Educational Research

Educational Research Chapter 14 Overview of Qualitative Research Gay, Mills, and Airasian

Topics Discussed in this Chapter • Definition and purpose of qualitative research • General steps involved in qualitative research • Qualitative research approaches • Characteristics of qualitative research • Validity, reliability, and generalizability • Ethics

The Nature of Qualitative Research • Qualitative research is the collection, analysis, and interpretation of comprehensive narrative data in order to gain insights into a particular phenomenon of interest • Useful for describing and answering questions about participants and contexts Objective 1.1

The Nature of Qualitative Research • Purpose of qualitative research • Promote a deep, holistic understanding of a particular phenomenon • Importance of exploring qualitative topics • Provide insight into the complexity of common occurrences • Provide specific concrete details to guide understanding in a particular setting Objectives 1.2 and 1.3

The Nature of Qualitative Research • The importance of exploring qualitative topics (continued) • Provide insight into the “local” meanings that activities and practices have for participants • Develop a comparative understanding of phenomena as experienced by different participants in different settings Objective 1.3

The Nature of Qualitative Research • Six General Steps • Identify the research topic • Review the literature • Select the participants • Collect data • Analyze the data • Report the results • These are the same steps as those used in quantitative research Objectives 2.1 and 2.2

Range of Qualitative Approaches • Nine approaches • Case study • An effort to seek an understanding of a single person or entity • Ethnography • An effort to describe and analyze all or part of the culture of a community by identifying and describing participants’ practices and beliefs • Ethology • An effort to compare several cultures with one another Objective 3.2

Range of Qualitative Approaches • Nine approaches (continued) • Ethnomethodology • An effort to examine people’s understanding of their daily activities • Grounded theory • An effort to derive theory grounded in the perspectives of the participants • Phenomenology • An effort to understand the meaning of an individual’s experiences Objective 3.2

Range of Qualitative Approaches • Nine approaches (continued) • Symbolic interaction • An effort to seek common understandings that emerge to give meaning to participants’ interactions • Action research • An effort to seek a solution or improvement to a practical problem in the setting in which it is occurring • Historical research • An effort to seek to understand the past by studying documents, relics, and interviews Objective 3.2

Features of Qualitative Approaches • Differences between approaches • Different social contexts are being studied in each approach • The participants are selected for different reasons in each approach Objective 3.1

Features of Qualitative Approaches • Eight unique characteristics • Researchers immerse themselves in the situation • The data reflects the participants’ perspectives • Sources of data are real-world situations or natural contexts • Data is narrative in nature • Researchers focus on personal interactions with participants Objective 4.1

Features of Qualitative Approaches • Eight unique characteristics (continued) • Researchers avoid early decisions or assumptions about the study • Data are analyzed inductively • Methods provide clear, detailed information reflecting participants’ voices Objective 4.1

Technical Issues • Validity • The degree to which the qualitative data collected accurately gauges what is being measured • Two components • Trustworthiness • Understanding Objective 5.1

Technical Issues • Validity • Trustworthiness • Credibility – taking into account all the complexities in the study and addressing problems that are not easily explained • Transferability – including descriptive, context-relevant statements so the reader can identify with the setting • Dependability – collecting stable data • Confirmability – assuring the neutrality and objectivity of the data Objective 6.1

Technical Issues • Validity • Understanding • Descriptive validity – the factual accuracy of the account • Interpretive validity – the meaning attributed to the behaviors or words of the participants • Theoretical validity – the explanation of the phenomenon being studied in relation to a theory • Evaluative validity – sufficient objectivity in reporting data to avoid bias, preconceived judgments, or evaluations Objective 6.2

Technical Issues • 13 strategies to ensure validity • Participate at the study site for a prolonged period of time • Use persistent observation • Use peer debriefing • Collect mechanically recorded data • Use member checks • Establish structural corroboration/coherence • Establish referential adequacy Objective 6.3

Technical Issues • 13 strategies to ensure validity (cont.) • Collect detailed descriptive data • Develop detailed descriptions of the context • Overlap methods (i.e., multi-methods) • Establish an audit trail • Practice triangulation • Practice reflexivity Objective 6.3

Technical Issues • Reliability • The consistency with which data measures what is being attempted to be measured over time • Qualitative perspective • The reliability of the techniques that are being used to collect data • Reliability is a necessary but not sufficient characteristic – validity is the priority Objectives 7.1 and 7.2

Technical Issues • Generalizability • The applicability of findings to settings and contexts different from the one in which they were obtained • Internal-external validity issues revisited • A depth of understanding can only be achieved from a few participants in a very limited number of contexts • Generalizability is therefore very limited • Qualitative researchers are primarily concerned with validity and reliability and to a much lesser extent generalizability Objective 8.1

Technical Issues • General strategies for ensuring the technical merit of a qualitative study • Talk little, listen a lot • Record observation accurately • Begin writing early • Let readers see for themselves • Report fully • Be candid • Seek feedback • Write accurately

Ethical Issues • Ethics can be considered in terms of how the researcher treats the participants in the research setting. • The nature of qualitative research provides the potential for conflict and harm. • Qualitative research is intimate – there is little distance between the researcher and the participants • Qualitative research is open-ended – the nature of the process requires the use of an emergent design as the situation unfolds Objectives 9.1 and 9.2

Ethical Issues • Six guidelines to help avoid ethical problems • Researchers should have an ethical perspective that is close to their personal ethical position • Informed consent should take the form of a dialogue that mutually shapes the research and the results • Confidentiality is more complicated even with the use of pseudonyms • Consider the use of a video tape to illustrate a point being made Objective 9.4

Ethical Issues • Six guidelines to help avoid ethical problems (cont.) • You should be able to identify broader social principles that are an integral part of who you are as a researcher and a contributing member of the community in which you live. • Avoidance of harm morally binds qualitative researchers to conduct their research in a manner that minimizes potential harm to those involved in the study. Objective 9.4

Ethical Issues • Six guidelines to help avoid ethical problems (cont.) • Even though an action can bring about good results, it is not ethical unless it also conforms to ethical standards such as honesty and justice. • The qualitative researcher must remain attentive to the relationships between the researcher and the participants – a relationship that is determined by “roles, status, language, and cultural norms.” Objective 9.4

Educational Research