Critical Discourse Analysis

online course

"Acquire the skills to apply the Critical Discourse Analysis/Discourse-Historical Approach to analyse contemporary political discourse in your research.

Need to know
Prior experience in qualitative text and discourse analysis, as well as a solid understanding of social science research methods and designs, is recommended for this course. Familiarity with critical social theory of discourse, including the works of Foucault, Habermas, and others, would be beneficial but not required.

A genuine eagerness to learn new methods and approaches and an openness to tackle complex research questions with a critical eye is essential.

In depth
Day 1
A general introduction to Critical Discourse Analysis and its (interdisciplinary) origins, its key concepts, and on the key approaches in CDA.

Day 2
The introductory focus continues with discussion of CDA’s Discourse-Historical Approach (DHA). You will discuss DHA’s distinctive features or standard research designs, and key DHA-specific levels and categories of analysis will be introduced.

Day 3
Moving focus to discussing application of CDA/DHA in relation to various political discourses and contexts, and showcasing different pathways of context-specific and comparative analysis. At first, you will explore the notion of ‘discursive shifts’ and show how their analysis, connected to exploration of a wider set of discursive strategies, can help in, for example, exploration of contemporary (right-wing) populism.

Day 4
A DHA-based analysis of discourses and concepts – within the so-called Discourse-Conceptual Analysis (DCA) – is showcased while using the examples from, inter alia, media discourse or policy analysis.

Day 5
The final stage is devoted to the possibilities of deploying CDA/DHA in your own research projects, focussed on analysing contemporary political discourses in and beyond the political field and across various forms of mediated communication.


How the course will work online
The course combines asynchronous pre-class assignments, such as readings and pre-recorded videos, as well as daily live sessions with Zoom. Pre-class activities will include, inter alia, pre-recorded short lectures in Panopto of 30ꟷ45 minutes max, assigned background readings or sample individual analyses performed on online-based materials such as videos.
Online lectures/seminars via Zoom will take place on Days 1ꟷ4. Covering in-depth discussion of methods and analytical categories along with their application to specific, problem-oriented research projects.
Day 5 will include a live Zoom session roughly three hours long, in which you will briefly present and discuss with the Instructor and other participants your research projects and application of CDA/DHA in your analyses."

Course leader

"Michał Krzyzanowski is a leading expert in critical discourse studies. His key areas of interest are political, policy and organisational communication as well as media and journalism."

Target group

Researchers, professional analysts, and advanced students

Course aim

"To provide a comprehensive introduction to Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) – and its central, Discourse-Historical Approach – as the key critical, qualitative approaches to analysing discourse within and beyond the field of contemporary politics.

The course highlights how the deployment of CDA/DHA can be useful in critically and systematically analysing and deconstructing discursive dynamics. It can also be found useful in the recontextualisation of discursive strategies in various forms of communication, including traditional and online media, political communication, policy communication, and institutional communication."

Credits info

4 EC
"You can earn up to four credits for attending this course.
3 ECTS credits – Attend 100% of live sessions and engage fully with class activities.
4 ECTS credits – Attend 100% of live sessions, engage fully with class activities and complete a post-class assignment."

Fee info

GBP 492: ECPR Member - check if your institution is a member on our website.
GBP 985: ECPR Non-Member

Scholarships

Funding applications for the 2024 ECPR Methods School Winter instalment are now closed. For more details on funding opportunities for ECPR's other events, please visit our website.