Introduct|on to ua||tat|ve Methods

A Student nandbook





kaka|| 8hattacharya, h.D.

Lducat|ona| Adm|n|strat|on & kesearch
IC 224
6300 Ccean Dr|ve, Un|t S818
Corpus Chr|st|, 1k 78412-S818
Lma||: kaka||.8hattacharyaQtamucc.edu












2007
All rlghLs reserved. no parL of Lhls publlcaLlon may be reproduced or LransmlLLed ln any form or by any
means, elecLronlc or mechanlcal lncludlng phoLocopylng, recordlng, or lnformaLlon sLorage or reLrleval
sysLem, wlLhouL prlor permlsslon ln wrlLlng from Lhe auLhor
1

Week 1: Meet|ng ua||tat|ve Methods

So you are new Lo quallLaLlve meLhods and don'L really know whaL lL ls and how Lo Lhlnk
abouL lL. 1o Lop lL off, your professor has asked you Lo noL only undersLand Lhe
meLhods, Lhe dense Lheorles, Lhe new language and Lerms, buL also Lo do pro[ecLs and
daLa analysls. Sure, sounds overwhelmlng Lo me. 1hls handbook ls deslgned Lo help you:
! supplemenL Lhe readlngs and acLlvlLles ln Lhe class
! have a workbook space Lo explore all your undersLandlng of quallLaLlve research
! use as a reference manual for your quallLaLlve pro[ecLs boLh aL Lhe lnLroducLory
and advanced levels
! brldge gaps beLween Lheory and pracLlce
! undersLand and reframe foundaLlons of research and sclenLlflc lnqulry
! become exLremely smarL ln your academlc career as a graduaLe sLudenL and
beyond
! use as a weapon when someone lrrlLaLes you "

now do peop|e understand qua||tat|ve research?
CuallLaLlve research has had early rooLs ln anLhropology and soclology. 8esearchers
from Lhe WesLern world would go Lo exoLlc culLures and sLudy people and Lhelr culLures
Lhrough lnLervlews, observaLlons, and archlved maLerlals. 1hen Lhe researcher would Lry
Lo puL LogeLher a culLural descrlpLlon, usually known as eLhnography, whlch hlghllghLed
common paLLerns LhaL cuL across all daLa sources. 1hus, people who dld noL vlslL Lhe
culLure would geL an undersLandlng Lhrough Lhe research of anLhropologlsLs,
soclologlsLs. MargareL Mead and Cllfford !ames are very famous anLhropologlsLs
assoclaLed wlLh eLhnography.

CurrenLly, Lhls model of quallLaLlve research has come under aLLack from varlous groups
such as 1hlrd World scholars, femlnlsLs, Afrlcan-Amerlcan scholars, eLc. 1hese scholars
quesLlon Lhe noLlon of Lelllng sLorles abouL someone else's culLure from a WesLern
perspecLlve. 1hey clalm LhaL when someone who ls Lralned ln WesLern phllosophles and
sclence, Lhey cannoL posslbly see Lhe world ln Lhe ways of people who mlghL noL have
been exposed or Lralned ln Lhe same phllosophles. MargareL Mead was crlLlclzed for
lmposlng her progresslve upbrlnglng on Samoan women by calllng Lhem oppressed.
Cppresslon and llberaLlon looks dlfferenL Lo Samoan women Lhan Lhey do Lo MargareL
Mead. 1herefore Mead's undersLandlng of oppresslon cannoL be Lhe same reallLy as Lhe
Samoan women, whose sLorles she was Lrylng Lo Lell.

2
Aha! ua||tat|ve research |s about stor|es then, r|ght?
Well yes and no. CeL ready Lo say and undersLand a very popular answer ln quallLaLlve
research, lL depends." ?es quallLaLlve researchers Lell sLorles. ?es quallLaLlve
researchers sLudy culLures. 8uL Lhere ls someLhlng very speclal abouL quallLaLlve
researchers. 1hey don'L [usL wake up one flne mornlng and say, l wlll go llve wlLh
pygmles and Lell Lhe sLory of female oppresslon" and go off Lo Lhe sLore Lo geL a Lon of
bug repellenL. no, a quallLaLlve researcher ls careful ln how s/he chooses an lssue Lo
lnvesLlgaLe, a quesLlon Lo ask, and Lhen deslgns research purpose and quesLlons. As a
researcher, you have Lo know:

! Why you are lnLeresLed ln your Loplc?
! WhaL values and assumpLlons do you brlng Lo Lhe Lable?
! WhaL do you expecL your ouLcome Lo be?
! WhaL does Lhe exlsLlng llLeraLure say abouL Lhe Loplc?
! Where mlghL be a gap ln undersLandlng Lhe Loplc?
! Pow wlll your research flll ln Lhe gap?
! WhaL personal lnvesLmenL do you have ln Lhe Loplc?
! WhaL mlghL be Lhe lmpllcaLlons of Lhe ouLcome?

1hese are careful conslderaLlons LhaL every quallLaLlve researcher ls expecLed Lo make
before Lhey [ump lnLo any sLudy of a culLure. As long as we are dlscusslng culLure, afLer
Lhe eLhnocenLrlc crlLlclsm of eLhnography, many researchers called for sLudylng people
from Lhelr own culLure lnsLead of sLudylng culLures LhaL Lhey know noLhlng abouL. 1hls
meanL LhaL Lhe undersLandlng of culLure had Lo change from Lhose exoLlc people
somewhere ln far away land Lo people aL home, who mlghL be ln groups LhaL share
common values, bellefs, and mlghL even have Lhelr own language. Some examples of
culLure can lnclude Lhe culLure of LallgaLers, Lhe culLure of a sororlLy, eLc.

LlsL below some oLher examples of culLure LhaL you can Lhlnk of:











uurlng Lhe 1980's, people ln LducaLlon clalmed LhaL Lhe numbers were noL Lelllng Lhe
whole sLory. 1hey could noL really Lake acLlons ln Lhelr everyday llves from Lhe numbers
and Lhey needed more ln depLh lnformaLlon. 1hus, quallLaLlve research became
3
lnLroduced Lo educaLlon, whlch sLarLed a paradlgm war beLween quallLaLlve and
quanLlLaLlve research. Powever, Lhey boLh serve dlfferenL purpose and nelLher ls any
more rlghL/beLLer Lhan Lhe oLher. CurrenLly, quallLaLlve research ls wldely accepLed ln
many areas of educaLlon, whlle some are sLlll reslsLanL. ln a nuLshell, quallLaLlve
research aLLempLs Lo sysLemaLlcally lnqulre abouL Lhe ln-depLh naLure of Lhe human
experlence wlLhln Lhe conLexL ln whlch Lhe experlence occurs. 1he followlng ls a llsL of
some of Lhe Lypes of quallLaLlve research.

LLhnography
1he sLudy of people wlLhln Lhe conLexL of Lhelr culLure

AuLoeLhnography
1he sLudy of self wlLhln Lhe conLexL of own culLure

Case SLudy
1he ln-depLh conLexLual sLudy of a person, people, lssue, place, wlLhln a
predeLermlned scope

uocumenL Analysls
1he analysls of documenLs Lo develop an ln-depLh undersLandlng of an evenL,
people's experlences, wlLhln culLural conLexLs

lnLervlew SLudy
1hls ls a sLudy where Lhe prlmary mode of lnqulry ls done Lhrough Lalklng Lo
people ln order Lo develop an ln-depLh undersLandlng of Lhelr experlences. 1hls
Lype of sLudy also explores Lhe ways ln whlch everyday experlences are
produced and Lhe meanlngs people ascrlbe Lo Lhelr experlences.

narraLlve lnqulry
1hls ls a sLudy where Lhe researcher represenLs Lhe flndlngs ln Lhe form of a
narraLlve, l.e. a sLory wlLh ploL, characLers, seLLlng, and evenLs. 1he narraLlve ls
Lhe unlL of analysls ln Lhls Lype of sLudles.

henomenologlcal SLudy
A sLudy prlmarlly concerned wlLh ldenLlfylng Lhe essence" or Lhe lnvarlanL
Lheme" of a phenomena as experlenced by people.

Crounded 1heory
A form of quallLaLlve lnqulry LhaL emphaslzes on developlng a Lheory based on
Lhe analysls of daLa LhaL helps undersLand people's experlences or an lssue
wlLhln lLs conLexLual deLalls.
4
now do we cons|der qua||tat|ve |nqu|ry as research? Is qua||tat|ve
research sc|ent|f|c?
1hlnk of whaL you conslder as research. WhaL are Lhe key elemenLs of research? Who
geLs Lo deflne research? Who ls ln Lhe room when declslons abouL whaL ls sclenLlflc are
made? ls research really value neuLral? Are Lhere vesLed lnLeresLs when conducLlng
research Lo prlvllege one ouLcome over oLher, especlally where granLs are lnvolved?

Cenerally speaklng, research ls abouL developlng and lmplemenLlng a form of
sysLemaLlc lnqulry. WlLhln Lhe sLrucLure of Lhls lnqulry, Lhe researcher has Lo presenL
Lhe deslgn, flndlngs, dlscusslons, and lmpllcaLlons allgned wlLh each oLher. llqote 1 ls my
hourglass model of research LhaL can be applled Lo any form of research.


llqote 1. 8haLLacharya hourglass model of research

As people we undersLand and know Lhe world ln varlous ways. 1here are varlous ways ln
whlch we construct meanlng abouL ourselves and Lhe world around us. 1hese ways of
consLrucLlng meanlng abouL ourselves are based on who we are as people, our culLural
backgrounds, our educaLlon, and Lhe values, assumpLlons, and bellefs we have abouL
5
our world. lor example, lf l Lold you a [oke and you dld noL laugh, chances are LhaL Lhe
way you made meanlng of LhaL [oke ls dlfferenL from mlne. We do noL share Lhe same
undersLandlng abouL humor. 1hls dlfference ls based on our lndlvldual hlsLorles LhaL
have shaped us Lo Lhls polnL.

Lp|stemo|ogy ls a cool, smarL word LhaL you can use when you Lhlnk of how you Lhe
world LhaL you know. lor quallLaLlve lnqulry, undersLandlng LhaL people consLrucL Lhelr
own meanlngs based on Lhelr lnLeracLlons wlLh Lhe world ls called construct|on|sm.
1hus consLrucLlonlsm ls Lhe eplsLemology LhaL lnforms ALL quallLaLlve research.

8ased on eplsLemology, Lhen you selecL a purpose of your research and research
quesLlons. 1he selecLlon of research purpose and quesLlons ls a dlrecL reflecLlon of your
eplsLemology because you have made a cognlLlve cholce of Lhese speclflc research
purpose and quesLlons over many oLhers. So when people say LhaL, ?our research
quesLlons gulde your meLhodology," you can respond, lL goes back Lo eplsLemology,
because Lhere ls a reason you wanL Lo know whaL you wanL Lo know. 1he research
quesLlons are based on whaL your assumpLlons are abouL Lhe Loplc, reallLy, LruLh, eLc."

Cnce you have your research purpose and research quesLlons, you need Lo ouLllne your
research deslgn. 1hls ls Lhe blueprlnL for your research. 1he deslgn sLaLes speclflcally Lhe
sources of daLa collecLlon, Lhe Llmellne of Lhe research, Lhe roles you wanL Lhe
parLlclpanLs Lo play, and all Lhe lnsLrumenLs of measure LhaL you wlll use ln Lhe research.
AddlLlonally, Lhe deslgn also sLaLes Lhe klnd of daLa analysls you wlsh Lo conducL for
your research.

1he nexL sLage ls daLa collecLlon, whlch ls as lL sounds Lhe acLual collecLlon of all sorLs of
daLa. ln quallLaLlve research daLa ls consldered Lo be lnLervlews, documenLs,
observaLlons, ellclLaLlons, and anyLhlng else LhaL adds Lo your undersLandlng of your
Loplc. Moreover, quallLaLlve researchers also keep a [ournal durlng daLa collecLlon and
analysls ln order Lo record Lhelr LhoughLs, reacLlons, hunches, assumpLlons, bellefs Lo
analyze how Lhey lnfluence Lhe daLa collecLlon and analysls. lL ls noL wrong Lo have
values as we all have Lhem. ln quallLaLlve research we clalm Lhem, own Lhem, and
documenL how Lhey shaped our sLudy. Cb[ecLlvlLy ls a fallacy because noLhlng ln Lhls
world ls value neuLral wheLher we acknowledge our values or noL. Cb[ecLlvlLy lmplles
LhaL lf done rlghL, everyone should geL Lhe same resulL, because Lhe meLhod of
collecLlng and analyzlng daLa ls ob[ecLlve" and value neuLral. ?eL, Lhere ls noL a slngle
quanLlLaLlve sLudy of human behavlor LhaL can be generallzed Lo every human belng.
8aLher, quanLlLaLlve sLudles are very speclflc ln maklng clalms Lo whom Lhe sLudy can be
generallzed, ln whaL conLexL, wlLh numerlcal posslblllLles of error.
6

LlsL some ldeas abouL human behavlor LhaL seems ob[ecLlve" Lo you. 1hen Lhlnk of
some slLuaLlons where Lhe ldea mlghL noL be generallzable.

Cb[ect|ve Ideas Lxcept|ons















uaLa analysls ls Lhe nexL sLep afLer daLa collecLlon, followed by presenLaLlon of flndlngs,
dlscusslon, and concluslon. 1hen Lhe researcher has Lo answer Lhe research quesLlon,
and Lhe research purpose. noLlce ln llqote 1 LhaL you sLarL Lhe research process from a
broad scope whlch narrows as you collecL daLa and Lhen broadens when you begln Lo
answer research quesLlons and purpose. 1hls broadenlng, narrowlng, and re-broadenlng
ls necessary for conducLlng soclally responslble research LhaL has value. ?our research
needs Lo maLLer beyond Lhe LhoughL LhaL lL wlll be lnLeresLlng" Lo do Lhls sLudy. Who
beneflLs from Lhls research? Who ls your lnLended audlence? WhaL klnd of knowledge
do you wanL Lo conLrlbuLe Lo your fleld?

llnally when you have answered your research purpose, you need Lo clalm Lhe value of
your research. ?ou need Lo answer Lhe blg So whaL" quesLlon. WhaL ls your polnL?
WhaL are Lhe lmpllcaLlons of Lhls research? Pow does your research maLLer wlLhln Lhe
conLexL of Lhe Loplc, dlsclpllne? WhaL do you wanL Lo say Lo people who mlghL be
lnLeresLed ln Lhls Loplc now LhaL you have done your research? 1hls ls Lhe mosL dlfflculL
parL of dolng research because many people Lhlnk LhaL unless Lhelr research ls earLh-
shaLLerlng, Lhey cannoL make any clalms. l am golng Lo Lell you a secreL LhaL wlll help
you Lremendously ln your academlc careers.

?ou do noL have Lo solve Lhe whole world's problem wlLh your
research!!! ulsserLaLlon ls one research pro[ecL ln your llfe!
7
lor a sLudy Lo be sclenLlflc Lhere should be an allgnmenL beLween eplsLemology,
LheoreLlcal framework, meLhodology, meLhods, daLa analysls, represenLaLlon, and
lmpllcaLlons. lor quanLlLaLlve research, crlLerla of rellablllLy, valldlLy, and generallzablllLy
are used for deLermlnlng sclenLlflc" value of research. Powever, Lhe same crlLerla for
sclenLlflc" ls noL appllcable for quallLaLlve research. CuanLlLaLlve research aLLempLs Lo
predlcL a Lrend across broad sample of people. CuallLaLlve research conducLs ln-depLh
lnqulrles wlLhln a very small sample of people. llqote 2 ls a represenLaLlon of quallLaLlve
and quanLlLaLlve research.

llqote 2. SchemaLlc represenLaLlon of quanLlLaLlve and quallLaLlve research

1hus, quanLlLaLlve and quallLaLlve research are compllmenLary wlLh dlfferenL purpose
and focus. uslng Lhe crlLerla for quanLlLaLlve research wlll noL work for quallLaLlve
research because quallLaLlve researchers work wlLh people's sLorles and Lhelr
experlences. Pow people make meanlng of Lhelr experlences vary across Llme, space,
and culLural norms. 1herefore quallLaLlve researchers do noL alm Lo conducL Lhelr
lnqulry Lo predlcL or generallze. lnsLead, Lhey conducL research Lo:
undersLand
lnLerrogaLe
deconsLrucL

lf a quallLaLlve researcher ls Lrylng Lo understand someone experlences, Lhen s/he
conducL a sLudy where s/he collecLs all relevanL lnformaLlon surroundlng Lhe experlence
and reporLs Lhem. 1he goal ls Lo slmply undersLand and explore ln an ln-depLh manner
and noL Lo generallze. lor example l mlghL be lnLeresLed ln explorlng Lhe experlences of
female Afrlcan-Amerlcan graduaLe sLudenLs ln Lhe College of LducaLlon aL Lhe unlverslLy
of Memphls. l know l cannoL generallze and l do noL wanL Lo. l wanL Lo do Lhls research
because l Lhlnk LhaL Lhe sLorles LhaL Lhese women have Lo Lell haven'L been heard or
documenLed. 1hese sLorles are parL of Lhe hlsLory of LducaLlon whlch are currenLly un-
documenLed. !usL because Lhese sLorles cannoL be generallzed does noL mean LhaL
Lhese sLorles do noL have any value. lf one of Lhe parLlclpanL sald LhaL she had dlfflculLy
relaLlng Lo Lhe class readlngs because lL was always presenLed from a WhlLe perspecLlve,
Quantitative - Wide
Qualitative - Deep
8
does lL mean LhaL her perspecLlve should noL counL? Cr does her perspecLlve reflecL an
lssue ln currlculum deslgn ln educaLlon? lnsLead, l offer enough conLexLual deLalls Lo
offer Lhe reader a rlch, Lhlck descrlpLlon of Lhe parLlclpanL's experlences so LhaL s/he can
ldenLlfy Lhe condlLlons under whlch Lhe parLlclpanL found lL dlfflculL Lo relaLe Lo Lhe
course maLerlal.

1herefore, quallLaLlve research ofLen reads llke a sLory whlch when [udged from Lhe
quanLlLaLlve perspecLlve seems sub[ecLlve" or unsclenLlflc." Powever, lf one ls Lrylng
Lo undersLand experlences, Lhen one has Lo documenL Lhe deLalls, for Lhe sLudy Lo be
academ|ca||y r|gorous and trustworthy (Lerms used ln quallLaLlve research lnsLead of
rellablllLy and valldlLy).

lf Lhe purpose of a quallLaLlve sLudy ls Lo |nterrogate, Lhen Lhe researcher ls assumlng
LhaL Lhe experlences people have are based on Lhelr gender, age, race, sexuallLy, and
oLher forms of soclal caLegorles. Such sLudles are usually conducLed Lo hlghllghL lssues
of lnequallLles and marglnallzaLlon, ofLen wlLh ldeas for soluLlon. Many forms of soclal
[usLlce are done wlLh Lhe purpose Lo lnLerrogaLe and offer workable soluLlons. ollcy
declslons are lmpacLed by such sLudles. Work ln Lhe area of femlnlsm, crlLlcal race
Lheory, and Marxlsm focus on Lhe need Lo lnLerrogaLe some klnd of soclal sLrucLure LhaL
produces experlences of lnequallLles.

llnally, lf Lhe purpose of Lhe quallLaLlve research ls Lo deconsLrucL, researchers Lry Lo
break aparL assumpLlons, sLereoLypes, llke Lego
1M
pleces. 1hey see every soclal
sLrucLure LhaL produces experlence of lnequallLy Lo be breakable. S/he assumes LhaL
people are soclally condlLloned Lo belleve and see Lhe world a cerLaln way. lf s/he can
show Lhe assumpLlons LhaL malnLaln and repllcaLe soclal condlLlonlng, Lhen she can
break aparL a sLrucLure. lmaglne when you see a boaL bullL wlLh Lego
1M
, you know LhaL
Lhey are lndlvldual pleces of plasLlc LhaL resemble Lhe sLrucLure of a boaL LhaL can be
broken aparL Lo bulld a casLle. ?ou know LhaL each sLrucLure ls breakable and Lhere are
mulLlple posslblllLles Lo whaL you can creaLe. Slmllarly, a deconsLrucLlvlsL sees Lhe world
ln Lerms of sLrucLures LhaL are bullL on smaller pleces of assumpLlons. lf you break aparL
Lhe assumpLlons, you break aparL Lhe sLrucLure. When Lhe sLrucLure ls broken, Lhen
people have Lhe cholce Lo creaLe new sLrucLures any way Lhey please. 8ecause all
sLrucLures can be breakable, deconsLrucLlvlsLs do noL provlde soluLlons Lo a problem."
1hey expose Lhe problem, break lL aparL, and leL people come up wlLh Lhelr own
posslblllLles of sLrucLure. A deconsLrucLlvlsL knows LhaL every sLrucLure has lLs llmlLs and
posslblllLles. 1able1 conLexLuallzes Lhe purpose and LheoreLlcal frameworks of
quallLaLlve research.
9
1able 1

lotoJlqms ooJ potpose of poolltotlve lopolty
undersLand lnLerrogaLe ueconsLrucL
lnLerpreLlvlsm lemlnlsm osLcolonlal
LLhnography Marxlsm osLsLrucLural
henomenology CrlLlcal 1heory ulaspora
8ased on: LaLher, aLLl. (1991). Cettloq smott. lemlolst teseotcb ooJ peJoqoqy wltb/lo tbe
postmoJeto. new ?ork: 8ouLledge.


uL lL slmply, lf you wanL Lo explore and undersLand people's experlences, Lhen your
research falls wlLhln Lhe flrsL column. ?ou are noL Lrylng Lo quesLlon any soclal sLrucLure
or offer any soluLlon or break down assumpLlons. ?our goal ls Lo slmply descrlbe
people's experlences Lo gaLher an ln-depLh undersLandlng of Lhe lssue of your lnLeresL.

