CHAPTER III

INTRODUCTION
• TWO parts
1. Restate the ‘problem statement’, the ‘purpose of the study’ the
‘research questions’ (unless your study is based on the grounded
theory method) and the theoretical framework.
2. Tell the reader the sub-sections in Chapter 3 and how you will
address each sub-section. Think of this part as the ‘warm up’ for the
full discussion of your data collection strategy. Note that the
information regarding methodology should be comprehensive and
detailed enough to permit replication of the study by other
researchers.
RESEARCH DESIGN or METHODS

• You should state the rationale for your choice of the research design
or method and its appropriateness. For example, why did you choose
the case study method or the grounded theory method or the
narrative inquiry method.

• Show how the method you had chosen helped accomplish the goals of
the study. Focus only on what you employed and implemented in
your study.

• Discuss in detail the steps you took when using a particular design. For
example, if you study used the ethnographic design or method, write
as though it were like an ‘operators’s manual’ that you might share
with others so they can be assured that someone can replicated your
design.
RESEARCH DESIGN or METHODS
• Description of your research design needs to have enough
detail to eliminate assumptions of the need to ask questions
by someone who want to adopt or adapt your research
design.
• Readers are interested in knowing HOW YOU USED the
ethnographic method or the case study method or the
phenomenology method in YOUR STUDY and not a generic
description of the ethnographic or case study or narrative
inquiry or phenomenology method.
DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUES

• Irrespective of which qualitative research design you adopted for your

study, the three most common data collection techniques are the:

• INTERVIEW TECHNIQUE [or Focus Groups]

• OBSERVATION TECHNIQUE &
• DOCUMENT ANALYSIS TECHNIQUE

• You may have used one or more of these data collection techniques in
your study. Do not tell what is an interview, or observation or document
analysis technique but rather tell how you used these techniques in your
study.

• Discuss where the Interview with your subjects or informants took place.
• How did you arrange the setting to ensure the level of quiet, intimacy and
privacy.
Sample of Data Collection Techniques Write-Up

• “On-site interviews and observations was the main data

collection techniques for the study……..Secondary data
sources included documents provided by participants that
pertain to the study……..Interviews were conducted based on
questions listed in Interview Guide (see Appendix C). However,
participants were allowed the freedom to talk about their
experiences in a way in which they were comfortable……………
INSTRUMENTATION

• If you used INTERVIEW as a data collection, you will invariably

have used an Interview Schedule or Guide
• Tell the reader if your interview schedule was semi-structured
or unstructured
• Discuss the types of questions included in the interview
schedule or guide
• Provide examples of the questions you asked your informants
INFORMANTS

• In this sub-section, you give details about how you got

your subjects or informants for your study. The issue of
sampling can be quite confusing in qualitative research.
Students often ask “how many subjects or informants”
do I need for my study. Can I base my PhD on information
obtained from ONE informant? Oftentimes, it is a difficult
question to answer. Students should avoid applying the
sampling principles of quantitative research. The key
consideration in sampling in qualitative research is
“saturation” and not representativeness and the size of
the sample is not statistically determined (Neuman,
2003).
HOW DID YOU CHOOSE THE INFORMANTS?

• Tell the reader how you chose the informants for your study – Usually, ‘purposive
sampling’ is used because the informants are available, convenient and most
importantly represent characteristics you want to study (Silverman, 2000).
• Outline the procedures you adopted for selecting the sample of 10 Managers
including justification for the sampling method or sampling procedure; i.e. why did
you choose the particular sampling method.
• WHO ARE THEY? – Provide as much information as possible about the characteristics
of your informants.
• WHY YOU CHOSE THEM? – This is based on your judgement – the informants will be
able to provide you with information needed to answer the research questions; also
you can argue that the informants are most characteristic, representative or possess
attributes typical of the population.
• HOW MANY? – For example, you chose 10 Managers – why 10 and not 15? – You can
argue that the sample of 10 Managers is adequate enough to provide a manageable
volume of data that is able to answer the research questions.
• SETTING – Discuss where you conducted the study – was it in an office, school
canteen, discussion room? – explain how you got around the ‘gatekeepers”?
PILOT-TEST

Some experts suggest that pilot-tests are not important for

qualitative research while others suggest it would be useful for
novice researchers to do pilot-test.

