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University of Oxford Centre for Socio-Legal Studies

Talking about Methods

Welcome to Talking about Methods, a series of podcasts brought to you by the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies in Oxford. In each podcast, Professor Linda Mulcahy will be in conversation with leading scholars in the field about how a variety of different research methods have informed their Socio-Legal work. From surveys to semi-structured interviews and beyond, we delve into the challenges, dilemmas, and unexpected twists and turns of empirical research. The podcasts below are the first in a programme of podcasts about methods we will be developing at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies in Oxford over the next couple of years. You will find a short reading list to accompany each talk to guide future reading. Enjoy!

View all of our episodes, categorised by methods and methodologies, at a glance here.

A row of compact book shelves.

Archiving and Working with Secondary Datasets

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Professor Herbert Kritzer (University of Minnesota Law School) about archiving and working with secondary datasets.

by Herbert Kritzer | 20 April 2022
Silhouette of person standing in front of an aquarium.

Observation

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Professor Robert Dingwall (Nottingham Trent University) about using observation in socio-legal research.

by Robert Dingwall | 16 March 2022
Scrabble tiles showing 'FEMINIST'.

Feminist Judgments

In this IWD 2022 special, Professor Linda Mulcahy speaks with Professor Rosemary Hunter, Professor Sharon Cowan, and Professor Aoife O'Donoghue about various feminist judgments projects.

by Rosemary Hunter, Sharon Cowan & Aoife O’Donoghue | 8 March 2022
A video camera in the foreground recording a woman sitting in front of bookcases in the background.

Elite Interviewing

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Professor Veronica Taylor (Australian National University) about elite interviewing.

by Veronica Taylor | 16 February 2022
Black-and-white photograph of women in the Emily McPherson College Library in Melbourne, circa 1960s.

Feminist Legal Biography

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Professor Rosemary Auchmuty (School of Law, University of Reading) about feminist legal biography.

by Rosemary Auchmuty | 19 January 2022
A partially obscured form with a memo slip pointing at a lined space saying 'sign here'.

Doing Research with Intellectually Disabled Research Participants

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Professor Rosie Harding (University of Birmingham) about doing research with intellectually disabled participants.

by Rosie Harding | 22 December 2021
Four stacks of folders with memo slips sticking out.

Ethics in Socio-Legal Research

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Dr Anna Tsalapatanis about ethics in Socio-Legal research.

by Anna Tsalapatanis | 24 November 2021
A typewriter with a sheet of paper displaying the text 'FEMINISM'.

Feminist Methodologies

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to DPhil student Ellie Whittingdale (Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford) about feminist methodologies.

by Ellie Whittingdale | 27 October 2021
Silhoutte of two people on a boat in a lake against the sunset.

Gaining the Trust of Closed Communities

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Associate Professor Florian Grisel about mixed methods and gaining of trust of closed communities.

by Florian Grisel | 22 September 2021
A gavel in a 'cyber' matrix space.

Experiments and Randomised Controlled Trials

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Professor Meredith Rossner (ANU) about using experiments and randomised controlled trials in Socio-Legal research.

by Meredith Rossner | 25 August 2021
A group of people around a table with notebooks and pens.

Focus Groups

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Professor Linda Mulcahy talks to Dr Marina Kurkchiyan (Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford) about using focus groups in Socio-Legal research.

by Marina Kurkchiyan | 28 July 2021
Two people facing each other at a table with coffee cups.

Introduction to Semi-Structured Interviewing

In this episode of Talking about Methods, Ellie Whittingdale talks to Professor Linda Mulcahy about the use of semi-structured interviews as a method in Socio-Legal research.

by Linda Mulcahy | 30 June 2021