Postgraduate Module Descriptor

LAWM687: Socio-Legal Research Skills

This module descriptor refers to the 2022/3 academic year.

Module Aims

The module particularly aims to enable you to explain, critique, and apply core methods in socio-legal research to research problems. As such, it is essential preparation for the MRes dissertation. It will increase your abilities in respect to research design and methods, and through practising dissemination skills in individual and group contexts.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here - you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills1. demonstrate a good understanding of how differing research designs and methods can be applied to socio-legal research questions;
2. demonstrate an ability to critically evaluate the appropriateness and execution of research methods, design and analytical approaches in socio-legal contexts;
3. demonstrate awareness of the range of ethical issues involved in empirical research in law;
4. demonstrate awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of comparative and cross-cultural research.
Discipline-Specific Skills5. demonstrate knowledge and apply sensible choices about research design to a research question;
6. critically evaluate research design, methods, and analytical choices in empirical research;
7. demonstrate a knowledge of the key steps in delivering a research project deploying core methods, including understanding quantitative and qualitative data analysis, and to make effective choices about data analysis.
Personal and Key Skills8. use IT effectively and appropriately to help analyse data from a variety of sources;
9. critically reflect on research design, data collection and analysis;
10. write up and present research findings in a systematic way.