Statistics, Economics, and Social Sciences

Learning goals. The main learning goal of the Laboratory concerns the definition and the development of the whole process of a social research from its design and planning up to the field-work, the data analysis and their representation in a statistical report. The lessons and the practical activities of the teaching programme are well balanced in order to enable students to apply the theoretical concepts learned during the lessons. Knowledge and understanding. At the end of the Laboratory students know all the phases of the process design and planning as well as the correspondent specific activities. Students learn the main techniques a) to conceptualize research problems; b) to build up data collection tools (paper and electronic questionnaires); c) to gather data. Moreover, students learn how to interpret and comment survey data, reporting the contents in an effective way. Applying knowledge and understanding. The practical experience of applied research enable students to formulate research questions, objectives and hypothesis; to identify the most appropriate data collection tools; to build up a data collection tool (paper and electronic questionnaire); to monitor the data collection activity; to analyse and interpret data. Students experience the redaction of a report summarizing the main results of the survey they have conducted. Making judgements. The students working in group are constantly encouraged to discuss and share ideas, in order to acquire capacity of decision and problem solving with respect to the choices related to the realization of a social research. Moreover, the students improve their ability to interpret data. Communication skills. The working group and the presentation of the results of the tasks assigned by the lecturer contribute to the development of communication skills. The presentation and discussion of the final report contribute to the acquisition of the specific scientific technical language of the discipline. Learning skills. The practical experience of research of the Laboratory enable students to strengthen their theoretical knowledge and to improve the capacity to learn more advanced methods and techniques of survey management.