RESEARCH DESIGNS

QUALITATIVE
 QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
DESIGNS

 ETHNOGRAPHY
 CASE STUDY
 HISTORICAL
 PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH DESIGN
 GROUNDED
 NARRATIVE STUDY
 • IS A QUALITATIVE METHOD FOR COLLECTING DATA
OFTEN USED IN THE SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL
SCIENCES. DATA ARE COLLECTED THROUGH
OBSERVATIONS AND INTERVIEWS, WHICH ARE
THEN USED TO DRAW CONCLUSIONS ABOUT HOW
SOCIETIES AND INDIVIDUALS FUNCTION.

ETHNOGRAPHY
 ETHNOGRAPHY

• , SIMPLY STATED, IS THE

STUDY OF PEOPLE IN THEIR
OWN ENVIRONMENT
THROUGH THE USE OF
METHODS SUCH AS
PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION
AND FACE-TO-FACE
INTERVIEWING.
 PURPOSE OF ETHNOGRAPHY

• ETHNOGRAPHY IS A STUDY THROUGH DIRECT

OBSERVATION OF USERS IN THEIR NATURAL
ENVIRONMENT RATHER THAN IN A LAB. THE
OBJECTIVE OF THIS TYPE OF RESEARCH IS TO
GAIN INSIGHTS INTO HOW USERS INTERACT
WITH THINGS IN THEIR NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.
WHY IS ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH
QUALITATIVE
• THROUGH THE COLLECTION OF OBSERVATIONS,
INTERVIEWS AND DOCUMENTARY DATA, WHICH ARE
TRIANGULATED (I.E. COMPARED AND CONTRASTED
WITH ONE ANOTHER) ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH
OFFERS A QUALITATIVE APPROACH WITH THE
POTENTIAL TO YIELD DETAILED AND
COMPREHENSIVE ACCOUNTS OF DIFFERENT
SOCIAL PHENOMENON (ACTIONS, BEHAVIOUR,
 EXAMPLE OF ETHNOGRAPHIC
RESEARCH
• A CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF ETHNOGRAPHIC
RESEARCH WOULD BE AN ANTHROPOLOGIST
TRAVELING TO AN ISLAND, LIVING WITHIN THE
SOCIETY ON SAID ISLAND FOR YEARS, AND
RESEARCHING ITS PEOPLE AND CULTURE
THROUGH A PROCESS OF SUSTAINED
OBSERVATION AND PARTICIPATION.
 •A CASE STUDY IS AN IN DEPTH STUDY OF A
PARTICULAR SITUATION RATHER THAN A SWEEPING
STATISTICAL SURVEY. IT IS A METHOD USED TO
NARROW DOWN A VERY BROAD FIELD OF RESEARCH
INTO ONE EASILY RESEARCHABLE TOPIC.

CASE •A CASE STUDY IS A RESEARCH METHOD THAT IS

USED FOR THE DETAILED STUDY OF A PERSON,

STUDY EVENT, ORGANIZATION, PROCESS, PLACE OR GROUP.

IN SIMPLE TERMS, THE CASE STUDY IS DONE FOR A
BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF A PROCESS OR A
SUBJECT. MORE COMMONLY, CASE STUDIES ARE
USED IN EDUCATIONAL, SOCIAL, CLINICAL, AND
BUSINESS RESEARCH.
•YOU CAN DEPEND ON CASE STUDIES FOR DESCRIBING,
COMPARING, EVALUATING, AND UNDERSTANDING A RESEARCH
PROBLEM FROM DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES.
TAKING DISSERTATION HELP IS A PERFECT CHOICE FOR
WRITING A THESIS OR DISSERTATION.
IF YOU ARE ASKED TO PREPARE A CASE STUDY ON A
PARTICULAR TOPIC, THEN YOU NEED TO IDENTIFY A
PARTICULAR CASE FROM YOUR PROBLEM STATEMENT OR
RESEARCH QUESTION, DEVELOP A THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORK, COLLECT QUALITATIVE OR QUANTITATIVE DATA
FROM RELIABLE SOURCES AND ANALYZE THE CASE.
•WHEN WRITING YOUR CASE STUDY, FIRST, YOU NEED TO
CONDUCT IN-DEPTH RESEARCH ON YOUR TOPIC AND THEN
ADDRESS THE PROBLEM STATEMENT BY BRINGING TOGETHER
ALL THE RELEVANT ASPECTS OF THE SUBJECT. REMEMBER,
YOUR CASE STUDY SHOULD BE STRUCTURED LIKE A THESIS,
RESEARCH OR PAPER WRITING WITH SEPARATE SECTIONS
FOR METHODS, RESULTS, AND DISCUSSION.
 PURPOSE OF A CASE STUDY

