Ontologies, epistemologies and methodologies of interdisciplinary studies (5,5 credits)
Period: Week 2 – 8
Language: English
Course content: The course offers a critical introduction to the history, philosophy, sociology and practice of interdisciplinary studies. Interdisciplinarity is considered in historical contexts and in relation to traditional academic disciplines. We discuss how disciplinary norms and epistemic models organize academic research, and to what extent and how are they challenged by interdisciplinary approaches. The course also addresses ontological assumptions upon which different interdisciplinary traditions rest and examines interdisciplinarity as a particular type of cognition. We focus on interdisciplinary interpretations of truth and objectivity, address issues of communicative rationality and social studies of science and technology. The course proceeds to compare different kinds and forms of interdisciplinary research, its relational dynamics, and methodological premises. We critically analyse differences in interdisciplinary collaborations between the humanities, social sciences, hard and natural sciences, etc. The course also tackles the relations between interdisciplinarity, transdisciplinarity, postdisciplinarity and antidisciplinarity both within and outside the Western-centric knowledge production paradigm. Finally, we touch upon the research policy milieus for interdisciplinary studies and possible career paths for interdisciplinary researchers.
Teaching & examination forms: Course participants are expected to participate actively in the seminars through general discussion, to present and discuss the draft of the future course paper at the course conference and to submit one individually written course paper. For doctoral students admitted to Tema’s PhD programmes a total of 7,5 credits in Interdisciplinary studies are mandatory. Two of these credits are reserved for interdisciplinary studies within their specific Tema.
Course coordinator: Madina Tlostanova
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Methods: In the field (7,5 credits)
Course period: Week 3 – 12, part time
Language: English
Course content: The course is an introduction to several key qualitative methods in generating empirical material. The participants will familiarize themselves theoretically with a selection of qualitative methods and will apply them through practical exercises. The course centers on a selection of qualitative empirical methods that are relevant and central both for solid research at the PhD level and for the participants’ future career as scholars that conduct research of their own and assess and review others’ scholarship. The course also addresses research ethics. The course is designed to provide ample opportunities for reflection and discussion of perspectives, theories and methods in qualitative research.
Teaching & examination forms: The course will take place on campus (not on-line), and participants are expected to attend all sessions. In between sessions, participants will perform practical exercises.
Additional course information:
Course coordinators: Sofia Morberg Jämterud, Corinna Kruse
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Gender & Sustainability – Introducing Feminist Environmental Humanities (7,5 hp)
Course period: February – April, full time
Language: English
Course content: This course explores postdisciplinary directions in gender and sustainability from a set of positions in environmental humanities and feminist posthumanities. It provides an introduction into the conceptual landscape of feminist environmental humanities, and an orientation into its methodological trajectories across the fields of science, technology, art and design. Notions of different scientific traditions in the past and present, and of inter- and transdisciplinary research are presented and framed in ways that are particularly useful for PhD researchers pursuing environmental humanities or inter/postdisciplinary studies and practice-oriented research in art, technology and design. PhD researchers are provided with an understanding of key concepts – and the relationship between research questions, methods, objectives and outcomes – through lectures, literature seminars, workshops and collaborative project work. The course introduces participants to thinking on situated knowledge practices and ethics amidst a plethora of critical methodologies, qualitative and innovative methods, and performative research practices. On completion of the course, PhD researchers will be provided with tools to critically reflect over the epistemological and ethical challenges inherent to their own research practices and doctoral work, but also in relationship to gender, sustainability and to other actors involved in the very social and creative business of scholarship.
Course coordinators: Cecilia Åsberg, Meike Schalk, KTH and LiU.
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for this course in 2022.
Methods in environmental science (10 credits)
Course period: Week 7 – 20. Half time. The study period and pace is adapted to the needs of the PhD students, in dialogue with them, and thus change from year to year.
Language: English
Course content: The course aims to enhance knowledge of different methodological approaches in environmental science, including the interplay between ontology, epistemology and method. After completing the course, the PhD student should be able to:
reflect on different methodological layers, including relationships between overall research questions, theoretical perspectives, possible research outcomes, practical tools for data collection, and analysis of data; critically evaluate strengths and weaknesses of different methodological approaches; reflect on when developing novel research methodology is needed and how to approach such situations, and; design a methodology for a specific research question of relevance for the PhD student’s own thesis. The PhD students are encouraged to apply critical reflections in their own research designs. Through seminars and case discussions, exercises, and other course activities, the PhD students are expected to progress their understanding of the role of methodological approaches in science. This will be discussed in light of the role that science plays in society. The course ends with a larger assignment devoted to the practice of applying a methodological approach, relevant to the individual PhD-student’s research. The PhD student will prepare a text on method intended for use in the thesis. The methodological considerations involved in selection and design of the method will be presented and discussed at the final seminar of the course.
