04
History of the methodology 1960s – emergence of fields such as economic history, social history, military history, political history, diplomatic history
1960s & 1970s – emergence of hybrid fields such as historical demography, historical geography, historical sociology<br>
05
Philosophical underpinnings No common underlying philosophy
Divide between those that favor the modus operandi of natural sciences and those that take a humanities or social sciences approach
Committed to the role of the past in shaping the present and to historical enquiry illuminating and explaining features of the contemporary world<br>
06
Position of the researcher Researchers generally not in a position to directly engage with their subject matter
Exceptions are: life-course studies, oral history, biographical research (Miller, 2000; Miller, 2005)
Existence of relevant data is sometimes in doubt<br>
07
Position of the researcher Learning how to use quite foreign materials as evidence
Scope of misinterpretation is rife i.e. ornate daggers as armament or jewelry?
Set aside and critically assess taken-for-granted assumptions and presumptions of the researcher’s own culture<br>
08
Position of the researcher Be wary of ‘anachronism’: projecting present assumptions into the past
Benefits and challenges of hindsight in knowing the outcome<br>
09
Aligning philosophy and methodology with purpose Philosophy and methodology subordinated to what the research question asks
Developing a focused research question shapes the inquiry and orients the researcher towards particular types of source material
Refining the research question leads to more precise formulation of questions the researcher will put to source material<br>
10
Aligning philosophy and methodology with purpose Important to have a well-defined research interest, clarity of purpose and a precise set of research questions
Philosophy and methodology required for coherence can cogency of a research study but they do not specify preconditions for the form of enquiry to be undertaken<br>
11
Data generation and collection Incapacity of historical research to produce customized data
Reliance on a given society or culture to produce potential data sources and to collect and maintain them through institutions i.e. libraries, museums, archives
Researcher gathers raw materials from institutions
Raw materials will come to constitute the study’s data<br>
12
Data generation and collection Scope of data reduced by:
Limited life span of materials used for records and documents i.e. paper, ink, stone
Select minority of documents and artifacts deemed important enough to be preserved
Lack of organizing and archiving of artifacts
Restrictive access<br>
13
Data generation and collection Digitization of records and access to digitized archives via the internet
Digitization had transformed a research task that previously could take days
Reach and repertoire of historical researchers enhanced courtesy of the internet<br>
14
Analysis of data Use the same techniques as any form of documentary research: content analysis, discourse analysis, narrative analysis , life-story analysis, biography, hermeneutic (Scott, 1990; Plummer, 2001; McCulloch, 2004; Prior, 2003; Prior, 2011)
Difference is the consideration of the historicity of documents/artifacts and the position of the researcher<br>
15
Analysis of data Sensitivity to temporal context of historical documents and artifacts
Need to be aware of the function of documents/artifacts used in the time in which they were composed and familiarize yourself with the custom and practice deployed in their construction<br>
16
Analysis of data No extant techniques can claim primacy within historical research
Statistical analysis especially prominent in economic history and historical demography
Content analysis and discourse analysis are common in studies of politics and the media
Narrative analysis common technique in studies of processes of historic change<br>
17
Analysis of data Textualist techniques such as hermeneutics and deconstruction favored in study of thought and ideas
Decide what formal analytic technique best suits your data sources, topic and research question<br>
18
Quality and rigor Historical enquiry not reducible to a set of formal rules and procedures that can function as a formula to follow in conducting research
Historical research is a ‘craft’ – halfway between science and art (Bloch, 1994)
No checklist to assess that necessary steps and procedures were correctly followed<br>
19
Quality and rigor Critical discussion to ascertain authenticity, reliability, representativeness, appropriateness and comprehensiveness of the body of sources of data
Detailed description of precise procedures rarely provided
Footnoting of sources is prevalent to demonstrate relationship between the final text and its roots in data sources<br>
20
Quality and rigor Explanation of research procedures integrated into overall argument and final presentation
Strict replicability difficult, if not impossible
Quality and rigor often found in the syntheses and capacity of the research product to intelligibly reconstruct events, processes, actions and trends<br>
21
Quality and rigor Outcome often lies in the quality of the narrative its plausibility, coherence, insightfulness, respect for context and evidence and capacity to make better sense of some phenomenon […] than previous accounts have managed (L’Estrange, 2014)<br>
22
Presentation and dissemination of findings Historical research in the social sciences attracts many different audiences
Core consistency of any piece of historical research is those most interested in the specific topic being investigated
Mode of presentation depends on the particular type of historical research undertaken<br>
23
Presentation and dissemination of findings Dissemination of findings is widely varied
Poster presentations or short conference presentations tend to favor quantitative studies
Qualitative historical research more at home in monograph book form<br>
24
Summary ‘Historical research methods’ covers heterogeneous ways in which researchers study the past
Particular challenges relating to the position of the historical researcher
Challenges and advantages of accessing data
Use of a range of data analysis techniques
The ‘craft’ of historical research
Variety of presentation and dissemination methods<br>
25
References Bloch M. (1954) The Historian's Craft, Manchester: Manchester University Press.
McCulloch G. (2004) Documentary Research in Education, History and the Social Sciences, London: Routledge Falmer.
Miller R. (2000) Researching Life Stories and Family Histories, London: Sage.
Miller R. (2005) Biographical Research Methods. London: Sage.
Plummer K. (2001) Documents of Life 2: An Invitation to Critical Humanism, London: Sage.
Prior L. (2003) Using Documents in Social Research, London: Sage.
Prior L. (2011) Using Documents and Records in Social Research. London: Sage.
Scott J. (1990) A Matter of Record: Documentary Sources in Social Research, Cambridge: Polity.<br>
