SIMA-SIM-BAM SCHOOL OF RESEARCH METHODS
In collaboration with the Association for Netnographic Research
Summer Edition Netnography: Qualitative Digital Research in an Age of AI
Hotel Hilton Garden Inn Firenze Novoli Via Sandro Pertini 2/9 50127 Firenze
8-10 June 2026
School directors
Rossella Gambetti, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Maurizio La Rocca, Università della Calabria
Matilde Milanesi, Università di Firenze
School instructors
Robert Kozinets, University of Southern California
Ulrike Gretzel, University of Southern California
Rossella Gambetti, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
This course provides a rigorous, hands-on, theoretical and methodological foundation in netnography—the specialized qualitative research methodology designed for the humanistic study of digital traces. While rooted in ethnography, netnography adapts traditional participant-observation and immersive techniques to the unique affordances of mediated online and other digital environments.
This is not a course on social media metrics, but an introduction to a rigorous approach for deriving contextual and (techno-)cultural understandings from digital data. Students will move beyond surface-level data collection to engage in deep, interpretive inquiry, emphasizing the human-centric analysis of digital traces, ethics considerations, observation of positionality and immersion, and elicitation of relevant experience.
Scholarly and Technical Expectations and Rigor
- Methodological Reflexivity: A central component of this course is the development of a research immersion journal. Students will document their own positionality, the "interpersonal" nature of digital immersion, and the reflexive loop between data and interpretation.
- Theoretical Preparation: As an intensive, seminar-style course, students are expected to arrive having critically engaged with the foundational literature. The core textbook provides the methodological anchor, supplemented by contemporary peer-reviewed research.
- Research Infrastructure:
- Access to social media platforms.
- Use of collaborative digital environments for shared file management and interpretive synthesis.
- Strictly academic and research-focused use of technology during class sessions.
- Intensive incorporation of the latest analytical and generative-AI tools/LLMs.
- Course Objectives
- Execute the 6 Movements of Netnography: Learn and practice the contemporary procedural framework, transitioning fluidly between Initiation, Investigation, Immersion, Interaction, Integration, and Incarnation.
- Cultivate the Immersion Journal: Develop a rigorous practice of reflexive, thick description of deep data that documents the researcher’s journey through digital spaces.
- Navigate Complex Data Triangulation: Learn to integrate archival digital traces with elicited data and reflexive notes to build a multifaceted cultural narrative.
- Refine Scholarly Work: Focus on the high-level synthesis of findings for academic publication, ensuring the research comes to life through evocative and theoretically grounded communication.
For more information, and to register, please visit the SIMA website HERE
Click here for the full Brochure