•THE GENERAL PURPOSE OF A CASE STUDY IS TO: →

DESCRIBE AN INDIVIDUAL SITUATION (CASE), E.G. A
PERSON, BUSINESS, ORGANISATION, OR INSTITUTION,
IN DETAIL; → IDENTIFY THE KEY ISSUES OF THE CASE
(YOUR ASSIGNMENT QUESTION SHOULD TELL YOU
WHAT TO FOCUS ON); → ANALYSE THE CASE USING
RELEVANT THEORETICAL CONCEPTS FROM YOUR UNIT
 3 METHODS OF CASE STUDY

• HE HAS HELPFULLY CHARACTERISED THREE MAIN TYPES OF

CASE STUDY: INTRINSIC, INSTRUMENTAL AND
COLLECTIVE[8]. AN INTRINSIC CASE STUDY IS TYPICALLY
UNDERTAKEN TO LEARN ABOUT A UNIQUE PHENOMENON.
THE RESEARCHER SHOULD DEFINE THE UNIQUENESS OF
THE PHENOMENON, WHICH DISTINGUISHES IT FROM ALL
OTHERS.
 Introduction. Introduce the main purpose of the case
study and briefly outline the overall problem to be
solved.
CASE Description. Write a brief description of the case under
STUDY discussion giving an outline of the main issues involved.
...
ELEMENTS Discussion. ...

Conclusion / Recommendations.
 CASE STUDY TOPICS IN EDUCATION
•AS YOU ARE DEALING WITH EDUCATION, YOU SHOULD START BY EXPLORING THE
LATEST CHANGES AS THE TECHNOLOGY IS CONSTANTLY ADVANCING. COMPARE
OLD AND NEW STUDY METHODS USED IN SCHOOLS OR AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES
TO GET THE BASIC IDEA OF COMPETITIVE CASE STUDY TOPICS.
• THE CHALLENGES OF REMOTE EDUCATION IN RURAL LOCATIONS IN THE USA.

• THE TEACHING METHODS OF MONTESSORI SCHOOLS.

• HOW TO MOTIVATE CHILDREN WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES?

• PROS AND CONS OF AI-BASED SYSTEMS IN EDUCATION.

• THE DEGREE OF FREEDOM IN SCANDINAVIAN SCHOOLS.

• THE ROLE OF SELF-MOTIVATION IN EUROPEAN MIDDLE

SCHOOLS.
• IS SUMMER CAMP EDUCATION WORTH IT?
• THE CONSEQUENCES OF IMPROPER EXAMINATION METHODS.;
• THE EDUCATIVE METHODOLOGIES COMMONLY USED BY MALE
TEACHERS.
• THE CHANGES THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE IN EDUCATION
DURING THE COVID-19 PERIOD.
 HISTORICAL RESEARCH
•A QUALITATIVE TECHNIQUE. HISTORICAL RESEARCH STUDIES THE MEANING
OF PAST EVENTS IN AN ATTEMPT TO INTERPRET THE FACTS AND EXPLAIN THE
CAUSE OF EVENTS, AND THEIR EFFECT IN THE PRESENT EVENTS.
HISTORICAL METHOD
• THE TERM HISTORICAL METHOD REFERS TO THE COLLECTION OF
TECHNIQUES AND GUIDELINES THAT HISTORIANS USE TO RESEARCH AND
WRITE HISTORIES OF THE PAST. SECONDARY SOURCES, PRIMARY SOURCES
 AND MATERIAL EVIDENCE SUCH AS THAT DERIVED FROM ARCHAEOLOGY
 MAY ALL BE DRAWN ON, AND THE HISTORIAN'S SKILL LIES IN IDENTIFYING
THESE SOURCES, EVALUATING THEIR RELATIVE AUTHORITY, AND COMBINING
THEIR TESTIMONY APPROPRIATELY IN ORDER TO CONSTRUCT AN ACCURATE
AND RELIABLE PICTURE OF PAST EVENTS AND ENVIRONMENTS.
• IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY, THE
QUESTION OF THE NATURE, AND THE
POSSIBILITY, OF A SOUND HISTORICAL METHOD
IS RAISED WITHIN THE SUB-FIELD OF 
EPISTEMOLOGY. THE STUDY OF HISTORICAL
METHOD AND OF DIFFERENT WAYS OF WRITING
HISTORY IS KNOWN AS HISTORIOGRAPHY.
WHAT ARE PRIMARY SOURCES IN HISTORICAL
RESEARCH

