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MODULE R14
QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
Qualitative research is a generic term for
investigative methodologies described as ethnographic, naturalistic,
anthropological, field, or participant observer research. It emphasizes
the importance of looking at variables in the natural setting in which
they are found. Interaction between variables is important. Detailed data
is gathered through open ended questions that provide direct quotations.
The interviewer is an integral part of the investigation (Jacob, 1988).
This differs from quantitative research which attempts to gather data by
objective methods to provide information about relations, comparisons, and
predictions and attempts to remove the investigator from the investigation
(Smith, 1983).
Characteristics
Purpose: Understanding - Seeks to understand
people’s interpretations.
Reality: Dynamic - Reality changes with changes in
people’s perceptions.
Viewpoint: Insider - Reality is what people
perceive it to be.
Values: Value bound - Values will have an impact
and should be understood and taken into account when conducting and
reporting research.
Focus: Holistic - A total or complete picture is
sought.
Orientation: Discovery - Theories and hypotheses
are evolved from data as collected.
Data: Subjective - Data are perceptions of the
people in the environment.
Instrumentation: Human - The human person is the
primary collection instrument.
Conditions: Naturalistic - Investigations are
conducted under natural conditions.
Results: Valid - The focus is on design and
procedures to gain "real," "rich," and "deep" data.
Advantages
 |
Produces more in-depth,
comprehensive
information. |
|
Uses subjective information
and participant observation to describe the context, or natural
setting, of the variables under consideration, as well as the
interactions of the different variables in the context. It seeks a
wide understanding of the entire situation. |
Disadvantages
|
The very subjectivity of the
inquiry leads to difficulties in establishing the reliability and
validity of the approaches and information. |
|
It is very difficult to
prevent or detect researcher induced bias. |
|
Its scope is limited due to
the in-depth, comprehensive data gathering approaches
required. |
Holistic
Description
When conducting qualitative research, the investigator
seeks to gain a total or complete picture. According to Stainback and
Stainback (1988), a holistic description of events, procedures, and
philosophies occurring in natural settings is often needed to make
accurate situational decisions. This differs from quantitative research in
which selected, pre-defined variables are studied.
Corroboration
The purpose of corroboration is not to confirm
whether people’s perceptions are accurate or true reflections of a
situation but rather to ensure that the research findings accurately
reflect people’s perceptions, whatever they may be. The purpose of
corroboration is to help researchers increase their understanding of the
probability that their findings will be seen as credible or worthy of
consideration by others (Stainback & Stainback, 1988).
Triangulation
One process involved in corroboration is
triangulation. Denzin (1978) has identified several types of
triangulation. One type involves the convergence of multiple data sources.
Another type is methodological triangulation, which involves the
convergence of data from multiple data collection sources. A third
triangulation procedure is investigator triangulation, in which multiple
researchers are involved in an investigation. Related to
investigator triangulation is researcher-participant corroboration, which
has also been referred to as cross-examination.
Other procedures can be used to improve understanding
and/or the credibility of a study. These include research or inquiry
audit, peer debriefing, and the seeking of negative cases in the field
that might disconfirm interpretations.
Participant
Observation
|
Systematically seeks out and
organizes data concerning what is being studied based on a social
science theory and methodology rather than focusing on achieving a
situationally defined
goal. |
|
Keeps detailed records of what
occurs, including those things characteristically taken for granted. |
|
Periodically detaches self
from the situation to review records from the neutral position of a
social scientist. |
|
Constantly monitors
observations and records for evidence of personal bias or prejudice. |
Five Types of Participant Observation
|
External
Participation
constitutes the lowest degree of involvement in observation. This
type of observation can be done by observing situations on
television or
videotape. |
|
Passive
Participation
means the researcher is present at the scene of action but does not
interact or participate. The researcher finds an observation post
and assumes the role of a bystander or
spectator. |
|
Balanced
Participation
means that the researcher maintains a balance between being an
insider and being an outsider. The researcher observes and
participates in some activities, but does not participate fully in
all activities. |
|
Active
Participation
means that the researcher generally does what others in the setting
do. While beginning with observation to learn the rules, as they are
learned the researcher becomes actively engaged in the activities of
the setting. |
|
Total
Participation
means the researcher is a natural participant. This is the highest
level of involvement and usually comes about when the researcher
studies something in which he or she is already a natural
participant. |
Interviewing
|
The researcher should control
his reactions. The purpose of the interview is to find out what
views people hold; their views should be unbiased by evaluative
responses on the researcher’s part. |
|
The researcher should choose
an interview environment and conditions in which the participants
feel comfortable, secure, and at ease enough to speak openly about
their point of view. |
|
The researcher should avoid
presenting "yes" or "no" questions which tend to stifle detail. |
|
The researcher should be
flexible in his or her approach to the
informants. |
|
Group interviews can be
useful, particularly in initial interviews. |
|
The researcher should consider
to what degree the interview questioning is "recursive." As applied
to interviewing, what has been said in an interview is used to
determine or define further questioning. |
Case
Study
Case studies are detailed investigations of individuals,
groups, institutions or other social units. The researcher conducting a
case study attempts to analyze the variables relevant to the subject under
study (Polit and Hungler, 1983). The principle difference between case
studies and other research studies is that the focus of attention is the
individual case and not the whole population of cases. Most studies search
for what is common and pervasive. However, in the case study, the focus
may not be on generalization but on understanding the particulars of that
case in its complexity. A case study focuses on a bounded system, usually
under natural conditions, so that the system can be understood in its own
habitat (Stake, 1988).
