Document Type
Article
Abstract
In this paper, I explore the methodological considerations involved in conducting research on a historically traumatic event. By focusing on the rich set of social discourses at work within my case study of the Vietnam War, the research emphasized the generational impact of this historically traumatic event through interdisciplinary approach to sociological research. My research included a two-pronged data collection and analysis process. The first consisted of interviews I conducted with children of (male) Vietnam Veterans. The second consisted of textual analyses of film, television, and literature of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Veteran. In this paper I discuss the importance of approaching a traumatic event through these multiple data sources. In addition, I explore not only how this interdisciplinary approach enabled me to address a traumatic event's dense social discourse shapes social subjects, but also how it impacted me as the researcher. Lastly, I delve into some of the challenges and advantages involved in conducting interdisciplinary research for a sociologist.
Repository Citation
Weber, Christina. "Methodological Approaches to Studying the Social Monad: A Consideration of Interdisciplinary Sociological Research." Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture vol. 9, no. 1, 2009, pp. 1–23. https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/reconstruction/vol9/iss1/11