QUALI FINALS

getting in and analysis

two phases of research

standardized, unstandardized and semi-standardized

types of interview

standardized interview

uses a structure schedule of interview questions; are designed to elicit information from subjects by using a set of predetermined questions

Unstandardized Interview

do not use schedules of questions; under the assumption that interviewers do not know what question is necessary

semi-standardized interview

interviewers have to ask predetermined questions to subjects but also allow to digress/deviate

essential questions

type of question which concern the central focus of the study

extra questions

type of question which is roughly equivalent to certain essential questions; its purpose is to check the reliability of subjects’ responses

throw-away question

type of question which is incidental or unnecessary for gathering important information

probing question

type of question which provide interviewers a way to get a more complete information

common problems in question formulation

affectively worded, double-barreled, complex questions and question sequencing

affectively worded questions

arouse people some emotional response

double-barreled question

asks a subject to respond to two topics in a single question at the same time

solution: separate the two topics and ask separate questions

complex questions

a long and complicated question will affect the entirety of an answer

solution: keep questions short, specific and understandable

question sequencing

arrangement of questions affect the results; ideally questions should be easier (general) in the beginning and more complex (specific) step by step

self-conscious performance

Interviewers’ actions, lines, roles, and routines must be prepared in advance.

social interpretations and the interviewer

Interviewers must hear not only what the subjects say, but also how they say it

interviewer as actor

• Must perform your lines, routines, and movements.

• Must recite your scripted lines and be aware of the interviewee.

• Must listen carefully what participants say.

interviewer as director

• Must be conscious of how you perform lines, move, and the

interviewee’s performance.

• Must reflect on each part of the interview.

• Use the first-person to transcribe.

• Use third-person to observe.

Interviewer as Choreographer

controls the whole interview process; Interviewers can block their own movements and gestures and write down your own response lines; To control your time, information, if participants going to wrong topic, lead them back.

ten commandments of interviewing

1.Never begin an interview cold

2. Remember your purpose

3. Present a natural front

4. Demonstrate aware hearing

5. Think about appearance

6. Interview in a comfortable place

7. Don’t be satisfied with monosyllabic answers

8. Be respectful

9. Practice, practice, and practice some more

10. Be cordial and appreciative

analysis

without question the most difficult aspect of any qualitative research project, it is the most creative

focus group

is an interview style designed for small groups of unrelated individuals, formed by an investigator and led in a group discussion on some particular topic or topics (Barbour, 2008).

purpose of focus group interviews

• researchers strive to learn through discussion

• not generally used to collect data on events, behaviors or feelings

• the essence of the data is the exchanges among participants

• you are not counting how many people are on each side of an issue

• the group itself is the unit of analysis

• use group interactions as part of the data-collection method

• are guided or unguided group discussions

basic ingredients in focus groups

1. a clearly defined objective and/or research problem

2. nature of the group

3. atmosphere/environment and rapport

4. an aware listening facilitator

5. a well-organized and prepared facilitator

6. structure and direction but restrained contribution to the discussion

7. research assistance

8. systematic analysis

informed consent procedures

require researchers to alert participants of the kinds of topics that will be discussed before they agree to join, and moderators must remind participants that they can withdraw if the process becomes uncomfortable.

Consensus

refers to points of agreements within the group

Disensus or disagreement

What about ideas or suggestions on which the group could not come to agreement?

Resonance

• Do certain expressions seem to “catch fire” within the group?

• Are there moments in the discussion where one participant expresses an idea that suddenly unites all (or nearly all) of the members?

• measure the intensity of the feelings or expressions associated with the points of agreement and disagreement

illustrate

use ____ to illustrate, not to prove

virtual focus groups

what came out researchers expansion of their focus group strategies to harness the power of the web

synchronous and asynchronous

two ways the virtual groupings are conducted

synchronous

refers to sessions that are live

asynchronous

typically use e-mail, online discussion boards

cut costs; reach a broad geographic scope; access to hard-to-reach participants; convenient and comfortable way of participating

advantages of virtual groups

fieldwork

living with people for an extended time to gather data using a variety of field techniques for collecting that data

holism

fieldwork & field techniques developed in the study of smaller scale societies with greater cultural uniformity compared to large-scale industrial societies

participant-observation

defining characteristic of cultural anthropology & its methods of research

ethnographic method

• first-hand observation of daily behavior; immersed in daily life

  • no other human science does this

• what people say & what they do

surveys and interviews

two techniques of asking questions and eliciting responses

surveys

structured closed-ended questionnaires

genealogical method/genealogies

statistical analysis

objectivity (who administers)

genealogies

consist of written records of a group of people who are related to a common ancestor or ancestors

differences between ethnographic from survey research

• study whole functioning community vs. a sample

• develop rapport

• totality of an informant's life-context

• context & thick description

• adds depth to survey data (i.e. kinship genealogies)

life history

• recollections of lifetime experiences

• identify important life turns for a culture

• indicates the diversity of experience

• within what appears to be a society of

• cultural uniformity

• problem with remembering in the present

• Notions of narrative and history

emic and etic

two types of knowledge

emic

local knowledge; how people think, perceive, categorize the world; what has meaning in their world-the natives point of view

etic

shift focus from the native's point of view to that of the anthropologist

reflexivity

• type of knowledge – intersubjective

• A self consciousness about the impact on the data produced in the context of doing fieldwork and writing culture