Cn Lhe oLher hand, lf you wanL Lo lnLerrogaLe Lhe ways ln whlch people's experlence
lnequallLles, Lhen your research falls lnLo Lhe second column. ?ou mlghL even be
lnLeresLed ln emanclpaLlng Lhe oppressed. ?ou mlghL even be moLlvaLed Lo flnd
soluLlons Lo cerLaln lssues of lnequallLles. ?our goal ls Lo demonsLraLe how people's
experlences are shaped by lnsLlLuLlonallzed sLrucLures of hlerarchy.

llnally, lf you wanL Lo creaLe a space for dlscusslon and emergence of mulLlple
posslblllLles of presence and volce, Lhen your research falls lnLo Lhe Lhlrd column. Pere
you assume LhaL you can break aparL anyLhlng and expose Lhe bullL-ln assumpLlons. ?ou
are lnLeresLed ln demonsLraLlng Lhe llmlLs and posslblllLles of dlfferenL soclal sLrucLures
such as hlgher educaLlon, soclal consLrucLlon of gender, governmenL pollcy Lowards
mlnlmum wage, eLc. so LhaL people can declde how Lhey wanL Lo play wlLhln Lhese
sLrucLures. ?ou are noL lnLeresLed ln offerlng soluLlons, buL lnLeresLed ln offerlng access
Lo people Lo Lhe deconsLrucLlve ways of breaklng down sLrucLures. ?ou really are a
Lrouble maker aL Lhe end of Lhe day lf you wanL Lo play here.

10
8ut how |s qua||tat|ve research sc|ent|f|c?
CuallLaLlve research ls sclenLlflc because lL ls based on Lhe followlng:
1he allgnmenL of eplsLemology, LheoreLlcal frameworks, meLhodology, and
meLhods, daLa analysls, and represenLaLlon (See llqote 2)
Acknowledglng and documenLlng Lhe |terat|ve naLure of quallLaLlve research where
Lhe researcher ofLen goes back and forLh beLween varlous sLages of research based
on shlfLlng eplsLemologles, daLa collecLlon, daLa analysls, research eLhlcs, and
represenLaLlon
1he lnLegraLlon of mulLlple daLa sources as evldence
1he prolonged duraLlon of daLa collecLlon Lo develop an ln-depLh undersLandlng
1he open dlscusslon of researcher's values, assumpLlons, and bellefs and how Lhey
lnform Lhe sLudy
1he [usLlflcaLlon of research deslgn based llLeraLure revlew ln speclflc LheoreLlcal
and meLhodologlcal arenas
1he varlous Lypes of checks conducLed durlng Lhe research Lo ensure academlc rlgor
and LrusLworLhlness
! Member checks (checklng wlLh Lhe parLlclpanL repeaLedly Lo ensure shared
undersLandlng of meanlngs)
! eer debrleflng (worklng wlLh a peer who ls lnformed wlLh meLhodology and
Loplc for academlc rlgor)
! 8rackeLlng lnLervlew (researcher allows a peer Lo lnLervlew her/hlm so LhaL s/he
can become aware of values, assumpLlons, and bellefs LhaL lnform Lhe research)
! 8eflecLlve [ournallng before, durlng, and afLer Lhe research
! Pavlng a wrlLLen record of who Lhe researcher ls ln Lhe conLexL of Lhe research,
whaL are Lhe personal and professlonal lnvesLmenLs, whaL does Lhe researcher
expecL as ouLcomes, whaL assumpLlons and values does Lhe researcher brlng Lo
Lhe Lable (oLherwlse known as sub[ect|v|ty statement)
! llndlng ways Lo falslfy researcher's own lnLerpreLaLlon of daLa Lo develop an
awareness for alLernaLe perspecLlves LhaL Lhe researcher mlghL noL be able Lo
address oLherwlse
ldenLlfylng ways ln whlch Lhe research can be undersLood ln Lerms of mulLlple llmlLs
and posslblllLles lnsLead of presenLlng research as an absoluLe LruLh
resenLlng flndlngs wlLh rlch conLexLual deLalls so LhaL a reader can have mulLlple
enLry polnLs lnLo Lhe research
AnLlclpaLlng and addresslng crlLlclsm of Lhe research


11

llqote J. lLeraLlve approach and allgnmenL ln quallLaLlve research

llgure 3 demonsLraLes Lhe baslc sLrucLure of quallLaLlve research LhaL needs Lo be ln
allgnmenL Lo make compelllng argumenLs Lowards Lhe academlc rlgor and
LrusLworLhlness of a sLudy. 1hls allgnmenL along wlLh Lhe mulLlple polnLs llsLed on page
10 lnform Lhe sclenLlflc naLure of quallLaLlve research. Powever, Lhls ls noL Lo say LhaL
researchers cannoL come up wlLh addlLlonal forms of measures, reflecLlons, checks, and
allgnmenLs. 1he sLrengLh of a quallLaLlve sLudy lles ln Lhe way ln whlch Lhe researcher
makes compelllng argumenLs whlle belng grounded ln relevanL llLeraLure and daLa.

CuallLaLlve research ls gulded by an alLernaLe undersLandlng of sclenLlflc" whlch
prlvlleges Lhe complexlLy and Lhe conLradlcLlon of human experlences. Puman belngs
are noL lab raLs LhaL can perform repeaLedly ln slmllar manner. 1o reduce human
experlences lnLo LhaL one Lhlng whlch ls unlversally generallzable" ls a form of sllenclng
of volces, whlch has been Lhe common pracLlce of sclenLlflc" research for many years.
CuallLaLlve research presenLs alLernaLe ways of knowlng and documenLlng human
experlences LhaL lncorporaLes amblgulLles, messlness, conLradlcLlons LhaL shape
everyday reallLles.
12
1he More know|edgeab|e ou
We have come Lo Lhe end of Lhls week's readlngs. 8emember, you are noL obllgaLed Lo
undersLand everyLhlng you read. LeL Lhe language and Lhe ldeas presenLed here wash
over you. LeL go of Lhe anxleLy LhaL you dld noL geL" a cerLaln parL. lnsLead, focus on
Lhlngs LhaL resonaLed wlLh you, Lhlngs LhaL sLood ouL Lo you. ln Lhe space provlded
below, wrlLe down aL leasL 3 new Lhlngs LhaL you learned from Lhls readlng. Co ahead
and cheaL and look aL Lhe chapLer. now llsL aL leasL 1-2 quesLlons LhaL you mlghL have aL
Lhls polnL abouL quallLaLlve research.

S New Ways 1hat I am Smarter Now


















1-2 uest|ons I nave About ua||tat|ve kesearch












13
Week 2: 1erms and Lxp|anat|ons

CuallLaLlve research, llke any oLher fleld, has lLs own Lerms and undersLandlngs. 1reaL
Lhese Lerms as ways Lo undersLand quallLaLlve research. lor a more deLalled seL of
deflnlLlons refer Lo SchwandL's (2007) dlcLlonary ln Lhe recommended readlng llsL. 1he
followlng Lerms have mulLlple uses, some you wlll dlscover ln your own readlngs. So geL
used Lo messy ways of knowlng and undersLandlng quallLaLlve research.

Lp|stemo|ogy
An undersLandlng of how we know whaL we know. Lxamples of eplsLemology lncludes
ob[ecLlvlsm, consLrucLlvlsm. 1able 2 demonsLraLes examples of ob[ecLlvlsL and
consLrucLlvlsL ways of knowlng. CompleLe Lhe Lable wlLh your undersLandlng of dog
from ob[ecLlvlsL and consLrucLlvlsL perspecLlves.

1able 2

xomples of objectlvlst ooJ coosttoctlvlst woys of koowloq
Cb[ecLlvlsL ConsLrucLlvlsL
Cpen PearL
A surglcal procedure Lo open
chesL and hearL whlle Lhe
hearL-lung machlne performs
for Lhe hearL
A way Lo know and allow
Cod's presence ln one's llfe,
for Lhose who belleve ln Cod
1able
A plece of furnlLure wlLh flaL
horlzonLal surface supporLed
by four legs
A place where one can
dance ln a bar wlLh
adequaLe amounL of alcohol
lnLake
uog?









Comp|ete the above tab|e to demonstrate your ob[ect|v|st and construct|v|st understand|ng of dog.



14
Cnto|ogy
1he clalms made Lo way one undersLands Lhe naLure of a person's reallLy based on
mulLlple soclal lnLeracLlons.

Methodo|ogy
MeLhodology ls Lhe blueprlnL of a research deslgn. lL ouLllnes how Lhe researcher wlll
conducL a sLudy and represenL Lhe flndlngs. 1he deLalls lnclude buL noL llmlLed Lo:
selecLlon of parLlclpanLs
sources of daLa collecLlon
frequency of daLa collecLlon
duraLlon of daLa collecLlon
approaches Lo daLa analysls
Llmellne for Lhe enLlre research process (before, durlng, and afLer)
ways of malnLalnlng confldenLlallLy
ways of deallng wlLh anLlclpaLed challenges
Lypes of rewards/lncenLlves LhaL mlghL be offered Lo parLlclpanLs

Methods
MeLhods reflecL Lhe acLual process of daLa collecLlon and analysls.

arad|gm
An agreed upon bellef abouL reallLy, LruLh, raLlonallLy, sclence, and sclenLlflc knowledge
from speclflc LheoreLlcal perspecLlves.

1heory
A Lheory ls a seL of concepLs LhaL are arranged and organlzed ln ways Lo undersLand a
phenomenon of lnLeresL. 1here ls no such Lhlng as Lhe 1heory of LveryLhlng."
1herefore, Lheorles are ways of undersLandlng and explalnlng a phenomenon, buL Lhey
are always conLexL bound deeply embedded wlLh deLalls.

Sub[ect|v|t|es
Sub[ecLlvlLles descrlbe Lhe lnLeracLlon of Lhe researcher's sub[ecL poslLlons LhaL lnforms
her/hls sLudy. uL slmply, sub[ecLlvlLles deplcL Lhe poslLlon of Lhe researcher wlLhln Lhe
conLexL of research. As people we occupy mulLlple sub[ecL poslLlons such as graduaLe
sLudenL, female, mlddle class, eLc LhaL play a role ln how we see Lhe world, make
assumpLlons, and develop a value sysLem. Sub[ecLlvlLles are noL blases as Lhey do noL
skew Lhe daLa. lnsLead, sub[ecLlvlLles offer Lhe researcher opporLunlLles Lo academlcally
explaln Lo Lhe reader how s/he consLrucLed knowledge abouL Lhe sLudy, connecLed
ouLcomes Lo respond Lo Lhe research quesLlons, purpose, and ouLllne lmpllcaLlons. Slnce
we cannoL ever dlvorce ourselves from all Lhe sub[ecL poslLlons LhaL shape us,
quallLaLlve research does noL vlew sub[ecLlvlLles as negaLlve lnfluence on daLa. Powever,
quallLaLlve research calls for Lhe researcher Lo become lncreaslngly vlgllanL ln order Lo
reflecL and address Lhe role of sub[ecLlvlLles ln research wlLh academlc rlgor and
LrusLworLhlness.
15
Change our Language, Change our arad|gm
8ecause quallLaLlve research ls grounded ln a dlfferenL paradlgm compared Lo
quanLlLaLlve research, Lhe use of language ln quallLaLlve research demonsLraLes how we
know whaL we know (eplsLemology). 1herefore, cerLaln words used ln quanLlLaLlve
research are noL used ln quallLaLlve research ln order Lo avold belng evaluaLed wlLhln
quanLlLaLlve paradlgms. l encourage you Lo lncorporaLe a new vocabulary when dolng
quallLaLlve research by noL uslng Lhe Laboo words llsLed ln 1able 3. AlLhough Lhe Lerms
appear slde by slde, Lhey are noL meanL Lo be replacemenL for each oLher.

Iee| free to add more words |n the tab|e dur|ng the semester.

1able 3

1oboo ooJ occeptoble wotJs lo poolltotlve lopolty
1aboo AccepLable
Cb[ecLlve
valldlLy
8ellablllLy
neuLral
CenerallzablllLy
8las
8eallLy
1ruLh
lacL
1rue
lalse

ConsLrucLlvlsL
Sub[ecLlvlLles
Academlc 8lgor
1rusLworLhlness
1ransferablllLy
MulLlple reallLles
MulLlple LruLhs
1rlangulaLlon
8eflexlvlLy
AssumpLlons
8ellefs

lnserL your own words ln Lhe space above durlng Lhe semesLer
and beyond lf you conLlnue ln quallLaLlve research

16
ua||tat|ve kesearch and our D|ssertat|on
?ou mlghL be wonderlng how all of Lhls quallLaLlve work flLs lnLo research, especlally
your dlsserLaLlon. erhaps you are noL famlllar wlLh Lhe enLlre dlsserLaLlon process or do
noL have a clear ldea of whaL a dlsserLaLlon should look llke. Pow many chapLers are
Lhere? WhaL klnd of lnformaLlon goes ln each chapLer? 8elow ls a rudlmenLary
breakdown of dlsserLaLlon along wlLh Lhe ways you can use quallLaLlve research
meLhods classes Lo help you wrlLe your dlsserLaLlon.

A dlsserLaLlon ls wrlLLen prlmarlly wlLhln S chapLers. ChapLer 1 ls lnLroducLlon, chapLer 2
ls llLeraLure revlew, chapLer 3 ls meLhodology, chapLer 4 ls flndlngs and dlscusslon, and
chapLer 3 lncludes concluslon and lmpllcaLlons.

Chapter 1: Introduct|on
1hls ls a Lraller/prevlew Lo your dlsserLaLlon. 1hls ls your roadmap Lo Lhe resL of Lhe
dlsserLaLlon. ?ou have Lo menLlon how you have grounded and allgned your sLudy
wlLhln Lhe conLexL of LheoreLlcal and meLhodologlcal llLeraLure. WhaL ls Lhe slgnlflcance
of your sLudy and why ls Lhls sLudy necessary. 1he chapLer usually ends wlLh research
purpose and quesLlons.

ua||tat|ve kesearch C|ass: lnLroducLlon Lo CuallLaLlve MeLhods ln LducaLlon. ?ou
conducL a blueprlnL for your research

Chapter 2: L|terature kev|ew
uemonsLraLe Lhe raLlonale for your sLudy by provldlng an exLenslve revlew of
subsLanLlve llLeraLure. 1hls ls where you dlscuss Lhe ongolng conversaLlon ln your fleld
abouL Lhe Loplc of your research. WhaL ls currenLly known? Where are Lhe gaps LhaL you
were ably Lo ldenLlfy? Pow does your research conLrlbuLe Lo Lhe exlsLlng llLeraLure?
Whlch gap/s does lL flll?

ke|evant Course: 1here ls a course offered by Plgher Ld. where you can wrlLe up Lhe
flrsL 3 chapLers of dlsserLaLlon. SLudenLs have Laken LhaL course ln con[uncLlon wlLh Lhe
advanced quallLaLlve meLhods course and found Lhe overlap helpful.

Chapter 3: Methodo|ogy
ln Lhls chapLer you are expecLed Lo sLaLe Lhe blueprlnL of your research deslgn and
ground lL wlLhln approprlaLe meLhodologlcal llLeraLure. lor example, lf you conducLed
an eLhnography, Lhen you have Lo do a llLeraLure revlew of eLhnography ln Lhls chapLer.
WhaL ls eLhnography? Pow do people undersLand eLhnography? Pow ls eLhnography
done? ln whaL slLuaLlons have people done eLhnography? Pow dld Lhey collecL, analyze,
and represenL daLa?

1hen you have Lo show why eLhnography ls Lhe mosL approprlaLe meLhod for your
sLudy. lollow your loglc Lo explaln your research deslgn and lmplemenLaLlon of your
research deslgn. WhaL dld you plan and how dld you execuLe lL? WhaL happened durlng
17
execuLlon? Who were your parLlclpanLs? WhaL were your sources of daLa? Pow dld you
collecL Lhem? Pow ofLen dld you collecL Lhem? Pow long dld you engage yourself wlLh
daLa collecLlon? Pow dld you analyze daLa? WhaL declslons dld you have Lo make? WhaL
were your eLhlcal conslderaLlons? Pow dld you arrlve aL Lhe way you represenL daLa?
?ou have Lo answer all of Lhese quesLlons wlLh examples from your daLa so LhaL
someone readlng your ChapLer 3 wlll know all Lhe sLeps you Look Lo go from sLarL Lo
flnlsh of your research.

ua||tat|ve kesearch C|ass(es): lnLroducLlon and advanced quallLaLlve meLhods. 1he
flrsL class prepares you Lo make a blueprlnL of your research. 1he advanced class asslsLs
you wlLh daLa collecLlon, analysls and represenLaLlon. ?ou wrlLe up a publlshable paper
and a conference proposal wlLh my guldance ln Lhe advanced class. 1he advanced class
also meeLs resldency requlremenLs buL you need Lo have your advlsor's approval for Lhe
work done ln LhaL class Lo counL Lowards your resldency or dlsserLaLlon.

WrlLlng up CuallLaLlve 8esearch
ln Lhls class you wlll wrlLe up your flndlngs as you analyze daLa. ?ou wlll produce a
publlshable paper and submlL Lo a peer revlewed [ournal.

Chapter 4: I|nd|ngs and D|scuss|on
ln Lhls chapLer, you represenL your flndlngs and dlscuss Lhe slgnlflcance of Lhe flndlngs.
?ou can choose mulLlple forms of represenLaLlon as long as lL ls allgned wlLh Lhe
argumenLs you have made abouL eplsLemology, LheoreLlcal framework, llLeraLure
revlew, and meLhodology.

ua||tat|ve kesearch C|ass(es): Advanced CuallLaLlve MeLhods and WrlLlng up
CuallLaLlve 8esearch

1hese Lwo classes wlll supporL ln your daLa analysls and wrlLlng up your flndlngs. 1he
advanced class wlll help you wlLh chapLers 3 and parLs of chapLer 4. Slnce Lhe advanced
course focuses on dlfferenL Lypes of daLa analysls, Lhe focus on wrlLlng ls noL sLrong.
1haL ls where Lhe 8001 class comes ln. ldeally, you should Lake LhaL class when you are
almosL done daLa analysls or you are aL a sLage where you wanL Lo analyze and wrlLe up
slmulLaneously. lL wlll be of greaL beneflL Lo you lf you use Lhls class Lo wrlLe up your
flndlngs and dlscusslon chapLer.

Chapter S: Conc|us|on and Imp||cat|ons
ln Lhls chapLer you wrlLe up your concluslons. 1hls ls where you show Lhe reader how
you answered your research quesLlons and purpose. AddlLlonally, you answer Lhe So
WhaL" of your research. Pow ls Lhls sLudy conLrlbuLlng Lo Lhe exlsLlng llLeraLure? uld lL
flll Lhe gap you lnLended Lo flll ln Lhe subsLanLlve llLeraLure? lf so, how? uld Lhls sLudy
make meLhodologlcal conLrlbuLlons? Pow dld Lhls sLudy produce knowledge LhaL ls
dlfferenL from exlsLlng lnformaLlon? now LhaL we know Lhe flndlngs, whaL needs Lo
done nexL? WhaL are Lhe fuLure dlrecLlons of research for Lhls Loplc?
18

Wr|t|ng kesearch urpose and uest|ons
use Lhe followlng quesLlons Lo help you deslgn your research purpose and quesLlons.

What |s the |ssue(s) that you are |nterested |n study|ng? Wr|te down broad key |deas.

1.
2.
3.

What do you a|ready know that ex|sts |n the current ||terature about your top|c?

1.
2.
3.

What |s m|ss|ng from the ||terature or does not have enough emphas|s |n your
op|n|on?

1.
2.
3.

nence, the purpose of th|s study |s...




What are the spec|f|c research quest|ons that e|aborate your research purpose?
1.
2.
3.

now do you |ntend to address th|s purpose and research quest|ons?

What part|c|pants or s|te w||| you work w|th and why?



What w||| you do and why?

19


Data Sources |n ua||tat|ve kesearch
1here are mulLlple sources of daLa ln quallLaLlve research. As a researcher you can be
creaLlve and use Lhem as lL makes mosL sense Lo you. ?ou are expecLed Lo use mulLlple
daLa sources Lo demonsLraLe an ln-depLh undersLandlng. ?ou wlll be responslble for
maklng compelllng argumenLs ln your wrlLlng defendlng your cholce of meLhods. Pere ls
a llsL for your reference, whlch ls noL exhausLlve by any means.

