BU Research Blog

(l. to r.) Louise Oliver, Jo Thurston, Karen Cooper & Mandy Podee

Four  Health & Social Sciences post-grads (Karen Cooper, Louise Oliver, Mananya Podee & Joanna Thurston), Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, have just published an article in the Sociological Imagination blog.  All at similar stages in the PhD process, they have banded together to form a Methodological Study Group, at the recommendation of their supervisor. In their article for the Sociological Imagination, the four report on:

1. How the idea for the Methodology Study came about? Had they been involved in any projects like this previously?
2. Are there elements of method that they share in common? How does this help the group to move forward?
3. One particularly interesting aspect of the project is their relationship between each other, each other’s work and their own thesis. Have links developed?
4. What advice would they give to social scientists interested in using a similar study group? How can this format help postgrad students particularly to develop methodology?
5. How has working in a study group made in easier to return to working alone and in isolation? Or have they found an answer to this in the group process itself?

Supervisor, Dr Kip Jones said, “All four are involved in one way or another under the broad umbrella of Narrative Research. This has been key to providing a platform and common interest to hold the group together and make it a productive one in a very short time.  My job was to suggest the Study Group and format, then stay out of the way. This format has proved successful”.

Read the article here.