CH 3
to participants, the argument goes, it
General Principles of Qualitative design
- Inform the type of data we should collect in
research process
- Type of data we collect for a qualitative data
need to be naturalistic
o Data must not be coded, summarized,
categorized, or otherwise ‘reduced’ at
the point of collection.
- Qualitative data collection methods are
designed to minimize data reduction
- Objective of data collection is to create a
comprehensive record of participants’ words
and actions.
o making sure that as little as possible is
lost ‘in translation’
o therefore, qualitative data tend to be
Reliability – a measurement is reliable if f it yields the
voluminous and hard to manage
same answer on different occasions
- researchers have to wait for the data analysis
phase of the research before they can begin to
‘reduce’ the data, and even then, they need to
be very careful about what they ‘leave out’
1 particular, possiblyAbiñon,
Validity – defined as the extent to which our research
describes, measures or explains what it aims to
describe, measure or explain
- because its flexibility and open-endedness,
qualitative research methods provide the space
for validity issues to be addressed during the
research itself
- qualitative data collection allows participants to
challenge the researcher’s assumptions about
the meaning and relevance of concepts and
Representativeness – qualitative research relies upon
categories
representative samples
Qualitative methodologies engage with concerns
about validity in a number of ways
1. Qualitative data collection techniques aim to
ensure that participants are free to question
and, if necessary, correct the researcher’s
assumptions about the meanings investigated
by the research.
o qualitative researchers also obtain
feedback on their study’s findings from
participants (participant validation)
o If the study and its findings make sense
must at least have some validity
2. Qualitative data collection takes place in real
life settings, such as workplaces or youth club
o there is no need to extrapolate from an
artificial setting, such as the laboratory,
to the real world, which means that
such studies have higher ecological
validity
3. Reflexivity ensures that the research process as
a whole is scrutinized throughout and that the
researcher continuously reviews his or her own
role in the research.
o discourages impositions of meaning by
the researcher and thus promotes
validity.
- Qualitative researchers are less concerned with
reliability
o Qualitative research explores a
unique,Stephanie A
phenomenon or experience in great
detail
o does not aim to measure a particular
attribute in large numbers of people.
o same data, when collected and
analyzed by different researchers using
the same method, ought to generate
the same findings, irrespective of who
carried out the research.
- To be able to generalize their findings to the
general population, quantitative researchers
need to ensure that participants in their study
are representative of this population
- tends to work with relatively small numbers of
participants.
o due to the time-consuming and labour-
intensive nature of qualitative data
collection and analysis
- depends at least in part on the research
question the study is designed to answer
 o ex. Case studies, representativeness is Ethics
not an issue
- same basic ethical considerations apply to the
- another way to solve the problem of
treatment of participants in both qualitative
generalizability is through accumulative
and quantitative research.
techniques; applied through within and across
studies
1. Informed consent
o Within studies - accumulative
o should ensure that participants are fully
techniques ensure that a particular
informed about the research procedure
observation made in one context is
and give their consent to participate in
checked against related observations in
the research before data collection
other contexts, in case a more
takes place
generalized, or overarching, category
2. No deception
may be identified
o Deception of participants should be
o Across studies - accumulative
avoided altogether.
techniques allow us to review different
o only justification for deception is when
studies’ findings in relation to one
there is no other way to answer the
another.
research question and the potential
 we aim to integrate the findings
benefit of the research far exceeds any
from a number of comparable
risk to the participants.
studies to draw wider
3. Right to withdraw.
conclusions.
o ensure that participants feel free to
Reflexivity - encourages us to foreground, and reflect withdraw from participation in the
upon, the ways in which the person of the researcher is study without fear of being penalized.
2 implicated in the research and its findings 4. Debriefing Abiñon, Stephanie A
o ensure that, after data collection,
- means more than acknowledging personal
participants are informed about the full
‘biases’
aims of the research
o invites us to think about how our own
o Ideally, they should also have access to
reactions to the research context and
any publications arising from the study
the data actually make possible certain
they took part in
insights and understandings
5. Confidentiality.
- common with how psychoanalytic
o researcher should maintain complete
psychotherapists use ‘countertransference’
confidentiality regarding any
- can be discussed under a separate heading (ex.
information about participants acquired
Reflexivity)
during the research process.