Conversat|ons
1here are many ways quallLaLlve researchers use conversaLlons as a way of
undersLandlng an experlence. 1hese ways lnclude buL noL llmlLed Lo:
formal seml-sLrucLured lnLervlew
ln-depLh open-ended lnLervlew
lnformal open-ended lnLervlew
naLural conversaLlons

Cbservat|on
Cbservlng human behavlor ls a parL of collecLlng daLa ln quallLaLlve research. uurlng
observaLlon, Lhe researcher makes fleld noLes whlch s/he expands lmmedlaLely aL Lhe
concluslon of observaLlon Lo ensure Lhe capLure of rlch, Lhlck, descrlpLlve deLalls.
CbservaLlon ls more commonly known as parLlclpanL observaLlon ln quallLaLlve
research, regardless of wheLher Lhe researcher ls an acLlve or passlve parLlclpanL ln Lhe
observaLlon conLexL. !usL by belng presenL ln Lhe observaLlon Lhe researcher ls a
parLlclpanL of Lhe conLexL. 1ypes of parLlclpaLlon lnclude buL noL llmlLed Lo:
erlpheral parLlclpaLlon
ModeraLe parLlclpaLlon
lully lnLegraLed parLlclpaLlon

Documents and Mater|a| Cu|ture
8esearchers collecL documenLs and oLher archlved maLerlals durlng quallLaLlve research
Lo obLaln background lnformaLlon, conLexLual deLalls, hlsLorlcal lnformaLlon, pollcy-
relaLed lnformaLlon, eLc. Lxamples of documenLs lnclude buL noL llmlLed Lo:
!ournals/dlarles
newspaper clLlngs
CourL papers
8rochures
LeLLers
lcLures
vldeos
uocumenLarles
WebslLes
20
L||c|tat|on and Scho|]art|stry
An alLernaLe way of knowlng ln quallLaLlve research ls ellclLaLlons. A parLlclpanL can
speak ln ways LhaL are meanlngful Lo her/hlm lf Lhe conversaLlon ls ellclLed Lhrough a
personallzed ob[ecL, evenL, experlence, eLc. 1ypes of ellclLaLlons lnclude buL noL llmlLed
Lo:
hoLo-ellclLaLlons
Cb[ecL-ellclLaLlons
vldeo-ellclLaLlons
Lyrlc-ellclLaLlons

1he ldea behlnd Lhese ellclLaLlons ls LhaL lf a parLlclpanL ls offered Lhe cholce of Laklng
plcLures, or collecLlng memorable ob[ecLs, or selecL favorlLe vldeos, Lhen s/he can speak
abouL Lhe relevance of Lhe phoLos, ob[ecL, vldeo, and/or muslc ln her/hls everyday
experlences LhaL an lnLervlew would noL oLherwlse be able Lo ellclL.

Many researchers Lake an arts-based approach Lo ways of knowlng ln quallLaLlve
research. Arts-based approach lmplles uslng poeLry, songs, performances, palnLlngs as
ways of engaglng parLlclpanLs and represenLlng research. 1hese forms are generally very
evocaLlve and cross Lhe academlc boundarles lnLo spaces where mulLlple Lypes of
audlences can relaLe wlLh Lhe experlences of Lhe parLlclpanLs. uependlng on who you
are speaklng Lo, some people Lerm Lhls approach scholarLlsLry where scholarshlp and arL
ls comblned Lo creaLe knowledge.

Act|v|ty

l am lnLeresLed ln undersLandlng how 3 LSL sLudenLs ln mlddle school ln a mld-souLhern
Lown ln u.S. make meanlng of Lhelr experlences ln LSL classrooms. 8ralnsLorm for all
poLenLlal sources of daLa below.














21

Intent|ons for th|s Chapter
WlLh Lhls chapLer, l wanLed Lo glve you some groundlng ln quallLaLlve research. CfLen
sLudenLs flnd Lhe mulLlple Lerms confuslng. 1hey don'L know how Lo relaLe Lo Lhe
absLracL lnformaLlon. AL oLher Llmes sLudenLs feel LhaL Lhere ls a dlsconnecL wlLh whaL
Lhey learn ln class and ln Lhe appllcaLlon of Lhelr dlsserLaLlon. l have used Lhe space ln
Lhls chapLer Lo offer you:

some foundaLlonal undersLandlng Lo commonly used Lerms ln quallLaLlve
research
provlde Langlble examples Lo absLracL ldeas
engage you wlLh relevanL acLlvlLles so LhaL you can connecL Lheory and
appllcaLlon
ways Lo shlfL your paradlgm Lo quallLaLlve meLhods by changlng language
acLlvlLles LhaL asslsL you wlLh deslgnlng your research purpose and quesLlons
ways of knowlng ln quallLaLlve research Lhrough mulLlple daLa sources
ouLllne of your dlsserLaLlon wlLh posslble connecLlons ln quallLaLlve meLhods
courses
a masslve headache

As you walk away from Lhls chapLer, reflecL on how Lhls chapLer shapes your
undersLandlng of research ln general, quallLaLlve research, and lLs relevance ln Lhe Loplc
of your lnLeresL even lf lnLend Lo conducL a quanLlLaLlve lnqulry ln your dlsserLaLlon.
22
Week 3: Work|ng w|th Ism's

As you move Lhrough Lhe course, you are requlred Lo become very fluenL ln LheoreLlcal
frameworks such as poslLlvlsm, posLposlLlvlsm, phenomenology, crlLlcal Lheory,
femlnlsm, eLc. ln Lhls week's handouL, l wlll offer you some easy vlsually frlendly ways Lo
meeL Lhese lsm's so LhaL lL can become a parL of your quallLaLlve vocabulary. ?ou wlll
need Lo undersLand Lhese LheoreLlcal frameworks Lo ground your work wlLhln one of
Lhem for your research. (MoJlfleJ ftom closs booJoots lo CtoJoote 5toJles ot tbe
uolvetslty of Ceotqlo)

os|t|v|sm
oslLlvlsm ls Lhe sLudy of dlscoverlng and predlcLlng LruLhs LhaL can be unlversally
agreeable wlLh repeaLed measures.

Iocus
AccuraLe deplcLlon of Lhe world
Alm Lo predlcL, conLrol, and generallze
llnd LruLh Lhrough emplrlcal means of collecLlng and esLabllshlng evldence

Assumpt|ons
SeparaLlon beLween Lhe researcher and Lhe researched as Lwo dlfferenL non-
lnLeracLlng bodles.
ConcepL of ob[ecLlvlLy ls grounded ln emplrlcally verlflable knowledge
knowledge ls based on facLs."
1here can be LruLh LhaL can be found, measured, conLrolled, predlcLed, and
generallzed.
Meanlng can only be deLermlned wlLh verlflable evldence.
8epllcable flndlngs represenL Lhe LruLh

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
Loglcal emplrlclsm
Cb[ecLlvlsL
MaLhemaLlcal world
rlmarlly lnLeresLed ln synLheLlc sLaLemenLs
verlflcaLlon prlnclple: no sLaLemenL ls meanlngful unless lL ls verlfled

Ma[or Scho|ars
AugusLe ComLe (1848) naLural sclenLlflc meLhods applled Lo soclal sclences
Penrl de SalnL-Slmon (1817-1824)
lrancls 8acon (1361-1626)
vlenna Clrcle (1920s-30s) applled maLhemaLlcal prlnclples Lo phllosophy

23
Methodo|og|es
LxperlmenLal/manlpulaLlve research
Survey research
Chlefly quanLlLaLlve meLhods
"SclenLlflc meLhod"
verlflcaLlon of hypoLheses

Methods
MeasuremenL and scallng
SLaLlsLlcal analysls
lorm a hypoLhesls (sLaLed ln proposlLlonal form-elLher analyLlc or synLheLlc) and
prove lL quanLlLaLlvely - Lhrough sampllng, measurlng eLc.

Cr|t|que
1ruLh and ob[ecLlvlLy can be slLuaLed ln relaLlve conLexLs
1oo much rellance on valldlLy and accuracy of absLracL concepLs when deallng wlLh
human behavlor
ConLexLual lnformaLlon of people's culLural experlences and meanlng maklng are
lgnored

kesearch uest|on
ls Lhere a relaLlonshlp beLween years of servlce and pay scale?


ost-os|t|v|sm
1hese frameworks came when sclenLlsLs reallzed LhaL absoluLe knowledge ls an
unreallsLlc ldeal and LhaL knowledge varles conLexLually.

Iocus
uncerLalnLy prlnclple. 1he sclenLlflc meLhods glve us an approxlmaLlon of LruLh
LxplanaLlon

Assumpt|ons
8epllcaLed flndlngs are probably Lrue
Cbserver affecLs whaL ls belng observed
SclenLlflc flndlngs are forever LenLaLlve
8eallLy ls assumed Lo exlsL buL Lo be lmperfecLly grasped because of baslcally flawed
humans (blas eLc)

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
A maLLer of sclenLlsLs maklng a guess and Lhen flndlng Lhemselves unable Lo prove
Lhe guess wrong, desplLe sLrenuous efforLs Lo do so
llndlngs are sub[ecL Lo falslflcaLlon
24
"uncerLalnLy prlnclple": lL ls lmposslble Lo deLermlne LruLh wlLh cerLalnLy, we can
uncover approxlmaLe LruLh

Ma[or Scho|ars
Pelsenberg (1901-76) and 8ohr (1883-1962) lnLroduced sub[ecLlvlsm & uncerLalnLy
prlnclple
kuhn (1922-96) aradlgm shlfL, revoluLlon
leyerabend (1924-1994): anarchy achleves progress, sclence ls sloppy & lrraLlonal,
chaos
opper (1902-94): lnLroduced deducLlon by falslflcaLlon: research should be done
noL Lo prove, buL Lo dlsprove

Methodo|og|es
8esearchers are Lralned ln quanLlLaLlve meLhods wlLh Lhe addlLlon of quallLaLlve
meLhods
Modlfled experlmenLal/manlpulaLlve research
lalslflcaLlon of hypoLheses

Methods
lnqulry underLaklng ln naLural seLLlngs, collecLlng more slLuaLlonal lnformaLlon,
relnLroduclng dlscovery
CbservaLlon/lnLervlew/sampllng/surveys/measuremenL

Cr|t|que
LlmlLed scope of generallzablllLy and usablllLy
CerLalnLy ln flndlngs ls never compleLely absoluLe regardless of Lhe researcher's
efforLs.

kesearch uest|on
ln a fleld where aLLrlLlon raLes conLlnue Lo rlse, whaL are some facLors/experlences LhaL
conLrlbuLe Lo Leacher reLenLlon?

Interpret|v|sm
lnLerpreLlvlsm ls a blg umbrella Lerm for LheoreLlcal perspecLlves LhaL aLLempL Lo
undersLand and explaln human and soclal reallLy. 1here are many LheoreLlcal
frameworks used ln quallLaLlve lnqulry LhaL can fall ln Lhls caLegory. Powever, Lhe mosL
popular ones are:
PermeneuLlcs
henomenology
Symbollc lnLerpreLlvlsm


25
nermeneut|cs

Iocus
lnLerpreLlng Lhe meanlng of LexLs
unmask Lhe hldden meanlng beneaLh apparenL ones
make expllclL whaL ls lmpllclL, and grasp Lhe meanlng of Lhe 8elng lLself (CroLLy, 97)
lnner llfe LhaL we undersLand ourselves and oLhers. PermeneuLlcs ls Lhen Lhe sLudy
and meLhod of undersLandlng human expresslon.
uncover meanlngs & lnLenLlons whlch are hldden ln Lhe LexLs

Assumpt|ons
1exLs can LransmlL meanlng (llnk beLween lnLerpreLaLlon and LexL)
1he analysL can lnLerpreL more Lhan Lhe auLhor arLlculaLes
uoes noL derlve meanlng from 'lnLulLlon' or 'lnLrospecLlon'.
8lcher and fuller meanlngs (lnLerpreLaLlons) can resulL from analysls. lnLerpreLaLlon
goes beyond Lhe auLhor's orlglnal deslgn

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
PermeneuLlc clrcle: parL-whole-parL
uaseln - Lhe Self consclous of belng

Ma[or Scho|ars
Peldegger
lrledrlch AsL and lrledrlch Schlelermacher exLended hermeneuLlcs beyond Lhe
realm of 8lbllcal exegesls
ullLhev, Cadamer

Methodo|og|es
henomenologlcal hermeneuLlcs
8eadlng Lheory
LlLerary crlLlclsm

Methods
uocumenL analysls
narraLlve analysls
lnLerpreLlve meLhods

Cr|t|que
Slmply an lnLerpreLaLlon

kesearch uest|on
Pow do people make meanlng of uan 8rown's ua vlncl Code ln Lerms of Lhelr own
undersLandlng of ChrlsLlanlLy?

26
henomeno|ogy
lease look Lhrough Lhe phenomenology wlkl page for more lnformaLlon.
hLLp://quallpedla.wlklspaces.com/henomenology

Iocus
how one orlenLs Lo llved experlence.
quesLlon Lhe way we experlence Lhe world, Lo wanL Lo know Lhe world ln whlch we
llve as human belngs." (van Manen, 1990, p.3)
explores human experlence ln relaLlon Lo a sLudy of a phenomenon of lnLeresL
WhaL ls Lhe naLure of meanlng of Lhls parLlcular phenomenon?
WhaL ls Lhe essence of Lhls phenomenon as experlenced by Lhese people?

Assumpt|ons
1here ls a flxed essence Lo llved experlence of a phenomenon
1he meanlng of experlenclng a phenomenon can be capLured Lhrough llved
experlences

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
essence
llved experlences
lnvarlanL Lhemes

Ma[or Scho|ars
Ldmund Pusserl
MousLakas
Clorgl
olklnghorne
van kamp

Methodo|og|es
henomenologlcal hermeneuLlcs
SLudles of essence

Methods
henomenologlcal lnLervlews
CbservaLlons
uocumenL Analysls

Cr|t|que
Lssence may noL be slngle or flxed. 1here could be mulLlple essences.

kesearch uest|on
WhaL ls Lhe essence of belng a survlvor aL Lhe Superdome ln new Crleans durlng
hurrlcane kaLrlna?


27
Symbo||c Interpret|v|sm

Iocus
Alms Lo deLermlne relaLlonshlps beLween how we auLhor ourselves, oLhers, and our
percepLlons of oLhers.
ldenLlfy how parLlclpanLs descrlbe Lhelr reallLy ln Lhelr own soclal envlronmenLs.
ldenLlfy and elaboraLe ways ln whlch symbols glve meanlng Lo peoples' experlences
and soclal lnLeracLlons.

Assumpt|ons
Pumans acL Loward Lhlngs on Lhe basls of meanlngs Lhese Lhlngs have for Lhem
Meanlng of such Lhlngs ls derlved from soclal lnLeracLlons of one wlLh oLhers

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
lnLeracLlon
SlgnlflcanL symbols s/he encounLers.
AcLor
Soclal reallLy, soclal lnLeracLlons
ragmaLlsL phllosophles

Ma[or Scho|ars
Mead (1934) soclal psychologlsL
8lumer (1969) (Mead's sLudenL)
Coffman (1939)
Chlcago School
Poward 8ecker

Methodo|og|es
LLhnography
Crounded 1heory

Methods
CbservaLlons
narraLlves
Case SLudy
lnLervlews
uocumenL Analysls

Cr|t|que
neglecLs lssues of soclal sLrucLures and hlerarchles

kesearch uest|on
Pow do people of Mlddle LasLern descenL ln Lhe u.S. see Lhemselves afLer 9/11?


28
Iem|n|sm
8e-vlslonlng Lhe man-made world (CroLLy)
CrlLlque of paLrlarchy
SLruggle for equlLy and llberaLlon for women
lreelng of human posslblllLles by sLruggle agalnsL culLurally lmposed sLereoLypes,
sexuallLy, responslblllLles
ollLlcs dlrecLed aL changlng exlsLlng relaLlons beLween men and women ln socleLy

Whlle lL ls a popular sLance Lo Lhlnk of femlnlsm as a movemenL LhaL aLLempLs Lo
equallze women's rlghLs Lo men's, lL ls an erroneous assumpLlon. lemlnlsm does noL see
woman as an enLlLy LhaL operaLes ln vacuum. LquallLy ls also a shlfLlng concepL. WhaL
would a 8lack woman wanL Lo be equal Lo? Per 8lack male counLerparL? 1haL would noL
really beneflL a 8lack woman because Lhe 8lack male ls sLlll a mlnorlLy sub[ecLed Lo
dlsenfranchlsemenL ln hls everyday llfe. WhaL do women Lhen wanL Lo be equal Lo? 8lll
CaLes?

lemlnlsLs, on a broad level, wanL Lo eradlcaLe any soclal sLrucLures of lnequallLy.
Women experlence lnequallLy noL [usL because Lhey are women buL also because who
Lhey are ln Lerms of race, class, sexuallLy, rellglon, eLc. 1herefore, aLLacklng Lhe soclal
sLrucLures LhaL produce lnequallLy, femlnlsLs aLLempL Lo address Lhe lssue of lnequallLy
from mulLlple angles.

Assumpt|ons
Sense of oppresslon ln a man made world
lnequallLy = oppresslon
1heorlze Lhe acL of knowlng dlfferenLly from men, or prlvlleged groups of people
Lxperlences are produced by paLrlarchal and oppresslve soclal sLrucLures

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
Llberal femlnlsm: (reformlsL) oppresslon of women ls Lhe same paradlgm as any
oppresslon
Welfare llberallsm: soclal [usLlce, sLaLe lnLervenLlon ln Lhe cause of equlLy
Classlcal llberallsm: sLaLe Lo proLecL rlghLs & provlde equal opporLunlLy/llLLle
lnLerference
MarxlsL femlnlsm: (revoluLlonary) caplLallsm oppresses women
8adlcal femlnlsm: separaLlsm, promoLlon of 'woman culLure'
sychoanalyLlc femlnlsm: oppresslon embedded ln female psyche
LxlsLenLlallsL femlnlsm: Man as self: woman as oLher, men oppress women ln order
Lo be domlnanL
osLmodern: ueconsLrucLlng language and lnvesLlgaLe whaL geLs excluded ln Lhe LexL
SoclallsL femlnlsm: Marxlsm lnadequaLe Lo explaln women's oppresslon, sLruggle of
classes, aLLlLudes of separaLlsm, move Lo unlfy femlnlsLs under 'one banner'


29
Ma[or Scho|ars
8eLLy lrledan
Carol Cllllgan
Slmone de 8eauvolr
aLLl LaLher
bell hooks
aLrlcla 8ell ScoLL
Clorla Anzaldua
Chandra MohanLy
CayaLrl Splvak ChakravorLy
kamala vlsweswaran

Methodo|og|es
CrlLlcal LLhnography
LxperlmenLal Approaches
AuLoeLhnography
SLoryLelllng
uocumenLarles
erformance LLhnography/narraLlves

Methods
ConversaLlons
LllclLaLlons
CollaboraLlon
CbservaLlon
uocumenL Analysls

Cr|t|que
Llberal femlnlsm creaLes a blnary wlLh male and female and excludes male LhoughL
and/or men are seen as lncapable of belng parLners wlLh femlnlsLs
lemlnlsLs of color refuses Lo [oln WhlLe Llberal femlnlsLs because Lhey do noL wanL
Lo allenaLe men and wanL equallLy for Lhelr men and well as Lhemselves

kesearch uest|on
WhaL ls Lhe experlence of belng a female Leenager wlLhln Lhe currenL conLexL of
helghLened aLLenLlon Lo body slzes ln magazlnes, Lelevlslons, movles, and blllboards?





30
Cr|t|ca| 1heory
CrlLlcal Lheory offers LheoreLlcal perspecLlves Lo lnLerrogaLe and aL Llmes emanclpaLe
people whose llved experlences are lnfluenced by belng on Lhe margln of race, class,
gender, soclal sLaLus, rellglous afflllaLlon, sexuallLy, naLlonallLy, eLc.

Iocus
Alms Lo ldenLlfy soclal sLrucLures of oppresslon as experlence by people of varlous
sub[ecL poslLlons
Alms Lo ralse crlLlcal awareness of soclal sLrucLures of oppresslon and ldenLlfy
soluLlons lf approprlaLe
Alms Lo ldenLlfy Lhe ways ln whlch soclal lnequallLles are susLalned ln varlous spaces
wlLhln whlch Lhe parLlclpanL lnLeracLs
vlew educaLlon as a key Lool for LransformaLlon and flghLs agalnsL soclal ln[usLlce.

Assumpt|ons
8aslc dlfferences beLween people based on Lhe soclal caLegory ln whlch Lhey are
ldenLlfled/LhrusLed
ower ls noL sLaLlc buL exlsLs ln relaLlons. 1herefore an oppressed group can change
Lhelr condlLlon aL all levels
cerLaln groups ln any socleLy are prlvlleged over oLhers, consLlLuLlng an oppresslon
LhaL ls mosL forceful when subordlnaLes accepL Lhelr soclal sLaLus as naLural,
necessary or lnevlLable LhaL oppresslon has many faces, and concern for only one
form of oppresslon aL Lhe expense of oLhers

Ma[or Concepts]1erms Used
AllenaLlon
lalse consclousness
roblemaLlsaLlon
PumanlsaLlon
raxls (acLlon & reflecLlon)
ConsclenLlsaLlon
CulLure of sllence
CrlLlcal consclousness

Ma[or Scho|ars
aulo lrelre
klncheloe
Mclaren
karl Marx

Methodo|og|es
CrlLlcal LLhnography
narraLlve lnqulry
31
Case SLudy
8lographlcal SLudy
Cral PlsLory

Methods
ConversaLlons
LllclLaLlons
CollaboraLlon
CbservaLlon
uocumenL Analysls

Cr|t|que
SoluLlons can be seen as lmposlLlon comlng from Lhe researcher's perspecLlve
SoluLlons can be seen as belng presumpLuous Lo knowlng whaL a marglnallzed group
mlghL need

kesearch uest|on
Pow do Lhe sLrucLures of hlgher educaLlon lnfluence Lhe experlence of belng a female
mlnorlLy graduaLe sLudenL aL Lhe College of LducaLlon aL Lhe unlverslLy of Memphls?

