Overview
In this unit, you will develop skills to analyse and justify social research design in contemporary contexts. You will examine how theoretical perspectives and research questions shape methodological choices in qualitative and quantitative research. Through guided tasks using existing literature, you will analyse and synthesise research to refine a focused research question and inform key aspects of research design. You will analyse ethical issues in social research and justify the selection and design of appropriate research methods, including literature review, surveys and interviews. This includes preparing research instruments, such as survey and interview questions, with consideration of practical constraints. The unit emphasises the relationship between theory, research design and evidence production, enabling you to understand how methodological decisions influence research findings.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Successful completion of 48 credit points.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2026
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments
Students reported the unit provided good insight into how research was conducted and the lecturers and material provided were good.
The content and delivery of the unit will be continually updated to improve the learning experience of students and their knowledge of social research and the methods available for use.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments
Students requested more real-world social work practice examples to show how research relates to social work practice.
More real-world and current social issues related to areas of social work practice will be presented and discussed in the tutorial sessions and the discussion forum. To support students from other discipline areas (e.g., Arts) studying in the unit other research examples will be presented.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments
Students wanted more detail in the marking rubrics with every section and activity of the assessment included.
An itemised checklist for each written assessment will be provided to support students' preparation of their assignments for marking.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments
The terminology used is complex and further clarification is needed to help with understanding the concepts.
In the early weeks of the unit, additional attention will be given to providing students with resources and discussion points in the tutorial sessions and online forums to clarify key terms used to aid familiarisation and understanding of the social research terminology. The quiz assessment can also be adjusted to help students learn key terms.
Feedback from SUTE evaluation result
Require more useful knowledge and skills to be added.
The required readings will be revised to include stronger social work content and a variety of instructional learning material incorporated into the weekly content.
Feedback from SUTE evaluation result
Students wanted to see more relevance of the unit to their social work degree.
Revision of the readings will focus on more updated social work texts and journal articles, along with examples of how social research methods aid social work practice and policy-making.