courses ·

LLMs can code qualitative data in hours that used to take weeks. They can run interviews at scale. They can extract themes from thousands of responses. This course teaches you to use AI in social science research without losing methodological rigor or research ethics.

1. 01

   Start here: what this course is about

   Welcome to AI for Social Research

   Read first. ~3 minutes.

2. 02

   Start here: a PhD's view of AI in research

   AI for social science: A sociology PhD candidate's autoethnography on how LLMs are changing research work↗

   Sociology PhD reflects on how LLMs are reshaping daily research practice. Honest, accessible intro.

3. 03

   The big shift: scale and speed

   AI can carry out qualitative research at unprecedented scale - LSE Impact↗

   LSE: AI lets you do qualitative research at scales previously impossible. What this changes for the field.

4. 04

   Real example: thematic analysis with LLMs

   Generative AI for Thematic Analysis in a Maternal Health Study↗

   Concrete case study: using LLMs to code interviews in a public health study. Methods and results.

5. 05

   A trustworthy workflow

   Efficiency with Rigor! A Trustworthy LLM-powered Workflow for Qualitative Data Analysis↗

   Step-by-step workflow for using LLMs in qualitative analysis without losing rigor. Validation steps.

6. 06

   How aligned is LLM coding with human coding?

   LLMCode: Evaluating and Enhancing Researcher-AI Alignment in Qualitative Analysis↗

   Evidence on inter-coder reliability between humans and LLMs. Where AI agrees and disagrees with experts.

7. 07

   AI as the interviewer

   Automating the qualitative interview? Using Gen AI chatbots in social science research↗

   Can an LLM conduct interviews? What changes when respondents talk to AI instead of humans.

8. 08

   AI-assisted interviewing (human + AI)

   Harnessing the Power of AI in Qualitative Research: Follow-up Questions in Interviews↗

   AI generates follow-up questions during human-led interviews. The hybrid approach.

9. 09

   Limits of automation in ethnography

   The AI Co-Ethnographer: How Far Can Automation Take Qualitative Research?↗

   Honest take: where AI cannot replace the ethnographer. What's missing, and why it matters.

10. 10

    AI in survey research (Pew)

    Conducting Survey Research with AI: Methods and Guidance↗

    Pew Research's analysis: promises and perils of using AI in survey design and analysis.

11. 11

    Ethics: consent, transparency, IRB approval

    Ethical issues in AI-driven research: an overview↗

    How to use AI in research ethically. Informed consent, IRB updates, participant disclosure.

12. 12

    Closing: what to take with you

    Closing: Rigor at AI Speed

    Wrap-up. ~3 minutes.

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