Teaching and working methods: The course is based on a set of compulsory seminars, a panel and Q&A session with senior researchers, and a final written assignment to be presented to and discussed with peers.
Examination: The course is examined based on active participation in the compulsory seminars and a compulsory oral presentation of a written assignment. If special circumstances prevail, and if it is possible with consideration of the nature of the compulsory component, the examiner may decide to replace the compulsory component with another equivalent component. If the LiU coordinator for students has recommended for the student an adapted examination or alternative form of examination, or if the examiner assessed that special circumstances prevail, the examiner may grant this if the examiner assesses that it is possible, based on consideration of the course objectives. Students failing an exam covering part of the course are entitled to compensate this through a written assignment or oral exam, depending on what the examiner judge as most suitable based on consideration of the course objectives. Students failing an exam covering either the entire course or part of the course twice are entitled to have a new examiner appointed for the re-examination.
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Environmental science in an interdisciplinary context (2 hp)
Part 2 of the course Ontologies, epistemologies and methodologies of interdisciplinary studies for postgraduate students in the Theme of Environmental Change.
Course period: Week 10 – 12, part time
Language: English
Course coordinator: Tina Neset
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Methods: Analysis (7,5 credits)
Course period: Week 13 – 23, part time
Language: English
Course content: The course is an introduction to several key methods for analyzing empirical material. The participants will familiarize themselves theoretically with a selection of analysis methods and will apply them through practical exercises. The course centers on a selection of analysis methods that are relevant and central both for solid research at the PhD level and for the participants’ future career as scholars that conduct research of their own and assess and and review others’ scholarship. The course also addresses research ethics in analysis. The course is designed to provide ample opportunities for reflection and discussion of perspectives, theories and methods in
qualitative research.
Teaching & examination forms: The course will take place on campus (not on-line), and participants are expected to attend all sessions. In between sessions, participants will perform practical exercises.
Additional course information:
Course coordinators: Sofia Morberg Jämterud, Corinna Kruse
Enrolment: The course admits a limited number of PhD students. If you’re interested in enrolling, please e-mail the course coordinators by February 15th with a brief description of yourself and your expectations of the course.
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Methodology in Environmental Science (10 credits)
Preliminary period: January – June
Language: English
Course director: David Bastviken and Mathias Fridahl
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Research planning and proposal writing (10 credits)
Course period: Week 16 – 44, part time
Language: English
Teaching & examination forms: The course starts in April and provide 6 lectures/workshops until the summer break. The students make a presentation and receive feedback on a preliminary text that should be improved during the summer and a revised text is submitted by the end of August. The students make presentations and receive some feedbacks during the course. The students defend their research plan (30% seminar) at the mid-term seminar in October, when the course officially ends. The course is designed to provide many opportunities for discussion with lecturers on-site and on Zoom, and with fellow course participants. The final text that is presented at the 30% seminar is evaluated by the course responsible. Attendance to the lectures and workshops are not mandatory, but when the students need to be absent, they have to provide some reflections about the topic.
Course coordinator: Alex Enrich Prast
Enrolment: To enrol, contact the course coordinator.
Writing Course: Giving and Receiving Critique (3 credits)
Course period: Week 17 – 24, part time
Language: English
Course content: This is a practical writing-related course for PhD students that introduces ways and strategies of giving and receiving critique professionally. Through different practical exercises, the course develops participants’ skills in giving constructive collegial critique, receiving critique
professionally, and using both constructive and less constructive critique for improving one’s work.
The course covers different situations and kinds of critique, such as seminars and reviews, written
and spoken comments. In other words, this course is largely hands-on.
Teaching & examination forms: The course will take place on campus (not on-line). Participation in all sessions is mandatory to complete the course. The course work consists of:
- participation in the classroom activities, including giving feedback to others as assigned
- preparation for classes
- practical exercises
- assigned reading
Examination: in the classroom, through participation.
Additional course information:
Course coordinator: Corinna Kruse
Enrolment: It is no longer possible to enrol for the course in 2022.
Writing the PhD – genre, form and evaluation (5 credits)
Course period: Week 17 –
Language: English
Course content: This course will discuss how PhD dissertations are written, shaped by formal requirements and local practices, and how they are evaluated. We will explore the PhD dissertation as a genre, asking what elements are incorporated in its production and discussing how these can be flexible. During the course, students will read a how-to book on writing a dissertation, as well as 3 different examples of PhD dissertations to get a feel for the variations that the genre can contain. We will also study the production steps outlined in the Tema PhD student handbooks and read an example of a Tema PhD dissertation at the 60% seminar, 90% seminar and the published final version. Finally, the course will invite professors to come and speak about recent PhD dissertations they have evaluated, giving insight into how a PhD is “graded” or evaluated.
Course coordinator: Ericka Johnson
Enrolment: To enrol, contact the course coordinator.
