Qualitative Research: How Can it Be True if There Aren’t Any Numbers?? The Quest of the Curious Skeptics Continues

Quantitative/ Qualitative Deduction (Quant) –General to specific –Theory to Hypothesis to Specific Data to test the hypothesis Induction (Qual) –Specific to general –Data to Theory Development dedind.phphttp:// dedind.php

Triplett Study What do you think about the following aspects of the study: 1.Sampling 2.Research Question 3.Data Analysis – Do you know how they developed codes and do their claims based on the data make sense?

Qualitative Research Problems Identifies a central phenomena (i.e., an issue or process) being investigated –Examples of issues Drug abuse in high schools Teacher burnout Alienation of children with special needs –Examples of processes How teachers change to standards-based curricula How students react to high stakes testing programs How students incorporate teachers’ expectations into their studies

Qualitative Research Problems Characteristics –Includes a single, central phenomena –Open-ended –General in nature –Emergent –Neutral with respect to what will be learned No hypotheses, but still may have “hunches” Open to new information No expected outcomes

Sample Research Question “How do students at an alternative school for students at-risk of dropping out of school perceive their learning environment?” “What changes do teachers and counselors make when their school is placed on probation under the No Child Left Behind Law? What remains the same?”

Qualitative Research Problems Criteria for evaluating qualitative research problems –Should be amenable to change as data is collected and analyzed –Should not be biased with restrictive assumptions or desired findings –Should be written in “how” and “what” forms to focus on describing the phenomena –The problem can include the participants and the site Key Idea: Emergent

Qualitative Data Collection Interviews Observations Document Analysis

Interviews Rapport Semi-structured –Interview protocol –Open to “probes” General (“grand tour”) questions to specific questions based on participant responses Tape recording and transcribing interviews afford the opportunity to study the data carefully

Observations Unstructured in nature, yet have focus Participant-observer role of the researcher – Continuum between observer and participant Complete ObserverParticipantComplete ObserverParticipantObserverParticipant –This should be clear in the study!

Data Analysis Systematically examine, summarize, and synthesize the data Data collection and data analysis tightly coupled (constant comparative method) This should be explained thoroughly in the report!

Data Analysis Coding –Organizing the data into reasonable, meaningful units that are coded with words or very short phrases that signify a category –Use of major codes and sub-codes is common –Types Open – developing codes for categories Selective –coding using categories Negative case analysis/ deviant cases Axial – finding relationships between categories

Middle College HS

Data Analysis “Because the creation of codes is up to each researcher and is critical to the study, it is important to know something about how the codes were created” (McMillan, 2004, p. 268). BE SPECIFIC AND EXPLICIT!

Data Analysis Summarizing the coded data Pattern seeking and synthesizing –Identify relationships –Draw inferences –Enlarge, combine, and create new categories that make sense –Seek data that does not fit

Field Notes Researcher records observations –Descriptive –Reflective Theoretical (TN) – identify underlying issues Methodological (MN) – possible adjustments to research methods Personal (PN) – personal interpretations of observations –Accuracy vital

How do we know it’s real?? CredibilityInternal Validity Degree of truth for individuals Transferability External Validity Degree of application to other contexts DependabilityReliabilityReplicable Confirmability ObjectivityFindings are product of inquiry

Next Class Data collection – Orcher Chapter 7 Go to and take one survey. Critique it. Continue LIBRARY search for projects (2 article summaries due 2/18)