Research Methods I:
Research Design
Crim 860 - Fall 2026
[Last updated 12 September 2026]
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11 September |
ORGANIZATIONAL
ISSUES * The Methods Stream(s) in SFU/Criminology * Get your free copies of NVivo (download) and SPSS (lab access) * Other software available to grad
students/faculty/staff
* Other funded opportunities for grad students to keep in mind |
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18
September |
WHY MIX METHODS IN CRIMINOLOGICAL RESEARCH? * Preface and Chapter 1 (Perspectives on Research) from
RMSHS * Sun & Benson (2023) Mixed methods: A
justification, explication and example |
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25
September |
GETTING STARTED: Scouting the Literature; Sampling * Brancati (2018) Conducting a Literature Review * Chapter 5 (Sampling &
Recruitment) from RMSHS * Casler
et al (2013) Comparing
participants from different online sources * Assignment
1: Complete the TCPS
ethics tutorial and/or send completion certificate to Palys before next
class *
Guest: Chris
Atchison |
|
02 October |
ETHICAL
ISSUES IN CRIMINOLOGICAL RESEARCH * Faria (2023) “Being” ethical in research * Palys & Lowman (2019) Eight challenges to research confidentiality in Canada * Whiteman (2007) “Just Chatting”: Research ethics and cyberspace * See the REB’s Consent Form Guidelines and Template and be ready to discuss |
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09 October |
OPERATIONALIZATION PART 1 * Chapter 14 (Analyzing Numerical
Data) from RMSHS * Bernard (2013) Scales
and Scaling * Muir
et al (2023) Violence risk
assessment tools and Indigenous Peoples. * Make
sure you have SPSS on your laptop before class * Assignment 2: Indexes and Scales * Guest: Maaike Helmus |
|
16 October |
EXPERIMENTAL
APPROACHES * Chapter 6
(Eliminating Rival Plausible Explanations: The Experiment) from RMSHS * Simpson (2024) Experimental methods in Criminology * Campbell & Stanley (1969) Sources
of Invalidity for Designs 1-6 * Guest:
Rylan Simpson |
|
23 October |
OPERATIONALIZATION
PART 2 *
Chapter 13 (Analyzing Nonnumerical Data) from RMSHS * Mardones-Bravo (2023) Online methods in
qualitative criminology *
Braun & Clarke (2021) Reflexive thematic
analysis * Make sure you have NVivo on your
laptop before class * Assignment 3: Thematic Coding |
|
30 October |
INTERACTIVE
TECHNIQUES: SURVEYS/INTERVIEWS/ORAL HISTORY *
Chapter 9 (Surveys & Questionnaires) and Chapter 10 (Interviews) from
RMSHS * Hesse-Biber & Leavy (2011) Oral history *
Dietzel et al (2025) AI
can affect anonymous surveys * Guest: Sheri Fabian |
|
06 November |
QUASI-EXPERIMENTATION,
CASE STUDIES, EVALUATION *
Chapter 7 (From Manipulative to Analytic Control: Quasi-Experimentation) from
RMSHS * Hutchinson (2019) Evaluation Failures: Conclusion * Campbell & Stanley (1969) Sources
of Invalidity for Designs 13-16 * Bula & Woo (2025) Vancouver
mayor credits 7-month police ‘surge’ in DES for declining crime rates *
Assignment 4: Explaining Design 15 CASE
STUDY APPROACHES *
Chapter 8 (Case Study Approaches) from RMSHS * Caita-Zufferey (2018) The
abductive art of discovery |
|
13 November |
CRITICAL
PERSPECTIVES ON RESEARCH DESIGN * Hall (2024) Using an IRM to Decolonize & Define Self-Determination and Indigenous Governance * Cunneen, Rowe & Tauri (2017) Indigenous Epistemologies and Methodologies *
Leimbach & Bögelein (2023) How to deal
with “doing social inequality” * Guest: Wenona Hall, Chair, SFU Department of Indigenous Studies |
|
20
November |
ETHNOGRAPHY
& COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACHES * Chapter 11 (Observation,
Ethnography and Participatory Action Research) from RMSHS * Oscar
et al (2018) Negotiations
and Research Bargains: Gaining Access * Godderis & Root (2023) Centering Reciprocity and Accountability in Community-Based
Research * Guest: Andrea Krüsi |
|
27
November |
DISSEMINATING
YOUR RESEARCH: Writing, Presenting, Media *
Chapter 15 (Disseminating Your Research) from RMSHS * Hewitt
et al (2016) The "Art" of Writing Papers for Criminology Journals * Liebenberg (2016) Writing
to Learn: Why We Should Write, Rewrite, and Rewrite Again * Sousa & Clark (2017) Getting the most out of academic conference attendance *
Reddick (2016) Using social media to promote scholarship * Guest: Chris Atchison, for a discussion about the future of academe |
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04
December |
PROJECT
PRESENTATIONS – Schedule/Format to be determined |