Act|v|ty
now LhaL you have come Lo Lhe end of Lhe lsm's, Lhlnk of whlch one of Lhese lsm's
lnfluence you Lhe mosL. lL mlghL seem LhaL you can allgn wlLh all of Lhem and can see
Lhe merlL ln all of Lhem. 1hls ls a good slgn because lL means you are LhaL klnd of a
researcher who can enLerLaln mulLlple perspecLlves. Powever, for Lhe purpose of Lhls
acLlvlLy and ln Lhls class, Lhlnk abouL whlch one of Lhese speak Lhe mosL Lo you
concernlng your Loplc of lnLeresL.

8ased on Lhe LheoreLlcal framework chosen, wrlLe a research quesLlon below allgned
wlLh Lhe LheoreLlcal framework.









1
Intent|ons for th|s Chapter
ln Lhls chapLer, l wanLed you Lo become famlllar wlLh Lhe dlfferenL LheoreLlcal
frameworks wlLhouL belng confused wlLh academlc [argons. 8emember LhaL Lhese
frameworks are Lhere Lo help you shape your ldeas abouL how you wanL Lo sLudy human
experlences and Lhelr soclal reallLles. 1herefore, now you should be able Lo:
ldenLlfy approprlaLe LheoreLlcal quesLlons when glven a quallLaLlve research
quesLlon
ground your quallLaLlve quesLlons lnLo an approprlaLe LheoreLlcal framework
ldenLlfy Lhe llmlLs and posslblllLles of dlfferenL frameworks
ldenLlfy dlfferenL meLhodologles and meLhods assoclaLed wlLh lndlvldual
frameworks
reflecL on your sub[ecLlvlLles Lo ldenLlfy your moLlvaLlon for conducLlng research
2
Week 4: Des|gn|ng ua||tat|ve kesearch

lL ls LhaL Llme ln Lhe course. ?ou wlll now have Lo lmaglne a research Loplc and develop a
research purpose, quesLlon, and begln Lhe process of creaLlng a research deslgn.

8ra|nstorm|ng for our kesearch
WrlLe down whaL lL ls LhaL you really wanL Lo know wlLhouL referrlng Lo any [argon ln
your fleld?










Who would you Lalk Lo?






Pow many people wlll you Lalk Lo? (kemember more does not mean better)






Where wlll Lhls sLudy Lake place?




3
WhaL ls Lhe purpose of Lhls research?








WhaL are Lhe posslble research quesLlons for Lhls sLudy? (Make sure LhaL your research
quesLlons are allgned wlLh your research purpose)










WhaL Lerms/[argons do you need Lo operaLlonallze?








WhaL are posslble daLa sources?






WhaL LheoreLlcal framework besL flLs your sLudy and why?






4
Manag|ng our L|terature

lnvesL ln a blbllographlc sofLware llke LndnoLe or 8efworks. l am aLLachlng a form below
whlch ls a modlflcaLlon of a handouL LhaL l was glven durlng my graduaLe sLudles aL Lhe
unlverslLy of Ceorgla. Pope lL ls of help Lo you as you organlze your research.
8emember, ln many ways, you are conducLlng a LhemaLlc analysls of Lhe llLeraLure Lo
sLrucLure your argumenL for your llLeraLure revlew.

now do you read research papers?
?our readlng should noL [usL conslsL of hlghllghLlng and maklng summary noLes of a
research paper. ?ou wlll deflnlLely forgeL everyLhlng wlLhln a few days and would need
Lo re-read Lhe paper lf you need Lo clLe lL for a dlfferenL purpose Lhan when you flrsL
read Lhe paper. 1herefore, see Lhe process of readlng and acLlve engagemenL of crlLlcal
LhoughL and Llme aL Lhe fronL end so LhaL you can save Llme aL Lhe back end. Pere are
some Llps LhaL have helped me Lhrough Lhe years.

1. WheLher you are readlng onllne or vla hard copy, keep a word documenL open or
your blbllographlc sofLware open (LndnoLe or 8efworks).
2. As you read a research paper, wrlLe down Lhlngs LhaL sLand ouL Lo you for
whaLever reasons.
3. lf any parLlcular clLaLlons or quoLes speak Lo you Lhen Lype Lhe full quoLe wlLh
Lhe page number(s). Make sure lf lL ls ln Word, Lhen you have Lhe full clLaLlon of
Lhe arLlcle as a header or fooLer, so LhaL you wlll always know where Lhese noLes
came from. lf lL ls ln your LndnoLe or 8efworks, Lhen wrlLe your noLes ln Lhe
noLes secLlons so LhaL Lhe clLaLlon wlll always conLaln your LhoughLs, noLes,
quoLes, and page numbers.
4. 1hlnk abouL how Lhls arLlcle relaLes Lo ldeas already presenL ln Lhe llLeraLure and
make relevanL noLes.
3. 1hlnk abouL how Lhls arLlcle conLradlcLs exlsLlng llLeraLure and make relevanL
noLes.
6. 8y Lhe Llme you are done wlLh Lhe arLlcle, you have done a close readlng, have
several passages ready Lo quoLe wlLh page numbers, and have access Lo your ln-
depLh crlLlcal LhoughLs abouL Lhe arLlcle. 1haL should carry you well for your
wrlLlng pro[ecLs wlLhouL havlng Lo re-read arLlcles every Llme you need Lo work
on a Loplc where you mlghL clLe cerLaln prevlously read arLlcles.

lor furLher organlzaLlon of your arLlcles, you mlghL beneflL creaLlng Lables wlLh Lhe
followlng lnformaLlon:
urpose and research quesLlons
1heoreLlcal framework
arLlclpanLs
MeLhods of sLudy
uaLa analysls Lechnlques
lorm of represenLaLlon
5
Ma[or flndlngs
8lg so-whaL of Lhe arLlcle
Area(s) of sLrengLh of Lhe arLlcle
Area (s) of weaknesses of Lhe arLlcle (or quesLlons you mlghL have of Lhe arLlcle,
or Lhlngs LhaL remaln unclear Lo you)


More In-depth Approach to Des|gn|ng our kesearch ro[ect

WhaL are Lhe Lypes of sLorles LhaL you would llke Lo hear abouL people's experlences?







WhaL wlll be your daLa sources for collecLlng lnformaLlon? LlsL all Lhe sources LhaL you
can Lhlnk of even lf Lhey are noL pracLlcal.











WhaL exacLly are you Lrylng Lo do wlLh your parLlclpanLs' sLorles (ldenLlfy framework)?

! undersLand/descrlbe experlences? (general lnLerpreLlve sLudy)
! ldenLlfy an essence of an experlence? (phenomenologlcal sLudy)
! undersLand peoples' ways of maklng meanlng ouL of Lhelr everyday experlences? (ln-
depLh lnLervlew, lnLerpreLlve)
! Speak wlLh a small group of people Lo ldenLlfy Lhelr experlences wlLh a phenomenon,
producL, pro[ecL, eLc. (locus group)
! WrlLe narraLlve or sLorles based on parLlclpanLs' llved experlences? (narraLlve
lnqulry)
! locus on one lndlvldual, group, or an organlzaLlon for Lhe purpose of your sLudy
(Case sLudy)
6
! locus on descrlblng culLural undersLandlngs of a group of people? (LLhnography)
! locus on a Llme perlod Lo whlch your access Lo lnformaLlon are Lhrough sLorles of
people who llved durlng Lhe Llme perlod and archlved documenLs (Cral hlsLory, llfe
sLory, blography)
! locus on yourself Lo hlghllghL how a cerLaln lssue played ouL ln your llved
experlences (AuLoeLhnography, auLoblography)


uaLa Analysls
Pow do you see yourself sysLemaLlcally managlng daLa and Lhen analyzlng daLa for
represenLaLlon?

! uevelop codes, caLegorles, and Lhemes - lnducLlve analysls
! uevelop a sLory from your daLa - narraLlve analysls
! uevelop Lhemes and paLLerns prlmarlly from documenL daLa - conLenL analysls
! uevelop forms of poeLry from daLa collecLed - poeLlc analysls
! uevelop performances based on parLlclpanLs' lnLeracLlons ln Lhelr soclal worlds -
performaLlve analysls
! uevelop mulLldlmenslonal approach Lo analyzlng parLlclpanLs' experlences uslng
Lools such as poeLry, performance, arL, eLc. (arLs-based analysls)
! uevelop ln-depLh undersLandlng from close analysls of LranscrlpLs abouL how people
Lalk when descrlblng cerLaln lnLeracLlons (conversaLlonal analysls)
! conducL daLa reducLlon Lo ldenLlfy an essence of an experlence (phenomenologlcal
analysls)

noLe Lhe above frameworks and analyses are noL enLlrely exhausLlve of quallLaLlve
research. ln facL, one of Lhe mosL llberaLlng aspecLs of quallLaLlve research ls LhaL you
can crafL your own approach Lo meLhodology as long as you can make [usLlflable and
compelllng academlc argumenLs. 1here are varlous approaches ouL Lhere. 1hls llsL ls [usL
an abbrevlaLed one Lo geL you sLarLed.

8epresenLaLlon of uaLa Analysls
CfLen as you conducL daLa analysls you wlll flnd yourself Lhlnklng abouL varlous Lypes of
represenLaLlon. 1herefore, whlle you mlghL have some ldea abouL how you mlghL llke Lo
see you daLa represenLed, be open Lo Lhe posslblllLy LhaL your daLa analysls mlghL gulde
you dlfferenLly. Some forms of represenLaLlon for you Lo conslder are:

! 1hemaLlc represenLaLlon
! SLorles
! oeLry
! urama
! MulLlple forms of arLs-based represenLaLlon
! hoLo/vlsual narraLlves
! SomeLhlng else LhaL was noL menLloned here buL you are Lhlnklng abouL? ________
7
Intent|ons for th|s Chapter
AfLer compleLlng Lhls chapLer, you should be able Lo
ldenLlfy key research purpose
ldenLlfy key research quesLlons
know who your parLlclpanLs wlll be for your sLudy
know Lhe crlLerla for selecLlon of parLlclpanLs
formulaLe a worklng verslon of a research deslgn
ldenLlfy poLenLlal sources of daLa collecLlon
ldenLlfy poLenLlal LargeL audlence
ldenLlfy Lhe relevance of your work beyond Lhe scope of your lnLeresL
















8
Week S: ua||tat|ve Interv|ews

CuallLaLlve lnLervlews are conversaLlons beLween Lhe lnLervlewer and Lhe lnLervlewee
conducLed ln one of Lhe followlng formaLs:
ln-depLh lnLervlews
seml-sLrucLured lnLervlews
unsLrucLured conversaLlons
serendlplLous conversaLlons
ellclLed conversaLlons

1he declslon Lo choose any of Lhe above should be grounded ln Lhe broader framework
of Lhe research deslgn (Lhlnk Lhe hourglass model). lf a researcher [usL chooses one
lnLervlew because lL sounds funky" or cool" Lhen Lhere ls a good chance LhaL Lhe
lnLervlew and lLs subsequenL analysls are noL grounded ln Lhe quallLaLlve research
deslgn. So when you deslgn your meLhodology and Lhe ways you wanL Lo collecL daLa,
make sure LhaL you have ample LhoughL Lo Lhe reasons for your cholce.

1he lnLervlewee's sLaLemenLs are noL collecLed - Lhey are co-auLhored by Lhe
lnLervlewer. 1he lnLer-vlew ls an lnLer-sub[ecLlve enLerprlse of Lwo persons Lalklng abouL
common Lhemes of lnLeresL. 1he lnLervlewer does noL merely collecL sLaLemenLs llke
gaLherlng small sLones on a beach. Pls or her quesLlons lead up Lo whaL aspecLs of a
Loplc Lhe sub[ecL wlll address, and Lhe lnLervlewer's acLlve llsLenlng and followlng up on
Lhe answers codeLermlnes Lhe course of Lhe conversaLlon (kvale, 1996, p.183)

ua||ty Cr|ter|a for an Interv|ew (kvale, 1996, p.143)

1. 1he exLenL of sponLaneous, rlch, speclflc, and relevanL answers from Lhe
lnLervlewee.
2. 1he shorLer Lhe lnLervlewer's quesLlons and Lhe longer Lhe sub[ecLs' answers, Lhe
beLLer.
3. 1he degree Lo whlch Lhe lnLervlewer follows up and clarlfles Lhe meanlng of Lhe
relevanL aspecLs of Lhe answers
4. 1he ldeal lnLervlew ls Lo a large exLenL lnLerpreLed LhroughouL Lhe lnLervlew.
3. 1he lnLervlewer aLLempLs Lo verlfy hls or her lnLerpreLaLlons of Lhe sub[ecL's
answers ln Lhe course of Lhe lnLervlew.
6. 1he lnLervlew ls self-communlcaLlng - lL ls a sLory conLalned ln lLself LhaL hardly
requlres much exLra descrlpLlons and explanaLlons.


9
now do Interv|ews Iunct|on?
lnLervlews funcLlon Lhe researcher's eplsLemology ls grounded ln Lhe sLudy. lor
example, lf Lhe researcher frames Lhe lnLervlew from an |nterpret|v|st framework, Lhen
s/he ls lnLeresLed ln understand|ng Lhe parLlclpanL's perspecLlves Lhrough a serles of
quesLlons and answers deslgned Lo geL a descrlpLlve accounL of Lhe parLlclpanL.

lf Lhe researcher ls grounded ln cr|t|ca| theory]|nterrogat|ve framework, Lhen Lhe
lnLervlews wlll be deslgned Lo quesLlon lssues of lnequallLles Lhrough descrlpLlve
accounLs of Lhe parLlclpanL's experlences.

lf Lhe researcher ls grounded ln deconstruct|ve framework, Lhen Lhere ls a good chance
Lhe person may noL lnLervlew aL all. 1hey mlghL selecL serendlplLous conversaLlons and
noL hold Lhe meanlng" generaLed from Lhe conversaLlons sLable or real." lnsLead, Lhey
would look for ways Lo analyze Lhe conversaLlons LhaL Lakes lnLo accounL Lhe followlng
lnLervlews/conversaLlon ls a shared dlalogue
Lhe parLlclpanL negoLlaLes whaL Lhey wanL Lo Lell Lhe lnLervlewer
whaL ls Lold" Lo Lhe lnLervlewer ls a reflecLlon of Lhe parLlclpanL's negoLlaLlon
lnsLead of a polnL Lo Lhe absoluLe reallLy of Lhe parLlclpanL's experlences"
parLlclpanLs are conLradlcLory ln Lhelr descrlpLlons
parLlclpanLs may never Lell you whaL you are looklng Lo know
you mlghL have Lo surrender LhaL you cannoL know or have Lhe rlghL Lo know
whaL you wanL Lo know
wanLlng a conslsLenL response and meanlng of Lhe parLlclpanL's experlences ls an
llluslon

1herefore, based on where your Lhlnklng ls locaLed, you wlll use lnLervlews for dlfferenL
purposes. Some researchers do noL conducL lnLervlews aL all and look for more
naLural" and parLlclpanL-drlven" daLa collecLlon. 1hls ls where ellclLaLed lnLervlews
come ln. LllclLaLed lnLervlews/conversaLlons are drlven by Lhe parLlclpanLs where Lhey
Lalk abouL Lhelr experlences Lhrough phoLographs, muslc, lyrlcs, movles, documenLarles,
maLerlal ob[ecLs, or anyLhlng else LhaL e||c|ts a response from Lhe parLlclpanL abouL Lhe
ways Lhey make meanlng and descrlbe Lhelr experlences.

1ypes of Interv|ew uest|ons
1here are varlous ways of asklng quesLlons durlng Lhe lnLervlews. 8esearchers Lry Lo
deslgn lnLervlew quesLlons ln a way LhaL allows Lhe parLlclpanLs Lo descr|be Lhelr
experlences. 1hls means LhaL Lhe lnLervlewee Lells a sLory. CfLen researchers make Lhe
mlsLake of asklng ana|yt|ca| quest|ons whlch do noL ellclL sLorles. Lxample of a
descrlpLlve quesLlon would be, 1ell me abouL Lhe flrsL Llme you experlenced x?"
Lxample of an analyLlcal quesLlon would be, Why do you Lhlnk you experlenced x?" 1he
flrsL quesLlon wlll geL you a sLory and Lhe second quesLlon wlll geL you an oplnlon. ?our
goal ls Lo gaLher an ln-depLh undersLandlng of Lhe parLlclpanL's experlences. eople wlll
10
offer you Lhelr oplnlon anyway wlLhouL you asklng for lL. lL ls more lmporLanL for you Lo
geL Lhe experlences ln whlch Lhelr experlences are grounded.

Lxamp|es of Interv|ew uest|ons (kead Sprad|ey, 1979, !"# %&"'()*+,"-. /'&#*0-#1)

Descr|pt|ve uest|ons
1ell me abouL a Llme when you experlenced x
1ell me abouL Lhe Llme when you flrsL learned abouL x
Can you Lhlnk of a Llme when you experlenced x, and Lell me abouL lL?

Grand 1our uest|ons
Can you descrlbe a Lyplcal day ln your llfe as x?
WhaL ls a Lyplcal day llke belng x?

Spec|f|c Grand 1our uest|ons
Can you descrlbe whaL happened ln class yesLerday from Lhe Llme you arrlved Llll
you lefL

1ask-re|ated Grand 1our uest|ons
Could you draw me a map of Lhe classroom and show me where everybody slLs?
Could you draw me a Llmellne of crlLlcal evenLs LhaL shaped your declslon Lo Leach
and Lell me abouL Lhem?

M|n| 1our uest|ons
1hese are llke grand Lour experlence quesLlons buL Lhey deal wlLh a more speclflc
smaller unlL of experlences.
Can you descrlbe whaL you do when you Lake a break from your Lralnlng sesslons?

Lxamp|e uest|ons
Can you glve me an example of x?

Structura| uest|ons
?ou menLloned LhaL Lhere are loLs of secreLs LhaL are parL of Lhls organlzaLlon. WhaL
are some of Lhese secreLs? (Lhen you go lnLo a descrlpLlve quesLlon Lo geL sLorles)
LeL us go back Lo whaL you were saylng abouL Lhe ways chlldren are cared for ln Lhls
daycare. ?ou menLloned, personal aLLenLlon, conferences wlLh parenLs, engaglng
acLlvlLles, reporLlng when abuse ls suspecLed. Can you Lhlnk of oLher ways LhaL you
provlde personal care and Lell me abouL lL?
Can you Lell me some Lyplcal phrases l would have heard lf l was one of Lhe flrsL
8lack sLudenLs ln an all WhlLe unlverslLy?

Contrast uest|ons
Larller you menLloned LhaL you experlenced sadness especlally when lL was
assoclaLed wlLh a negaLlve slLuaLlon. As we Lalked furLher you sald someLlmes
11
when you overcome negaLlve slLuaLlons, and handle lL well, you feel happy abouL
how you chose Lo Lhlnk abouL LhaL slLuaLlon. Would you say LhaL a slmllar
slLuaLlon can creaLe boLh sadness and happlness for you dependlng on how you
choose Lo handle lL? (Lhls ls where you look aL conLradlcLory lnformaLlon and
seek clarlflcaLlon)
Could you Lell me abouL some lncldences LhaL made you sexually conservaLlve,
and some lncldences LhaL made you challenge your undersLandlng of sexuallLy?
(Lhls ls where you are looklng for conLrasLlng experlences Lo balance ouL your
flndlngs)
?ou menLloned abouL some of Lhe dlfflculLles you experlenced durlng your
Lralnlng aL Lhls workplace. Can you Lhlnk of some Lhlngs durlng your Lralnlng LhaL
worked well for you? (lalslflcaLlon)
12
Act|v|ty

WrlLe an lnLervlew quesLlon for all of Lhe followlng Lypes of quesLlons relevanL Lo your
Loplc.

Descr|pt|ve uest|on(s)





Spec|f|c Grand 1our uest|on(s)






1ask-re|ated Grand 1our uest|on(s)






M|n| 1our uest|on(s)






Structura| uest|on(s)






Contrast uest|on(s)



13

14
1|ps and 1r|cks About In-depth Interv|ews

I|rst 1h|ngs I|rst.
1here ls no such Lhlng as a perfecL lnLervlew so do noL be Loo hard on yourself lf you feel
LhaL your lnLervlew dldn'L go as well as you would have llked. 8emember everyLhlng ls
daLa and you are becomlng more skllled and experlenced ln quallLaLlve lnqulry. A
person's refusal Lo answer a quesLlon or Lhelr dellberaLe lnconslsLencles can be a
leglLlmaLe polnL of analysls lf lL beneflLs your research. Pavlng sald LhaL, l have
hlghllghLed some of Lhe Llps LhaL l goL ln graduaLe school aL Lhe unlverslLy of Ceorgla
and lnLegraLed Lhem wlLh my own experlences over Lhe years.