The pilot test will assist the researcher in determining if there are
flaws, limitations, or other weaknesses within the interview
design and enable the researcher to make necessary revisions
prior to the implementation of the study.
The informants or participants involved in the pilot-test should
similar to the informants involved in the final study. It has also
been suggested that the pilot test can the researcher with the
refinement of research questions.
DATA ANALYSIS
• Data analysis in qualitative research is subject to wide variation and this makes it
important that you tell in great detail how YOU ANALYSED the data YOU collected.

You should include the following in this sub-section:

• Explain how you analyzed the data collection.
• Give a step by step narrative description how you conducted the entire analysis of your
data.
• You might start by making a bulleted list in another document, and then narrate that
list here in this section
• It is important for your reader to know what you did with the collected data and that it
fits well with your research philosophy, research design and research questions.
• There should be enough detail to reduce the likelihood of a reader making
assumptions and forcing him or her to ask questions seeking clarification which may
cast doubts on the findings.
• However you need to balance between too much details and not enough information.
Too much details may also put off the reader from reading this sub-section.
ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

• Letters of permission to conduct the study.

• Letters of invitation to participate with attached consent forms.
• Show compliance with protection of human subjects (as required by your
respective institution)
• A paragraph must be inserted that states the study is deemed to be one of
minimal risk to participants and that the probability and magnitude of harm
or discomfort anticipated in the research will not be greater than any
ordinarily encountered in daily life, or during the performance of routine
physical or psychological examinations or tests.
• Care should be taken to ensure that the participants fully understood the
nature of the study and the fact that participation is voluntary.
• A statement should be made that confidentiality of recovered data will be
maintained at all times, and identification of participants will not be available
during or after the study.
• Participants should be informed that they could withdraw from the study at
any time without questions being asked.
APA FORMAT
• REFERENCES
• Journal Article (Print):
• One Author:

• Kleiber, C., Adamek, M. S. (2013). Adolescents’ perception of music therapy following spinal fusion surgery. Journal of
Clinical Nursing, 22, 414-421.

• Two-Authors:

• Calvo, M. G., & Lang, P. J. (2004). Gaze patterns when looking at emotional pictures: Motivationally biased attention.
Motivation and Emotion, 28, 221–243.

• Three-Authors:

• Beck, A. T., Epstein, N., Brown, G., & Steer, R. A. (1988). An inventory for measuring clinical anxiety: Psychometric
properties. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 893–897.

• Journal Article (Online):

• Cohen, M. L. (2009) Choral Singing and Prison Inmates: Influences of Performing in a Prison Choir. Journal of
Correctional Education, 60, 52-65. Retrieved from http://www.ceanational.org/Journal/
APA FORMAT
Book:

Shipley, W. C. (1986). Shipley Institute of Living Scale. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services.

Chapter in Book:

Raz, N. (2000). Aging of the brain and its impact on cognitive performance: Integration of structural and functional findings. In F. I. M. Craik & T. A.
Salthouse (Eds.), Handbook of aging and cognition (2nd ed., pp. 1–90). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

Instrument:

Wechsler, D. (1987). Wechsler Memory Scale—Revised. San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation.

OrganiZation as Author:

American Psychological Association (2010). Report on Aging and Strategies on Helping the Elderly. Washington. D.C.

Unknown Author:
Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary (10th ed.).(1993). Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster.

Preface, Foreword and Introduction:

If you want to cite from the Preface, Foreword, or Introduction in a book, do the same but state Preface, Foreword or Introduction – see example
below:

Funk, R., & Kolln, M. (1998). Preface. In E. W. Ludlow (Ed.), Understanding English grammar (pp. ii). Needham, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
APA FORMAT