Discourse Analysis (519X8)
Discourse Analysis
Module 519X8
Module details for 2024/25.
15 credits
FHEQ Level 7 (Masters)
Module Outline
This module offers a hands-on introduction to contemporary research strategies that deal with the phenomenon of discourse and its implications in political life (especially in politics and international relations). In the first part we examine how specific researchers have used discourse to analyse the production of meaning, ideology and power in contemporary politics. The approaches examined here include content analysis, discourse analytical approaches based on archeology & genealogy, discursive institutionalism. The aim is not to offer an in-depth introduction to the theoretical underpinnings of these approaches, but to familarise students with their principles and techniques, and help them decide whether, why and how they can use them for the purposes of their own research projects. In the second part, we examine how large textual bodies can be collated, managed and analysed. This part consists of a hands-on project, where students use the Nexis database and the qualitative analysis software Nvivo to develop and present findings related to their own research area.
Module learning outcomes
1. Summarise the main differences between discourse analysis and 'traditional' social scientific approaches to textual material
2. Utilise the concepts and techniques of discourse analysis when approaching different types of text
3. Explain how discourse analytic claims might be validated
4. Evaluate the usefulness of discourse analysis as an approach to research in terms of both its practical and theoretical aspects
| Type | Timing | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Report (3000 words) | Semester 2 Assessment Week 2 Thu 16:00 | 100.00% |
Timing
Submission deadlines may vary for different types of assignment/groups of students.
Weighting
Coursework components (if listed) total 100% of the overall coursework weighting value.
| Term | Method | Duration | Week pattern |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Semester | Workshop | 3 hours | 00000000010 |
| Spring Semester | Seminar | 3 hours | 00000011101 |
How to read the week pattern
The numbers indicate the weeks of the term and how many events take place each week.
Mx Emilia Moscardini-Powers
Assess convenor
/profiles/214700
Ms Hannah Leigh
Assess convenor
/profiles/272279
Prof Stefan Elbe
Assess convenor
/profiles/174796
Dr Melanie Richter-Montpetit
Assess convenor
/profiles/349663
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