- can be integrated into the report and raised in
- researchers should protect their participants
context, whenever they are relevant (ex.
from any harm or loss, and they should aim to
Methodology section)
preserve their psychological well-being and
- Reflexivity can be revisited many times within
dignity at all times.
the same report.
o there is no set format for addressing Brinkmann and Kvale - argue that qualitative research is
reflexivity. saturated with ethical issues
- important thing is to include reflections on the
researcher’s role in the research in a way that is - ethical issues arise from the very beginning of
clear, honest and informative. the research
- they stay with us throughout our interactions
with our research participants, and they
 continue to be relevant throughout the process
of dissemination of the research findings
o instead of merely protecting
participants from any harm or loss,
some qualitative researchers aim to
deliver positive benefits for participants
o Action research is designed to generate
knowledge about a process or system
through changing it for the better
o critical discourse analysis aims to
challenge social inequality, injustice and
relations of power
- caution against the practice of ethics as rule-
following.
- ethical issues and concerns cannot be
addressed and ‘solved’ once and for all during
the planning stages of the research
o ethical dilemmas will surface
throughout the research process,
requiring the researcher to remain
ethically attuned throughout.
o ‘processual consent’ - issue of consent
is revisited throughout the study
3 o recommend that researchers learn
‘ethical research behaviour’ and
develop ‘the ability to sense, judge and
act in an ethically committed fashion’
o qualitative in-depth interviews - can
lead to quasi-therapeutic relationships
between researcher and participant
 giving rise to feelings and
expectations on the part of the
participant that the researcher
may not be equipped to deal
with
 may feel betrayed when
reading research reports
offering interpretations of their
accounts that do not tally with
their own understanding of
their experience
- Close personal relationship between researcher
and participants in qualitative research carries a
particular risk for the abuse of trust
The Research Question
- different from hypothesis
o a claim, derived from existing theory,
which can be tested against empirical
evidence
o It can be either rejected or retained.
- A research question is open-ended
o it cannot be answered with a simple
‘yes’ or ‘no’.
o calls for an answer that provides
detailed descriptions and, where
possible, also explanations of a
phenomenon.
- Qualitative research questions - identify the
phenomenon that the researcher wants to
investigate
o point us in a direction without
predicting what we may find.
o Good qualitative research questions
tend to be process-oriented
 ask how something happens
- Qualitative research questions are always
provisional
o researcher may find that the very
concepts and terminology used in the
research question Abiñon,
are, in fact, not A
Stephanie
appropriate or relevant to the
participants’ experiences.
- qualitative research is open to the possibility
that the research question may have to change
during the research process.
- research question is underpinned by a set of
ontological and epistemological assumptions
o choice of data collection method and
analytic strategy needs to be
compatible with the epistemological
orientation of the study
- Examples
o discourse analysis - e research question
is directly shaped by the methodology
itself.
 methodology, through its
epistemological assumptions,
dictates what we can and
cannot ask
 e.g. social constructionist
epistemology - can (only)
address research questions
about the social and/or
 discursive construction of
phenomena
o realist version of the grounded theory
method - assumes that the data
themselves generate categories that
emerge during the research process and
which capture the reality of the
phenomenon under investigation
 research questions for
grounded theory research can
be about processes,
experiences, structures or even
cognitions.
Formulating research questions
- need to think about its ethical and political
dimensions
- think about in whose interest it may be to ask
the question in the first place and how the
answer to it may be used by individuals and
organizations in society
- reflect on the value of the knowledge that our
research question aims to produce and for
4 whom we are producing this knowledge
o if funded, we should consider the
motives of the funding body in
supporting the research, and the extent
to which we share these motives
- Reflexivity also demands that we examine very
carefully our own personal and professional
reasons for asking our research question
- Lorion – ‘street lamp’ metaphor
o our research question should always
precede our choice of methodology
o we should not look for answers in
certain places simply because they are
familiar or easily accessible; rather, we
need to look in places where the
answer is likely to be, no matter how
inhospitable these places may be
 Methods are a means to an
end. They are ‘the way to the
goal’
 our research question (the
‘goal’) should inform our choice
of methods, not the other way
around.
