Social Science Methods
Short description
This research seminar series focuses on methodological approaches in the social sciences, with a particular emphasis on methods that are less commonly used or that cut across disciplinary traditions.
About the seminar series
Each seminar is devoted to a single method, where the presenter shares experiences of applying it in practice, reflects on its strengths and potential applications, and discusses its limitations and challenges. The point of departure for the seminar can be a published paper, an ongoing project, or a more speculative exploration.
The aim of the series is to foster methodological exchange across subject areas and to stimulate critical engagement with approaches that bridge or transcend conventional divides between qualitative and quantitative research. By engaging with alternative ways of doing research, the seminar offers a space for critical reflection, inspiration, and methodological innovation.
When and where
Unless otherwise noted, all seminars will be held in room F417, Skanstorget 18
Seminars will be held in English unless otherwise noted.
Papers are distributed latest one week in advance if not otherwise noted.
Upcoming seminars: Spring 2026
12 February: Introduction to R
Presenter: Anne Laure Humbert
Title: Introduction to R for Social Sciences
When: 13:15-16:15.
Where: F417 (Department of Sociology and Work Science)
This three-hour workshop offers an introductory, hands-on overview of R for staff and students in the social sciences. No prior knowledge of R is required. The session will be led by Anne Laure Humbert.
The workshop will guide participants through installing R and RStudio, working with Quarto to organise projects and run code, installing and managing packages, and using core elements of R syntax. Practical exercises will cover loading data, producing descriptive tables and visualisations, and estimating basic statistical models such as linear regression.
The event is free of charge, but registration via Eventbrite is required: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/introduction-to-r-for-social-sciences-tickets-1977714419066?aff=oddtdtcreator. Participants are advised to bring a laptop with R and RStudio pre-installed; instructions will be circulated in advance. The seminar will be held in English.
Anne Laure Humbert is a researcher in gender equality, intersectionality, and quantitative social science at the University of Gothenburg. More about Anne: https://www.intersectionalytics.com/author
13 March: Ethnographic Methods
When: 13:15-15:00
Where: Lilla Skansen, entrance via Sprängkullsgatan 19.
This seminar brings together three researchers working with ethnographic methods in sensitive, complex, and digitally mediated fields. Through concrete research examples, the session will explore questions of access, trust, and methodological positioning in contemporary ethnography.
Participants
Sara Uhnoo is Docent and Senior Lecturer in Sociology. Her presentation focuses on court ethnography, with particular attention to strategies for gaining and sustaining different levels of access to sensitive trials and judicial deliberations. She will discuss how trust is established and maintained in legally and ethically constrained research settings. Her recent book is Challenging legal core values: Consent-based rape legislation in practice (with Åsa Wettergren and Maria Bladini, Bristol University Press, 2025).
Tove Gustavsson is a PhD student in Sociology at Lund University. She will present her doctoral research on social interaction and control in cryptoforums on the Darknet, based on digital ethnographic methods. The talk will discuss cultural and technological access, including the skills and infrastructures required to enter distrustful online communities, and reflect on how methodological preparedness enables credibility and field access.
Phil Creswell is Senior Lecturer at the Department of Sociology and Work Science. His contribution reflects on digitally mediated ethnography and the tensions surrounding the concept of “digital ethnography”. Drawing on his own research experience, he will discuss ethnography as sustained engagement rather than content extraction, and argue for its continued relevance as a method that enables forms of insight not achievable through large-scale data scraping.
26 March: Workshop + Book Launch
Presenter: Anne Laure Humbert
Title: Training Workshop and Book Launch Intersectional Multilevel Modelling: Theory and Applications in Stata
Where: Department of Sociology and Work Science, University of Gothenburg Skanstorget 18, 411 22 Göteborg
Workshop: Room F417 · Reception: 3rd Floor Kitchen
The Department of Sociology and Work Science will host a combined training workshop and book launch. The event is suitable for staff and students interested in applying quantitative methods to intersectional analysis.
Workshop (13.15-16.15, Room F417) This hands-on, small-group workshop is designed for researchers in the social sciences, business, and management who want to integrate intersectional perspectives into their quantitative work. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of the theoretical foundations of intersectionality, the limits of conventional quantitative approaches, and how the MAIHDA (multilevel analysis of individual heterogeneity and discriminatory accuracy) framework and its contextual extensions can address some of these challenges.
The session introduces the principles behind intersectional multilevel modelling, demonstrates how the methods work in practice, and guides participants through applied examples using Stata. Emphasis is placed on the wider conceptual implications, possibilities, and limitations of adopting an intersectional multilevel approach.
Prerequisites include basic familiarity with regression and multilevel models, working knowledge of Stata, and an interest in quantitative intersectional analysis. This event is free but registration is required: please sign up via Eventbrite.
Book Launch Reception (from 16.30, 3rd Floor Kitchen) The workshop will be followed by a reception to mark the launch of Intersectional Multilevel Modelling: Theory and Applications in Stata. This is the first comprehensive introduction to intersectional multilevel modelling and its applications in quantitative social science research.
The book explains how intersectionality can be operationalised through multilevel modelling, focusing on the MAIHDA approach and its extensions. It offers clear theoretical grounding, step-by-step Stata guidance, annotated code, and real examples from inequality research. Further details are available at www.intersectionalytics.com.
About the Author: Anne Laure Humbert is a researcher in gender equality, intersectionality, and quantitative social science at the University of Gothenburg.