• PRIMARY SOURCES ARE MATERIALS THAT COME FROM

ROUGHLY THE SAME TIME PERIOD OF THE TOPIC / EVENT
THAT THE HISTORIAN HAS CHOSEN TO EXAMINE. EXAMPLES
OF PRIMARY SOURCES INCLUDE: PERSONAL
JOURNALS/DIARIES/MEMOIRS, LETTERS, COURT
PROCEEDINGS, LEGISLATIVE DEBATES, NEWSPAPER AND
MAGAZINE ARTICLES, MOVIES, MUSIC, ART, ETC.
 •WHEN YOU WRITE A HISTORICAL RESEARCH
PAPER, YOU ARE CREATING A SECONDARY
EXAMPLE SOURCE BASED ON YOUR OWN ANALYSIS OF
PRIMARY SOURCE MATERIAL. EXAMPLES OF
OF PRIMARY SOURCES INCLUDE DIARIES, JOURNALS,
HISTORICAL SPEECHES, INTERVIEWS, LETTERS, MEMOS,
RESEARCH PHOTOGRAPHS, VIDEOS, PUBLIC OPINION POLLS,
AND GOVERNMENT RECORDS, AMONG MANY
OTHER THINGS.
IMPORTANCE OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH
HISTORICAL RESEARCH ENABLES YOU TO
EXPLORE AND EXPLAIN THE MEANINGS, PHASES
AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A PHENOMENON OR
PROCESS AT A PARTICULAR POINT OF TIME IN
THE PAST. WE DIFFERENTIATE HISTORICAL
RESEARCH AS A RESEARCH STRATEGY FROM THE
RESEARCH OF HISTORY, WHICH REFERS TO
RESEARCH IN THE DISCIPLINE OF HISTORY.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF
HISTORICAL RESEARCH
HISTORICAL RESEARCH INVOLVES THE
FOLLOWING STEPS:
 IDENTIFY AN IDEA, TOPIC OR RESEARCH
QUESTION.
 CONDUCT A BACKGROUND LITERATURE REVIEW.
 REFINE THE RESEARCH IDEA AND QUESTIONS.
 DETERMINE THAT HISTORICAL METHODS WILL
BE THE METHOD USED.
 IDENTIFY AND LOCATE PRIMARY AND
SECONDARY DATA SOURCES.
PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH DESIGN
WHAT IS QUALITATIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH
DESIGN?
•PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH IS A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
APPROACH THAT SEEKS TO UNDERSTAND AND DESCRIBE THE
UNIVERSAL ESSENCE OF A PHENOMENON. THE APPROACH
INVESTIGATES THE EVERYDAY EXPERIENCES OF HUMAN BEINGS
WHILE SUSPENDING THE RESEARCHERS’ PRECONCEIVED
ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THE PHENOMENON. IN OTHER WORDS,
PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH STUDIES LIVED EXPERIENCES TO
GAIN DEEPER INSIGHTS INTO HOW PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THOSE
EXPERIENCES. 
 WHAT ARE THE METHODS OF COLLECTING DATA FOR
PHENOMENOLOGICAL DESIGNS?