Choosing the right method
- there are no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ methods.
o methods of data collection and analysis
can be more or less appropriate to our
research question.
- Having formulated the research question,
researcher needs to make a decision about how
to collect the sort of data that can answer that
question
- think about how the answer to the research
question may be extracted from the data.
o needs to select a method of data
analysis.
- research question, data collection technique
and method of data analysis are dependent on
one another
o good qualitative research design is one
in which the method of data analysis is
appropriate to the research question,
and where the method of data
collection generates data that are
appropriate to the method of analysis
- qualitative and quantitative researchers share a
common purpose,
o share a belief in the fallibility
Abiñon, of
Stephanie A
knowledge, the need to link theory and
empirical observation, the obligation to
carry out research rigorously and
conscientiously, and the necessity of
critique and dissemination of research’
- pragmatic point of view - the aim of research is
not to gain access to an abstract truth
independent from human experience but rather
to generate understanding that will be useful
to us.
o It is designed to answer our questions
o research designs and methods of data
collection and analysis cannot be in
themselves ‘wrong’ but they can be
more or less appropriate
- sometimes research questions require two or
more research methods (mixed methods)
o combine qualitative and quantitative
methods within the same study in order
to answer related questions
o ex. Use a questionnaire then utilize
semi-structured interviews and/or focus
groups
 - Can use more than one qualitative method
within one study if our research question
requires it
o Ex. Conduct some participant
observation followed by semi-
structured interviews
- but then there are some techniques that are
not compatible
o Ex. notes written by the interviewer
during the course of a semi-structured
interview cannot be subjected to
conversation analysis
Semi-structured Interviewing
- most widely used method of data collection in
qualitative research in psychology
o interview data can be analysed in a
variety of ways
- Is a method of data collection that is compatible
with several methods of data analysis
o Ex. discourse analysis, grounded theory,
interpretative phenomenology
- Somewhat easier to arrange than other forms
5 of qualitative data collection
o fewer logistical difficulties in arranging a
series of semi-structured interviews
with a small number of volunteers than
in designing a longitudinal study
Potter and Hepburn (2005) - qualitative analysis of
interview-generated data does not pay attention to the
many contextual features of the interview material;
instead takes such data at ‘face value’.
- Important to reflect on the meaning and
experience of the interview for both interviewer
and interviewee
- Not to assume that the interviewee’s words are
simple and direct reflections of their thoughts
and feelings
- Semi-structured interviewing requires careful
preparation and planning
o needs to think about who to interview
(and why), how to recruit participants,
how to record and transcribe the
interview, what style of interviewing to
use, and what to ask participants
General characteristics of semi-structured interviewing
Non-directive - questions asked by the researcher
function as triggers that encourage the participant to
talk
o important to acknowledge that it is the
researcher whose research question
drives the interview
- Through his or her questions and comments,
the interviewer steers the interview to obtain
the kind of data that will answer the research
question
- needs to find the right balance between
maintaining control of the interview and where
it is going
o allowing the interviewee the space to
redefine the topic under investigation
and thus to generate novel insights for
the researcher
- carefully constructed interview agenda can go
some way towards ensuring that the
interviewer does not lose sight of the original
research question
- to encourage the participant to speak freely and
openly and to maximize their own
Abiñon,
understanding of what is being Stephanie A
communicated
in the interview, researchers are advised to:
o Consider the possible effects of their
own social identities on the interviewee
o Familiarize themselves with the
participant’s cultural milieu, and the
status of ‘the interview’ within this
milieu
o Know what the interview means to the
interviewee to fully understand the
interviewee’s contribution.
o Be aware of linguistic variability
 same term may not mean the
same thing to all interviewees
 In semi-structured interviewing,
the emphasis is on meaning
rather than lexical
comparability
 needs to try to understand
what the interviewee meant by
what he or she said,
irrespective of how (s)he chose
to say it
  language is indexical; meanings
of words depend on the context
within which they are spoken
- Semi-structured interviewing depends on the
rapport established between interviewer and
interviewee.
