Qualitative description (QD) is a term that is widely used to describe qualitative studies of health care and nursing-related phenomena. However, limited discussions regarding QD are found in the existing literature. In this systematic review, we identified characteristics of methods and findings reported in research articles published in 2014 whose authors identified the work as QD. After searching and screening, data were extracted from the sample of 55 QD articles and examined to characterize research objectives, design justification, theoretical/philosophical frameworks, sampling and sample size, data collection and sources, data analysis, and presentation of findings. In this review, three primary findings were identified. First, although there were some inconsistencies, most articles included characteristics consistent with the limited available QD definitions and descriptions. Next, flexibility or variability of methods was common and effective for obtaining rich data and achieving understanding of a phenomenon. Finally, justification for how a QD approach was chosen and why it would be an appropriate fit for a particular study was limited in the sample and, therefore, in need of increased attention. Based on these findings, recommendations include encouragement to researchers to provide as many details as possible regarding the methods of their QD studies so that readers can determine whether the methods used were reasonable and effective in producing useful findings. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Characteristics of Qualitative Descriptive Studies: A Systematic Review

This article reviews the book “Leaders: The Strategies for Taking Charge,” by Warren Bennus and Burt Nanus.

Leaders: The Strategies for Taking Charge

Arthur Chickering is Distinguished Professor of Higher Education at Memphis State University. On leave from the Directorship of the Center for the Study of Higher Education at Memphis State, he is Visiting Professor at George Mason University. Zelda Gamson is a sociologist who holds appointments at the John W. McCormack Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Massachusetts-Boston and in the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education at the University of Michigan.

Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education: Faculty Inventory. Institutional Inventory.

Snowball sampling is a commonly employed sampling method in qualitative research; however, the diversity of samples generated via this method has repeatedly been questioned. Scholars have posited several anecdotally based recommendations for enhancing the diversity of snowball samples. In this study, we performed the first quantitative, medium-N analysis of snowball sampling to identify pathways to sample diversity, analysing 211 reach-outs conducted via snowball sampling, resulting in 81 interviews; these interviews were administered between April and August 2015 for a research project on anti-dam movements in Southeast Asia. Based upon this analysis, we were able to refine and enhance the previous recommendations (e.g., showcasing novel evidence on the value of multiple seeds or face-to-face interviews). This paper may thus be of particular interest to scholars employing or intending to employ snowball sampling.

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Enhancing the sample diversity of snowball samples: Recommendations from a research project on anti-dam movements in Southeast Asia

Participant observation was created during the late 19th century as an ethnographic field method for the study of small, homogeneous cultures. Ethnographers were expected to live in a society for an extended period of time (2 years, ideally), actively participate in the daily life of its members, and carefully observe their joys and sufferings as a way of obtaining material for social scientific study. This method was widely believed to produce documentary information that not only was “true” but also reflected the native’s own point of view about reality. 1 The privileging of participant observation as a scientific method encouraged ethnographers to demonstrate their observational skills in scholarly monographs and their social participation in personal memoirs. This dualistic approach split public (monographs) from private (memoirs) and objective (ethnographic) from subjective (autobiographical) realms of experience. The opposition created what seems, from a 21st-century perspective, not only improbable but also morally suspect. 2 More recently, ethnographers have modified participant observation by undertaking “the observation of participation” (B. Tedlock, 1991, 2000). During this activity, they reflect on and critically engage with their own participation within the ethnographic frame. A new genre, known as “autoethnography,” emerged from this practice. Authors working in the genre attempt to heal the split between public and private realms by connecting the autobiographical impulse (the gaze inward) with

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The observation of participation and the emergence of public ethnography

Beobachtung, und insbesondere teilnehmende Beobachtung, kommt in vielen Disziplinen zum Einsatz, um Daten uber Personen, Prozesse oder Kulturen im Rahmen qualitativer Forschungsprojekte zu erheben. In diesem Beitrag werden unterschiedliche Definitionen teilnehmender Beobachtung zusammengestellt und deren Geschichte und Ziele sowie die Rolle des Beobachters, d.h. das Wann, Was, und Wie von Beobachtung, skizziert. Anschliesend folgen Anmerkungen zum Umgang mit und Schreiben von Feldnotizen, um dann einige Ubungen fur die Lehre von Beobachtungstechniken vorzustellen.
URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0502430

