Chapter 7 Qualitative Research This chapter explains how qualitative methods differ from quantitative methods. It also provides examples of the types of research that may use qualitative methods and introduces the primary qualitative methodologies.

Learning Objectives Understand . . . How qualitative methodologies differ from quantitative methodologies. The controversy surrounding qualitative research. The types of decisions that use qualitative methodologies. The different qualitative research methodologies.

Qualitative Interviews (IDIs) Qualitative Research Ethnography Observation Data Collection Techniques Qualitative Interviews (IDIs) Group Interviews Focus Groups Case Studies This slide highlights many of the qualitative techniques that are useful for data collection.

Qualitative Research Other Techniques Textual Analysis Behavioral Observations Other Techniques Trace Evidence (Garbology) This slide highlights many of the qualitative tools useful for data collection or data analysis.

Qualitative Research in Business Job Analysis Advertising Concept Development Productivity Enhancement New Product Development Benefits Management Retail Design Process Understanding Union Representation Market Segmentation Sales Analysis Exhibit 7-1 lists some uses of qualitative research in business. The full exhibit is provided below.

Artifacts/ media products Data Sources People Organizations Texts Environments Qualitative research draws data from people and organizations. Whether the source is people or organization, we can use their behavior, texts, events and so on as data. Chapter 9 focuses on observation methods. Artifacts/ media products Events and happenings

Examples: Focus Group, Qualitative Interview, Literature search Quantitative Unstructured Small Sample Size For insights About depth Insights Examples: Focus Group, Qualitative Interview, Literature search Structured Large Sample Size For generalization About width Numbers Examples: Survey, Experiments

Data Analysis Qualitative Nonquantitative Human judgment mixed with fact Emphasis on themes Quantitative Computerized analysis Facts distinguished Emphasis on counts This slide reflects information from exhibit 7-2. Quantitative data analysis is conducted using statistical software programs such as SAS, SPSS, or Jump. The analysis focuses on the facts identified in the study. Qualitative research is not coded into numeric values. Human interpretation and judgment are critical in creating insight from the data. Content analysis...especially with the development of software like XSight...is a primary computerized analytical approach. It is far more than a count of words; such software can help reveal themes and underlying emphasis within texts. When researchers work with focus group and IDI transcripts, the content analysis software can assist the moderator in debriefing. The ability of video to be 'marked' with such software as Video Marker from FocusVision makes the analytical process better able to link interpretations to specific content from a qualitative method participant.

Projective Techniques Providing a ”Psychological Mask”

Group Interviews: Focus Groups Mini-Groups Dyads Triads Small Groups Focus Groups Supergroups Group interviews involve a single interviewer with more than one research participant. They vary widely in size. Mini-groups involve 2-6 people. Small groups usually include 6-10 people and are generally the most used. Supergroups include up to 20 people. The focus group is a type of small group (6-10). It is discussed further on other slides. Dyads are frequently used when the special nature of the relationship is needed to stimulate frank discussion on a sensitive topic. Group interaction is desirable but time constraints still limit extracting detail from each participant. It is also difficult to recruit, arrange, and coordinate group discussions.

Group Interview Modes Face-to-Face Telephone Online Videoconference This image is FocusVision’s Video Marker…one of the snapshots in the chapter. The focus group is a panel of people (usually 6-10 people), led by a trained moderator, who meet for 90 minutes to 2 hours. The facilitator uses group dynamics principles to focus or guide the group in an exchange of ideas, feelings, and experiences. The term focus group was first coined by R.K. Merton in his 1956 book, The Focused Interview. Focus groups can be conducted using various modes. Telephone focus groups are effective when it is difficult to recruit the desired participants, when target group members are rare, when issues are sensitive, and when one needs national representation with a few groups. Telephone focus groups are usually shorter than traditional groups and less expensive. They should not be used when participants need to handle a product that cannot be sent ahead to them, when the session must be long, or when the participants are children. Online focus groups are very effective with teens and young adults. Access and speed are strengths of this mode, but it is more difficult to gain insight from group dynamics. Videoconferencing is likely to grow as a focus group mode because it saves time and money while creating less barrier between moderator and participants than the telephone. All methods provide for transcriptions of the full interview. These are analyzed using content analysis. Videoconference

Combining Qualitative Methodologies Case Study Action Research Qualitative methods can be combined to glean more and better information. The case study, also called a case history, combines individual or group interviews with record analysis and observation. Researchers extract information from company brochures, annual reports, sales receipts, and newspaper and magazine articles along with direct observation, and combine it with interview data from participants. Interview participants are invited to tell the story of their experience, with those chosen representing different levels within the same organization or different perspectives of the same situation. The objective is to obtain multiple perspectives of a single organization, situation, event, or process at a point in time or over a period of time. The research problem is usually a “how and why” problem. Case study methodology, or the case analysis or case write-up, can be used to understand business processes. Action research is designed to address complex, practical problems about which little is known. It involves brainstorming, followed by sequential trial-and-error attempts until desired results are achieved.

Key Terms Action research Case study Content analysis Ethnography Focus groups Group interview Qualitative Interview Convergent interviewing Critical incident technique Cultural interviews Grounded theory Life histories Oral history Sequential interviewing

Key Terms (cont.) Interview guide Moderator Qualitative research Quantitative research Projective techniques