- Semi- structured interviewing is somewhat
ambiguous.
o it combines features of the formal
interview with features of an informal
conversation such as the open-
endedness of the questions and the
emphasis on narrative and experience
o although rapport can be established
quickly, it could also be disrupted if the
interviewer’s role as researcher
becomes salient.
o Examples:
During interview:
o when the interviewer needs to attend
to the recording device, thus reminding
the interviewee that they are ‘being
6 interviewed’
after the interview:
o interviewee reads the transcript of the
interview and realizes how much they
revealed about themselves in
comparison with the interviewer who
revealed very little in what appeared, at
the time, to be a ‘normal’ conversation
- Semi-structured interview requires sensitive
and ethical negotiation of rapport between the
interviewer and the interviewee
o Interviewers should not abuse the
informal ambience of the interview to
encourage the interviewee to reveal
more than they may feel comfortable
with after the event.
The Interview Agenda
- Consists of a relatively small number of open-
ended questions.
- Good idea to start with more public questions
and move on to more personal matters when
rapport has been established
- Identify topic headings instead of questions,
around which then formulate questions during
the course of the interview.
o allows the researcher to incorporate
the interviewee’s own terms and
concepts into the questions, and thus to
make the questions more appropriate
or relevant to the interviewee.
o Problem is that researchers may
formulate questions that are less open
and more directive than necessary.
- Good idea to restate interviewees’ comments
and to incorporate them into further questions
throughout the interview.
o demonstrates to the interviewee that
the interviewer is indeed listening
o allows the interviewer an opportunity
to check with the interviewee that they
have understood correctly
o serves to maintain coherence and
continuity throughout the interview.
- Semi-structured interviews can last from
around 40 minutes to two hours
o Depends on the topic and interviewee’s
Abiñon, Stephanie A
willingness and ability to talk in-depth
and in detail
- Good way to obtain detailed and
comprehensive accounts from interviewees is
to express ignorance.
o naïve interviewer encourages the
interviewee to ‘state the obvious’ and
thus to give voice to otherwise implicit
assumptions and expectations
- Ask for illustrations of events or experiences.
o particularly helpful when abstract
concepts or general opinions are being
referred to.
- Use a stimulus such as a film clip, a newspaper
cutting or a photograph in order to stimulate
and focus the discussion.
o interviewees can be invited to bring
along their own images or items of
significance so that they can then talk
about what these mean to them during
the interview
 Four different types of question
Descriptive questions – prompt the interviewee to
provide a general account of ‘what happened’ or ‘what
is the case’
- questions asked: biographical information (e.g.
‘What do you do for a living?’), anecdotes (e.g.
‘What happened that day?’), life histories (e.g.
‘How did you come to live in London?’)
Structural questions – are e about how the interviewee
organizes his or her knowledge. Prompt interviewees to
identify the categories and frameworks of meaning that
they use to make sense of the world
- questions asked: ‘What does it mean to be an
innocent victim of a crime?’ or ‘How did you
decide to have an HIV antibody test?’
Contrast questions – allow the interviewee to make
comparisons between events and experiences
- questions asked: ‘Would you rather report a
crime and run the risk of revenge, or keep quiet
and be safe from harassment?’ or ‘Did you
7 prefer working in the public or the private
sector?’
Evaluative questions – are about the interviewee’s
feelings towards someone or something. Can be vague
in formulation or specific (ex. Emotion)
- Questions asked: How do/did you feel about
this?’ // ‘Did you feel afraid when you took the
blood test?
