A500.6.3.RB - Qualitative Research

I have to admit, I was not very familiar with qualitative research before this assignment.  Quantitative research has always seemed like the obvious choice to me when using a research method because it is such a measurable method and has precision.  So I had my doubts before learning about the qualitative research method.  However, I removed my doubts and ambiguity I associated with it after comparing it to quantitative research.

Quantitative research used to be the popular and primary research method in most fields of study.  However, an increasing interest in expanding research methods has identified the importance of qualitative research.  Marie C. Hoepfl (1997) broadly defines qualitative research in her article Choosing Qualitative Research: A Primer for Technology Education Researchers as, “any kind of research that produces findings not arrived at by means of statistical procedures or other means of quantification" (Strauss and Corbin, 1990, p. 17).  Where quantitative researchers seek causal determination, prediction, and generalization of findings, qualitative researchers seek instead illumination, understanding, and extrapolation to similar situations. Qualitative analysis results in a different type of knowledge than does quantitative inquiry.”  The quantitative research method has its place, but there are times when numbers and statistics cannot accurately measure something.  Cronbach (1975) states, “statistical research is not able to take full account of the many interaction effects that take place in social settings.”  The qualitative research method has an advantage in this area because it can be used to gain new perspectives using natural settings and experiences.

Hoepfl (1997) synthesized some author’s descriptions of qualitative research into eight elements as follows: 

1. Qualitative research uses the natural setting as the source of data.

2. The researcher acts as the "human instrument" of data collection.

3. Qualitative researchers predominantly use inductive data analysis.

4. Qualitative research reports are descriptive, incorporating expressive language.

5. Qualitative research has an interpretive character, aimed at discovering the meaning events have for the individuals who experience them, and the interpretations of those meanings by the researcher.

6. Qualitative researchers pay attention to the idiosyncratic as well as the pervasive, seeking the uniqueness of each case.

7. Qualitative research has an emergent (as opposed to predetermined) design, and researchers focus on this emerging process as well as the outcomes or product of the research.

8. Qualitative research is judged using special criteria for trustworthiness.

When conducting qualitative research, it is important for the researcher to accept the naturalist model, develop the skill level necessary for a human instrument, and design research based on naturalistic inquiry strategies (Lincoln and Guba, 1985).  There are two types of common sampling strategies used for qualitative research; purposeful and maximum variation sampling.  However, purposeful sampling is the primary strategy in qualitative research.  Interviews and observations are the two key forms of data collection. There are options in recording interviews and observations such as note taking, photographs, video, and audio recordings.  I find using video with audio recording would be the best option as there would be less chance of error when observing.  However, the presence of the device would have to remain undetected when performing research to maintain the natural setting.  “Analysis begins with identification of the themes emerging from the raw data, a process sometimes referred to as "open coding" (Strauss and Corbin, 1990)”.  The next analysis stage is sometimes referred to as “axial coding”, which re-examines how categories are linked.  Lastly, the research must translate the data into a format in which will be interpreted by the researcher’s audience. The audience shares a responsibility in judging the qualitative research because they, along with the researcher, establish the value of the research.  

Qualitative research has given me a different perspective on how to conduct research.  The information Hoepfl presented on qualitative research will help me look at information differently within my profession and my academic aspirations.  Where I once only felt comfortable using quantitative research as my primary method, I now feel comfortable using a different method with qualitative research.  

References: 

Cronbach, L. J. (1975, February). Beyond the two disciplines of scientific psychology. American Psychologist, 30(2), 116-127.

Hoepfl, M. (1997). Choosing qualitative research: a primer for technology education researchers. In M. Sanders (Ed.), Journal of Technology Education, 9(1). Retrieved from http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE/v9n1/hoepfl.html  

Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.