NSF Workshop on Interpretive Methodologies in Political Science

该讲习班是为希望发展和改进其对解释性研究的理解和实践的政治学学者而举办的。这些形式的研究将人类行为者的意义创造实践置于科学解释的中心。它在一些学科中被称为定性研究，它是从接近经验的角度进行的，因为研究人员并不是从先验确定的概念开始，而是试图让这些概念从“实地”(这里的广义定义包括传统的国内和海外实地工作以及文本档案研究)的遭遇中出现。解释性研究侧重于分析性地揭示这些意义产生的实践，同时展示这些实践如何配置以产生可观察到的结果。解释性研究的方法论和方法并不新鲜，但如今在政治学学科培训和主流期刊中处于少数地位。尽管如此，人们对解释性方法的兴趣和使用正在增长--部分原因是人们认识到，这种方法(与所有方法一样)提供了构建和分析政治问题的独特方式。虽然解释性研究的哲学基础早已清晰，但研究设计、研究实践和适当评估的经验性问题最近得到了发展，这些问题可以帮助博士生和初级学者使他们的研究更严谨，并更有效地交流他们的发现。研讨会将来自不同经验子领域的资深学者、解释方法论或方法方面的所有专家与正在进行此类研究的博士生和初级教师联系起来，他们可能缺乏在本国部门进行培训或指导的机会。两次全体会议报告将处理关于解释和因果关系的解释性观点；两套分组会议将允许与会者进行不同级别的互动，按分领域和具体方法分组；午餐、咖啡/茶歇和研讨会晚餐将提供更多非正式参与的机会。所有讲习班活动都将使与会者能够更好地理解和阐明解释性方法的独特之处，特别是这些方法可以为理解政治问题带来什么。研讨会分组讨论将涉及解释方法中丰富的分析可能性，这样参与者将以新的方式看待他们的研究主题和(潜在的)数据。讲习班还向学员介绍了他们可能不知道的解释性研究方法学部分的重大进展。最后，与其他参与者和研讨会主持人/主持人的关键讨论将支持参与者发展他们自己的研究。研讨会将使所有参与者能够改进这一领域的方法对话，潜在地扩展到他们目前和未来部门在教学口译方法和方法方面的课程发展。博士生将在智力和学术发展的这个关键阶段找到智力支持，以防止潜在的自然流失。初级教员将从讲习班期间建立的指导关系中受益，使他们能够更好地选择适当的出版渠道，与期刊编辑、审稿人和他们自己授予终身教职的同事进行沟通，并制定课程教学大纲。资深学者将从他们自己的研究议程、潜在的联合出版机会和课程开发方面的接触中受益。最重要的是，随着解释性学者在我们这个时代的学术和智力辩论中加入他们独特的声音，政治研究将得到改善。

The Workshop is intended for political science scholars who want to develop and improve their understanding and practice of interpretive research. These forms of research position the meaning-making practices of human actors at the center of scientific explanation. Called qualitative research in some disciplines, it is conducted from an experience-near perspective in that the researcher does not start with concepts determined a priori but rather seeks to allow these to emerge from encounters in "the field" (broadly defined here to encompass both traditional in-country fieldwork, domestic and overseas, and textual-archival research). Interpretive research focuses on analytically disclosing those meaning-making practices, while showing how those practices configure to generate observable outcomes.Interpretive research methodologies and methods are not new but are today in a minority position in political science disciplinary training and mainstream journals. Despite this, interest in and use of interpretive approaches is growing - in part because of the recognition that such methods (like all methods) offer unique ways of framing and analyzing political problems. Whereas the philosophical grounding of interpretive research has long been clear, empirical issues of research design, research practice, and appropriate assessment have recently been developed in ways that can assist doctoral students and junior scholars to make their research more rigorous and to communicate their findings more effectively.The Workshop connects senior scholars from a variety of empirical subfields, all experts in some aspect of interpretive methodology or method, with doctoral students and junior faculty who are pursuing such studies and who may lack opportunities for training or mentoring in their home departments. Two plenary presentations will grapple with interpretive perspectives on explanation and causality; two sets of break-out sessions will allow participants to interact across ranks, grouped by subfield and by specific methods; and lunches, coffee/tea breaks, and a workshop dinner will enable opportunities for more informal engagement. All workshop activities will enable participants to better understand and articulate what is distinctive about interpretive methodologies and, specifically, what those methodologies can bring to the understanding of political issues. Workshop break-out sessions will engage the rich array of analytic possibilities within interpretive methods, such that participants will see their research topics and (potential) data in new ways. The workshop also introduces participants to significant advances in the methodological components of interpretive research of which they may be unaware. Finally, critical discussions with other participants and Workshop presenters/facilitators will support participants in the development of their own research.The Workshop will enable all participants to improve the methodological dialogue in this arena, extending potentially to curricular development in teaching interpretive methodologies and methods in their present and future departments. Doctoral students will find intellectual support that will forestall potential attrition at this critical stage of intellectual and academic development. Junior faculty will benefit from the mentoring relationships developed during the Workshop, leading them to better choices of appropriate publishing outlets, communication with journal editors, reviewers and their own tenure-granting colleagues, and the development of course syllabi. Senior scholars will themselves gain from contacts in terms of their own research agendas, potential co-publishing opportunities, and course development. Most important, research on politics will be improved as interpretive scholars add their distinctive voice to the scholarly and intellectual debates of our time.