Hypothetical questions (‘What would you do if . . .?’)
may be considered unworthy of attention by some but
be problematic to others (e.g. North Americans)
o Important for an interviewer to be
aware of the assumptions which
underpin their questions and to pay
attention to how the interviewee
responds to these
- Question mismatch could result to the question
not making sense to the interviewee and they
may simply answer ‘I don’t know’ or ‘I just did’
o If so, follow it up with a direct question
about the extent to which the
interviewee agrees with the basic
assumption contained within the
original question
Recording and transcription of the interview
- To be able to carry out a full analysis of the
data, it is necessary to audio- or video-record
and transcribe the interview.
- Most methods of analysis require that the
material is transcribed verbatim, or near
verbatim
- Taking notes during the interview is no
substitute for a full recording.
o Note-taking also distracts both the
interviewee and interviewer
o interferes with eye contact and non-
verbal communication
o does not encourage the development of
rapport between interviewee and
interviewer
- taping could also affect what is being said
o Participants may not be entirely
comfortable and relaxed in the
presence of a tape-, or worse, a video-
recorder Abiñon, Stephanie A
- Important that the researcher explains why the
recording is being made and how it is going to
be used.
- Offer the interviewee a copy of the transcript of
the interview, if at all possible
- May ask the interviewee to comment on the
transcript.
o feedback constitutes additional data.
If the interview is being recorded,
- Researcher needs to make sure that the
recorder is placed in a position where it will
record clearly.
o could be on a table between the
interviewer and the interviewee
 allows the researcher to keep
an eye on the recorder to make
sure that it is taping the
interview
 allows the researcher to adjust
the position of the recording
device if necessary
- Vital that the researcher checks that the tape-
recorder is working before the interview
 o use a new set of batteries for each
interview.
Different ways to transcribe an interview
Using subtitles – if so, you need to transcribe the words
as well as the way in which they are spoken.
- including pauses, interruptions, intonation,
volume of speech, and so on.
- Presented in the transcription notion
o commonly used form of notation for
such detailed transcription was
developed by Gail Jefferson.
- Detailed transcription is required for
conversation analysis and some types of
discursive analysis
If only interested to the content of the interview - do
not need to transcribe non-linguistic features of
speech.
- It is sufficient to transcribe what is being said
(the words)
- Appropriate for grounded theory analysis
- decision about what type of transcription to use
8 depends on our research question and the
method of analysis we have chosen.
- An interview transcript can never be the mirror
image of the interview
Participant Observation
‘observation’ – is part of widely range of research
activity
- without engaging in some type of observation, a
researcher would not be able to carry out any
kind of research.
- Flick (1998) identifies five features that define
types of observation.
o extent to which the observation is
covert
o the extent to which it is systematic (or
standardized)
o whether or not it takes place in a
natural setting
o whether or not the observer takes part
in the activity that is being observed
o how much of it involves self-
observation (or reflexivity)
Participant observation - tends to take place in natural
settings, where the observer can be either incognito
(covert) or known as a researcher (overt)
- tends to involve at least some self-observation
- and the observations made tend not to be
standardized at least in the early stages of the
research.
- Requires the researcher to engage in a variety
of activities including participation,
documentation, (informal) interviewing and
reflection
- Research needs to maintain a balance between
participation and observation
o needs to be involved enough to
understand what is going on yet remain
detached enough to be able to reflect
on the phenomenon under
investigation.
Marshal et al. (1978) – reminded the importance of
emotional involvement in participant observation
(emphasis in original)
- ‘But an involvement, albeit a rather restrained
one, in the action is a basicAbiñon, Stephanie
requirement. OneA
needs not only to observe what is happening
but also to feel what it is like to be in a
particular social situation”
- ‘…does not come about by being a totally
disinterested onlooker. It comes about through
an attempt to share in the excitement and
emotions’
Participant observer needs to keep detailed notes of
any observations made.
- It is a good idea to phase observation and
writing.
- Participation in the activities under investigation
requires the researcher’s full attention
o Note-taking will then have to wait
o Important that the researcher records
his or her observations as soon as
possible after they have been made
- to counteract forgetting but also because may
see things differently after a period of reflection
- Observational notes should feature as much
detail as possible, including verbatim (or near
verbatim) quotes of what people said, and
 concrete descriptions of the setting, people
and events involved
- Researcher should take care not to exclude
observations that appear trivial at the time
o apparent trivia may well turn out to
contain crucial information, the value of
which may only emerge in later stages
of the research.
