This advanced course explores theories, concepts, methods, and cases in qualitative social science research on human rights, with the aim of preparing students to undertake independent, critical, work on the subject, using existing literature and databases. The course will begin with a discussion of contending conceptions and understandings of human rights, followed by a review of empirical social science theories (including rationalism, structuralism, and culturalism) and their relevance for explaining and understanding contemporary human rights challenges. Next, we will explore strategies and sources for collecting human rights information, including events-based data, survey data and administrative and socio-economic statistics. We will then discuss the use of in-depth qualitative methods, especially single-case studies and small-N comparative analysis, to address contemporary human rights questions. Finally, we will examine state-of-the art examples of human rights investigation and research. Interested students may email rsuberu@bennington.edu beginning on May 17, or register on Friday, May 19 from 10:00am – 2:00pm (during office hours) in Barn 226.