Researchers can
use a variety of
methods in Participant observation
phenomenological
designs. Some of
the most common
methods are: Interviews
Conversations with 
participants
 ANALYSIS OF PERSONAL TEXT
 ACTION RESEARCH
 FOCUS MEETINGS
• REGARDLESS OF THE METHOD YOU USE FOR QUALITATIVE
PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH DESIGN, YOU MUST
S
FOCUS ON THE RESEARCH ISSUES AND AVOID
INFLUENCING THE PARTICIPANTS. ADDITIONALLY, YOU
MUST SHOW EMPATHY AND ESTABLISH A GOOD LEVEL OF
RAPPORT TO GAIN DEEP INSIGHT INTO THE PARTICIPANTS’
EXPERIENCES.
 PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH
DESIGN EXAMPLE
•IN DONNA MARIE BARROW’S PAPER ON A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE
LIVED EXPERIENCES OF PARENTS OF YOUNG CHILDREN WITH AUTISM RECEIVING
SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES, THE RESEARCHER INVESTIGATED THE LIVED
EXPERIENCES OF FOUR MOTHERS OF CHILDREN WITH AUTISM RECEIVING EARLY
INTERVENTION SERVICES USING PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH DESIGN. THE
STUDY AIMED TO GAIN INSIGHT INTO THE PHENOMENON OF PARENTING AND
PARENTS’ EXPERIENCES WITH EARLY INTERVENTION AND EARLY CHILDHOOD
SPECIAL EDUCATION. 
• BARROW CAPTURED THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF ALL
THE PARTICIPANTS BY CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS
WITH EACH OF THE MOTHERS. BEFORE THE
INTERVIEW, BARROW ASKED EACH OF THE
PARTICIPANTS TO BRING TEN FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHS
AND EXPLAINED THE IMPORTANCE OF THE
PHOTOGRAPHS AND HOW THEY WOULD BE USED
DURING THE MEETING. 
 Barrow analyzed the notes from the
Barrow asked questions to explore each
first interview with each participant
parent’s experiences during the first
and used them to prepare for the
interview and used the photos as a tool
second interview. During the
to help the family reflect on their
second meeting, Barrow reviewed
experiences with their child.
the notes from the first interview
Additionally, the researcher used the
with the participants and engaged
first interview to build rapport with the
in deeper conversation to get a full
participants and gain their trust. 
picture of their lived experiences. 
GROUNDED •IS A RESEARCH METHOD CONCERNED WITH THE
GENERATION OF THEORY,1 WHICH IS ‘GROUNDED’ IN
THEORY(GT) DATA THAT HAS BEEN SYSTEMATICALLY COLLECTED AND
ANALYSED.2 IT IS USED TO UNCOVER SUCH THINGS AS
SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS AND BEHAVIOURS OF GROUPS,
KNOWN AS SOCIAL PROCESSES.3 IT WAS DEVELOPED IN
CALIFORNIA, USA BY GLASER AND STRAUSS DURING
THEIR STUDY—‘AWARENESS OF DYING’.1 IT IS A
GENERAL METHODOLOGY FOR DEVELOPING THEORY
THAT IS GROUNDED IN DATA WHICH IS SYSTEMATICALLY
GATHERED AND ANALYSED.
 FEATURES OF GT

 DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS OCCUR SIMULTANEOUSLY.

 CATEGORIES AND ANALYTIC CODES DEVELOPED FROM DATA. PRE-EXISTING
CONCEPTUALISATIONS NOT TO BE USED—THIS IS KNOWN AS THEORETICAL SENSITIVITY
(SEE BELOW).
 THEORETICAL SAMPLING USED TO REFINE CATEGORIES.
 ABSTRACT CATEGORIES CONSTRUCTED INDUCTIVELY.
 SOCIAL PROCESSES DISCOVERED IN THE DATA.
 ANALYTICAL MEMOS USED BETWEEN CODING AND WRITING.
 CATEGORIES INTEGRATED INTO A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK.
CARRYING OUT A GT STUDY

•FIRST THE AREA OF INTEREST IS IDENTIFIED.

THEORETICAL PRECONCEPTIONS SHOULD BE
AVOIDED, ALTHOUGH IT IS ACCEPTED THIS IS
DIFFICULT IN PRACTICE. ANALYTICAL PROCEDURES
AND SAMPLING STRATEGIES ARE THEN USED AND
THE STUDY IS FINISHED WHEN THEORETICAL
SAMPLING REACHED5 ALL DISCUSSED BELOW.
• DATA COLLECTED MAY BE QUALITATIVE OR
QUANTITATIVE OR A COMBINATION OF BOTH.
DATA COLLECTION METHODS OFTEN INCLUDE
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS USING OPEN-ENDED
QUESTIONS. QUESTIONS CAN BE ADJUSTED AS
THEORY EMERGES. OBSERVATIONAL METHODS
AND FOCUS GROUPS MAY ALSO BE USED.
 THEORETICAL SAMPLING
•GLASER AND STRAUSS (1967) FIRST MENTIONED
THEORETICAL SAMPLING AND DESCRIBED A
PROCESS OF GENERATING THEORY FROM DATA
WHICH INCLUDES COLLECTING THE DATA, THEN
CODING AND ANALYSING THE DATA.1 NEXT THE
RESEARCHER MAKES A CONSCIOUS DECISION
ABOUT WHAT FURTHER DETAIL THEY FEEL NEEDS
EXPLORING AS THE NEW THEORY DEVELOPS. IT
USUALLY TAKES PLACE AFTER SOME INITIAL KEY
CONCEPTS OR CATEGORIES HAVE BEEN
IDENTIFIED, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU MIGHT DECIDE TO
INTERVIEW PATIENTS ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE
OF HEART FAILURE.
• THEY MAY TALK ABOUT SYSTEMATIC ERRORS
OCCURRING IN THE GENERAL PRACTICE SURGERY.
FROM THIS ANALYSIS OF THE DATA YOU MAY DECIDE
TO APPROACH AND INTERVIEW GPS TO EXPLORE
THEIR VIEWS ON PATIENTS’ COMMENTS. THEORETICAL
SAMPLING THEREFORE, IS USED TO PRODUCE MORE
DATA TO ENDORSE OR REFUTE THE CATEGORIES THAT
HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED IN THE PREVIOUS ANALYSIS.6
 ANALYSIS OF DATA IN GT