Types of Notes
Substantive notes – most of what is recorded will be
concerned with the actual observations made.
- notes will include descriptions of settings,
events and people, as well as quotations and/or
summaries of what people said
Methodological notes – concerned with the process of
observation itself
- notes will reflect on the researcher’s role in the
research, his or her relationship with the other
participants, and problems encountered in the
field, such as any difficulties associated with the
negotiation of roles.
9 o tend to be interested Abiñon, Stephanie
Analytical Notes – researcher will wish to record
emerging themes, connections, patterns, and so on.
- constitute the beginnings of data analysis and
theory-building;
Approaches:
Ethogenic research – [like ethogenic] approaches to
participant observation combine data collection and
analysis.
- analytical notes will be extensive and
progressively complex
Grounded theory - phase data collection and analysis
whereby a period of data collection is followed by a
period of analysis of the observational notes.
- Preliminary data analysis
o Gives rise to another data analysis but is
more focused, phase of data collection
Third approach - involves a period of data collection
followed by analysis of the data.
- suitable when the researcher has little time or is
unable to return to the field for whatever
reason.
Combining and phasing of data collection and analysis -
require focused observation
Focused observation – involves the identification of a
particular aspect of the phenomenon as the focus for
intensive observation
- constitutes a move beyond a purely descriptive
approach to observation
- It is based upon emergent theoretical
formulations and it is designed to ‘test’ the
researcher’s hunches against reality.
Ethnography and action research are qualitative
research methods which rely heavily on participant
observation
- aim of ethnographic research – to obtain an
insider view of some aspects of people’s
everyday lives by participating in those lives for
a sustained period of time, either overtly or
covertly
in specific A
cultural
practices and their meanings for those
who take part in them
o concerned with ‘cultural
interpretation’ and with understanding
‘the cultural and symbolic aspects of
people’s actions and the contexts in
which those actions occur
- Action research – shares ethnography’s interest
in the lived experience of its research
participants
o requires that the researcher works with
the research participants in order to
bring about positive change in some
aspects of their everyday lives.
o taking part in an action research project
will allow the researcher to develop a
better theoretical understanding of how
social change can come about
Diaries – not widely used as a method of data collection
in psychological research
o constitutes a challenge for both
researcher and participant
 - Participants make a commitment to maintain a
record (of their experiences, of their activities,
of their feelings) over an extended period.
o will inevitably have an effect upon their
daily routines and most probably also
on their experiences
o diary becomes the participant’s
companion, and yet it has to be handed
over to the researcher at the end of the
data collection phase.
o likely to differ in their expectations of
what is involved in keeping a diary for
research purposes
 some will keep the diaries to
themselves while others will
find it strange or uncomfortable
- Researcher in turn has to face the challenge of
recruiting participants who are willing to keep a
diary
o needs to identify the appropriate
medium of communication for the
participants
o has to formulate a set of instructions
that will guide participants in their
10
diary-keeping without constraining
them unnecessarily
o -
- Literacy should not have to be a precondition
for taking part in a diary study
o Tape-recorders can take the place of
journals. Video-diaries are another
possibility
- Diaries can be more or less structured
o Unstructured diaries - participants are
asked to keep a record of their
experiences, activities and feelings in
relation to a particular issue or topic in
their own words
o They are not provided with a set of
questions or rating scales to complete
each time they make an entry in their
diary
Researcher needs to provide participants with some
guidance as to
- how frequently they are expected to make
entries
o e.g. every hour, day, week, month, etc.
- which medium of reporting is to be used
o e.g. audio-taping, written,
photographic, video, etc.
- what to write about
o i.e. the focus of the study
- the time period covered
o e.g. one day, week, month, year, etc.
