QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH

1. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH

2. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • I. Characteristics • A. Focuses on phenomena occurring in natural settings. • B. Involves studying phenomena in all their complexity. • C. More concerned with authenticity than generalizability. • D. Does not allow for identification of cause-and-effect.

3. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • II. Field Research Designs • A. Case Study • 1. Description – in-depth study of individual, program, or event for a specified time period. • 2. Method – uses variety data sources, including observation, artifacts, interviews, etc.

4. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • II. Research Designs (con.) • B. Grounded Theory Study • 1. Description – • a. focuses on the process related to particular topic, especially individuals’ actions, reactions, and interactions. • b. purpose is to use data from the field to create theory, especially when current theory is inadequate or simply doesn’t exist. • 2. Method – uses interviews, observations, artifacts, etc.

5. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • III. Data Collection • A. Observation – field journal • B. Interviews • 1. Informal conversational interview • a. Unplanned and unanticipated interaction between researcher and respondent occurring naturally during course of fieldwork. • b. Most open-ended form of interviewing.

6. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • III. Data Collection (con.) • B. Interviews (con.) • 2. General interview guide approach • a. More structured than informal conversational interviewing. • b. Lists in outline form topics and issues that researcher should cover, but allows interviewer to adapt sequencing and wording questions to each particular interview.

7. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • III. Data Collection (con.) • B. Interviews (con.) • 3. Standardized open-ended interview • a. Most formal. • b. All interviews conducted in consistent, thorough manner, with minimum interviewer effects and biases. • c. Least used.

8. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • III. Data Collection (con.) • B. Interviews (con.) • 4. Focus group • a. Researcher interviews 10-12 people together at the same time. • b. Discuss a particular issue for 1-2 hours. • C. Artifacts

9. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis • A. Computer assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS) • 1. Pros • a. efficiency in managing and organizing data • b. frees you from manual and clerical tasks • c. way to manage huge amounts of data • d. newest packages can analyze social media, YouTube videos, & web pages

10. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis • A. CAQDAS (con.) • 2. Cons • a. increasingly rigid and deterministic processes • b. increased pressure to focus on volume and breadth rather than depth and meaning (more quantitative bent) • c. time spent learning program rather than getting into & analyzing the data

11. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis • A. CAQDAS (con.) • 3. Examples • a. Aquad (open source; windows) • b. CAT (coding analysis kit; open source) • c. Compendium (open source; windows; mac) • d. HyperRESEARCH (proprietary; mac; windows) • e. MAXQDA (proprietary; windows) • f. NVivo (proprietary; windows)

13. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis (con.) • B. Using Software in Qualitative Research by Ann Lewins and Christina Silver (Sage, 2007) • C. Saturation • D. Transcription

14. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis • E. Specific Data Analysis Method -- Successive Approximation • 1. Reading/Memoing • a. Read field notes, transcripts, memos, and observer comments to get a sense of data. • b. Write notes in margins or underline sections or issues that seem important so that have record initial thoughts and sense data.

15. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis (con.) • E. Successive Approximation (con.) • 2. Description • a. Addresses issue: What is going on in this setting and among these participants? • b. Aim to provide true picture settings and events taking place so that researcher and reader have understanding context in which study took place.

16. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis (con.) • E. Successive Approximation (con.) • 3. Classifying • a. Involves ordering field notes or transcriptions into categories representing different aspects of data. • b. Lower-level categories can themselves be organized into even higher, more abstract conceptual categories.

17. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • IV. Data Analysis (con.) • E. Successive Approximation (con.) • 4. Interpreting – involves synthesizing organized data into general conclusions or understandings.

18. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • V. Analyzing What is Missing from Data • A. Negative Evidence • 1. Nonappearance of something can reveal great deal and provide valuable insights. • 2. Kinds of negative evidence to consider • a. events that do not occur; • b. events of which population is unaware; • c. events the population wants to hide;

19. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • V. Analyzing What is Missing from Data (con.) • A. Negative Evidence (con.) • 2. Kinds (con.) • d. overlooked commonplace events; • e. effects of researcher’s preconceived notions; • f. unconscious nonreporting; and • g. conscious nonreporting.

20. QUALITATIVE (FIELD) RESEARCH • V. Analyzing What is Missing from Data (con.) • B. Limitation by Omission • 1. Need be aware alternative perspectives and not let limits specific social group to which belong, or which studied, blind you to broader view. • 2. Need be sensitive to distinctions race, sex, age, and other social distinctions.