Data Lab

The Data Lab aims to provide students with knowledge of qualitative methods and with technical skills specifically related to designing and conducting interviews. In the first part, the Lab will focus on the principles of qualitative and ethnographic research, as well as on qualitative research questions and designs, drawing on numerous examples of completed studies and on the practical exercise planned during the Lab. Students will be encouraged to develop an interview guide on topics of their own interest and to conduct semi-structured interviews (2-3 interviews, individually or in groups depending on the number of attending students), thereby experimenting the most effective ways of accessing the field and learning the meaning of "active listening." The interviews collected through this exercise will then be analyzed in class, both to evaluate together the quality of the conducted interviews and to learn qualitative data analysis techniques. The exercise will also include a careful discussion of the ethical and deontological aspects inherent in qualitative and ethnographic research designs. The Lab will then move on to illustrate research designs based on interviews, once again allowing students to practice constructing a sampling framework, and will conclude with an in-depth exploration of how to effectively communicate research findings. The course will thus alternate between lecture-style sessions and hands-on, fieldwork-based lab activities, including discussion and group reflection.

At the end of the Data Lab, students will be able to:
- Identify the most appropriate qualitative research technique based on their research questions, and in particular the most suitable type of interview;
- Draft the guide for a semi-structured interview;
- Conduct a semi-structured interview;
- Develop the analysis of the interview;
- Develop a sampling strategy;
- Present the research findings in written and oral form.