Researcher may need to indicate to participants in how
much detail they are expected to write about their
experiences
- important for it to be not to be too prescriptive,
Researcher to collect diary entries regularly (e.g. daily
or weekly) to maintain contact with participants,
answer any questions they may have and to motivate
them to continue keeping the diary.
When used successfully,
- diary method of data collection can provide
access to information that is otherwise very
hard to obtain.
- diaries generate data that are temporally
ordered
Abiñon, Stephanie A
o they reveal how events unfold
prospectively, in real time
avoid problems associated with retrospective
reporting,
o can easily be coloured by the
participant’s present circumstances,
retrospective interpretation of events
or simply forgetting of details
- Also facilitate access to very personal or
intimate information that may not emerge in a
face-to-face interview
- Suffer from poor recruitment and high drop-
out rates, due to the high demands it places
upon participants
- success depends very much on the participants’
motivation and commitment to the study
- ethical concerns
o Keeping the diary may sensitize
participants to certain experiences.
o The commitment to keep the diary may
increase pressure on participants,
particularly during stressful episodes
 Focus Groups - recently emerged as a standard data
collection technique for qualitative researchers in
psychology.
- rapidly gaining in popularity, particularly in
qualitative health psychology
- provide an alternative to semi-structured
interviewing.
- a group interview that uses the interaction
among participants as a source of data
- researcher as a moderator
o introduce the group members to one
another
o introduce the focus of the group (a
question or a stimulus such as an advert
or a photo)
o gently ‘steer’ the discussion
 involves periodically recalling
the original focus of the group,
prompting group members to
respond to issues raised by
others, or identifying
agreements and disagreements
among group members.
11
o Sets ground rules before discussion
 agreement that everything that
is said within the group is
confidential and not be taken
outside of the group by
individual members
 members will respect one
another and listen to one
another.
o sets certain limits to the discussion such
as from the beginning until the end
o o extremely difficult to transcribe if
- focus group can give rise to difficult group
dynamics which have the potential to distress
individual members of the group
- Focus groups tend to run for one and a half to
two hours.
- Strength of the focus group as a method of data
collection lies in its ability to mobilize
participants to respond to and comment on
one another’s contributions.
o statements are challenged, extended,
developed or qualified in ways that
generate rich data for the researcher
o Allow the researcher to address
questions about the ways in which
attitudes may be formed and changed,
and about how participants jointly
construct meanings
- provides evidence of the ways in which
participants may justify their positions, and how
they may be persuaded by others to change
their views
- provides a setting that is less artificial than the
one-to-one interview
o means that the data generated by it are
likely to have high(er) ecological validity
focus group participants should interact with one
another in the same way that they would interact with
peers outside of the research context
- already acquainted with one another before
they take part in the focus group.
Moderator’s contribution to the discussion:
- series of questions that are informed by the
research question which drives the wider
research as a whole Abiñon, Stephanie A
o can also use provocative questions to
stimulate the discussion and to
encourage the expression of different
views and positions
Focus groups should consist of no more than six to eight
participants.
- to ensure that all participants remain actively
involved in the group discussion throughout the
data collection phase
participants are more than 6
Depending on the research question, focus groups can
be:
1. homogenous (where participants share key
features) or heterogeneous (where participants
are different)
2. pre-existing (e.g. a group of friends or work
colleagues) or new (where participants have not
met before)
3. concerned (where participants have a stake in
the subject matter) or naïve (where participants
 do not have any particular commitment in o examples: realist research question -
relation to the subject matter) form of thematic analysis would
probably be the most appropriate
Focus group is not applicable to all research questions
method of data analysis
- Subject matter is sensitive, and the participants o social constructionist in nature –
are expected to talk about intimate aspects of discursive analysis would be more
their experience, semi-structured interviews suitable
may be more appropriate - A suitable method of analysis would then be a
form of phenomenological analysis
Needs to think carefully about the extent to which the
focus group setting would, or would not, facilitate Using the Internet in Qualitative data collection
disclosure in relation to the research question.