Interv|ew quest|ons
Avold asklng Loo many closed ended quesLlons. Powever some closed ended
quesLlons are approprlaLe for verlflcaLlon purposes or for gaLherlng cerLaln
lnformaLlon abouL Lhe parLlclpanL
keep quesLlons slmple and Lo Lhe polnL. Avold lengLhy elaboraLe quesLlons LhaL
confuse Lhe parLlclpanL
Make sure you mlnlmlze analyLlcal" quesLlons and maxlmlze quesLlons LhaL wlll
ellclL sLorles, experlences, eLc. AnalyLlcal quesLlons alone wlll leave you wlLh llLLle
rlch, Lhlck daLa Lo work on afLer Lhe lnLervlew. Powever, lf you end up asklng Loo
many analyLlcal quesLlons, Lhen use a follow-up lnLervlew Lo probe some of Lhe
sLaLemenLs.
keep quesLlons focused on speclflc evenLs and experlences lnsLead of vague and
broad generallLles.
Whlle lL may be dlfflculL, Lry Lo avold leadlng quesLlons as much as posslble, even
when you Lhlnk you undersLand whaL Lhe parLlclpanL ls Lrylng Lo say. araphrase
sLaLemenLs of Lhe parLlclpanL when Lhe parLlclpanL has compleLed her LhoughL.
keep quesLlons as open-ended as posslble LhaL can ellclL sLorles, experlences,
Lalks abouL a crlLlcal evenL, eLc.
uon'L repeaL a quesLlon LhaL you have prevlously prepared lf Lhe lnLervlewee has
already responded Lo lL ln anoLher quesLlon
ldenLlfy spaces where you can probe and ask for elaboraLlon even lf you Lhlnk
LhaL you know whaL Lhe parLlclpanL means. lf you are cerLaln LhaL you
undersLand Lhe parLlclpanL's poslLlon clearly," Lhen paraphrase your
undersLandlng Lo Lhe parLlclpanL so LhaL you can obLaln an lmmedlaLe member
check on Lhe spoL.
lf you are lnLervlewlng a frlend or someone wlLh whom you are very famlllar, be
alerL Lo probe Lhoroughly even Lhough you may be dlscusslng a shared
experlenclng. lf Lhe lnLervlewee says, ?ou know whaL l mean," ask for
elaboraLlon anyway even lf you do know whaL s/he means.



15
Commun|cat|on Issues Dur|ng an Interv|ew
CfLen Lhe quallLy of an lnLervlew depends on Lhe klnd of rapporL and communlcaLlon
beLween Lhe lnLervlewer and Lhe lnLervlewee. Pere are some Llps and Lrlcks:

8e comforLable wlLh sllence afLer you have asked your quesLlon. uo noL [ump ln
Lo elaboraLe your quesLlon lmmedlaLely lf Lhe lnLervlewee has noL spoken rlghL
away. lL mlghL lndlcaLe LhaL Lhe lnLervlewee ls reflecLlng on her answer whlch
maybe a good Lhlng for your research. LeL Lhe lnLervlewee ask you lf she ls
unclear abouL Lhe quesLlon.
1ry noL Lo lnLerrupL Lhe lnLervlewee unless you do lL for Lhe purpose of brlnglng
back Lhe conversaLlon Lo Lhe research Loplc of lnLeresL. Lven Lhen, you have Lo
do lL sklllfully so LhaL Lhe lnLervlewee does noL feel LhaL her LhoughLs are belng
dlsmlssed.
Avold [argon as much as posslble and Lalk abouL Lhe lssue LhaL your are
lnvesLlgaLlng ln Lerms LhaL are accesslble Lo Lhe lnLervlewee. 8emember Lhls ls
your research lnLeresL and noL Lhe lnLervlewees. uo noL expecL Lhem Lo be
famlllar wlLh Lhe academlc dlscourse around your Loplc.
MalnLaln eye conLacL wlLh Lhe lnLervlewee even whlle you are Laklng noLes as
much as posslble. 1hls sends Lhe message LhaL you are lnLeresLed ln llsLenlng Lo
whaL she says more Lhan concenLraLlng on your noLes. ?ou can always come
back Lo your noLes and clean lL up laLer. 8uL a losL opporLunlLy Lo esLabllsh
rapporL can be cosLly ln Lerms of Lhe rlchness of lnformaLlon LhaL you mlghL
recelve.
uo noL ask quesLlons LhaL are lnLruslve or can be consldered nosey." Whlle Lhe
lnLervlewee consenLed Lo Lhe conversaLlon, respecL Lhe boundary of whaL ls
leglLlmaLe lnformaLlon for Lhe purpose of your research and whaL ls [usL [ulcy"
lnformaLlon LhaL you would llke Lo know for whaLever reasons whlch have
noLhlng Lo do wlLh your research.
Whlle lL ls lmporLanL Lo be empaLheLlc Lo Lhe lnLervlewee's experlences, lL ls
crlLlcal LhaL you remaln LacLful ln Lerms of expresslng overL crlLlclsm [udgmenL
over deLalls LhaL Lhe lnLervlewee shared.
lf you are dolng a femlnlsL lnLervlew, lL ls enLlrely approprlaLe Lo have a
conversaLlonal lnLervlew where Lhe lnLervlewer shares her experlences as well.
Powever, such lnLervlews Lake longer for boLh people Lo share Lhelr own
experlences and lL ls harder Lo keep Lhe conversaLlon on Lhe research Loplc.
lf you are noL dolng a femlnlsL lnLervlew, Lhen sLlck Lo focuslng on your research
Loplc and make sure LhaL you Lalk abouL 20 of Lhe Llme and Lhe lnLervlewee
Lalks abouL 80 of Lhe Llme.





1
Intent|ons for th|s Chapter

AfLer compleLlng Lhls chapLer you should be able Lo:

! wrlLe lnLervlew quesLlons relevanL Lo your Loplc
! wrlLe lnLervlew quesLlons grounded ln your research deslgn
! wrlLe lnLervlew quesLlons LhaL are of varlous Lypes
! wrlLe descrlpLlve lnLervlew quesLlons lnsLead of analyLlcal ones
! ensure LhaL your lnLervlew quesLlons allgn wlLh your research purpose and quesLlons
! ensure LhaL your lnLervlew quesLlons allgn wlLh your LheoreLlcal framework and
eplsLemology
! ldenLlfy Lhe approprlaLeness of lnLervlew ln your research
! ldenLlfy Lhe Lype of lnLervlew approprlaLe for your research




2
Week 6: Approaches to ua||tat|ve Inqu|ry

Cne of Lhe sLrengLhs of quallLaLlve research ls LhaL you can approach lL from varlous
dlrecLlons as long as you have allgnmenL wlLhln your eplsLemology, LheoreLlcal
framework, research meLhodology, and represenLaLlon. ln Lhls chapLer, you wlll be
lnLroduced Lo Lhe flve mosL common approaches. Powever, keep ln mlnd LhaL Lhere are
many more approaches and you are free Lo comblne relevanL aspecLs of each of Lhese
approaches Lo cusLomlze your own research.

Narrat|ve Inqu|ry
narraLlve lnqulry allows Lhe researcher Lo produce sLorles from Lhe daLa ln Lhe form of
narraLlves." lL ls a comblnaLlon of all of Lhe daLa sources so LhaL Lhe researcher can
creaLe a sLory lnLegraLlng Lhe daLa sources.

olklnghorne (1993) ls one of Lhe mosL well known name ln narraLlve lnqulry. lL ls
lmporLanL Lo noL confuse ana|ys|s of narrat|ves wlLh narrat|ve ana|ys|s. Ana|ys|s of
narrat|ve lnvolves looklng aL daLa presenLed ln a sLorled form Lo ldenLlfy
Lhemes/caLegorles or Lo derlve concepLs lnducLlvely from Lhe daLa. Narrat|ve ana|ys|s
refers Lo how daLa ls organlzed and reporLed, wlLh Lhe purpose belng Lo produce sLorles
represenLlng Lhe research flndlngs.

narraLlve analysls can also be used Lo look aL how people perform ln dlfferenL spaces
and presenL Lhe mulLlple ways ln whlch people auLhor Lhemselves, sLorles Lhey creaLe,
and sLorles Lhey Lell. 1hls ls Lhe dlrecLlon ln whlch many of Lhe currenL work ln narraLlve
analysls ls movlng.

uslng your LranscrlpL, you can creaLe narraLlves of varlous sLrucLures. Cne such
sLrucLure maybe ldenLlfylng Lhe followlng elemenLs ln your LranscrlpL

AbsLracL
Who, WhaL, When, Where
ConfllcL
LvaluaLlon/8eflecLlon
8esoluLlon?
1
henomeno|og|ca| kesearch


Centra| quest|on asked |n phenomeno|ogy
WhaL are Lhe meanlng, sLrucLure, and essence of Lhe llved experlences of Lhls
phenomenon for Lhls person or group of people?

Understand|ng phenomeno|ogy from mu|t|p|e perspect|ves
henomenology ls a very popular Lerm Laken up ln many ways ln mulLlple flelds of
sLudles. So lL becomes very confuslng as a sLudenL of phenomenology Lo noL geL
overwhelmed by how Lo Lhlnk abouL Lhls LheoreLlcal framework. ls lL a phllosophy,
eplsLemology, LheoreLlcal framework, or a meLhodology or all of lL? lf all of Lhese areas
Lake up phenomenology, Lhen how are we Lo undersLand phenomenology?
van Manen (1988, p. 10) sLaLes LhaL "phenomenology asks for Lhe very naLure of a
phenomenon for LhaL whlch makes a some-'Lhlng' whaL lL ls. Pusserl (1967) dlscusses
phenomenology as a phllosophy. uenzln and Llncoln (2002, , 2003)ln Lhelr varlous
Pandbook publlcaLlons clLe phenomenology as an lnqulry paradlgm, an lnLerpreLlve
Lheory. Parper (2000) Lakes up phenomenology as a soclal sclence analyLlcal perspecLlve
or orlenLaLlon. MousLakas (1994) uses phenomenology as a research meLhods
framework. olklnghorne (1989) sLaLes LhaL phenomenology explores Lhe sLrucLures of
consclousness ln human experlences.

Iorms of henomeno|ogy
Well now LhaL we have compleLely confused ourselves abouL how Lo Lhlnk abouL
phenomenology slnce lL ls Laken up ln so many dlfferenL ways ln so many dlfferenL
flelds, lL ls only "naLural" LhaL we Lalk abouL dlfferenL forms of phenomenology LhaL
emerge ouL of Lhese dlverslfled Lhlnklng. 1here are:

1ranscendenta| phenomeno|ogy
locuses on Lhe essenLlal meanlngs of lndlvldual experlences or ln oLher words whaL are
Lhe lnvarlanL sLrucLures of human experlences or of a phenomenon? WhaL ls Lhe core
LhaL holds Lhe phenomena, experlences LogeLher?

So a quallLaLlve quesLlon asked under Lhls form could be, "WhaL ls Lhe essence of Lhe
experlence of belng a kaLrlna survlvor aL Lhe Superdome ln new Crleans?"

Lx|stent|a| phenomeno|ogy
locuses on Lhe soclal consLrucLlon of group reallLy - whaL ls really Lhe naLure of Lhe
reallLy LhaL holds a concepL or phenomenon LogeLher? 1herefore, onLology (Lhe naLure
and percepLlon of reallLy) allows us Lo form eplsLemologles (how we know whaL we
know).

2
So a quallLaLlve quesLlon asked under Lhls form could be, "Pow do conLesLanLs on Lhe
show Survlvor undersLand and percelve Lhe naLure of Lhelr reallLles?"

nermeneut|c phenomeno|ogy
usually looks aL Lhe sLrucLure and lnLerpreLaLlon of LexLs. locuses on language and
communlcaLlon. SuggesLs a way of looklng aL LexLual daLa. Powever, ln recenL Llmes
hermeneuLlc phenomenology can be expanded Lo look aL oLher forms of mulLlmedla
daLa.

So a quallLaLlve quesLlon asked under Lhls form could be, "WhaL ls Lhe naLure of
people's lnLerpreLaLlon of explorlng and readlng enLrles ln MySpace? or "WhaL does lL
mean Lo lnLerpreL experlence Lhrough creaLlng and readlng blogs?"
Powever, lnLerpreLaLlon of LexLs ls noL abouL [usL grammar and sLrucLure buL also abouL
Lhe conLenL ln Lhe LexL and soclal/hlsLorlcal/culLural conLexL ln whlch Lhe LexL ls wrlLLen
and recelved.

Van Manen's (1990, p. 10) approach to phenomeno|og|ca| perspect|ve
"lrom a phenomenologlcal polnL of vlew, we are less lnLeresLed ln Lhe facLual sLaLus of
parLlcular lnsLances: wheLher someLhlng happened, how ofLen lL Lends Lo happen, or
how Lhe occurrence of an experlence ls relaLed Lo Lhe prevalence of oLher condlLlons
and evenLs. lor example, phenomenology does noL ask, "Pow do Lhese chlldren learn
Lhls parLlcular maLerlal?" buL lL asks, "WhaL ls Lhe naLure or essence of Lhe experlence of
learnlng (so LhaL l can now beLLer undersLand whaL Lhls learnlng experlence ls llke for
Lhese chlldren)?"

So What Does 1h|s Mean Ior ua||tat|ve kesearch?
?ou would wanL Lo know Lhe meanlng people make of Lhelr reallLy ln Lerms of Lhe
phenomenon LhaL you are lnLeresLed ln sLudylng. WhaL meanlngs dld people make
abouL Lhelr experlences of belng kaLrlna survlvors aL Lhe Superdome? ?ou wanL Lo
capLure Lhe sub[ecL maLLer of Lhe phenomenon. WhaL was lL really llke for Lhe people?
Well ln order Lo really geL LhaL ln-depLh undersLandlng you need Lo have a way Lo galn
an ln-depLh exposure Lo peoples' experlences and lnLeracLlon wlLh Lhe phenomenon of
lnLeresL.

1hls ls where quallLaLlve meLhods come ln. ln a phenomenologlcal sLudy, Lhe
lnLervlewer sLarLs wlLh one quesLlon, "1e|| me about a t|me when you exper|enced k."
1he lnLervlewer Lhen conLlnues Lo llsLen Lo Lhe parLlclpanL's responses acLlvely ln order
Lo ask Lhe remalnlng quesLlons. 1he process ls akln Lo peellng away llke Lhe layers of an
onlon Lo geL Lo Lhe essence of Lhe experlence. So Lhe assumpLlon ls LhaL Lhere ls always
a core, a naLure of Lhlngs, a shared undersLandlng amongsL a group of people, an
essence LhaL holds a phenomenon or experlences LogeLher.



3
Data Ana|ys|s
Whlle phenomenologlcal sLudles can follow a general lnducLlve daLa analysls formaL
(codlng, caLegorlzlng, LhemaLlzlng), some quallLaLlve researchers also use MousLaka's
work for chunklng and managlng daLa.

Powever, more speclflcally, Lhe researcher looks aL every sLaLemenL LhaL ls relevanL Lo
Lhe quesLlons asked ln Lhe sLudy. Meanlng unlLs are Lhen creaLed. 1hese meanlng unlLs
are Lhen clusLered LogeLher for caLegorles. 1hen looklng across caLegorles Lhemes can
be creaLed. MousLaka came up wlLh some very speclflc Lechnlques for
phenomenologlcal daLa analysls.

MousLaka calls for more collaboraLlve research parLlclpaLlon Lhan Lhe researcher belng
Lhe creaLor of knowledge. Pe suggesLs LhaL Lhe parLlclpanLs become co-researchers buL
Lhe problem wlLh LhaL ls LhaL someLlmes you mlghL choose phenomenology as your
framework buL your parLlclpanL mlghL noL wanL Lo lnvesL Lhe Llme, efforL, or Lhe energy
ln becomlng your co-researcher.

MousLaka calls Lhe flrsL sLage of Lhe researcher looklng aL her/hls sub[ecLlvlLles Lhe
epoche sLage where Lhe researcher documenLs her/hls bellefs, assumpLlons and Lhen
dellberaLely seL Lhose aslde as Lhough you free your mlnd ln Lhe hopes of belng a beLLer
recepLacle of Lhe experlence of oLhers. As you know l have lssues wlLh LhaL because l do
noL belleve LhaL you can ever really do LhaL. Powever, l Lhlnk LhaL Lhe ldea of looklng aL
your sub[ecL poslLlons and Lhe assumpLlons LhaL play lnLo your research ls always a very
crlLlcal and valuable process and should be done ofLen and frequenLly ln mulLlple forms
of expresslon such as lnLervlews, wrlLlng, reflecLlng, conversaLlons, drawlng, eLc.

Def|n|t|ons

1he followlng deflnlLlons are Laken from Creswell (1998, p. 233-237) and may be helpful
ln furLher explalnlng Lhe MousLakas daLa collecLlon and analysls Lechnlques. 1he
deflnlLlons are organlzed alphabeLlcally raLher Lhan ln Lhe sequenLlal order of Lhe
analysls process.

C|usters of mean|ngs
As Lhe Lhlrd sLep ln Lhe phenomenologlcal daLa analysls process, Lhe researcher groups
Lhe sLaLemenLs lnLo clusLers of slmllar meanlng unlLs, or Lhemes. 8epeLlLlve and
overlapplng sLaLemenLs are deleLed.

Lpoche or bracket|ng
1hls ls Lhe flrsL sLep ln Lhe phenomenologlcal reducLlon process. 1he researcher seLs
aslde, or brackeLs, all preconcelved noLlons abouL Lhe phenomenon aL hand Lo Lhe
greaLesL exLenL posslble. 1hls allows Lhe researcher Lo more fully undersLand Lhe
experlence from Lhe parLlclpanL's own polnL of vlew.

4
Lssent|a|, |nvar|ant structure (or essence)
1he ulLlmaLe goal of Lhe phenomenologlcal researcher ls Lo reduce Lhe meanlngs of Lhe
experlence Lo Lhelr essenLlal sLrucLure. 1he researcher uses Lhe LexLural descrlpLlon Lo
reveal wbot happened and Lhe sLrucLural meanlngs Lo reveal bow Lhe phenomenon was
experlenced. AspecLs of Lhe experlence whlch are unlversal Lo all Lhe parLlclpanLs are
lnvarlanL sLrucLures and reveal Lhe essence of Lhe experlence.

nor|zonta||zat|on
ln Lhe second sLep of Lhe phenomenologlcal daLa analysls process, Lhe researcher llsLs
every slgnlflcanL sLaLemenL whlch ls relevanL Lo Lhe Loplc. Lach sLaLemenL, or horlzon of
Lhe experlence, ls glven equal value. lmaglnaLlve varlaLlon or sLrucLural descrlpLlon. 1he
researcher wrlLes a "sLrucLural" descrlpLlon of Lhe experlence afLer Lhe LexLural
descrlpLlon ls wrlLLen. 1he sLrucLural descrlpLlon lnvesLlgaLes bow Lhe phenomenon was
experlenced, looklng aL all posslble alLernaLe meanlngs and perspecLlves. 1he
lmaglnaLlve varlaLlon process ls
employed here, varylng frames of reference and revlewlng dlvergenL perspecLlves.

MousLakas (1994) emphaslzes Lwo broad aspecLs of Lhe phenomenologlcal meLhod:
1) 8rackeLlng and phenomenologlcal reducLlon, and
2) an emphasls on lnLulLlon, lmaglnaLlon, and unlversal sLrucLures ln analysls.
1herefore, daLa analysls for MousLaka lnvolves hor|zonta||zat|on, reduct|on, and
e||m|nat|on Lo deLermlne lnvarlanL Lhemes.


5
Ior more deta||ed breakdown of phenomeno|og|ca| data ana|ys|s, p|ease cons|der:

MousLakas, C. (1994). lbeoomeooloqlcol teseotcb metboJs. 1housand Caks, CA:
Sage ubllcaLlons. ChapLers 6-7

1hompson, C. !., W. 8. Locander, P. 8. olllo. (SepLember, 1989). uLLlng consumer
experlence back lnLo consumer research: 1he phllosophy and meLhod of exlsLenLlal-
phenomenology. Iootool of coosomet keseotcb, 16, 133-146


kesearch that |ncorporates phenomeno|og|ca| methods
A dlsserLaLlon uslng phenomenologlcal meLhods by Marek

eLer AshworLh. "8rackeLlng" ln phenomenology: renounclng assumpLlons ln
hearlng abouL sLudenL cheaLlng. lotetootloool Iootool of Ooolltotlve 5toJles lo
Jocotloo, volume 12, number 6 (november, 1999 ), pp. 707-721,
hLLp://e[ournals.ebsco.com/dlrecL.asp?ArLlclelu=vClA3PCnLC3nA3WL2

Angroslno, Mlchael v. (uec 2003)L'Arche: Lhe phenomenology of ChrlsLlan
counLerculLurallsm. ln Ooolltotlve lopolty, 9, p934-934.


Cther kesources |n henomeno|ogy

8oLLorff, !. (1991). 1he llved experlence of belng comforLed by a nurse.
lbeoomeooloqy - leJoqoqy, 9, 237-232bbb.

uagenals, !. !. (1972). MoJels of moo. A pbeoomeooloqlcol ctltlpoe of some
potoJlqms lo tbe bomoo scleoces. 1he Pague, MarLlnus nl[hoff.

Clorgl, A. (1983). lbeoomeooloqy ooJ psycboloqlcol teseotcb. lLLsburgh: uuquesne
unlverslLy ress.

Clorgl, A. (1970). lsycboloqy os o bomoo scleoce. A pbeoomeooloqy-boseJ
opptoocb. new ?ork: Parper & 8ow.

Peap, !. L. (1991). "LLhnomeLhodology, culLural phenomenology, and llLeracy
acLlvlLles." cottlcolom lopolty2(1): 109-117.

PolsLeln, !. A. and !. l. Cubrlum (1998). henomenology, eLhnomeLhodology, and
lnLerpreLlve pracLlce. 5ttoteqles of poolltotlve lopolty. n. k. uenzln and ?. S. Llncoln.
1housand Caks, CA, Sage: 137-137.

6
kvale, S. (1983). 1he quallLaLlve research lnLervlew: A phenomenologlcal and a
hermeneuLlcal mode of undersLandlng. Iootool of lbeoomeooloqlcol lsycboloqy 14(2),
171-196.

Melrose, L. (1989). 1be cteotlve petsooollty ooJ tbe cteotlve ptocess. A
pbeoomeooloqlcol petspectlve. Lanham, Mu, unlverslLy ress of Amerlca.

