Chapter 10

1. Chapter 10 Qualitative Research Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

2. Characteristics of Qualitative Research • The Natural Setting • The Researcher as Instrument • Emergent Approach • Interpretive Approach • A Holistic View • Reflexivity and Subjectivity • Use of Deductive and Inductive Reasoning • Strategies of Inquiry Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

3. The Natural Setting • Qualitative researchers must physically go to the people, site, institution, or field Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

4. The Researcher as Instrument • Build trust, rapport, and credibility with subjects • Observation • Complete participation • Observer as participant • Participant as observer • Complete observer Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

5. Interviews • Closed quantitative • Standardized open-ended • Interview guide • Informal conversational • Content analysis • Process in which a researcher examines a class of social artifacts to describe specific characteristics of a message Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

6. Emergent Approach • Research question may change or be refined as researcher learns more about subject under investigation Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

7. Interpretive Approach • – method for deciphering indirect meaning and a reflective practice for unmasking hidden meaning beneath apparent meaning • Constant comparison • Reduce, code, and disply the major themes or patterns that emerge • Integrate categories and compare them to one another or the themes • Delimit and refine the themes • Provide examples from the data that show how the themes were derived Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

8. Trustworthiness of Qualitative Data • Credibility ( validity) • quotes, field notes, checks by participants • Transferability ( validity) • detailed description of setting, thick data descriptions • Dependability ( ) • document research plan, triangulate • Confirmability ( ) • clearly describe observations, provide alternative explanations Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

9. A Holistic View • Broad studies rather than microanalysis or focusing on the relationship between independent and dependent variables Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

10. Reflexivity and Subjectivity • Reflexivity – systematic reflection on how personal assumptions, biases, and values shape a study Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

11. Use of Deductive and Inductive Reasoning • Inductive reasoning (from specific to broad) is more prevalent, but deductive reasoning (from brad to specific) can be appropriate Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

12. Strategies of Inquiry • Use multiple strategies • Mixed-method – combination of both quantitative and qualitative research methods Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

13. What is Qualitative Research? • naturalistic inquiry: being in the natural environment to gather data • holistic, inductive, dynamic, subjective, humanistic, exploratory, process-oriented Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

14. Qualitative vs. Quantitative Studies Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

15. Types of Qualitative Research • Grounded Theory • Life Histories • Case Studies • Phenomonology • Ethnographical Research • Basic/Generic Qualitative Research Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

16. Grounded Theory • Form of data collection and analysis that uses comparison as an analytic tool to generate concepts and hypotheses • Goal is to group parts together to form a core variable Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

17. Life Histories • Narrative research or biographical research • Studies cover lives of individuals or the that result from one or more individuals providing stories about their lives Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

18. Case Studies • Involves studying an event, activity, program, process or one or more individuals • Holistic understanding of single unit or bounded system • Can be based on realistic ( ) or confessional ( ) tales Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

19. Phenomenology • Goal: to describe and clarify subjects’ experiences without any previous assumptions about their meanings • Try to determine the “ ” of an experience • No interview schedule (flexibility) • “Go with the flow” Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

20. Ethnographical Research • Describes and interprets a cultural or social group. • Uncovers and describes beliefs, values, and attitudes that structure the behavior of a group. Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

21. Process of Qualitative Reserach • Conceptualizing the Research • Framing the Research Question • Collecting Data • Analyzing Data • Writing up the Research Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

22. Conceptualizing the Reseach • Curiosity and intuition play an important role • What concept or puzzling phenomena is interesting? Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

23. Framing the Research Question • No hypothesis to test • Questions: “What,” Why,” “How” seek to be answered • Process of discovery Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

24. Collecting Data • Goal: Produce a “ ” description • Methods: • Direct Observation • Focused Interviewing • Document Analysis • Photographs and Videos • Supportive Quantitative Data Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

25. Direct Observation • Participant-observers: become involved in the social setting they are studying • Nonparticipant observers: more removed from the social process • use key informants • Both kinds of observers collect field notes Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

26. Focused Interviewing • Range from structured to unstructured • Interview schedule: list of flexible, open-ended questions • : convey interest, try to pull out more information from subject • Focus group interviews: guided by a facilitator Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

27. Document Analysis • Examination of records • newsletters, news releases • student records • minutes from meetings • code of ethics • philosophy statements • diaries, letters Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

28. Photographs and Videos • Use to gain insight into how people view and interpret their world Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

29. Supportive Quantitative Data • Attendance counts, injuries, scores can tell about attitudes and trends • : process of cross-checking across different methods Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al

30. Writing up the Research • No formal conventions • Writer tries to convince plausibility • Present quotes from subjects, field notes, other primary data • Present alternative explanations, points of view, and problems with the study Conducting & Reading Research Baumgartner et al