1. UNOBTRUSIVE RESEARCH Research Methods University of Massachusetts at Boston ©2011 William Holmes

2. TYPES OF UNOBTRUSIVE RESEARCH Content Analysis Analyzing Existing Data Comparative and Historical Research

3. CONTENT ANALYSIS STUDIES: Conversations Recorded narratives Transcriptions of events Case record narratives Journals Documents Digital media

4. CONTENT ANALYSIS SAMPLING ISSUES What is the unit of analysis? What is the population? How is the sample selected? Edited content

5. CONTENT ANALYSIS CODING ISSUES: PART 1 Perceived Manifest content Perceived latent content Emergent manifest content Emergent latent content

6. CONTENT ANALYSIS CODING ISSUES: PART 2 Contextual coding Multi-level coding Coding consistency Coding meaning

7. EXISTING DATA SOURCES Government publications Data depositories Agency databases Public records Commercial data providers

8. CONTENT ANALYSIS VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY Look for repeated patterns within content. Look for alternative confirmation from different sources. Compare with existing theories. Compare with studies of same content. Provide multiple supporting examples. Note disconfirming examples.

9. SECONDARY ANALYSIS OF PRE-EXISTING DATA USES: Contents of databases Coded data from case records Contents on paper forms Records of behavior Survey data collected for other purposes

10. SECONDARY ANALYSIS SAMPLING ISSUES Does existing data use same units of analysis? What is the population represented by existing records? How consistent are the retrieval procedures? What are the effects of different sources of sample mortality?

11. SECONDARY ANALYSIS DATA COMPARABILITY ISSUES Units of analysis in different sources Linking records for different sources Meaning of data from different sources Completeness and bias from different sources

12. SECONDARY ANALYSIS VALIDITY Measures may not be quite what we need. Concepts we use may not have corresponding measures. Multiple measures enhance validity. Multiple sources of data enhance validity. Quality checking enhances validity.

13. SECONDARY ANALYSIS RELIABILITY Quality controls vary across time. Quality controls vary across location. Multiple measures enhance reliability. Quality checking enhances reliability.

14. COMPARATIVE HISTORICAL RESEARCH USES: Governmental and organizational records Interviews Media content Participatory observation Examination of cultural objects

15. COMPARATIVE HISTORICAL SAMPLING ISSUES What is the unit of analysis in history? What is the population of events represented by historical records? What sampling procedure to use? How has the historical record been edited?

16. COMPARATIVE HISTORICAL DATA ISSUES Who created the data for what purpose? Does potential bias in data favor or oppose your conclusions? How were the data created and what omitted? What theoretical or political debates are reflected in the data?

17. COMPARATIVE HISTORICAL VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY Historical records are filtered and reinterpreted. Historical records are incomplete. Multiple sources enhances validity and reliability. Multiple examples enhance validity and reliability. Credible explanations of disconfirming examples enhance validity and reliability