Maintaining The
Validity Of Qualitative Research
|
Be a listener. The subject(s) of
qualitative research should provide the majority of the research
input. It is the researcher’s task to properly interpret the
responses of the
subject(s). |
|
Record
accurately.
All records should be maintained in the form of detailed notes or
electronic recordings. These records should also be developed during
rather than after the data gathering session. |
|
Initiate writing
early. It is
suggested that the researcher make a rough draft of the study before
ever going into the field to collect data. This allows a record to
be made when needed. The researcher is more prepared now to focus
the data gathering phase on that information that will meet the
specific identified needs of the project. |
|
Include the primary data in
the final report. The inclusion of primary
data in the final report allows the reader to see exactly the basis
upon which the researcher’s conclusions were made. In short, it is
better to include too much detail than too
little. |
|
Include all data in the final
report. The
researcher should not leave out pieces of information from the final
report because she/he cannot interpret that data. In these cases,
the reader should be allowed to develop his/her conclusions. |
|
Be candid. The researcher should not
spend too much time attempting to keep her/his own feelings and
personal reactions out of the study. If there is relevance in the
researcher’s feelings to the matter at hand, these feelings should
be revealed. |
|
Seek feedback. The researcher should allow
others to critique the research manuscript following the
developmental process. Professional colleagues and research subjects
should be included in this process to ensure that information is
reported accurately and completely. |
|
Attempt to achieve
balance. The
researcher should attempt to achieve a balance between perceived
importance and actual importance. Often, the information reveals a
difference in anticipated and real areas of study significance. |
|
Write accurately.
Incorrect
grammar, misspelled words, statement inconsistency, etc. jeopardize
the validity of an otherwise good study. |
Wolcott, H.R. (1990). Qualitative inquiry in
education: The continuing debate.
Assessment of
Trustworthiness
Researchers need alternative models appropriate to
qualitative designs to ensure rigor without sacrificing the relevance of
qualitative research. Guba’s model describes four general criteria for
evaluation of research and then defines each from both a quantitative and
qualitative perspective.
|
Criterion |
Qualitative
Approach |
Quantitative
Approach |
|
Truth value |
Credibility |
Internal
Validity |
|
Applicability |
Transferability |
External
Validity |
|
Consistency |
Dependability |
Reliability |
|
Neutrality |
Confirmability |
Objectivity |
Strategies With Which to Establish
Trustworthiness
|
Strategy |
Criteria |
|
Credibility |
Prolonged and varied field experience |
| |
Time sampling |
| |
Reflexivity (field
journal) |
| |
Triangulation |
| |
Member
checking |
| |
Peer
examination |
| |
Interview
technique |
| |
Establishing authority of researcher |
| |
Structural
coherence |
| |
Referential
adequacy |
|
Transferability |
Nominated
sample |
| |
Comparison of sample to demographic data |
| |
Time sample |
| |
Dense
description |
|
Dependability |
Dependability
audit |
| |
Dense description of research methods |
| |
Stepwise
replication |
| |
Triangulation |
| |
Peer
examination |
| |
Code-recode
procedure |
|
Confirmability |
Confirmability
audit |
| |
Triangulation |
| |
Reflexivity |
Krefting, L. (1991). Rigor in qualitative research: The
assessment of trustworthiness. The American Journal of Occupational
Therapy, 45(3), 214-222.
Characteristics
of Qualitative and Quantitative Research
Point of Comparisons |
Qualitative Research |
Quantitative Research |
Focus of research |
Quality (nature,
essence) |
Quantity (how much, how many) |
Philosophical
roots |
Phenomenology, symbolic interaction |
Positivism, logical empiricism |
Associated
phrases |
Fieldwork, ethnographic, naturalistic, grounded,
subjective |
Experimental, empirical, statistical |
Goal of
investigation |
Understanding, description, discovery, hypothesis
generating |
Prediction, control, description, confirmation, hypothesis
testing |
Design
characteristics |
Flexible, evolving, emergent |
Predetermined,
structured |
Setting |
Natural, familiar |
Unfamiliar,
artificial |
Sample |
Small, non-random, theoretical |
Large, random, representative |
Data collection |
Researcher as primary instrument, interviews,
observations |
Inanimate instruments (scales, tests, surveys, questionnaires,
computers) |
Mode of analysis |
Inductive (by
researcher) |
Deductive (by statistical methods) |
Findings |
Comprehensive, holistic, expansive |
Precise, narrow, reductionist |
Merriam, S.B. (1988). Case study research in
education: A qualitative approach. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, p.
18.
SELF
ASSESSMENT
1. Briefly define and describe qualitative research.
2. List two advantages of qualitative research.
3. List three disadvantages of qualitative research.
4. Define holistic description.
5. Define corroboration.
6. Define triangulation.
7. List the five types of participant observation.
8. Define case study.
9. List the methods of maintaining validity of
qualitative research.
10. List the four criteria for evaluation of qualitative
research.
11. List ways to establish trustworthiness for each
strategy in Guba’s model.
12. List twelve comparisons between qualitative and
quantitative research.
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