College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

Professor Graham Crow

Details of Professor Graham Crow's inaugural lecture.

Event details

Lecture title: "Community Research: A Field Full of Methods"

Date: 11 February 2014

Time: 5.15pm

Venue: Lecture Theatre 183, Old College, South Bridge, Edinburgh, EH8 9YL

Lecture abstract

In this lecture I will consider the field of community research as one in which a wide range of different research methods have been used. I will argue that this methodological diversity - ranging from surveys to ethnographies, from network mapping to the use of photography, from oral histories to policy analyses, and from interviews to archival work - is one of the strengths of the field. Just as no single key fits all locks, so no single method can provide answers to the full range of questions that it is important to ask about community life. In addition I will argue that the history of community research, including my own involvement in the field, confirms the value of taking an innovative approach when choosing which methods to use and how to combine them.

Lecture video