Qualitative research

Research Methods Research methods are generally categorized as being either quantitative or qualitative. What the methods fit!

 The quantitative paradigm: what can be measured. It involves collecting and analyzing objective (often numerical) data that can be organized into statistics.  The qualitative paradigm: investigating subjective data, gain greater insight and knowledge.

Not measurements, but WORDS! Instead of asking how many times someone purchased an item, you ask "WHY...?" Typically the samples are small, and not "random Purpose? To find out what’s on the person’s mind

Strengths  Good for examining feelings and motivations  Longer, more flexible relationship with the respondent, results in more depth and greater richness issues  Provides insights

Weaknesses  Can’t extrapolate to the whole population  Volume of data  Complexity of analysis  Time-consuming clerical efforts

Qualitative vs Quantitative Qualitative ResearchQuantitative Research Objective / purpose To gain an understanding of underlying reasons and motivations To provide insights into the setting of a problem, generating ideas and/or hypotheses for later quantitative research To uncover prevalent trends in thought and opinion To quantify data and generalize results from a sample to the population of interest To measure the incidence of various views and opinions in a chosen sample Sometimes followed by qualitative research which is used to explore some findings further SampleUsually a small number of non- representative cases. Respondents selected to fulfill a given quota. Usually a large number of cases representing the population of interest. Randomly selected respondents. Data collection Unstructured or semi-structured techniques e.g. individual depth interviews or group discussions. Structured techniques such as online questionnaires, on-street or telephone interviews.

Qualitative ResearchQuantitative Research Data analysis Non-statistical.Statistical data is usually in the form of tabulations (tabs). Findings are conclusive and usually descriptive in nature. OutcomeExploratory and/or investigative. Findings are not conclusive and cannot be used to make generalizations about the population of interest. Develop an initial understanding and sound base for further decision making. Used to recommend a final course of action.

Narrative Research is … a qualitative research method the fundamental scheme for linking individual human actions and events into interrelated aspects of an understandable composite to describe “what happened” and “what is meant”

Social and Interpersonal Context of Families with Members How these family members come to characterize and give meaning to their intimate relationships through the stories they tell about the people they love?

Sound Bites These representations are often reduced to fragments, partial descriptions, distilled passages, selected vignettes and objective truths Almost always as a means of making authorial analytical points of view

Lost in Translation!! The readers of these text have not sense of the wholeness of these stories - as they were told – including the meanings that were derived from these experiences and the process of discovery that took place between the collaborators in these research inquires!!

Process of Discovery How, why and when stories are told are hugely important to the creation of meaning-making for storytellers. What gets included in the narrative, in what order and at what time, allows the storyteller to emphasize, underscore, make sense – and in some cases - rework previously held thoughts, points of view or shared history

What is needed are more experimental readings that are both sensitive to the complex and interactive experiences of everyday life and attentive to the contextual ways these stories get constructed

My Collaborative Storytelling Methodology My Collaborative Storytelling Methodology

Limitations Difficult to generalize to large numbers Interviewer: interpretations may be distorted by subjectivity Interviewee: telling a story partly and selectively

References Blyler, N. (1999) Culture and the Power of Narrative Journal of Business and Technical Communication; Jul 1999; 13;3; Lieblich, A. (1998) Narrative Research: reading, analysis, and interpretation (applied social research methods). SAGE Publications Parker, I. (2005) Qualitative Psychology: Introducing Radical Research. Buckingham: Open University Press

The emphasis in phenomenology research is on the meaning of lived experience. (Van Manen, 1984) معني تجارب زنده تاکيد و تمرکز پديدار شناسي بر معني تجارب زنده است. The goal of phenomenology is to describe human experience as it is lived. (Ponty 64) آنگونه که وجود هدف فنومنولوژي توصيف تجارب انساني آنگونه که وجود دارد. Phenomenology Method

Other people’s experiences and reflection on their experiences are “borrowed”, so researcher will be better able to understand the deeper meaning or significance of an aspect of human experience (Van Manen, 1984 )

Glaser & Strauss (1967) The Discovery of Grounded Theory

Triangulation Triangulation refers to the use of more than one approach to the investigation of a research question in order to enhance confidence in the ensuing findings.

Types of Triangulation

Conclusion What matters is that the methods used fit the intended purposes of the research!