MousLakas, C. (1994). lbeoomeooloqlcol teseotcb metboJs. 1housand Caks: Sage.

Cller, C. (1982). "1he phenomenologlcal approach ln nurslng research." Notsloq
keseotcb31: 178-181.

olllo, P. 8., Penley, 1. 8., & 1hompson, C. !. (1997). 1be pbeoomeooloqy of evetyJoy
llfe. new ?ork: Cambrldge unlverslLy ress.

1hompson, C. !., W. 8. Locander, eL al. (1989). "uLLlng consumer experlence back
lnLo consumer research: 1he phllosophy and meLhod of exlsLenLlal phenomenology."
Iootool of coosomet keseotcb16(2): 133-146.

van Manen, M. (1990). keseotcb llveJ expetleoce. nomoo scleoce fot oo octloo
seosltlve peJoqoqy. London, CnLarlo: SLaLe unlverslLy of new ?ork ress.


Grounded 1heory
1he purpose of a grounded Lheory sLudy ls Lo be able Lo generaLe a Lheory afLer
reachlng a saturat|on polnL ln daLa collecLlon and analysls. 1hls approach ls exhausLlve
wlLh mulLlple varlaLlon ln sampllng. Larller undersLandlngs of grounded Lheory sLaLe
LhaL Lhe researcher needs Lo suspend any prlor knowledge of Lhe lssue belng sLudled Lo
generaLe or|g|na| Lheorles. Powever, such comparLmenLallzaLlon of knowledge ls ofLen
unreallsLlc. ConsequenLly, grounded LheorlsLs came up wlLh documenLlng how Lhe
researcher ls consLrucLlng knowledge as parL of Lhe daLa collecLlon process. 1he earller
approach Lo grounded Lheory ls called ob[ect|v|st grounded theory and Lhe laLLer
construct|v|st grounded theory. 1he baLLle of grounded Lheorles conLlnues Lo Lhls day ln
an aLLempL Lo esLabllsh domlnance over each oLher.

lor Lhe purpose of Lhls course, we wlll concenLraLe more on Lhe construct|v|st approach
to grounded theory champloned by kaLhy Charmaz. Charmaz (2002) descrlbes Lhe
lnLervlews LhaL grounded Lheory researchers do as focused, creaLlng a LlghL flL beLween
Lhe collecLed daLa and analysls of Lhose daLa (p. 676)." lurLher, she poslLs LhaL
conducLlng lnLervlews ls essenLlal for grounded Lheory analysls, slnce lnLervlewers have
more dlrecL conLrol over whaL daLa ls collecLed and how Lhe daLa ls formed compared Lo
oLher meLhods.

7
Charmaz dlsLlngulshes beLween ob[ecLlvlsL grounded LheorlsL and consLrucLlvlsL
grounded LheorlsLs. Cb[ecLlvlsL grounded LheorlsLs assume LhaL Lhe parLlclpanLs wlll
communlcaLe Lhe slgnlflcanL facLs abouL Lhelr experlences and LhaL Lhe research should
remaln separaLe from Lhe experlence. 1he daLa and analysls done by ob[ecLlvlsL
grounded LheorlsLs ls synonymous wlLh a deLecLlve collecLlng and analyzlng facLual
lnformaLlon.

ConsLrucLlvlsL grounded LheorlsLs, on Lhe oLher hand, sees daLa collecLlon and analysls
as a shared experlence beLween Lhe parLlclpanLs and Lhe researcher. ConsLrucLlvlsL
sLudles examlne how parLlclpanLs form meanlngs and acLlons, and geL as close Lo Lhe
experlence as posslble ln order Lo do Lhls. 1he daLa and analysls done by consLrucLlvlsL
grounded LheorlsLs could be referred Lo as daLa formlng" slnce Lhe researcher ls
lnLeracLlng wlLh Lhe parLlclpanL durlng Lhe daLa collecLlon and analysls process.

Crounded Lheory ls a sysLemaLlc meLhodology LhaL grounds Lheorlzlng dlrecLly from
chunklng, managlng, and analyzlng daLa closely. uaLa analysls ls done uslng a consLanL
comparlson process beLween all daLa sources afLer Lhose sources are organlzed ln
meanlng unlLs or chunks or codes/caLegorles. 1here are four overlapplng sLages ln
grounded Lheory.

1. Data Co||ect|on - 1hls ls where Lhe researcher engages ln all forms of daLa collecLlon
and expands sample selecLlon Lo have maxlmum varlaLlon ln represenLaLlon. uaLa
collecLlon sLops when Lhe researcher reaches saturat|on, l.e. s/he cannoL ldenLlfy any
new lnformaLlon comlng ouL of Lhe daLa.

2. Note-tak|ng - ln Lhls process Lhe researcher conLlnues Lo malnLaln a [ournal Lo reflecL
all aspecLs of Lhe research and Lhe ways ln whlch Lhe researcher ls negoLlaLlng Lenslons
and maklng meanlngs.

3. Cod|ng - 1he researcher breaks Lhe daLa down lnLo small unlLs of meanlng by labellng
words, phrases, paragraphs ln order Lo furLher organlze slmllar codes lnLo a larger
caLegory.

4. Memo|ng - 1he researcher wrlLes memos Lo self, as a noLe Lo self" Lo follow up on
hunches, look up llLeraLure, or elaboraLe a LhoughL, lnLerrogaLe daLa, develop a
concluslon, or connecL Lo anoLher parL of Lhe daLa, or anyLhlng else LhaL Lhe researcher
deems relevanL ln order Lo connecL wlLh Lhe daLa whlle belng grounded ln Lhe purpose
of Lhe research.

8
1he sLudenLs from lall 2006, 8361 creaLed Lhe followlng dlagram Lo explaln grounded
Lheory.



AL Lhe end of a grounded sLudy, Lhe researcher generaLes a Lheory LhaL ls enLlrely based
on Lhe daLa collecLed. 1hls Lheory should hold Lrue of Lhe daLa and of people ln slmllar
slLuaLlons ouLslde Lhe scope of Lhe sLudy. lor example, lf l conducLed a grounded Lheory
sLudy Lo undersLand Lhe sLudy hablLs of graduaLe sLudenLs ln lnLroducLlon Lo CuallLaLlve
MeLhods class, Lhen l should be able Lo come up wlLh Lheory abouL Lhe sLudy hablLs.
erhaps my theory cou|d be, those students who come to c|ass prepared hav|ng
read|ngs and ass|gnments done, often |dent|fy new ways of understand|ng and
study|ng qua||tat|ve methods. now l should be able Lo back lL off wlLh every slngle daLa
plece LhaL l have collecLed durlng Lhe research sLudy.

1hls ls an approach LhaL ls mosL wldely accepLed ln flelds LhaL are sLlll unsure of
quallLaLlve research. 8esulLs from Lhls approach leads Lo Labular represenLaLlon,
schemaLlc represenLaLlon, and a verlflcaLlon of Lhe Lheory Lhrough parLlclpanLs'
experlences.

1here are some crlLlclsms of Lhls approach. ArgumenLs exlsL abouL daLa saLuraLlon and
Lhe permanency of lnLerpreLaLlon. lL ls lmposslble Lo lnLerpreL daLa Lo a Lheory and
expecL lL Lo sLand Lhe LesL of Llme wlLhouL alLeraLlon. As a resulL, some Lheorles
generaLed are noL 100 verlflable upon close scruLlny. 1hus, many quallLaLlve
researchers follow all of Lhe approaches ln grounded Lheory and [usL sLop shorL of
9
developlng a Lheory ln order Lo avold Lhe crlLlclsm of saLuraLlon or a verlflable Lheory ln
Lhe sample populaLlon.
10
Case Study

MulLlple deflnlLlons of case sLudles lnform quallLaLlve research, for example, Case
sLudles are reporLs of alLernaLlve paradlgm lnqulrles" (Llncoln & Cuba, 2002, p. 213), yeL
Lhe case sLudy does noL lmpllcaLe any parLlcular approach" (Parry l WolcoLL, 1992, p.
36). ?ln deflnes case sLudy as an emplrlcal lnqulry LhaL lnvesLlgaLes a conLemporary
phenomenon wlLhln lLs real-llfe conLexL, especlally when Lhe boundarles beLween
phenomenon and conLexL are noL clearly evldenL" (?ln, 1994, p. 13). Whlle WolcoLL
deflnes case sLudy as an end-producL of research, Merrlam asserLs LhaL a quallLaLlve
case sLudy ls an lnLenslve, hollsLlc descrlpLlon and analysls of a slngle lnsLance,
phenomenon, or soclal unlL" (Merrlam, 1998, p. 21). ln her laLer work, Merrlam adds Lo
her undersLandlng of case sLudles by sLaLlng LhaL, l have concluded LhaL Lhe slngle mosL
deflnlng characLerlsLlc of case sLudy research lles ln dellmlLlng Lhe ob[ecL of sLudy, Lhe
case" (Merrlam, 1998, p. 27). 1hough Merrlam advocaLes for a boundary or
ldenLlflcaLlon of Lhe scope of a sLudy, she acknowledges LhaL Lhere ls freedom ln whaL
mlghL be concepLuallzed as a case. A case may lnvolve sLudylng a person, program,
pollcy, or any oLher phenomenon LhaL ls lnLrlnslcally bounded by Lhe lnLeresL of Lhe
researcher (Merrlam, 1998).

So what does th|s mean to a student |n qua||tat|ve research who m|ght be |nterested
|n Case Study?

When you are Lhlnklng of conducLlng case sLudy research, keep Lhe followlng ldeas ln
mlnd:
WhaL exacLly ls your case?
WhaL are Lhe boundarles of your case?
WhaL ls Lhe scope of your case?
Could your case be a person, a people, an organlzaLlon, or an lssue?
Are you uslng case sLudy as a meLhod or as a pedagogy? uslng lL as a meLhod
would mean speclflc meLhodologlcal approaches. uslng lL as a pedagogy means
LhaL you agree wlLh Lhe way knowledge can be consLrucLed uslng a case sLudy
and lL ls LhaL klnd of knowledge LhaL you are afLer.

11
1he fo||ow|ng |s a d|scuss|on of trad|t|ona| approaches to case study method and my
deconstruct|on of those understand|ngs from my d|ssertat|on (8hattacharya, 200S).
What I expect you to ga|n from th|s |s an understand|ng that su|ts your sub[ect|v|t|es
so that you can defend your pos|t|on and cho|ce of method w|th compe|||ng and
persuas|ve arguments.

Merrlam (1998) noLes LhaL a case sLudy provldes a vlvld and llfellke experlence wlLhln a
conLexLual slLuaLlon, knowledge of Lhe case under sLudy ls developed by Lhe reader's
lnLerpreLaLlons and lnslghLs. LxLendlng Lhls argumenL, one can asserL LhaL knowledge of
Lhe case sLudy ls developed noL only by Lhe reader buL also by Lhe parLlclpanLs, Lhe
researcher, and Lhe gaLekeepers, all of whom negoLlaLe and produce a collaboraLlvely
dls/agreed upon producLlon whlch Lhen geLs Laken up by Lhe readers Lhrough Lhelr own
negoLlaLlons wlLh/Lhrough/agalnsL Lhelr mulLlple sub[ecLlvlLles. lurLhermore, Merrlam
(1998, p. 13) sLaLes LhaL case sLudles can be responslble for dlscoverlng new
relaLlonshlps, concepLs, and undersLandlngs" lnducLlvely raLher Lhan deducLlvely.

CerLalnly an lnducLlve approach Lo case sLudy can develop an undersLandlng of
relaLlonshlps and concepLs. Powever, how can one really asserL whaL ls new, known, or
unknown? lor example, whaL l wrlLe mlghL noL be someLhlng new Lo Lhe parLlclpanLs
who mlghL have known and percelved Lhese relaLlonshlps ln Lhelr llved experlences for a
whlle. WhaL ls new Lo Lhe WesLern academlc world may noL be new Lo Lhe SouLh Aslan
academlc world. noL belng able Lo exhausL all posslble sources of lnformaLlon, lL would
be dlfflculL Lo clalm novelLy. 8aLher, wlLh Lhe researcher's clarlflcaLlon of Lhe purpose of
research (l.e., Lo undersLand, emanclpaLe, deconsLrucL, eLc.
1
) Lhe reader can deLermlne
wheLher Lhe research has accompllshed lLs purpose and whaL s/he goL ouL of Lhe
research.

Addlng Lo Lwo oLher researchers' undersLandlng of case sLudles, 8romley (1986) sLaLes
LhaL Lhe purpose of a case sLudy ls noL Lo flnd Lhe 'correcL' or 'Lrue' lnLerpreLaLlon of
Lhe facLs, buL raLher Lo ellmlnaLe erroneous concluslons so LhaL one ls lefL wlLh Lhe besL
posslble, Lhe mosL compelllng, lnLerpreLaLlon" (p. 38). Pamel and colleagues (Pamel,
uufour, & lorLln, 1993) poslL LhaL Lhe case sLudy has proven Lo be ln compleLe
harmony wlLh Lhe Lhree words LhaL characLerlze any quallLaLlve meLhod: descrlblng,
undersLandlng and explalnlng" (p. 3).

8romley's (1986) perspecLlve of case-sLudy research belng Lrue and erroneous" lmplles
LhaL Lhere are some benchmarks LhaL one needs Lo measure up Lo when conducLlng
case-sLudy research. 8uL whaL are such benchmarks and how are Lhey assured or
esLabllshed? Who decldes whaL ls erroneous - [ournal edlLors, dlsserLaLlon commlLLee
members? WhaL lf Lhere are dlsagreemenLs beLween dlfferenL academlc gaLekeepers
abouL how research on a speclflc case sLudy ls approached? Would LhaL be an erroneous
case sLudy, Lhereby lmplylng LhaL researchers should asplre Lo unlversal agreemenL?

1
I am using Lathers (1991, p. 7) continuum to demonstrate various goals of postpositivist inquiry.
12
WhaL lf dls/agreemenLs vary culLurally and my [usLlflcaLlon can be leglLlmlzed ln one
publlshlng space and noL ln anoLher? Would LhaL mean LhaL my lnLerpreLaLlons are
erroneous? Cr should lL be Lhe goal of research Lo geL head nods from everyone? ls Lhls
posslble, reallsLlc, or even deslrable? lL ls unllkely LhaL any research would have such
unlversal appeal LhaL all parLles would agree LhaL Lhe besL posslble, mosL compelllng
lnLerpreLaLlon was made, because people are dlfferenLly moved by sLorles and
deplcLlons.

1herefore, Lhe goals ln presenLlng Lhls research are Lo demonsLraLe how lnLerpreLaLlons
were made and how llmlLs and posslblllLles were consLrucLed Lo cuL across several
foundaLlonal assumpLlons and blnary-drlven concepLs. 1he reader Lhen lends credence
Lo lL as lL flLs her/hls perspecLlves, whlch cannoL be exhausLlvely predlcLed or
anLlclpaLed. 1hls ls noL Lo say LhaL l do noL have a currenL or fuLure readershlp ln mlnd.
1he re-presenLaLlonal negoLlaLlons would be conLlngenL on Lhe space ln whlch Lhe
research ls publlshed and Lhe expllclL and lmpllclL expecLaLlons of LhaL space. uesplLe
Lhe researcher's besL aLLempLs, Lhe sLandards for besL posslble lnLerpreLaLlon would
vary ln Lhese spaces.

So what are you to make of a|| these d|fferences |n perspect|ves?
Slmply LhaL no maLLer whaL approach you slLuaLe yourself ln, know LhaL Lhere are
mulLlple perspecLlves wlLhln LhaL approach. know LhaL everyone wlll noL agree and
Lhere mlghL even be conLradlcLory poslLlons. As a researcher Lhen you have Lo make a
declslon abouL how you are maklng sense of Lhls approach as lL ls relevanL Lo your
research.

lf you are lnLeresLed ln dolng case sLudy research, Lhen know how you are slLuaLlng
yourself ln Lhe llLeraLure. Who are you llnlng up wlLh and why? Are you aware of Lhe
crlLlclsms? Pow are you defendlng yourself agalnsL Lhe crlLlclsms? 1hls ls where
exLenslve llLeraLure revlew wlll come ln handy along wlLh Lhe argumenL of allgnmenL of
your research beglnnlng wlLh eplsLemology.

key th|ngs to remember when conduct|ng case stud|es
ldenLlfy scope of sLudy
ldenLlfy lf you are uslng case sLudy as a meLhodology and/or a represenLaLlon
ldenLlfy whaL wlll be Lhe case
ldenLlfy Lo whaL exLenL wlll you gaLher ln-depLh daLa
ldenLlfy whaL ls Lhe unlque value of Lhls case and why should people care
sLaLe lmpllcaLlons aL Lhe end of your sLudy Lo show whaL elemenLs of Lhls case
may be Lransferable Lo oLher slmllar slLuaLlons
ldenLlfy llmlLs of your approach
ldenLlfy unlque value of your case
ldenLlfy LransferablllLy of lnformaLlon of you case
don'L be afrald Lo lnclude numbers and/or sLaLlsLlcal lnformaLlon ln your case

13
Lthnography
LLhnography ls Lhe sLudy of culLure. CulLure can be deflned wlLhln Lhe broadesL Lerm as
a naLlon and as narrow of a Lerm as a fooLball Leam. 1here are cerLaln elemenLs LhaL are
presenL wlLhln Lhe conLexL of a culLure. 1hese elemenLs lnclude:

shared undersLandlng
shared language
shared sense of values, bellefs, and assumpLlons
shared experlences
shared undersLandlng of soclal membershlps wlLhln Lhe culLure
rlLuals and pracLlces
a sense of belonglngness LhaL keeps members buylng lnLo Lhe scope of Lhe
culLure

Conduclng eLhnography lmplles LhaL Lhe researcher wlll have Lo:
be ln Lhe f|e|d for aL leasL one year lf noL longer
become parL of Lhe culLure LhaL s/he ls sLudylng
parLlclpaLe ln Lhe culLural experlences by respecLlng Lhe norms of Lhe culLure
conducL daLa collecLlon vla observaLlons, lnLervlews, conversaLlons, and
documenLs
collecL evldences Lhrough mulLlple medlums such as phoLos, vldeos, eLc.
malnLaln sLrong relaLlonshlps wlLh Lhe parLlclpanLs of Lhe culLure so as Lo noL
vlolaLe Lhem when descrlblng Lhelr culLure Lo an academlc ouLslder audlence
develop rlch Lhlck descrlpLlons LhaL engage all Lhe senses
become Lhe sLoryLeller of your research
flnd ways Lo offer reclproclLy LhaL goes beyond Lhe l88 requlremenL as a slncere
gesLure of appreclaLlon for Lhelr Llme and for allowlng Lhe researcher lnLo Lhelr
llves for such a prolonged perlod of Llme

CfLen researchers don'L have Lhe t|me requlred Lo conducL a full-blown eLhnography. ln
Lhose lnsLances, Lhey remaln ln Lhe fleld for 4-6 monLhs and clalm LhaL Lhey have
conducLed an |nterpret|ve study us|ng ethnograph|c methods. ConducLlng a sLudy for a
shorLer perlod of Llme can sLlll allow for an ln-depLh undersLandlng, however, noL Lhe
klnd of ln-depLh culLural undersLandlng LhaL comes from a prolonged engagemenL.
ShorLer Llme lnvesLmenL ln a quallLaLlve sLudy lmplles LhaL Lhe researcher wlll ldenLlfy
llmlLs and posslblllLles ln her research lnsLead of maklng abso|ute clalms abouL her
flndlngs or Lhe lnfalllblllLy of Lhe depLh of lnformaLlon gaLhered.
14
Act|v|ty: 10 quest|ons to ground your qua||tat|ve approach academ|ca||y!!!

ou have now been |ntroduced to S d|fferent approaches |n qua||tat|ve research. ou
shou|d be ab|e to f|nd yourse|f |n one of these approaches that wou|d f|t your study.
1he fo||ow|ng |s a worksheet des|gned to he|p you |ocate yourse|f w|th|n the context
of your study. 1h|s exerc|se w||| he|p you |n des|gn|ng your proposa| for th|s c|ass and
a|so for future qua||tat|ve research pro[ects shou|d you cons|der do|ng a qua||tat|ve
d|ssertat|on or a res|dency pro[ect.

1. What |s the purpose of your study? Are you try|ng to understand, |nterrogate, or
deconstruct?







2. Why do you care about th|s study? now does th|s study matter beyond gett|ng you
through your program?







3. Wh|ch one of the f|ve approaches presented here do you th|nk |s appropr|ate for
your study? What do you th|nk you w||| be ab|e to ga|n us|ng th|s approach?








15
4. L|st a|| the ways |n wh|ch your research ||nes up w|th your chosen approach.









S. What k|nd of peop|e w||| you be ab|e to ta|k to? now many? Cver what per|od of
t|me?









6. What w||| be your sources of data? now w||| you ga|n access to these sources of
data?








7. What measures w||| you take to ensure that you are conduct|ng an |n-depth study?











16
8. Do you see yourse|f comb|n|ng between any of these approaches? If so what
aspects of the d|fferent approach can you see comb|n|ng? What w||| you be ab|e to do
|f you comb|ne approaches or e|ements of the f|ve approaches?










9. What do you need to be aware of |n terms of ||m|tat|ons of your approach? What
measures |f any w||| you be ab|e to take to responses to the ||m|tat|ons of your
approach?











10. now wou|d you represent your data? now does the representat|on of your data
||nes up w|th your proposed research des|gn and ep|stemo|ogy?












