Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methodology Workshop Abraham (Rami) Rudnick BMedSc, MD, MPsych, PhD, CPRP, FRCPC Associate Professor Departments of Psychiatry and Philosophy Chair, Division of Social and Rural Psychiatry Director, Extended Campus Program Clinical Director, North of Superior Programs University of Western Ontario

Learning Objectives Enhance awareness of relevance of qualitative research and evaluation methodology. Enhance knowledge of qualitative research and evaluation methodology. Enhance skill of determining suitable qualitative methodology for a research or evaluation idea.

Method Interactive presentation. Group exercise.

Outline Introductions. Fundamentals Methodologies. Data collection. Data analysis. Generic procedures. Write up. Mixed designs Group exercise: Determining a suitable qualitative methodology for a research or evaluation idea. Opportunities to Train in Qualitative Research Methodology

Introductions

Fundamentals Related to experience and conduct of human beings. Based on social sciences, humanities and arts. Declines numerical standardization and measurement (in most cases). Generalization and comparative approach (which are fundamental to quantitative research) are controversial.

Methodologies Standard in health related research – phenomenology; ethnography; grounded theory; narrative; case study (Creswell 2007). Others – discourse analysis; auto-ethnography; photovoice; art-based research; PAR; historical; other (Denzin and Lincoln 2005). Examples – Davidson 2003 (phenomenology); Somasundaram 2007 (ethnography); Roe et al 2004 (grounded theory); Rudnick et al In progress (case study).

Data Collection Semi-structured vs. unstructured interviews. Group interviews (focus groups or other). Direct vs. participant observations (with field notes). Documents.

Data Analysis Coding, categorizing, thematic analysis (and sometimes theory generation and even testing).

Generic Procedures Sample saturation. Transcribing and validating. Memos. Trustworthiness/credibility (triangulation of sources of information or of methods of data collection, peer debriefing, member checking).

Write Up Verbatim examples (and sometimes verbatim theme titles).

Mixed (Quantitative and Qualitative) Evaluation and Research Generating hypotheses, then testing them: qualitative  quantitative. Testing hypotheses, then explaining findings: quantitative  qualitative. Other (e.g., answer qualitative questions and test quantitative hypotheses in parallel).

Group exercise: Determining a Suitable Qualitative Methodology for a Research or Evaluation Idea Small group discussion. Large group presentation. Q & A.

Opportunities to Train in Qualitative Research Methodology International Institute for Qualitative Methodology: Other

References Creswell JW. Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage, Davidson L. Living Outside Mental Illness: Qualitative Studies of Recovery in Schizophrenia. New York: New York University Press, Denzin NK, Lincoln Y (Editors). The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage, Roe D, Chopra M, Rudnick A. Persons with psychosis as active agents interacting with their disorder. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal 2004, 28: Somasundaram D. Collective trauma in northern Sri Lanka: a qualitative psychosocial-ecological study. International Journal of Mental Health Systems 2007, 1:5.