Paul Atkinson

George Gaskell

Martin W Bauer

`This excellent text will introduce advanced students - and remind senior researchers - of the availability of a broad range of techniques available for the systematic analysis of social data that is not numeric. It makes the key point that neither quantitative nor qualitative methods are interpretive and at the same time demonstrates once and for all that neither a constructivist perspective nor a qualitative approach needs to imply abandonment of rigor. That the chapters are written by different authors makes possible a depth of expertise within each that is unusually strong' - Susanna Hornig Priest, Texas A&M University; Author of `Doing Media Research' Qualitative Researching with Text, Image and Sound off

A Practical Handbook for Social Research

Qualitative Researching with Text, Image and Sound

John Durant

Martin W. Bauer

A comprehensive assessment of European public opinion and biotechnology. It brings together comparative research on policy making, media coverage and public perceptions. This book is the major output from a three-year research initiative undertaken by an international, multidisciplinary team of social scientists. Following an introductory conceptualisation of biotechnology in the public sphere, Part Two brings together information on the policy activity, media coverage and public perceptions of biotechnology in European countries. Part Three is a detailed analysis of a major European survey of public perceptions. Part Four brings together the three elements of the research and provides a synthetic overview of the development of public perceptions of biotechnology in Europe.

A European Sourcebook

Biotechnology in the Public Sphere

`This excellent text will introduce advanced students - and remind senior researchers - of the availability of a broad range of techniques available for the systematic analysis of social data that is not numeric. It makes the key point that neither quantitative nor qualitative methods are interpretive and at the same time demonstrates once and for all that neither a constructivist perspective nor a qualitative approach needs to imply abandonment of rigor. That the chapters are written by different authors makes possible a depth of expertise within each that is unusually strong' - Susanna Hornig Priest, Texas A&M University; Author of `Doing Media Research' Qualitative Researching with Text, Image and Sound offers a unique resource for today's social researcher. This practical handbook provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to a broad range of research methods with the objective of clarifying procedures, good practice and public accountability. Following an introduction which discusses quality and quantity, and how these relate to issues of representation and knowledge interests in social research, the book is organized into four parts: · Part I covers different ways of collecting data and different types of data relating to text, image and sound: corpus construction, individual and group interviewing, narrative and episodic interviewing, video and film, and bemetology. · Part II introduces the main analytic approaches for text, image and sound: classical content analysis, argumentation, discourse, conversation analysis, rhetoric, semiotics, analysis of moving images, and of noise and music - each includes an introduction with examples and step-by-step advice on how to do it. · Part III covers computer-assisted analysis - including computer-assisted qualitative data analysis and key-word-in-context analysis. · Part IV addresses issues of good practice, looking at problems and fallacies in interpretation and develops quality criteria for qualitative research. This book provides researchers with the skills and knowledge to make the appropriate choices between different methods, types of data, and analytic procedures, and gives examples and criteria of good practice for each one. It will be essential reading for students and researchers across the social sciences.

Jaan Valsiner

Gordon Sammut

Eleni Andreouli

Provides the requisite theoretical and methodological guidelines for undertaking social research addressing relevant contemporary social issues.

The Cambridge Handbook of Social Representations

The impact of genomics on society has been the focus of debate and conflict across the world. Contrasting views of risks and benefits, trust in science and regulation, the understanding of science, media coverage and mobilization of the public by civil society groups all have been cited as drivers of public opinion. The long running controversy is a signal that the public's view cannot be ignored in the development and implementation of new technologies arising out of genomics such as agricultural biotechnologies, genetic testing and the uses of genetic information, the cloning of human cells and tissues and transgenic animals. Written by a progressive international group of social scientists from Europe, North America and Japan, this volume presents a series of comparative perspectives on the social, ethical and legal implications of genomics. The result is a book which encapsulates the lessons to be learned from the controversies of the 1990s and raises the level of debate on the societal implications of new developments in genomics.

George Gaskell

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