THERE ARE THREE STAGES OF DATA ANALYSIS IN GT:8

• OPEN CODING: THIS INVOLVES LINE BY LINE CODING
WHERE CONCEPTS AND KEY PHRASES ARE IDENTIFIED
AND HIGHLIGHTED AND MOVED INTO SUBCATEGORIES,
THEN CATEGORIES. THIS BREAKS THE DATA DOWN INTO
CONCEPTUAL COMPONENTS AND THE RESEARCHER
CAN START TO THEORISE OR REFLECT ON WHAT THEY
ARE READING AND UNDERSTANDING—MAKING SENSE
OF THE DATA. THE DATA FROM EACH PARTICIPANT WILL
BE ‘CONSTANTLY COMPARED’ FOR SIMILARITIES.
• AXIAL CODING: AT THIS STAGE RELATIONSHIPS ARE
IDENTIFIED BETWEEN THE CATEGORIES, AND
CONNECTIONS IDENTIFIED.
• SELECTIVE CODING: THIS INVOLVES IDENTIFYING THE
CORE CATEGORY AND METHODICALLY RELATING IT TO
OTHER CATEGORIES. THE RELATIONSHIPS MUST BE
AUTHENTICATED AND CATEGORIES REFINED.
CATEGORIES ARE THEN INTEGRATED TOGETHER AND A
GT IDENTIFIED.
• ANALYTICAL NOTES ARE ENCOURAGED.
THESE ARE NOTES TO ONESELF TO EXPLAIN
THOUGHT PATTERNS IN RELATION TO THE
DATA ANALYSIS FINAL THEORY IS USUALLY
GENERATED FROM THE INTEGRATION OF
SEVERAL ANALYTICAL MEMOS.
 NARRATIVE RESEARCH

•  A TERM THAT SUBSUMES A GROUP OF

APPROACHES THAT IN TURN RELY ON THE
WRITTEN OR SPOKEN WORDS OR VISUAL
REPRESENTATION OF INDIVIDUALS. THESE
APPROACHES TYPICALLY FOCUS ON THE LIVES
OF INDIVIDUALS AS TOLD THROUGH THEIR OWN
STORIES
 NARRATIVE ANALYSIS

•  A FORM OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN WHICH

THE RESEARCHER FOCUSES ON A TOPIC AND
ANALYZES THE DATA COLLECTED FROM CASE
STUDIES, SURVEYS, OBSERVATIONS OR OTHER
SIMILAR METHODS. THE RESEARCHERS WRITE
THEIR FINDINGS, THEN REVIEW AND ANALYZE
 EXAMPLES OF NARRATIVE INQUIRY IN
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

• INCLUDES FOR INSTANCE: STORIES, INTERVIEWS, LIFE

HISTORIES, JOURNALS, PHOTOGRAPHS AND OTHER
ARTIFACTS.
• THERE IS NO RULE FOR THE SAMPLE SIZE FOR
NARRATIVE INQUIRY STUDY. FOR A DISSERTATION THE
NORMAL SAMPLE SIZE IS BETWEEN 6-10 PARTICIPANTS
 PURPOSE OF DATA ANALYSIS

• NARRATIVE ANALYSIS AIMS TO IDENTIFY THE

KINDS OF STORIES TOLD ABOUT THE
RESEARCHED PHENOMENON AND THE KINDS OF
STORY REPRESENTING THE PHENOMENON IN
CULTURE AND SOCIETY.
 ADVANTAGE OF NARRATIVE RESEARCH

• ADVANTAGES OF NARRATIVE RESEARCH

INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING: IT IS EASY IN
GETTING PEOPLE TO TELL THEIR STORY, IT
GAINS IN-DEPTH DATA, PARTICIPANTS ARE
WILLING TO REVEAL SELF AND ACCOUNT
REFLECTION, THE REVELATION OF TRUTH, AND
THE PROVISION OF A VOICE FOR PARTICIPANTS