CHAPTER 12: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Which best describes a typical sample in qualitative studies?

A) Large and randomly selected

B) Small and randomly selected

C) Large and selected not at random

D) Small and selected not at random

D

In thinking about sampling for a qualitative study, a researcher might ask which

question?

A) How many people do I need to achieve adequate power?

B) Who would be a rich information source for my study?

C) Will my sample be representative of the target population?

D) To which group will I be able to generalize my findings?

B

Which is true regarding both quantitative and qualitative research?

A) Both involve the development of eligibility criteria before recruiting study

participants

B) Both involve the use of random samples whenever possible

C) Both rely on power analysis to estimate sample size needs

D) Generalizability is a major quality criterion in both types of research.

A

A qualitative researcher studied women's decision to delay childbearing until their late

30s. Initial study participants referred friends who had made similar decisions. What

type of sample is being used with such referrals?

A) Convenience

B) Volunteer

C) Snowball

D) Purposive

C

Which is a potential drawback of convenience sampling in qualitative research?

A) Convenience sampling is only useful at the end of the sampling process

B) Convenience sampling is too expensive

C) Convenience sampling is inefficient

D) Convenience sampling may not yield the most information-rich sources

D

Which statement about sampling is true?

A) Convenience sampling is used by both quantitative and qualitative researchers

B) Quantitative researchers establish eligibility criteria, but qualitative researchers do

not

C) Another name for snowball sampling is volunteer sampling

D) Qualitative researchers do not need to be as concerned as quantitative researchers

about the quality of their samples

A

Qualitative sampling may begin with volunteer participants, but many studies eventually

evolve to a broad sampling strategy focused on the study's information needs. What is

the name of that broad strategy?

A) Convenience sampling

B) Quota sampling

C) Snowball sampling

D) Purposive sampling

D

A nurse researcher studied barriers to smoking cessation among pregnant women. The

study involved in-depth interviews with 16 women who were selected to be different in

terms of their parity, education, and length of time as a smoker. Which sampling method

was used?

A) Maximum variation sampling

B) Typical case sampling

C) Extreme case sampling

D) Criterion sampling

A

A nurse researcher studied nursing students' experiences of bullying in clinical

placements, using a case study design with multiple cases. The researcher selected cases

that involved persistent, severe bullying. Which sampling method was used?

A) Maximum variation sampling

B) Typical case sampling

C) Extreme case sampling

D) Criterion sampling

C

A nurse researcher studied how men coped with a diagnosis of prostate cancer. The

researcher concluded that early adjustment to the diagnosis involved a process

provisionally described as "reframing." The researcher then deliberately tried to sample

people for whom reframing was not apparent. Which sampling method was used toward

the end of this study?

A) Criterion sampling

B) Sampling disconfirming cases

C) Extreme case sampling

D) Maximum variation sampling

C

Which is not a type of purposive sampling?

A) Extreme case sampling

B) Maximum variation sampling

C) Snowball sampling

D) Typical case sampling

C

Which statement about sampling in qualitative research is true?

A) Convenience sampling is considered the most appropriate method of selecting

sample members.

B) Larger samples are considered more useful than smaller samples.

C) Using randomness in the sampling process is desirable.

D) The type of sampling approach can change and evolve over the course of data

collection.

D

Which qualitative research tradition relies on theoretical sampling?

A) Ethnography

B) Descriptive phenomenology

C) Interpretive phenomenology

D) Grounded theory

D

Why do qualitative nurse researchers use theoretical sampling?

A) To find cases that meet a predetermined criterion of importance

B) To select participants who will help to develop the emerging conceptualization

C) To learn about the phenomenon under study from the most unusual and extreme

cases

D) To ensure diversity with regard to characteristics deemed important to the

phenomenon under study

B

What is data saturation?

A) Sampling to the point at which new information continues to be obtained

B) Sampling to the point at which the target population is saturated with requests for

data

C) Sampling to the point at which redundancy of information is achieved

D) Sampling to the point at which maximum variation is achieved

C

Which statement about sample size in qualitative research is true?

A) New researchers who have a fresh eye on phenomena can get by with smaller

samples than more experienced researchers

B) If the quality of data being collected is exceptionally good, a smaller sample may

suffice than when data are of mediocre quality

C) Typical case sampling requires more participants than maximum variation

sampling

D) Sampling for qualitative studies should stop before information becomes redundant

B

Which statement about sampling in ethnographic studies is true?

A) Ethnographers sample not only people but also events, records, artefacts, and other

features of a culture.

B) Ethnographers usually have at least 100 key informants in their samples.

C) Ethnographers avoid conversing with many people, restricting their sample to a

few expert cultural consultants.

D) Ethnographers select key informants using convenience sampling.

A

Nine women participated in a nurse researcher's study of the experience of alcohol-

related intimate partner abuse. This is most likely to be the sample for which type of

study?

