Qualitative research

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The term " qualitative research " has different meanings in different fields, with the social science usage the most well-known. In the social sciences, qualitative research is often a broad term that describes research that focuses on how individuals and groups view and understand the world and construct meaning out of their experiences. It essentially is narrative-oriented and uses content analysis methods on selected levels of communication content. Other researchers consider it simply to be research whose goal is not to estimate statistical parameters but to generate hypotheses to be tested quantitatively.

In statistics, qualitative analysis consists of procedures that use only dichotomous data – that is, data which can take only the values 0 (zero) and 1 (one). These techniques are suitable where events or entities can only be counted or classified rather than measured. The techniques themselves are, of course, numerically based.

In climate research, qualitative reconstructions of past temperatures rely on records of events such as frost fairs which indicate periods of cold or warmth, but give little or no information as to the degree of temperature variation. Other indicators – dates of harvest, first flowering of plants – produce information somewhere between qualitative and quantitative.

Contents [hide]

• 1History
• 2Overview
• 3Applications
• 4References
• 5See also
• 6External links

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History

Qualitative research approaches began to gain recognition in the 1970s. The very phrase 'qualitative research' was until then marginalized as a discipline of anthropology or sociology, and terms like ethnography, fieldwork, participant observation and Chicago school approach were used instead. During the 1970s and 1980s qualitative research began to be used in other disciplines, and became a dominant - or at least significant - type of research in the fields of women's studies, disability studies, education studies, social work studies, information studies, management studies, nursing service studies, human service studies and others. In the late 1980s and 1990s after a spate of criticisms from the quantitative side, new methods of qualitative research have been designed, to address the problems with reliability and imprecise modes of data analysis.[Taylor, 1998]

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Overview

In the social sciences, qualitative research is a broad term that describes research that focuses on how individuals and groups view and understand the world and construct meaning out of their experiences. Qualitative research methods are sometimes used together with quantitative research methods to gain deeper understanding of the causes of social phenomena, or to help generate questions for further research. Unlike quantitative methods, qualitative research methods place little importance on developing statistically valid samples, or on searching for conclusive proof of hypotheses.

Instead, qualitative research focuses on the understanding of research phenomena in situ; that is, within their naturally-occurring context(s). One aim of the qualitative researcher is to tease out the meaning(s) the phenomena have for the actors or participants. Quantitative studies, however, may also observe phenomena in situ and address issues of meaning, and one criticism of this approach to qualitative research is that the definitions offered of it do not distinguish it adequately from quantitative research (for more on this issue, and about the debate over the merits of qualitative and quantitative approaches, see qualitative psychological research).

Generally (though there are exceptions), qualitative research studies rely on three basic data gathering techniques: participant observation, interview, and document or artifact analysis (Wolcott, 1995, 1999). Each of these techniques represents a continuum of from less to more structured (Adler & Adler, 1987; DeWalt & DeWalt, 2002) Various studies or particular techniques may rely more heavily on one data gathering technique or another.

Epistemologically qualitative methods insist that we should not invent the viewpoint of the actor, and should only attribute to them ideas about the world they actually hold, in order that we can truly understant their motives, reasons and actions.(Becker, 1996)

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Applications

Though it had its genesis in the fields of journalism, anthropology, and sociology, qualitative research has burgeoned into and been taken up by many fields. Anthropology contributed to the field with its development of the research method of ethnography — a type of cultural translation (Boas, 1943; Malinowski, 1922/1961). Qualitative research in sociology, especially in the U.S., has its roots in the Chicago School (Adler & Adler, 1987).

Some of the different methods included under the umbrella of qualitative research, therefore, include: ethnography, ethnology, oral life history, case study, focus groups, conversation analysis, and portraiture.

Qualitative research has gained in popularity, especially due to the linguistic or subjective turn taking hold across the globe (Giddens, 1990). The social sciences, especially, as well as laypeople, have more readily accepted a subjective (as opposed to an objective or objectivist) ontology. Its practitioners often believe that qualitative research is especially well-suited to getting at the subjective qualities of the lived world, although this belief is far from universally accepted.

Many forms of qualitative analysis are labour-intensive. A number of software packages have been developed with the aim of reducing the load and systematising the task. Commercially available packages include Nud*ist; open source or free packages include AnSWR homepage.

Because of its emphasis on in-depth knowledge and elaboration of images and concepts, qualiative methods have been viewed as particulary useful for the areas of social research like "giving voice" to marginalized groups, formulation of new interpretations of historical and cultural significance of various events and advancing theory as in-depth, empirical qualitative studies may capture important facts missed by more general, quantitative studies. Such investigations usually focuse on a primary case, on the commonalities among separate instances of the same phenomenon identified through analytic induction, or on paraller phenomena identified through theoretical sampling. (Ragin, 1994).

