WRITTEN SOURCES OF DATA Consider: The original intention of the document; The reasons for/causes of the documents; The intended outcomes of the document; The interests of the writer; The original agenda of the document; The original audience(s) of the document; The status of the document; The original context of the document; The style/register of the document;

WRITTEN SOURCES OF DATA Consider: The ownership of the document (e.g. the researcher, others’); Does the researcher personally know the author(s) of the document (i.e. relationships)?; Was the researcher present in the events reported (i.e. researcher effects)? How close to/detached from the participants is the researcher? What do we need to know in order to make fullest sense of the document? How to analyze and use the document.

WRITTEN SOURCES OF DATA (Hammersley and Atkinson, 1983) What does the document say about the writer? How are the documents written? How are they read? Who writes them? What is included? What is omitted? What is taken for granted about the readership? What do readers need to know to make sense of them? Validity and reliability are significant problems in many documents.