- Internet can provide access to a range of data
It is also important to be clear about one’s aims in sources, including unsolicited data
analysing focus group-generated data o Examples: web pages, blogs,
newsgroups, bulletin boards and chat
- if the aim is to obtain valid and reliable
rooms
information about the participants’ views
- As well as internet-mediated interviews and
and/or experiences in relation to a particular
discussions
concern (a realist research aim)
o Examples: using emails in real time, or
o employ analytic techniques
audio- or video-conferencing
 allow us to detect, and remove
- internet-based data is likely to have high
from our analysis, distorting
ecological validity because such data has been
influences such as the
generated within an environment which is
contributions of domineering
12 highly familiar to users Abiñon, Stephanie A
group members or overly
o which draws on forms of
acquiescent comments
communication which they are
- aim of the research is to trace the ways in which
accustomed to and which may be
meanings are collectively constructed within a
considered a safe space by those who
group and how consensus may be achieved
use it
through discussion (social constructionist
o the use of the internet for data
research aim)
collection shares some features with
o then all contributions are equally useful
forms of observation in naturalistic
to the analysis.
environments
- In both cases, researcher needs to pay careful
- Disadvantages:
attention to the group dynamics within the
o difficulties in establishing the true
group
identity of research participants
o focus group with six participants is
 the data take the form of
never the equivalent of six individual
written comments, and the loss
interviews
of non-verbal communication
 ‘individuals in groups do not
which can lead to
speak or answer questions in
misunderstandings and/or
the same way as they do in
misinterpretations of what is
other settings’.
being communicated.
- choice of an appropriate method of analysis for
o More difficult to establish rapport
focus group data will depend upon the research
across distances in time and space
question and the epistemological orientation of
- Important to consider ethical issues when
the study
planning to use unsolicited data from internet-
based sources

Role of Research Participant
- can differ dramatically from that of the
‘subjects’ of quantitative studies
Differences between qualitative methodologies in
positioning research participants
- Feminist approaches, Participatory Action
Research or Memory work
o distinction between ‘researcher’ and
‘participant’ is blurred.
o researcher becomes a participant in the
research, and the participants
contribute to the analysis of the data
they generate.
- Memory work or Autoethnographic Research
o there is no distinction between
researchers and participants because
the researchers actually study
themselves
- Conversation Analysis or Discursive Psychology
o participants generate the type of data
13 required by the researcher without any
further involvement in, or indeed
awareness of, the research.
o the case where the data are recordings
of everyday interactions that would
have occurred anyway and in the
absence of any data collection.
Epistemological differences between qualitative
research methods also have implications for how
research participants are positioned within the
research.
Example
- direct realist orientation – the role of the
research participant is akin to that of a witness.
o the researcher consults research
participants because (s)he believes that
they can tell him or her something
important about what is going on.
o The research participants’ accounts are
valued because they are seen to
provide much needed information
which will help the researcher
understand better how a particular
social or psychological process unfolds
- radical social constructionist – study the
research participants are positioned as users of
discursive and cultural resources
o study the research participants are
positioned as users of discursive and
cultural resources
o participants are not so much witnesses
as social actors who embody and
operationalize sociocultural practices.
The positioning of the research participants within the
research has implications for the process of participant
validation (member checking)
- one way in which qualitative researchers can
assess the validity of their research
- done by taking the researcher’s analysis of the
data back to those who generated the data on
which the analysis was based and finding out
whether they feel that the analysis captures
what they tried to communicate with their
accounts.
- Assumption underpinning this strategy
Abiñon, is thatA
Stephanie
research participants’ agreement with the
researcher’s analysis constitutes a measure of
validity
o Probably justified within the context of
direct realist and some
phenomenological research but is less
appropriate in relation to critical realist
and social constructionist research
 Direct realist – tend to take
research participants’ accounts
at face value and treat them as
relatively straightforward
descriptions of experiences and
events
 critical realist and social
constructionist research – take
more suspicious approach in
that they assume that the
accounts are merely the surface
level manifestation of an
underlying deeper structure
which will only become
apparent as a result of a full
analysis of the data
  participant validation is
less meaningful.

14 Abiñon, Stephanie A