FST 3325 - Food Studies: Research Methods

Credits: 4
Marion Nestle, a leading scholar in nutrition, food studies, and public health, observed that food is not only a worthy subject of study in itself, but also an entrée into larger issues that concern humankind: health, sustainability, globalization, development, governance, and power. In this course we will explore historical, quantitative, qualitative, observational and material objects research methods used in the field of food studies. As an interdisciplinary field, food studies employs a variety of methods from diverse disciplines. For example, data collection methods like dietary recall, which comes from nutrition science, are helpful in learning what people eat. Interview is another method widely used across disciplines. However, the “charlasculinarias” (culinary chart) is an enhancement of the more traditional interview. Food interviews can tell the stories of migration, assimilation or resistance, changes over time, and personal and group identity.
Prerequisite(s) FST-1110 or FST-2201 or permission of instructor
McDaniel Plan: Quantitative Reasoning