) the Institute
takes place over the first three weeks of August and is held at the campus of
the Duke University Marine Laboratory in Beaufort, North Carolina. The Lab is
located on
Descriptions and Objectives
The National Science Foundation Summer Institute for Research Design in Cultural Anthropology will bring together area experts and Ph.D. students for three weeks of intensive study on issues in research design. Cultural anthropology practitioners utilize a vast repertoire of both theories and methodological approaches in the course of their ethnographic research. Such eclecticism often obscures the common elements underlying the research process, the link between theory and method, and other design issues (e.g., identifying and minimizing threats to validity).
The overall goal of the Institute is to provide students with a meaningful experience that will advance science in cultural anthropology both now and well into the next century. The primary objectives of the Institute are:
To provide Ph.D. students in cultural anthropology with a basic understanding
of the link between theory and
scientific methodology in cultural anthropology.
To improve a student's ability to develop and write a scientifically well conceived research proposal.
To provide students with basic scientific research knowledge and skills
for solving a variety of research design
problems.
Russell Bernard and Jeff Johnson thrill students with their stories about the wild world of Network Analysis.
I tend to get a little goofy
whenever Russ Bernard shows students
the virtues Another exciting day of
learning at the NSF
there's a camera
around.
of Social Network
analysis.
Summer Institute.
The three pictures above were blatantly stolen from Stephen E. Tulley's web page.
Course Content
Course content will cover a broad spectrum of research design issues, but with a heavy emphasis on the link between theory and method. Some of the topics covered include:
(1) the link between theory and the development of research objectives, concepts, definitions, variables, measures, and hypotheses;
(2) research design and threats to validity
(3) the relationship between quantitative and qualitative approaches within the ethnographic context;
(4) systematic data collection procedures;
(5) probability and non-probability sampling;
(6) statistical distributions and elementary data analysis with an emphasis on concepts (e.g., sampling distribution theory);
(7) introduction to data structures and management in both a qualitative and quantitative context;
(8) text and narrative data collection and analysis;
(9) hypothesis testing using both qualitative and quantitative data;
(10) research proposal
development.
Mike Burton and Susan Weller
instruct students on Systematic Data Collection.
Jeff finds that teaching Network Analysis during Happy Hour is futile.
Sue Weller and Russ Bernard look on as students make their
first attempts at pile sorting.
A shot of some of the students working
on their projects in the computer lab.
2006 Summer Institute Information
Co-Directed by Jeffrey C.
Johnson (East Carolina University), Susan Weller (University of Texas Medical
Branch at Galveston), and H. Russell Bernard (U. of Florida) the Institute will
be three weeks in duration and will be held at the campus of the Duke
University Marine Laboratory in Beaufort, North Carolina. The Lab is located on
Applications and Eligibility
All Ph.D. students in cultural/social anthropology programs are eligible. Students who are in the process of developing dissertation projects or preparing dissertation proposals are particularly encouraged to apply. Applications should include a letter describing student's research interests and experience, a vitae, and a list of doctoral advisor(s). Application deadline is April 1, 2006.
Send applications by post or e-mail to:
Jeffrey C. Johnson
Institute for Coastal and
Marine Resources
East
(252) 328-1753
JOHNSONJE@MAIL.ECU.EDU
Click here to see
pictures of past participants of the NSF Summer Institute
Click
here to visit the NSFIRD Yahoo site created by the 2001 Crew.
Click here to return to my
entrance page
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science
Foundation under Grant No. BCS-0139293.
Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recomendations expressed in this
material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect views of the
National Science Foundation (NSF).