RS: qualitative design 5

attributes of qualitative research

attributes of qualitative research

• focus on people; discovery and exploration in natural settings

  • health science; new emerging area

  • holistic, participants meaning

• interprets with inductive reasoning

• systematic yet flexible

• multiple sources of data

  • textual, visual, audio, etc.

• small sample size (1-60)

• rich descriptions

• identifies data patterns

• build theories

• researcher as key instrument > need reflexivity

qualitative designs (5)

• narrative

• phenomenology

• ethnography

• case study

• grounded theory

narrative research

• Storytelling

• collecting and telling story or stories (in detail)

• narratives about experiences of individuals, describe life experience and discuss meaning

• researcher becomes interpreter of individual's stories

• researcher seeks out information through interviews, family stories, journals, field notes, letters, autobiography, conversations, photos, and other artifacts

• narrative data analysis runs counter to other qualitative analyses as data is not broken down into codes.

• chronology is often utilized with this approach.

qualitative methods checklist

• mention basic characteristics of qualitative research:

  • DESIGN: state type, hx of design, definition & application

  • reflexivity

  • WHO: sampling/recruitment? population? rationale?

  • METHODS: data collection, recording procedure, data analysis method

  • ANALYSIS: analysis method? research reviewed data? codes? themes? abstract and higher level themes? base for interpreting analysis been specified?

  • FINDINGS: mentioned outcomes? visual model? multiple strategies to validate?

qualitative data analysis forms (3)

• simultaneous Procedures - while interviews are going on, researchers may be analyzing interview data collected from previous participants.

• winnowing the Data - text and image data is so dense and rich. This process is focusing on some data that is relevant to your research question and disregarding other data.

• Software Programs: NVivo, MAXqda, Provalis

tips for writing qualitative procedures

1. Identify the specific approach and provide references.

2. Provide some background information about the approach.

3. Discuss why it is an appropriate strategy for the proposed study.

4. Identify how the use of the approach will shape the aspects of the design process. Title, research problem, research question, data collection and data analysis.

data collection procedures

• participants

  • purposefully select!, recruiting? # participants? site?

• data collection method

  • observation? interview? documents? audio-visual and digital materials?

• saturation signals end

types of qualitative data collection (4)

• qualitative observation

• qualitative interviews

• qualitative documents: diary, field notes, etc

• qualitative audio-visual materials: photos, video, art, sounds, film

data saturation

• AKA data redundancy

• fresh data no longer sparks new insights or reveals new properties or participants are continually sharing the same information with the researchers.

• start to get same data > time to stop

qualitative sampling

• what type selection is used?

  • types? (7)

• purposeful selection!!! ensure get data needed to answer question

• TYPES:

  • criterion sampling

    • based on criteria

  • maximum variation

    • gain understanding of multiple facets (students, faculty, CI, FW educators)

  • typical

    • fit the norm

  • snowball

  • convenience

  • homogenous

    • all sample same characteristics

  • total population

    • everyone associated w/group (children, parents, teacher)

recording procedures (2)

1. observation protocol: develop protocol for recording observations

2. interview protocol: develop interview protocol (typically semi-structured)

data analysis steps

1. raw data

2. organizing and preparing data

3. reading though all data

4. coding data

5. themes and description: 5-7 per research (supported by quotes); represented by models, drawings, tables

6. interrelating themes/description

7. interpreting meaning of themes/description

categories of codes

• expected codes

• surprising codes

• codes of unusual or conceptual interest

• predetermined codes

• visual images may be coded

interpretation of qualitative data

1. Summarize the findings

2. Compare the findings of the study to findings in the literature

3. Discuss the researchers’ personal views

4. State the limitations

5. State future research

phenomenology

• phenomena, Lived experiences

• understanding essence of experiences and what meanings are drawn from experiences.

• examines specific phenomenon

• focus on people’s subjective experiences and interpretations of world.

• PROCESS INCLUDES:

  1. Bracketing (set aside researcher bias)

  2. Collecting Data

  3. Analyzing Data

  4. Transforming Data

  5. Sharing the Story

• EX:

  • exploring lived experiences of children undergoing major surgery

  • Lived experiences of refugees

  • Experience of life after SCI

grounded theory

• Generating theory from data.

• “Grounded” in viewpoints of participants

• seek to explain what is occurring in social context and aims to develop theory.

• focuses on social processes.

• utilize many forms of data – interviews most common.

• Identifying process or sequence which is held to be in common with group of individuals.

• produces theory or set of explanatory concepts.

• Ground-up or bottom-up processing.

• EX: coping strategies of women that experienced childhood sexual abuse

ethnography

• culture; AKA naturalistic research

• method of describing culture, group, or society

• cultures and subcultures everywhere: in hospitals outpatient clinics, physical education classes.

• cultural aspects include group’s beliefs values and knowledge.

• how do groups create and negotiate meaning? structure? hierarchy?

• emphasizes the observation of details of everyday life as they naturally unfold in the real world.

• ethnographers visit settings and stay for prolonged periods.

• descriptive observations!! leading to focused observations.

• field notes are key.

• EX:

  • observing a group of children playing, employees in a corporate office, and occupational therapists in a hospital or a school classroom.

case study

• both qual and quant

• case Study- in depth study

• one person, group, or event.

• every aspect is analyzed to seek patterns and causes of behavior.

• intense investigations of a single unit of study.

• EX:

  • one person, one program, one school, a single class, a wellness center.

qualitative validity

• what

• how determine?

trustworthiness

• researcher checks for accuracy of findings by employing certain procedures

• HOW:

  • triangulate

  • member checking

  • rich, thick description

  • clarify bias

  • present negative or discrepant information

  • external auditor

  • peer debriefing

  • prolonged time in field

qualitative reliability

• researchers approach is consistent across different researchers involved in project

• achieved through flow charts for processes and questionnaire protocols

• HOW:

  • Check transcripts for mistakes

  • Ensure no drift in definition of codes (consistency)

  • Communication among coders

  • Cross-check codes by different researchers