Note that these quest|ons appear s|m||ar to other worksheets. nowever, the quest|ons are p|aced here
so that you can eva|uate the growth and |ncrease the sharpness and depth of your research proposa|.
17
Intent|ons for th|s Chapter
AL Lhe end of Lhls chapLer, you should be able Lo:
ldenLlfy Lhe characLerlsLlcs of Lhe flve dlfferenL approaches ln quallLaLlve sLudy
ldenLlfy how Lhese approaches are slmllar and dlfferenL from each oLher
ldenLlfy Lhe hlsLorlcal and conLemporary conLexL of developmenL of Lhe flve
approaches
ldenLlfy key feaLures Lo remember from each one of Lhe approaches
ldenLlfy Lhe approprlaLeness of one of Lhese approaches for your sLudy
ldenLlfy Lhe llmlLs of all of Lhe approaches
ldenLlfy Lhe llmlLs of your chosen approach wlLhln Lhe speclflc conLexL of your
sLudy


18
Week 7: Cod|ng and Induct|ve Ana|ys|s of Data

Codlng ls Lhe flrsL sLep ln daLa managemenL. 1hls ls where Lhe researcher breaks down
large pleces of daLa ln manageable chunks by asslgnlng Lhe chunk a label LhaL ls
cognlLlvely relevanL for Lhe sLudy. Powever, Lhls ls noL Lo say LhaL daLa analysls does noL
occur durlng Lhe codlng sLage. uaLa analysls sLarLs from Lhe mlnuLe you begln Lo
concepLuallze your pro[ecL. Cn some level you are Lhlnklng abouL Lhe klnd of quesLlons
you wanL Lo ask, Lhe people you wanL Lo Lalk Lo, Lhe ways you wlll collecL daLa, and Lhe
ways you wlll analyze daLa. Whlle you conducL Lhe lnLervlews, you are lnsLanLly
analyzlng daLa Lo ask follow-up quesLlons. When you are Lranscrlblng you are llsLenlng
Lo Lhe daLa and maklng cognlLlve connecLlon beLween Lhe daLa and your research
quesLlons. llnally, when you are chunklng daLa lnLo codes and asslgnlng a label, you are
also conducLlng analyLlcal Lhlnklng grounded wlLhln Lhe conLexL of Lhe research purpose
and quesLlons. 1herefore, analysls occurs ln all sLages of quallLaLlve research.

Codes, Categor|es, and 1hemes
Codes are Lags or labels aLLached Lo words, phrases, paragraphs, plcLures, vldeo cllps,
documenLs, song lyrlcs, or any oLher Lype of quallLaLlve daLa Lo asslgn a unlL of
descrlpLlon, meanlng, lnference, relaLlonshlp, eLc. 1he purpose of chunklng daLa lnLo
workable unlLs ls Lo be able Lo comblne slmllar unlLs of meanlng or descrlpLlon or
lnferences LogeLher ln order Lo analyze daLa and answer Lhe research quesLlons posed ln
a sLudy.

Moreover, codes are also shorLcuLs Lo reLrleve Lhe chunks of daLa represenLed wlLhln
Lhe code. When uslng compuLer programs llke nvlvo or ALlas.Ll, Lhe researcher can run
mulLlple searches beLween codes, wlLhln codes, proxlmlLy searches, Lo lnLerrogaLe daLa.
1hlnk of codes are buckeLs LhaL Lhe researcher creaLe ln order Lo old unlLs of daLa.


19
ln a nuLshell Lhe quallLaLlve research process looks llke Lhe followlng:



?ou begln wlLh mulLlple sources of daLa
?ou look aL each plece of Lhe daLa lndlvldually
?ou ask an analyLlcal quesLlon Lo code Lhe daLa such as WhaL ls golng on here?" or
WhaL are Lhe crlLlcal evenLs?" or Pow does Lhe parLlclpanL reacL ln dlfferenL
spaces?" 1hese quesLlons are based on your research quesLlons
?ou chunk Lhe daLa ln Lhelr smaller analyLlcal unlLs
?ou label Lhose analyLlcal unlLs as codes
?ou Lhen gaLher Lhe codes ln some analyLlcal way LhaL responds Lo your research
quesLlons
Label Lhe gaLherlng of llke codes as caLegorles
WrlLe around Lhe caLegorles Lo dlscover Lhemes
1hemes should hold Lrue for daLa wlLhln and across caLegorles as Lhey are
generallzable sLaLemenLs of Lhe parLlclpanLs' experlences
uL LogeLher Lhe narraLlve of Lhe parLlclpanLs' experlences uslng a deducLlve form of
represenLaLlon
uaLa analysls ls lnducLlve, buL daLa represenLaLlon ls deducLlve

20
now |s Induct|ve Ana|ys|s Used |n ua||tat|ve kesearch?
lnducLlve analysls ln quallLaLlve research refers Lo worklng up" from Lhe daLa. 1he
process of lnducLlve analysls assumes LhaL Lhe researcher ls not sLarLlng Lhe daLa
analysls wlLh any klnd of pre-esLabllshed hypoLhesls abouL Lhe daLa. lnducLlve analysls ls
Lhe process of movlng from Lhe speclflc Lo Lhe general. Powever, lL ls accepLable and
undersLandable LhaL Lhe researcher has sub[ecLlvlLles whlch are Lo be documenLed and
analyzed as a source of daLa. lnducLlve analysls, Lhen, ls a Lype of quallLaLlve daLa
analysls LhaL works up from all Lhe sources of raw daLa, where Lhe researcher chunks
Lhe daLa lnLo unlLs of meanlng (codes), Lhen organlzes Lhe unlLs of meanlngs
(caLegorles), and Lhen answer analyLlcal quesLlons abouL Lhe daLa Lo ldenLlfy
generallzable paLLerns (Lhemes) across and wlLhln caLegorles. Cenerally speaklng,
Lhemes should respond Lo:

WhaL ls golng on here wlLh Lhe daLa?
Pow are meanlngs Lo be made of Lhe daLa?
Pow do parLlclpanLs make meanlng?
Pow do parLlclpanLs reacL, behave Lo experlence x?
under whaL condlLlons do parLlclpanLs make meanlng x?
All research quesLlons

ln Lhe secLlons below, l wlll presenL varlous researchers' approaches Lo lnducLlve daLa
analysls. leel free Lo comblne Lhem as you see flL for your research. 1here ls no one
rlghL" way buL Lhere ls deflnlLely a way" for you Lo approach your daLa so LhaL you can
make compelllng argumenLs abouL your allgnmenL of your eplsLemology, LheoreLlcal
framework, research deslgn, daLa collecLlon, daLa analysls, and represenLaLlon.

Shank's Approach to Induct|ve Ana|ys|s
Cary Shank (2006) llke many oLher quallLaLlve researchers (Parry l. WolcoLL, 1994)
propose LhaL daLa analysls ln quallLaLlve research musL be surrounded around Lhe
process of wrlLlng. 1hus, wrlLlng ls an lmporLanL and lnLegral parL of quallLaLlve daLa
analysls. My suggesLlon ls LhaL you should be wrlLlng everyday when you are analyzlng
daLa. ?ou should be walklng around wlLh a noLepad on you so LhaL you can documenL
whenever you have a LhoughL relevanL Lo your daLa analysls.

Shank recommends LhaL Lhe flrsL sLep ln daLa analysls should be master|ng descr|pt|on
and th|ck descr|pt|on (Shank, 2006, p. 78). 1hlck descrlpLlon should conLaln expresslve
deLalls LhaL are noL only observable lnformaLlon buL also lnLegraLed wlLh culLural
lnLerpreLaLlon. lor example, lf descrlblng a wlnk, one could say LhaL a wlnk lnvolves Lhe
openlng and closlng of Lhe eye for a cerLaln lengLh of Llme, uslng a cerLaln serles of
muscles" (Shank, 2006, p. 79). Powever, a rlch, Lhlck descrlpLlon of a wlnk would sLaLe
LhaL a wlnk ls a culLural slgnal, remarkably subLle and preclse. 1he Lurn of Lhe head, Lhe
angle of Lhe head, and Lhe lengLh of Lhe wlnk all play key roles ln deLermlnlng preclsely
whaL Lhls accounL was lnLended Lo mean" (Shank, 2006, p. 79). 1herefore, Lhlck
21
descrlpLlon ls a process of undersLandlng evenLs and experlences wlLhln a fully
conLexLuallzed seLLlng. lL should go beyond Lhe physlcal observaLlon Lo culLural
meanlngs, personal meanlngs, Lenslons, and varlaLlons.

M|sconcept|ons about th|ck descr|pt|ons
Some Lhlngs Lo avold when wrlLlng up Lhlck descrlpLlons:

1hlck descrlpLlon ls noL abouL verbal dlarrhea. ?ou need Lo be preclse, succlncL, and
purposeful
1hlck descrlpLlon should be a comblnaLlon of personal lnLerpreLaLlon grounded
wlLhln Lhe culLural conLexL of Lhe lnLerpreLaLlon. ?ou cannoL slmply sLaLe LhaL,
Marle shrugged her shoulders, lndlcaLlng raclsL aLLlLude Lowards her co-worker and
dldn'L answer Lhe quesLlon." 1haL sounds more llke propaganda Lhan descrlpLlon. A
beLLer approach would be, Marle shrugged her shoulders and dldn'L respond Lo Lhe
quesLlon asked by her Afrlcan-Amerlcan subordlnaLe, Slmone. As Slmone Lrled Lo
repeaL her quesLlon, Marle walked ouL of Lhe room. Slmone dld noL compleLe her
quesLlon." (LeL Lhe reader declde lf lL was raclsL or lf lL was Marle belng rude).
Avold maklng Lhe descrlpLlons muddy. Make sure you know why you are wrlLlng
whaL you are wrlLlng and keep a level of Lransparency ln mlnd when do so. 1hls wlll
help you defend your analyLlcal argumenLs ln your dlscusslon of your flndlngs

Academ|c k|gor of our 1h|ck Descr|pt|on
?ou wlll come across many quesLlons abouL Lhe rlgor of your descrlpLlons. Whlle l
dlscourage you Lo use Lerms such as rellablllLy, valldlLy, and generallzablllLy, Lhere are
oLher Lerms LhaL you can use Lo esLabllsh Lhe worLh of your work. 1he followlng are
some concepLs Lo keep ln mlnd as you make academlc [usLlflcaLlons for your work. 1he
ldeas below are comblnaLlon of my graduaLe Lralnlng and my experlences wlLh
quallLaLlve meLhods.

kesearcher Cred|b|||ty - Pow credlble ls Lhe work LhaL you have presenLed? Pave
you dlscussed mulLlple sources of daLa? Pow have you dlscussed your experlences
and how Lhey have shaped Lhe ways ln whlch you approached your deslgnlng your
research, daLa collecLlon, analysls, and represenLaLlon? WhaL klnd of crlLlclsms can
your work wlLhsLand? uld you Lry Lo falslfy your daLa?

1ransferab|||ty of our Study - WhaL mlghL be some enLry polnLs for readers of your
work? WhaL ls Lhe blg so-whaL of your sLudy? WhaL can people walk away wlLh afLer
readlng your sLudy?

rocesses of Ver|f|cat|on - WhaL processes of verlflcaLlon dld you engage ln Lo puL
on a dlsclpllnary gaze on yourself? Pow dld you descrlbe your process of daLa
analysls, eLhlcal crossroads, challenges and poLenLlals of your sLudy? WlLh whom dld
you consulL before, durlng, and afLer your sLudy? (member checks, peer debrleflng,
brackeLlng, [ournallng, reflexlve work)
22

1rustworth|ness - whaL have you done Lo presenL your work as LrusLworLhy
knowlng full well LhaL lL may always be suspecL. Pave you made clalms LhaL are
grounded ln evldence from your sLudy? Pave you ldenLlfled how you are
concepLuallzlng evldence?" Pave you allgned your eplsLemology, LheoreLlcal
framework, meLhodology, and represenLaLlon ln your flnal wrlLe-up? Pave you made
sure LhaL you are noL oversLaLlng your clalms? Pave you offered llmlLaLlons Lo your
lnLerpreLaLlons? Pave you offered alLernaLe posslblllLles?

Shank's hases of ua||tat|ve Data Ana|ys|s
Llke many oLhers, Shank offers Lhe general sLrucLure of lnducLlve analysls as one of Lhe
LradlLlonal form of quallLaLlve daLa analysls. Shank suggesLs LhaL researchers converse"
wlLh Lhe daLa and flnd ouL whaL Lhe daLa ls Lelllng" Lhe researcher.

I|rst phase - researcher makes declslons abouL Lhe general approach Lo use for daLa
analysls

Second phase - researcher chooses ways Lo organlze Lhe daLa

1h|rd phase - researcher aLLempLs Lo ldenLlfy whaL Lhe daLa ls Lelllng?" aL a larger
level. 1hls creaLes Lhemes and Lheorles.

Do themes rea||y emerge?
CfLen you wlll hear people use Lhe Lerm emergenL Lhemes" lmplylng LhaL Lhe Lhemes
emerge" from Lhe daLa. uo Lhemes acLually emerge maglcally ouL of Lhe daLa one flne
day when Lhe planeLs and sLars are all llned up for you? Cf course noL!! ?ou ldenLlfy
Lhemes ouL of your own analyLlcal Lhlnklng. As you work closely wlLh your daLa you
begln Lo see paLLerns, lndlcaLlng someLhlng sysLemaLlc wlLhln your daLa. 1hese paLLerns
are organlzaLlonal, characLerlze dlfferenL segmenLs of daLa, and help Lhe researcher and
Lhe reader develop an ln-depLh undersLandlng LhaL respond Lo Lhe research quesLlons
and purpose.

Shank sLaLes LhaL Lhe elemenLs ln lnducLlve analysls should lnclude
rlch, Lhlck descrlpLlons
codlng
caLegorlzlng
LhemaLlzlng
feedback and comparlson
saLuraLlon (grounded Lheory)


23
LeCompte and re|ss|e's Approach to Data Ana|ys|s

ln Lhe beglnnlng sLages of analysls, researchers revlslL Lhelr orlglnal research quesLlon
and organlze Lhelr daLa. AfLer organlzlng daLa, researchers reread Lhelr daLa and flnd
paLLerns and relaLlonshlps wlLhln Lhe daLa. Cne way ln whlch researchers dlscover
relaLlonshlps among daLa ls Lheorlzlng. When Lheorlzlng, researchers' percepLlons
lnfluence whaL ls consldered valuable Lo Lhe sLudy. ercepLlons deLermlne whaL daLa ls
approprlaLe for Lhe sLudy.

Cnce Lhe approprlaLe daLa ls collecLed and organlzed, researchers can begln
caLegorlzlng speclflc lnformaLlon ln Lhe daLa. Along wlLh Lhls, researchers compare,
conLrasL, and flnd relaLlonshlps among Lhe daLa caLegorles and Lhelr componenLs. 1he
daLa used are represenLaLlve of speclflc populaLlons or evenLs plcked by Lhe researcher.
SLraLegles such as negaLlve-case selecLlon, dlscrepanL-case sLudles, and LheoreLlcal
sampllng are used Lo selecL speclflc lnformaLlon Lo explore. Cnce Lhey have deLermlned
whaL lnformaLlon Lo use, researchers conLlnue Lhelr analysls of Lhe daLa.

8esearchers can analyze Lhelr daLa Lhrough lnducLlve or deducLlve meLhods such as
ooolytlc loJoctloo, coostoot compotlsoo, typoloqlcol ooolysls, eoometotloo ot o
comblootloo of sttoteqles. ln analyLlc lnducLlon, researchers scan Lhelr daLa ln search of
caLegorles and relaLlonshlps among Lhe daLa. ConsLanL comparlson conslsLs of a
researcher caLegorlzlng daLa and comparlng Lhe daLa across caLegorles.

When uslng Lypologlcal analysls, researchers conLlnuously breakdown Lhelr caLegorlzed
daLa lnLo smaller segmenLs before examlnlng relaLlonshlps among Lhe caLegorles.
LnumeraLlon ls Lhe use of frequency counLs Lo ldenLlfy and dellneaLe beLween daLa and
caLegorles. 8esearchers can also use a comblnaLlon of analyLlcal Lool durlng daLa
analysls.

LeCompLe and relssle (1993) recommended sequenLlal selecLlon sLraLegles ln order Lo
obLaln new seLs of daLa. SequenLlal selecLlon sLraLegles lncluded negaLlve-case
selecLlon, dlscrepanL-case selecLlon, LheoreLlcal sampllng and LheoreLlcal lmpllcaLlons.
negaLlve-case selecLlon ls a Lechnlque Lo seek cases LhaL refuLe an emerglng paLLern.
ulscrepanL cases possess many slmllarlLles Lo negaLlve-cases, buL dlscrepanL case
selecLlon seeks Lo modlfy an emergenL rule. 1heoreLlcal sampllng uses Lhe daLa Lo
modlfy Lhe quesLlons asked of Lhe nexL parLlclpanL. 1heoreLlcal lmpllcaLlon selecLlon
lnvolves Lhe speclflcaLlon of a Lheory, Lhe search for daLa or cases Lo LesL for Lhose
lmpllcaLlons, and Lhe appralsal of Lhe Lheory on Lhe basls of wheLher lLs lmpllcaLlons
hold Lrue for Lhe selecLed daLa" (p. 233).

uaLa don'L have Lhelr own sLrucLure, Lo make sense of Lhem, we musL lmpose a
sLrucLure.

24
Step 1: reparaLlon work, lncludlng maklng coples, organlzlng, deLermlne lf anyLhlng ls
mlsslng, lf so, reLurn Lo Lhe fleld

Step 2: SlfLlng Lhrough Lhe daLa and ldenLlfylng key lLems (l.e., anyLhlng Lo be coded,
counLed, or assembled) by way of frequency, omlsslon, or declaraLlon

Step 3: laclng lLems lnLo caLegorles by Lhlngs LhaL are slmllar, or by Lhlngs LhaL negaLe
each oLher.

Step 4: CreaLlng paLLerns wlLh Lhe Laxonomles creaLed ln sLep 3, reassembllng whaL you
Look aparL. aLLerns can be based on:
slmllarlLy
co-occurrence
sequence
paLLerns LhaL you belleve should exlsL based on you LaclL or formaLlve Lheorles
corroboraLlon or LrlangulaLlon

Step S: Assembllng sLrucLures. 1hls lncludes bulldlng an overall plcLure LhaL should help
parLlclpanLs solve problems, lmprove programs, assess Lhelr effecLlveness, or develop
Lheorles Lo explaln whaL happened" (LeCompLe & relssle, 1993, p 131). lurLhermore,
good research ls meLlculously done Lo yleld resulLs LhaL are meanlngful Lo Lhe people for
whom Lhey are lnLended and descrlbed ln language Lhey can undersLand.

AfLer daLa analysls, researchers can represenL Lhelr flndlngs Lhrough Lools, such as
Laxonomles, slmlles, or meLaphors, and provlde Lhelr lnLerpreLaLlons of Lhe daLa.
8esearchers use lnLerpreLaLlon durlng all sLages of daLa analysls Lo deLermlne whaL Lhelr
daLa means Lo Lhem and whaL relaLlonshlps exlsL among Lhe daLa. 1helr lnLerpreLaLlons
help Lhem hypoLheslze abouL fuLure occurrences and provlde lmpllcaLlons for Lhelr daLa
(LeCompLe & relssle, 1993).


25
Grounded 1heory Approach to Induct|ve Data Ana|ys|s
1o analyze daLa
generaLe codes Lo compare lncldenL wlLh lncldenL
focus on analyLlc senslLlvlLy, Lo whaL depLh are you analyzlng your daLa?
ldenLlfy properLles of caLegorles, ldenLlfy connecLlons beLween relaLlons and
caLegorles.

1o conclude research, sLop daLa collecLlon when Lheory ls saLuraLed
ldenLlfy maln sLory (ldea) you wanL Lo base analysls on
make daLa sLand-ouL" by selecLlng approprlaLe secLlons of Lhe daLa
conclude afLer LesLlng Lhe Lheory" ln all lnsLances of daLa collecLlon Llll
saLuraLlon polnL

Codlng ls a key consLanL comparlson. SubsLanLlve codes [are used] Lo concepLuallzed
Lhe emplrlcal subsLance of Lhe area of research" (SLrauss & Corbln, 1998, p.33).
1heoreLlcal codlng makes clear connecLlons beLween caLegorles.

Codlng Lypes LhaL are lmporLanL here are open codlng (codlng daLa ln anyway posslble)
and selecLlve codlng (codlng varlables LhaL relaLe Lo core).

Some rules LhaL should be adhered Lo:
Ask quesLlons of daLa
uo llne by llne analysls
SLop and make memos Lo hlghllghL lmporLanL ldeas or concepLs
Work wlLh open codlng Lo make connecLlon beLween caLegorles

Act|v|ty
8ased on Lhe varlous approaches of daLa analysls presenLed, ldenLlfy Lhe mosL
approprlaLe sLeps of lnducLlve analysls for your research below:

26
Intent|ons for th|s Chapter
AfLer compleLlng Lhls chapLer you should be able Lo:

ldenLlfy slmllarlLles ln varlous approaches Lo lnducLlve analysls
ldenLlfy key processes of lnducLlve analysls
ldenLlfy an approprlaLe approach Lo lnducLlve analysls for your daLa
ueLermlne ways Lo malnLaln academlc rlgor ln your sLudy
ueLermlne ways Lo conducL falslflcaLlon of daLa
ueLermlne ways Lo consLrucL meanlng ln your sLudy









27
Week 8: Lth|ca| Crossroads |n ua||tat|ve
kesearch

Slnce quallLaLlve research ofLen lnvolves people's personal relaLlonshlps, confesslons,
and ldenLlfylng lssues of oppresslon Lo Lhe researcher, Lhere are ofLen mulLlple eLhlcal
crossroads LhaL a researcher faces when conducLlng quallLaLlve research. 1he lssues
ldenLlfled ln Lhe l88 do noL even begln Lo encompass all Lhe lssues LhaL a quallLaLlve
researcher has Lo encounLer ln Lhe fleld. Moreover, some of Lhe lssues are noL even
deLecLable early on durlng Lhe deslgn sLages.

