Qualitative Research By Dr Rahul Singh, M.Phil & PhD, TISS Mumbai

Qualitative Research Qualitative research is primarily exploraory research.It is used to gain an understanding of underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations.It provides insights into the problem

Contd…. Bryman and Bell (2007) stated that qualitative research is a research strategy that indicates the relationship between theory and research and usually emphasizes on how theories were generated.

Methods in Qualitative Research Ethnography Narrative Phenomenology Grounded Theory Case Study

Ethnography Ethnography is recording or analysis of culture or societyusually based on participant observation resulting in written account of people, place or institution.In modern times its scope has got extended to organizations as well.

Narative Narrative inquiry is an umbrella term that captures personal and human dimensions of experience over time, and it takes account of the relationship between individual experiemce and cultural context.

Phenomenology A phenomenological research study is a study that attempts to understand peoples perceptions, perspectives and understanding of a particular situation. The focus of phenomenological inquiry is what people experience in regard to some phenomena or other and how they interpret those experiences.

Grounded Theory Grounded theory is an inductive methodology.It is a systematic generation of theory from systematic research. Grounded theory is a systematic methodology in the social sciences involving the construction of theory through analysis of data. A study using grounded theory is likely to begin with a question or just data collection.

Case Study Case study research is a methodology which can take in depth analysis of a single or small number of units. A case study unit may include a single person, a group of persons, an organization or an institution.