• how the anthropologist effects the thoughts, actions of informants

• how the ethnocentrism of the anthro colors the interpretation and final representation of others thinking & actions

dialectic

how Paul Rabinow identifies fieldwork as; meaning neither the subject nor the object remain static

intersubjective

Field data are constructs of the process by which we acquire them (Paul Rabinow on Reflexive Knowledge)

hermeneutical

the problem is a ______ one; interpretation ... “as the comprehension of self by the detour of the comprehension of the other”

anthropology as negotiated reality

• a mutually constructed ground of experience and understanding

• an acknowledgement of the dialogue between the anthropologist and the informant in the experience of fieldwork

doubly mediated

the data is ____ _____

first by presence of the anthropologist

then by a second order self-reflection of our informants

fieldwork

what is an experience of humanity

responsibility to scholarship and science, to the public and to students and trainees

ethics beyond the field

Participatory Action Research (PAR)

refers to multiple approaches but where research and action must be done WITH people and not ON or FOR people

Pioneers in PAR

1940s-present

Integration

connecting academic interests with education and community development

Critical Pedagogy

how is PAR informed by?

Roles of education

• allow learners to regain sense of humanity

• recognize pedagogy is a political act

• treat learners as co-creators of knowledge vs. “banking” concept of student, empty object for teacher to fill

feature of PAR

• removes biases

• multiple forms of data

• rich in description

• stress on process, not product

• ongoing inductive analysis

• data analysis, findings, conclusions provide meaning

• findings inform practice

reasons to use PAR

• to connect theory and practice

• to address issues; improve situations; make change

• promote professional growth; develop skills, knowledge base

• promote collaboration; is democratic; encourage “community”

challenges of PAR

• acknowledging political bias

• making group/collaboration work

• sharing power; encouraging participation

• teaching and learning (practice and skills)

• assessing outcomes

Public archival records

written in more or less standardized form and arranged in the archive systematically (e.g., alphabetically, chronologically, and numerically indexed).

The information content of the records

▪ maps,

▪ images,

▪ art,

▪ and so on

Case study

defined as a detailed examination of one setting, or a single subject, a single depository of documents, or one particular event

post-facto studies

where and when case studies are often adopted

pointed in their focus; or approach a broad view of life and society

case studies can either be:

by concentrating on a _____________, the researcher aims to uncover the manifest interactions of significant factors characteristic of this phenomenon, individual, community, or institution

case studies in education

abound and include studies of unique people and programs, as well as special programming

how case study informs theory

Case studies can provide a kind of deep understanding of phenomenon, events, people, or organizations, similar to Geertz’s (1973) notion of “thick description.”

• In essence, case studies open the door to the processes created and used by individuals involved in the phenomenon, event, group, or organization under study (Weick, 1995).

thick description

a description of human social action that describes not just physical behaviors, but their context as interpreted by the actors as well, so that it can be better understood by an outsider

sensemaking

the manner by which people, groups, and organizations make sense of stimuli with which they are confronted

grounded theory case study

theory can be uncovered and informed as a consequence of the data collection and interpretations of this data made throughout the development of the case study

intrinsic case studies

are undertaken when a researcher wants to better understand a particular case.

instrumental case studies

provide insights into an issue or refine a theoretical explanation, making it more generalizable

collective case studies

involve extensive study of several instrumental cases, intended to allow better understanding, insight, or perhaps improved ability to theorize about a broader context.

exploratory case studies

This type of study may be seen as a prelude to a large social scientific study—which may or may not in itself involve case studies; fieldwork and data collection may be undertaken before defining a research question

Explanatory case studies

• are useful when conducting causal studies or otherwise pursuing an inferential research question.

• Particularly in complex studies of organizations or communities, one might desire to employ multivariate cases to examine a plurality of influences

• attempts to discover and analyze the many factors and conditions that can help us to build a causal explanation for the case

Descriptive Case Studies

• the investigator presents a descriptive theory that establishes the overall framework for the investigator to follow throughout the study.

• What is implied by this approach is the formation and identification of a viable theoretical orientation before enunciating research questions (Hancock & Algozzine, 2006; Munhall, 2007).

• The investigator must also determine before beginning the research what exactly the unit of analysis in the study will be

Designing case studies

• Designing a case study is merely a special case of the problem of designing any study, as discussed in Section 2 - Designing.

• All studies begin with a research question, or problem to be addressed

• Most are designed around testable propositions derived from theory and the existing research literature.