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References

• Adler, P. A. & Adler, P. (1987). Membership roles in field research. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
• Becker, Howard S., The epistemology of qualitative research. University of Chicago Press, 1996. 53-71. [from Ethnography and human development: context and meaning in social inquiry / edited by Richard Jessor, Anne Colby, and Richard A. Shweder]
• Boas, Franz (1943). Recent anthropology. Science, 98, 311-314, 334-337.
• DeWalt, K. M. & DeWalt, B. R. (2002). Participant observation. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.
• Giddens, A. (1990). The consequences of modernity. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
• Malinowski, B. (1922/1961). Argonauts of the Western Pacific. New York: E. P. Dutton.
• Charles C. Ragin, Constructing Social Research: The Unity and Diversity of Method, Pine Forge Press, 1994, ISBN 0803990219
• Steven J. Taylor, Robert Bogdan, Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods, Wiley, 1998, ISBN 0471168688
• Wolcott, H. F. (1995). The art of fieldwork. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.
• Wolcott, H. F. (1999). Ethnography: A way of seeing. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.

Qualitative research

We use the following methods in our studies: focus groups with all categories of participants: electronic focus groups using the CARMA system developed by selves in-depth interviews expert interviews with CEOs, politicians, scientists, journalists, managers and other categories of respondents of interest to the client studio tests, hall tests creative seminars brain stormings delphi-methods Major stages of a qualitative reseasch: The client participates in decision-making process related to selecting the target group and the most appropriate method of research. The client is presented with a proposal describing the methods and schedule of the research, the guide for in-depth interviewing and group discussion. Our specialists recruit participants in accordance with the established criteria. Qualitative research is accompanied with an audio and video recording. The client can observe the focus group or an interview from a special room through a one-way mirror. Observers with no knowledge of the Russian language are provided with simultaneous translation into their own language. After the analysis is completed, the client is presented with a final printed report in the language suitable to the client; the report includes the detailed analysis of the data received, basic results of the research, conclusions and recommendations as well as the description of the methods applied. Also available are printed transcripts of interviews and group discussions translated into the language suitable to the client. At the client’s request, we provide a video report giving the general findings of the research, including the most typical “snapshots” of group discussions or interviews. These are accompanied with our comments, again in a language suitable to the client. We have created a training manual for moderators and supervisors of our network in the regions of Russia; it describes the method of focus group and in-depth interviews, the methodology of recruitment of participants.

Research Methods Qualitative Research Methods: Mini-groups (4-6 respondents) Standard focus-groups (8 respondents) Enhanced focus-groups (10 respondents) Prolonged focus-groups In-depth interviews (20-60 minutes) "Family" focus-groups children and adults including Expert interviews Double- triple interviews Ethnography Workshop Quantitative Research Methods: Face-to-face interviews, comprising: o Street interviews o In-home interviews o Hall-testing Phone-based interviews CATI - Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing E-mail-based Researches Life is always subject to mathematical patterns and exceptions do nothing but justify rules. While analyzing quantitative data, we make use of following statistics methods: comparison of average amounts, factor, regressing, cluster, conjoint and correlation analysis. We always insure our research data are precise and adequate. And as thoughts cannot themselves guarantee getting the result we therefore developed a set of measures against unpredictable situations.   While conducting qualitative research:   Field Department recruits follow the rule – “1 recruiter- 1 respondent”   Respondents are to be checked by means of OIROM database which contains all the information about them and therefore prevents their repeat participation in focus-groups discussions. Back-up respondents are recruited– at least 150% of the target sample size. Second Screening – screening is fulfilled by field department manager. Supervisor’s preliminary control– all phone-questioned respondents are to conform to established criteria (Client’s presence is possible) At minimum 2 back-up respondents are in reserve replace “problematic” participants while focus-groups are being conducted. Quantitative Research include: Piloting of all questionnaires (at minimum, 2-3 pilot interviews) Training interviewers by real-situation simulation Checking, at minimum, 25% of questionnaires (questionnaires provided by middle level interviewers are checked 100%) Interview control by staff supervisor Route-guide compliance control by staff supervisor Repeated questionnaire completion during a check interview Random second data entry for 50% of questionnaires enabling to control the accuracy of data entry (at least 50% of questionnaires for each operator). As a rule, first 2-4 questionnaires for each interviewer are to be considered pilot and are not used in further analysis.

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