Summer School in Mixed Methods: an instance of training in cutting-edge methodologies in the discipline.
The Summer School in Mixed Methods of theInstitute of Political Science of the Catholic University of Chile brought together more than 40 participants from different parts of the region, who explored various forms of research, such as concepts and measurement, causal inference and experiments, process tracing, archives and big data, among others, organized in three types of sessions: master classes, applied workshops and research design seminars.
The EVMM was coordinated by academics Carla Alberti, IMFD researcher, and Catherine Reyes-Housholder, who emphasize that the purpose of this event was to bring together UNDERGRADUATE graduates, graduate students and academics from different Latin American countries with a disciplinary background in the social sciences and humanities.
"This space allowed us to promote the construction of academic networks and improve, through feedback from teachers and peers, the research projects of each participant," said the EVMM 2024 coordinators.
In terms of guest speakers, this version included prominent international speakers such as Erik Voeten (Georgetown University), Lenka Bustikova (University of Florida), Jason Seawright (Northwestern University), Jennifer Cyr (Universidad Torcuato Di Tella) and Verónica Pérez-Betancur (Universidad de la República), who gave talks on various research methods, including experiments, archival material, big data, process tracing, focus groups and fieldwork.
Professor Catherine Reyes-Houshsolder noted that the students were very interested in several of the School's techniques and workshops: "There was a lot of interest in the modules on how to combine different methods to answer a single research question. Jason Seawright presented on innovations in mixed methods, which showed some of the techniques he has been developing".
"They were also interested in how to do interviews and focus groups with Jennifer Cyr, in particular. A lot of students have done interviews, but how to do interviews in a systematic way, how are interviews different from focus groups," added
Like our guests, our attendees also came from different Latin American countries. One of them was Felipe Murillo Carvajal, from EAFIT University in Colombia, who pointed out that he found out about the EVMM through two channels: "the first one through colleagues who had attended the School and the second one through social networks. I follow the Institute of Political Science and through social networks I saw that it was going to be held again. I was interested in attending because today Political Science has a gigantic need around methods, so many quantitative methods, today these with a much bigger boom; but also qualitative methods and above all the need to know how to mix these methods, clearly understanding their limitations and advantages", he pointed out.
Bruno Rojas, Master student at the Universidad de Chile, who applied for the VioDemos scholarship, also found out about the call through social networks and through colleagues. He assured that the topics that were analyzed at the EVMM were very useful for him: "I think it was a very well organized school, very well thought out in terms of being able to observe different methods, learn different tools. It leaves you, to a certain extent, with the state-of-the-art methodologies of each field and also has a very integrative vision of very different methods: thinking about experiments, ethnographic methodology, interview methodology, high-level quantitative analysis methodology (...)"
Andrea Freites, a student of our ICP doctorate, knew about this eighth version of the EVMM because when she was studying her Master's degree she got to know the School: "Since then I really wanted to participate in it. And now, being a student of the Institute, I knew that this learning instance was going to come back and without hesitation I signed up to participate in it".
"The learning experience has been very enriching, I have had the opportunity to deepen knowledge that I have already been acquiring throughout the doctorate. To hear first-hand from the great exponents of the methods we are studying at the school, for example, Jason Seawrigth, among others. And the professors of the Institute of Political Science themselves. It also allows me to try to identify which methods I would like to develop when I write my doctoral thesis," he said.
Skarlet Olivera, Master student at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Perú, who applied through the ALACIP (Latin American Association of Political Science) scholarship: "Some colleagues and professors passed the word in a research group where I am". Analía Orr, researcher, teacher and political scientist, member of the Network of Women Political Scientists and PhD student in Political Science at the USAM (Universidad Nacional de San Martin), who learned about the School from colleagues of the Network of Women Political Scientists: "It is really a very complete and interesting proposal, also innovative, so I did not hesitate to enroll".
"The school provides a deepening and updating in different methods that is complementary to any PhD course, but that also allows us to dedicate ourselves to think intensively about those methods and those techniques that we need for our own research. It helps to carry out our own projects and is designed in a very interactive way as well," added Analía.
Regarding the objectives and challenges that Professor Catherine projects for the ninth version, she indicated that they seek to have more students throughout Chile and from different disciplines "We would like to welcome more graduate students throughout Chile, not only from Political Science, but also from related disciplines, such as sociology, psychology, economics, etc. We would also like to have different modules that touch on topics that we did not manage to address in this instance and to offer again teachings on the latest mixed methods technologies. Disciplines where the use of different techniques to answer research questions is valued. We would also like to have different modules that touch on topics that we did not manage to address in this instance and to offer again teachings on the latest mixed methods technologies".
"But overall I think the School this year was a great success and we hope to do a new version next year and that the new version will be as successful as this one," he concluded.