Scientific Methods for the Humanities: (13 Linguistic Approaches to Literature)

Here is a much needed introductory textbook on empirical research methods for the Humanities. Especially aimed at students and scholars of Literature, Applied Linguistics, and Film and Media, it stimulates readers to reflect on the problems and possibilities of testing the empirical assumptions and offers hands-on learning opportunities to develop empirical studies. It explains a wide range of methods, from interviews to observation research, and guides readers through the choices researchers have to make. It discusses the essence of experiments, illustrates how studies are designed, how to develop questionnaires, and helps readers to collect and analyze data by themselves. The book presents qualitative approaches to research but focuses mostly on quantitative methods, detailing the workings of basic statistics. At the end, the book also shows how to give papers at international conferences, how to draft a report, and what is involved in the preparation of a publishable article.

Table of Contents:
1. List of Figures, Tables and Graphs; 2. Acknowledgements; 3. Foreword; 4. Chapter 1. A new beginning; 5. Interlude. Some misconceptions about scientific and empirical research of culture; 6. Chapter 2. Basic insights from the philosophy of science; 7. Chapter 3. Research methodology and design; 8. Chapter 4. Methods of data collection; 9. Chapter 5. How to construct a questionnaire; 10. Chapter 6. Experiment; 11. Chapter 7. How to enter and manipulate data in SPSS; 12. Chapter 8. Descriptive statistics; 13. Chapter 9. Inference statistics: Preliminaries; 14. Chapter 10. Inference statistics: Test Selection, t-test and non-parametric equivalents; 15. Chapter 11. Inference statistics: ANOVA; 16. Chapter 12. Communicating results; 17. Epilogue; 18. Bibliography; 19. Notes on contributors; 20. Author index; 21. Subject index

Review :
The idea that there is an impenetrable divide between science and the arts is happily dying. In its place the authors have written this valuable book, which is equally open to scientists and artists. It shows how empirical methods can be used not just to analyze, but to illuminate works of literature and the other arts. Wonderfully thoughtful and helpfully instructive, this will become the preferred book for everyone who wants to approach the arts in a spirit of inquiry. A breath of fresh, crisp air and a model of modesty. This book does not invite students and their teachers into an elite school of impressive obscurities. Instead, through clear language, patient explanation, vivid analogies, accessible examples and the steady development of skills, it empowers anyone who wants to learn how to investigate cultural and especially literary matters in scientific ways. Enough of the fug of endless circular discussion: time for the invigorating breeze of honest inquiry along new trails of step-by-step discovery. This book is an important and all-encompassing resource for encouraging not only students, but also our colleagues, to see the humanities and the methods used in the sciences as complementary rather than in opposition.