A) A phenomenological study

B) A grounded theory study

C) An ethnography

D) A descriptive qualitative study

A

Which is a key criterion for being included in a sample for a phenomenological study?

A) The person must belong to a particular culture or social group

B) The person must have considerable factual knowledge about the phenomenon

being studied

C) The person must be willing to be exposed to the phenomenon under study

D) The person must have experienced the phenomenon being studied

D

Which statement about sampling in grounded theory studies is true?

A) Grounded theory researchers start with theoretical sampling and then later evolve

to a snowballing approach.

B) In a grounded theory study, sampling, data collection, data analysis, and theory

construction occur concurrently and iteratively.

C) Grounded theory researchers do not use the principal of data saturation in their

sampling approach.

D) Grounded theory studies typically involve samples of 40 to 60 people.

B

Which is used to support the transferability of qualitative research findings?

A) Thick description

B) Data saturation

C) Key informants

D) Disconfirming cases

A

Which statement about data collection in qualitative studies is true?

A) Qualitative researchers are as likely as quantitative researchers to gather

biophysiologic data

B) Qualitative researchers typically incorporate scales into their data collection

protocols

C) The main source of data for qualitative studies is in-depth interviews

D) The research tradition that uses the greatest diversity of data sources is

phenomenology

C

A nurse researcher is studying parents' experiences of having a child diagnosed with

leukemia. The researcher began the interview by asking "Can you tell me what it was

like when you first learned that your child had leukemia?" This is an example of which

type of question?

A) A focused question

B) A grand tour question

C) A brainstorming question

D) A topical question

B

A nurse researcher is interviewing participants who survived a major earthquake. Which

is the best example of a grand tour question for this study?

A) At what point did you evacuate the area?

B) What kind of damage did your home sustain?

C) What was it like to live through an earthquake?

D) Where were you at the time the earthquake occurred?

C

A nurse researcher is studying nurses' experiences with ethically difficult situations and

has a list of question areas that need to be covered in each interview. What is that list

called?

A) A photo elicitation

B) A topic guide

C) An interview schedule

D) A questionnaire

B

Which statement about topic guides is true?

A) Topic guides are the backbone of ethnographic interviews.

B) Topic guides include a mix of open-ended and closed-ended questions.

C) The first question on topic guides is a grand tour question.

D) Topic guides are often used to guide discussions in focus group interviews.

D

Which statement about focus groups is true?

A) Focus group interviews involve going around the room and asking each person in

the group the same question.

B) The person guiding a focus group interview is called a moderator.

C) Focus groups are less efficient than individual interviews.

D) Focus group sessions typically involve about 20 people.

B

An ethnographer is studying the culture of a refugee community in Toronto. The

interviews take place in the participants' homes, and the interviewer asks participants to

talk about family pictures and souvenirs that are on display. What type of interview is

this?

A) A focus group interview

B) A dyadic interview

C) A photo elicitation interview

D) A structured interview

C

Which statement about collecting self-report data in qualitative research is true?

A) Most qualitative researchers audio record their interviews for later transcription

B) The most common method of conducting in-depth qualitative interviews is over the

telephone

C) Interviews for qualitative studies are conversational, so researchers avoid doing

any advance preparation that could reduce spontaneity

D) When interviewing participants, qualitative researchers ask their questions in a

predetermined order to avoid bias

A

Which statement about unstructured observation is true?

A) Unstructured observation is synonymous with participant observation

B) Participant observation involves prolonged periods of social interaction between

researchers and participants

C) Researchers seek to gain "front stage" knowledge of the group or culture under

study

D) Participant observation is a technique unique to ethnographers

B

Which statement about participant observation is true?

A) Participant observers usually maintain the same level of participation throughout

the study.

B) In a participant observation study, participants are observed but not questioned.

C) Participant observers typically use a combination of strategies for positioning

themselves during observations.

D) Participant observers most commonly record their observations by videotaping the

events and transactions they observe.

C

A nurse researcher undertakes participant observation in an intensive care unit. On

consecutive days, the researcher shadows a different staff member and observes his or

her behaviour and actions. This is example of which type of positioning?

A) Single positioning

B) Multiple positioning

C) Mobile positioning

D) Selective positioning

C

Participant observers can gather a wide range of information about a group or setting

under study. Which question is least likely to be considered relevant from a substantive

point of view in a participant observation study?

A) Where will I be able to charge electronic devices needed for data collection?

B) What are the roles and characteristics of the people being observed?

C) How often do people communicate and interact with each other?

D) What are the key activities of this group and how often do they occur?

A

What information is kept in an observational log?

A) Reflexive notes about the observer's preconceptions

B) An interpretation of what the observer witnessed

C) Notes on what the observer would like to pursue the next day

D) A record of what the observer did in the field each day

D