So whlle an experlenced quallLaLlve researcher mlghL do everyLhlng s/he can Lo
anLlclpaLe poLenLlal eLhlcal crossroads and have approprlaLe measures ln place, lL ls noL
posslble Lo anLlclpaLe a|| eth|ca| crossroads LhaL one can experlence durlng research.
Pence, ln Lhls chapLer, you wlll work Lhrough mulLlple eLhlcal scenarlos from your
perspecLlves Lo ldenLlfy Lhe varlous Lenslons and dllemmas LhaL face quallLaLlve
researchers.

uest|ons for kef|ect|on on Lth|cs
2


1. What |s r|ght and wrong, good and bad about a study I have proposed to do? Who
m|ght benef|t from |t and who m|ght be harmed by |t? What va|ues are served |n
my |nqu|ry? What d|ff|cu|t|es do these quest|ons pose for me?













2
From Preissle, J. (1998, June). Ethics in qualitative research. Invited keynote address for the Fourth
Annual Midwest Qualitative Research Conference, June 25, 1998, Minneapolis, MN
28

2. What are my persona| eth|ca| pr|nc|p|es? 1o what mora| codes am I comm|tted?
now much do those I study share these pr|nc|p|es? now do I know that? What
d|ff|cu|t|es do these quest|ons pose for me?
















3. now have I obta|ned |nformed consent from those I have stud|ed? What worr|es
me about how |nformed that consent |s? now much have I d|sc|osed to others
about my research? Who has a stake |n my study and what |s the|r stake? What
d|ff|cu|t|es do these quest|ons pose for me?







29
Se|ected Codes for kesearchers

Amerlcan AnLhropologlcal AssoclaLlon. Code of LLhlcs of Lhe Amerlcan
AnLhropologlcal AssoclaLlon." Web page:
hLLp://www.aaaneL.org/commlLLees/eLhlcs/eLhcode.hLm: Amerlcan AnLhropologlcal
AssoclaLlon, 1998.

Amerlcan LducaLlonal 8esearch AssoclaLlon. LLhlcal SLandards." WashlngLon,
uC: Amerlcan LducaLlonal 8esearch AssoclaLlon, 1992.

Amerlcan sychologlcal AssoclaLlon. LLhlcal rlnclples of sychologlsLs and Code
of ConducL." Web page: hLLp://www.apa.org/eLhlcs/code2002.hLml: Amerlcan
sychologlcal AssoclaLlon, 2002.

Amerlcan Soclologlcal AssoclaLlon. Code of LLhlcs." Web page:
hLLp://www.asaneL.org/members/ecolnLro.hLml: Amerlcan Soclologlcal AssoclaLlon,
1997.

naLlonal Commlsslon for Lhe roLecLlon of Puman Sub[ecLs of 8lomedlcal and
8ehavloral 8esearch. 1he 8elmonL 8eporL: LLhlcal rlnclples and Culdellnes for Lhe
roLecLlon of Puman Sub[ecLs of 8esearch." Webpage:
hLLp://www.ohsr.od.nlh.gov/mpa/belmonL.php3. WashlngLon, uC: u.S. CovernmenL
rlnLlng Cfflce, 1978.

unlLed naLlons Plgh Commlssloner for Puman 8lghLs. unlversal ueclaraLlon of
Puman 8lghLs." Web page: hLLp://www.un.org/Cvervlew/rlghLs.hLml: unlLed naLlons,
1948.

Mora| 1heory
8achels, !. (2002). 1be elemeots of motol pbllosopby. 4
Lh
ed. new ?ork: McCraw-
Plll
30


Act|v|ty

Now that you are a|| eth|cs savvy qua||tat|ve researchers, use the |essons |earned |n
th|s chapter to app|y to your own research. 1he fo||ow|ng worksheet w||| he|p you
work through the d||emmas of your own research.

1. What can be potent|a| eth|ca| d||emmas |n your research that you can ant|c|pate
r|ght now?












2. What r|sk |f any cou|d th|s research br|ng to the part|c|pants, espec|a||y |f they are
te|||ng you conf|dent|a| op|n|ons? now w||| you be protect|ng your part|c|pants?









3. What r|sk |f any cou|d th|s research br|ng to you as a researcher, espec|a||y when
you are try|ng to |nterv|ew and report on sens|t|ve top|cs? now w||| you be protect|ng
yourse|f?







31


4. What k|nd of resources do you have handy to offer to the part|c|pants |n case they
suffer emot|ona| or other form of consequences as a resu|t of part|c|pat|ng |n th|s
research?











S. now wou|d you hand|e part|c|pants' need to change terms |n the consent form such
as meet|ng |ess frequent|y, unw||||ng to do member checks, and genera||y show|ng |ess
|nterest than you wou|d have ||ked?








32
Intent|ons for th|s Chapter
AfLer readlng Lhls chapLer, you should be able Lo:

ldenLlfy varlous eLhlcal dllemmas LhaL arlse ln quallLaLlve research
ldenLlfy ways of addresslng some of Lhe eLhlcal dllemmas LhaL arlse ln quallLaLlve
research
ldenLlfy poLenLlal eLhlcal dllemmas ln Lhe conLexL of your research
ldenLlfy poLenLlal lnLervenLlons for anLlclpaLed eLhlcal dllemmas ln Lhe conLexL of
your research
33
Week 9: ke-present|ng Data

CuallLaLlve researchers use mulLlple forms of re-presenLaLlons as evldence of Lhelr
research. 1hese re-presenLaLlons need Lo be llned up wlLh Lhe hourglass model of
research. 1he cholce of re-presenLaLlon cannoL be a funky one [usL for Lhe sake of belng
funky. CuallLaLlve researchers are called Lo defend Lhelr cholces and demonsLraLe how
Lhey are lnformlng Lhelr re-presenLaLlon wlLhln Lhe framework of Lhelr research deslgn.

Powever, regardless of Lhe cholce of re-presenLaLlon, quallLaLlve researchers' cholce of
presenLaLlon ofLen lnvolves ways Lo evoke, provoke, and unseLLle Lhe reader. Such goals
are especlally necessary lf Lhe researcher ls conducLlng work ln soclal [usLlce and needs
Lo brlng forLh lssues of lnequallLles ln accesslble manner Lo people who mlghL be
unfamlllar buL need Lo know abouL such lnequallLles.

1here are many Lypes of re-presenLaLlons ln quallLaLlve research. 1he researcher ls only
llmlLed by her lmaglnaLlon when deLermlnlng Lhe approprlaLe form of re-presenLaLlon.
Some of Lhe forms of re-presenLaLlons lnclude:

1hemaLlc descrlpLlons (Lhls wlll be whaL you wlll do ln Lhe lnLervlew pro[ecL)
oeLlc represenLaLlons
lays
erformances
uocumenLarles
Muslcals
novels
ShorL SLorles
hoLo essays
ulglLal sLorles
A comblnaLlon of any of Lhe above.

1he goal of Lhese re-presenLaLlons ls LhaL Lhey can be presenLed ln boLh LradlLlonal and
non-LradlLlonal formaL so LhaL Lhe maLerlal wlll be accesslble. Many Llmes when we read
research arLlcles, Lhey are so borlng LhaL we [usL look Lo Lhe flndlngs and concluslons
secLlon and re[ecL Lhe resL of Lhe arLlcle. CuallLaLlve researchers need Lo flnd ways Lo
academlcally presenL Lhe complexlLy of Lhe human experlence so LhaL s/he can make
persuaslve argumenL abouL Lhe lssue of lnLeresL.
34
So how m|ght you thread through the research hourg|ass to come to a re-
presentat|on?

LplsLemology ConsLrucLlonlsm
1heoreLlcal lramework lnLerpreLlvlsm
MeLhodology narraLlve Analysls
MeLhods lnLervlews, observaLlons, documenLs, eLc
8e-presenLaLlon SLorles wlLh lllusLraLlon and dlalogues

LplsLemology ConsLrucLlonlsm
1heoreLlcal lramework lemlnlsm
MeLhodology Case SLudy
MeLhods ConversaLlons, observaLlons, ellclLaLlons
8e-presenLaLlon oeLlc narraLlve

LplsLemology ConsLrucLlonlsm
1heoreLlcal lramework henomenology
MeLhodology henomenology
MeLhods lnLervlews, observaLlons, documenLs, plcLures
8e-presenLaLlon 1hemaLlc descrlpLlon

LplsLemology ConsLrucLlonlsm
1heoreLlcal lramework lnLerpreLlvlsm
MeLhodology LLhnography
MeLhods lnLervlews, observaLlons, documenLs, plcLures
8e-presenLaLlon A nonflcLlon wlLh 3 chapLers

1he above breakdown of Lhe re-presenLaLlons should glve you an lndlcaLlon of Lhe
varleLy of approaches LhaL one can Lake when maklng declslons abouL quallLaLlve
research. 1he rlgor of Lhe declslon lles ln belng able Lo allgn Lhe cholces wlLhln Lhe larger
sLrucLure of Lhe research deslgn. 1herefore, no maLLer whaL approach you choose for
your research, you are open Lo any form of re-presenLaLlon.
35
Caut|ons about Choos|ng ke-presentat|ons

We have Lalked abouL Lhe lmporLance of llnlng up Lhe cholce of re-presenLaLlon wlLhln
Lhe research deslgn. Powever, Lhere are a few more cauLlonary noLes LhaL you need Lo
pay aLLenLlon Lo when selecLlng a genre of re-presenLaLlon.

uo noL choose a genre of re-presenLaLlon wlLhouL study|ng the genre. ln oLher
words, lf you feel LhaL poeLlc represenLaLlon would be an approprlaLe cholce for you,
Lhen sLudy Lhe genre of poeLry lnsLead of assumlng LhaL you can wrlLe poeLry. ?ou
need Lo be able Lo know someLhlng abouL poeLry before you can effecLlvely use Lhe
genre Lo re-presenL your lnLerpreLaLlons of Lhe daLa

keep your cho|ce s|mp|e. uo noL Lry Lo puL ln everyLhlng under Lhe sun LhaL you can
Lhlnk of [usL so LhaL you have mulLlple forms of re-presenLaLlon. Pow can you say
whaL you wanL Lo say ln Lhe qulckesL mosL effecLlve manner? 8eaders flnd lL hard Lo
follow lf a re-presenLaLlon conLalns Loo many sLlmulaLlve genres because lL dlsLracLs
from Lhe message.

?ou need Lo pract|ce wr|t|ng |ntense|y regardless of whaL genre you mlghL wanL Lo
choose for your re-presenLaLlon. lor Lhe purpose of dlsserLaLlon, or a resldency
pro[ecL, or a research paper, or a conference, no maLLer whaL your genre ls, you are
responslble Lo make an argumenL for lL, descrlbe you genre, and make your wrlLlng
come allve. ?our words should dance on paper, creaLe beauLlful plcLures, and evoke
people slmulLaneously. 1hls Lakes pracLlce, and you should sLarL early on and make
many drafLs.

Don't be afra|d to p|ay wlLh mulLlple Lypes of re-presenLaLlons. !usL because you
chose one form doesn'L mean you have Lo sLlck Lo lL forever or even for LhaL
parLlcular research. 1ry oLher Lypes of analysls and re-presenLaLlons and see whlch
flLs Lhe besL. l remember Lrylng aL leasL 4 dlfferenL klnds of re-presenLaLlons before l
flnally seLLled on one for my dlsserLaLlon.

kead a |ot ln Lhe genre LhaL you mlghL be lnLeresLed ln. lf you wanLed Lo presenL
your flndlngs ln Lhe form of a play, Lhen read a loL of plays. ALLend local plays. llnd
examples of plays on Lhe lnLerneL. ?ou1ube can be your frlend. 8ead how scrlpLs are
wrlLLen abouL Lhe play. ?ou wlll conLlnue Lo learn and grow whlch wlll reflecL ln Lhe
depLh of your flnal re-presenLaLlon.
36
1h|ngs to Cons|der When Dec|d|ng on a ke-presentat|on

1. SnCW-NC1-1LLL. ?ou need Lo leL Lhe daLa do Lhe Lalklng lnsLead of you Lelllng"
people how Lo Lhlnk abouL Lhe daLa. resenL Lhe daLa ln lLs complexlLles and
conLradlcLlons. LeL Lhe reader flgure ouL whaL Lhey wanL Lo flgure ouL lnsLead of
you Lelllng" Lhem whaL Lo flgure ouL. LxpecL LhaL Lhe reader ls an acLlve
parLlclpanL of Lhls re-presenLaLlon.

2. know why your aud|ence(s) mlghL be. uo noL llmlL yourself Lo one Lype of
audlence l.e. academla. ?our research should have value beyond academla.
1herefore, conslder how you would presenL research Lo people who are ouLslde
of Lhe academla who wlll also be beneflLed by your sLudy.

3. know how you are convert|ng your data |nto ev|dence. WhaL declslons dld you
make Lo declde Lhe ways ln whlch some porLlons of Lhe daLa were evldence and
oLhers were noL?

4. SelecL a seL of key evenLs, crlLlcal lncldenLs, eplphanlc momenLs, Lurnlng polnLs
ln your flndlngs as ways Lo re-presenL. 1hese cr|t|ca| moments can Lhemselves
become Lhe slLes of analysls ln Lhelr Lenslons, conLradlcLlons, and amblgulLles.

3. resenL your own negot|at|ons, declslons LhaL you had Lo make, Lurnlng polnLs,
and parLlclpaLlon ln Lhe research. LxcerpLs from your researcher [ournal
hlghllghLlng reflecLlve LhoughLs, hunches, and prellmlnary ldenLlflcaLlon of
meanlngs should also be parL of Lhe presenLaLlon. 1herefore, Lhe reader can
follow along wlLh your lnLerpreLaLlon and negoLlaLlons ln order Lo undersLand
why and how you came Lo your concluslons.

6. use as many v|sua| forms of re-presentat|ons of your daLa analysls and flndlngs
as would be approprlaLe and necessary. Lven Lhough quallLaLlve researchers llke
sLorles and narraLlves, vlsual dlsplay of daLa ln Lhe form of Lables, dlagrams, and
models offer Lremendous clarlLy Lo Lhe reader. Also, by Lrylng Lo ldenLlfy
approprlaLe forms of vlsual dlsplay of Lhe daLa, your research becomes sharper
and so does your Lhlnklng around your research.

37


MaLerlal clLed from deMarrals, k.u., & relssle, !. CuallLaLlve pedagogy: Leachlng and learnlng quallLaLlve research.
8ook proposal under revlew by Lawrence Lrlbaum, 2002

Wr|t|ng U ua||tat|ve Data
When wrlLlng up quallLaLlve daLa, you have Lo keep varlous lssues ln flnd. 1he followlng
ls an abbrevlaLed remlnder of some key lssues. ConLlnue Lo use Lhe space provlded afLer
Lhls page Lo cusLomlze Lhe lssues LhaL you need Lo remlnd yourself Lhe mosL when you
wrlLe up your quallLaLlve daLa

Avo|d G|mm|cky 1|t|es
uo noL be funky for Lhe sake of belng funky. Make sure LhaL your LlLle can dellver whaL lL
sLaLes. CfLen lL ls a good ldea Lo work wlLh a placeholder for a LlLle and Lhen wrlLe Lhe
LlLle aL Lhe very end. 1hls way you wlll deflnlLely know whaL Lhe arLlcle ls abouL, whaL
you have Lrled Lo say ln Lhe arLlcle, whaL Lhe blg so-whaL ls ln your arLlcle, and whaL
mlghL Lhen be Lhe mosL accuraLe LlLle.

Gett|ng to the kesearch urpose and uest|ons
CfLen, some wrlLers go Lhrough elaboraLe lnLroducLlons before Lhey lnform Lhe reader
of Lhe purpose of Lhe research and Lhe research quesLlons. 8evlewers Lend Lo lose
lnLeresL lf you expecL Lhem Lo read long lnLroducLlons wlLhouL Lelllng Lhe research
purpose and quesLlons flrsL. 1ry Lo geL Lo Lhe research purpose and quesLlons rlghL
away. Cffer a LlghL lnLroducLlon wlLh a raLlonale for Lhe sLudy and Lhe value of Lhe sLudy.
SLaLe whaL you are aLLempLlng Lo accompllsh ln Lhe arLlcle.

Wr|t|ng Sty|e, 1rans|t|ons, & Iormatt|ng
lL ls exLremely lmporLanL LhaL you flnd an edlLor Lo revlew your work before you submlL
lL for publlcaLlon. Lven Lhough Lhe revlewers wlll noL know your name, Lhe value of your
work ls serlously compromlsed lf Lhere are sLrong sLyllsLlc flaws, edlLlng and formaLLlng
errors. ln Lerms of sLyle, make sure LhaL
1here ls a LranslLlon of ldeas beLween all senLences and paragraphs
Make sure LhaL each paragraph can work as a mlnl essay Lrylng Lo esLabllsh your
blgger so-whaL argumenL. 1hls means LhaL each paragraph should have a Lhesls
sLaLemenL, evldence Lo back up Lhe Lhesls sLaLemenL, a concludlng sLaLemenL
whlch can elLher be a LranslLlon Lo Lhe nexL argumenL, a quesLlon, or a
concluslon.
Make sure LhaL your arLlcle ls formaLLed accordlng Lo AA guldellnes (lf you are
an LducaLlon sLudenL). 1hls means noL only musL you make sure you clLe
accuraLely buL your headlngs and subheadlngs are properly formaLLed.
know your audlence. 8ead Lhe [ournal ln whlch you wanL your work Lo appear Lo
geL a sense of your audlence. Pow have oLhers approached lssues of clarlLy and
explanaLlons? lL may be LhaL you can clLe key people ln Lhe fleld for commonly
used ldeas lnsLead of explalnlng Lhem ln Lhe deLalls LhaL you had Lo for class.
38
WrlLe ln acLlve volce more Lhan passlve volce. uslng flrsL person ls accepLable ln
AA formaL and flows beLLer when you descrlbe your meLhodologlcal process. lL
sounds raLher awkward when you say, daLa was analyzed."
use sLrong acLlve verbs ln your senLence lnsLead of general and vague verbs.
1lghLen your work by reduclng words usage Lo sound succlncL and compelllng.
!usL because lL ls quallLaLlve research does noL mean LhaL you are allowed Lo
have verbal dlarrhea.
lf you need Lo wrlLe long senLences make sure LhaL Lhey are clear ln lnLenL and
meanlng. SomeLlmes lL ls hard Lo avold long senLences buL run-on senLences are
usually very dlfflculL Lo follow. So keep an eye for Lhose.
keep your cllche checker on hlgh alerL. ?ou should noL sound llke you are uslng
old cllches or meLaphors LhaL do noL work. SLlck Lo Lhe conLenL of your work and
avold Lhe bells and whlsLles. LeL Lhe depLh of your analysls do Lhe work and noL
Lhe bells and whlsLles.


39
Conc|ud|ng 1houghts

?ou now have Lhe foundaLlon Lo noL only deslgn a sLrong quallLaLlve sLudy buL also have
a sLrong undersLandlng of daLa analysls, eLhlcal dllemmas, and re-presenLaLlon ln
quallLaLlve research. 1hls handbook should work for you as a prlmer Lo deslgn
quallLaLlve sLudles from here onwards. Also, you can use Lhls handbook Lo sLudy for
your quallLaLlve comprehenslve exams.


A|oha!
1


kakall 8haLLacharya ls an AsslsLanL rofessor of CuallLaLlve 8esearch MeLhods aL Lhe
1exas A & M Corpus ChrlsLl, housed ln Lhe deparLmenL of LducaLlonal AdmlnlsLraLlon
and 8esearch. A graduaLe from Lhe unlverslLy of Ceorgla, her lnLeresLs lnclude
globallzaLlon of hlgher educaLlon, de/colonlzlng quallLaLlve research meLhodologles,
LransnaLlonal femlnlsm, and Lechnology-lnLegraLed learnlng and soclal envlronmenLs.

When she ls noL Leachlng, wrlLlng, readlng, or dolng oLher geeky Lhlngs, she can be
found danclng Lo salsa, conLra, and swlng muslc. She has dabbled lnLo non-flcLlon
wrlLlng, poeLry, and deslgned some games and lnLeracLlve learnlng sofLware onllne [usL
for fun.

WhaLever you do, do noL ask kakall wheLher you should do a mlxed meLhods research.
?ou mlghL end up havlng Lo llsLen Lo Lhe hlsLory of educaLlonal research, Lhe llls of
mlxed meLhods research conducLed by researchers who do noL value Lhe robusLness of
boLh quallLaLlve and quanLlLaLlve meLhods yeL call Lhelr work mlxed."

lf you are Lrylng Lo geL on Lhe good slde of kakall, she ls easy Lo be pleased. !usL brlbe
her wlLh a smooLhle or some chocolaLe, and lLs smooLh salllng for you ln no Llme.

lncldenLally, kakall does noL llke Lo Lalk abouL kakall ln Lhlrd person.
2
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3
Roulston, K. (2004). A "teaching story" in research design: University of Georgia.
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