Research methods for history / edited by Simon Gunn and Lucy Faire.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Gunn, Simon, 1954-

Faire, Lucy.

Series:

Research methods for the arts and humanities

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

History--Research.

History.

Research--Methodology.

Research.

Physical Description:

ix, 246 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Edinburgh : Edinburgh University Press, [2012]

Summary:

Designed to serve postgraduate students and academics teaching research methods, this series provides discipline-specific volumes which explore the possibilities and limitations of a range of research methods applicable to the subject in question.

This book provides a lively critical survey of methods for historical research at all levels

While historians have become increasingly sensitive to social and cultural theory since the 1980s, the actual methods by which research is carried out in history have been largely taken for granted. Research Methods for History encourages those researching the past to think creatively about the wide range of methods currently in use, to understand how these methods are used and what historical insights they can provide.

The book covers sources and methods that are well established in history, such as archival research, together with those that are less widely known. The themes of the different chapters have been selected to reflect recent trends in the subject. Even with more established methods, however, the aim is to present new insights and perspectives and to open researchers' minds to new methodological possibilities.

Key Features

International scope

Encourages methodological comparison across time periods

Encourages historians at all levels to think critically and creatively

Transferable methodological skills useful for geography, archaeology and cultural studies Book jacket.

Contents:

Introduction: Why bother with method? / Simon Gunn and Lucy Faire

pt. 1. The essentials. Working with/in the archives / Michelle T. King

Approaching visual materials / Ludmilla Jordanova

Material culture / Alan Mayne

Landscape and place / Jo Guldi

pt. 2. Researching individuals and groups. Collective biography / Krista Cowman

Life stories and historical analysis / Alistair Thomson

pt. 3. Quantitative and qualitative analysis. GIS, spatial technologies and digital mapping / Keith D. Lilley

Document to database and spreadsheet / R.J. Morris

pt. 4. Deciphering meanings. Reading language as a historical source / Julie-Marie Strange

Analysing behaviour as performance / Simon Gunn

pt. 5. Rethinking categories. Ethics and historical research / William Gallois

Time, temporality and history / Prashant Kidambi.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780748642052

0748642056

9780748642045

0748642048

OCLC:

774631786