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Participant Observation as a Data Collection Method

No formal pedagogical culture for research methods in the social sciences seems to exist and, as part of the authors' endeavour to establish such a culture, this article reviews current literature about teaching research methods and identifies the gaps in the research. Articles in academic journals spanning a 10‐year period were collected by searching academic catalogues and compiling a database of 195 articles published in 61 journals. These articles were reviewed and are discussed according to seven themes. Three specific gaps in research are identified that indicate some new agendas for research on teaching research methods in the social sciences. The implications for developing a pedagogical culture for research methods from the current literature reviewed are discussed.

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The state of the art of teaching research methods in the social sciences: towards a pedagogical culture

Resumen: La observación, especialmente la observación participante, ha sido utilizada en varias disciplinas como instrumento en la investigación cualitativa para recoger datos sobre la gente, los procesos y las culturas. Este artículo proporciona una revisión de varias definiciones de la observación participante, la historia de su empleo, los objetivos para los cuales se ha usado, las posturas del observador, y cuándo, qué y cómo observar. Se discute asimismo la información para tomar y escribir notas de campo, con algunos ejercicios para enseñar técnicas de observación a investigadores en formación.

La observación participante como método de recolección de datos

Contents: Introduction: towards a pedagogical culture in research methods, Mark Garner, Claire Wagner and Barbara Kawulich Part I Historical Perspectives: Trends in teaching qualitative research: a 30-year perspective, Judith Preissle and Kathryn Roulston Historical trends in teaching research methods in the United States, Blaine F. Peden and David W. Carroll. Part II Approaches to the Curriculum: The role of theory in research, Barbara Kawulich Critical realism and teaching empirical methods, David J.F. Maree Quantitative or qualitative: ontological and epistemological choices in research methods curricula, Claire Wagner and Chinedu Okeke Ontology, epistemology, and methodology in teaching research methods, Jan Pascal and Grace Brown Research as social relations: implications for teaching research methods, Mark Garner and Peter Sercombe Incorporating the ethical dimension in the teaching of research methods, Donna McAuliffe. Part III Approaches to developing research competence: Developing reflective researchers, Mark A. Earley Apprenticeship: induction to research through praxis of method, Wolff-Michael Roth The (in)effectiveness of various approaches to teaching research methods, Terrell L. Strayhorn Teaching the use of technology in research methods, JoAGBPo Batista Carvalho Nunes Best practice in research methods assessment: opportunities to enhance student learning, Erica L. James, Bernadette M. Ward, Virginia A. Dickson-Swift, Sandra A. Kippen and Pamela C. Snow. Part IV Approaches to Teaching Particular Methods: Researcher, know thyself! Emerging pedagogies for participatory research, Peter Taylor Teaching research methods to trainee practitioners, Tuyen D Nguyen and Brian T. Lam How to do case study research, Donna M. Zucker Symmetries ands asymmetries between curriculum and pedagogy in teaching critical ethnography, Shijuan Liu and Phil Francis Carspecken. Part V Approaches to Teaching Non-Traditional Students: Learning research together: reciprocal benefits for individuals with and without disabilities, Annabelle L. Grundy and Michelle K. McGinn Bridging gaps: the quest for culturally responsive pedagogies in collaborative research methods, Jose Antonio Flores FarfA!n, Mark Garner and Barbara Kawulich Afterword, Mark Garner, Claire Wagner and Barbara Kawulich Bibliography Index.

Teaching research methods in the social sciences

Gatekeeping is an integral but sometimes difficult part of the research process, particularly for researchers who want to conduct research in indigenous cultures. The author discusses how she gained access into the Muscogee (Creek) culture to conduct several research studies. Establishing trusting, long-term relationships through social networking, acquiring specific permissions at various levels, selecting key informants, presenting oneself appropriately, and showing respect for cultural mores are essential aspects of being granted entry by gatekeepers.

Barbara Kawulich

Papers

Participant Observation as a Data Collection Method

The state of the art of teaching research methods in the social sciences: towards a pedagogical culture

La observación participante como método de recolección de datos

Teaching research methods in the social sciences

Gatekeeping: An Ongoing Adventure in Research