Showing papers in "Qualitative Research in 2013"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that adopting saturation as a generic quality marker is inappropriate, considering issues of transparency and epistemology, and highlight the pertinent issues and encoura...
Abstract: Measuring quality in qualitative research is a contentious issue with diverse opinions and various frameworks available within the evidence base. One important and somewhat neglected argument within this field relates to the increasingly ubiquitous discourse of data saturation. While originally developed within grounded theory, theoretical saturation, and later termed data/thematic saturation for other qualitative methods, the meaning has evolved and become transformed. Problematically this temporal drift has been treated as unproblematic and saturation as a marker for sampling adequacy is becoming increasingly accepted and expected. In this article we challenge the unquestioned acceptance of the concept of saturation and consider its plausibility and transferability across all qualitative approaches. By considering issues of transparency and epistemology we argue that adopting saturation as a generic quality marker is inappropriate. The aim of this article is to highlight the pertinent issues and encoura...
1,927 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, spoken interaction in semi-structured qualitative research interviews, comparing those that are conducted by telephone or face-to-face, has been studied, drawing upon recent empirical researc...
Abstract: This article considers spoken interaction in semi-structured qualitative research interviews, comparing those that are conducted by telephone or face-to-face. It draws upon recent empirical researc...
592 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a transdisciplinary team of indigenous and non-indigenous individuals came together in early 2009 to develop a digital narrative method to engage a remote community in northern Labrador in a research project examining the linkages between climate change and physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and well-being.
Abstract: This article outlines the methodological process of a transdisciplinary team of indigenous and nonindigenous individuals, who came together in early 2009 to develop a digital narrative method to engage a remote community in northern Labrador in a research project examining the linkages between climate change and physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and well-being. Desiring to find a method that was locally appropriate and resonant with the narrative wisdom of the community, yet cognizant of the limitations of interview-based narrative research, our team sought to discover an indigenous method that united the digital media with storytelling. Using a case study that illustrates the usage of digital storytelling within an indigenous community, this article will share how digital storytelling can stand as a community-driven methodological strategy that addresses, and moves beyond, the limitations of narrative research and the issues of colonization of research and the Western analytic project. In...
187 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the dilemmas qualitative researchers encounter when collecting data that is ethically sensitive, and situate the discussion in the realm of the Australian Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) legislative requirement of "duty of care" using the Rapidly Degenerative Neurological Diseases Pilot Program in Western Australia as the case example.
Abstract: Qualitative researchers are compelled to use their personal judgements before, during and after interviews, particularly when their interview subjects are drawn from vulnerable groups. This paper discusses the dilemmas qualitative researchers encounter when collecting data that is ethically 'sensitive'; and situates the discussion in the realm of the Australian Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) legislative requirement of 'duty of care' using the Rapidly Degenerative Neurological Diseases Pilot Program in Western Australia as the case example. The paper is focussed upon the practicalities and ethical concerns of the researchers conducting qualitative data collections. The discussion seeks to provide practical reflections on lessons learned and suggestions for self-care practice for researchers in the field and calls for policies that instruct and protect them.
128 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a partially insider study of a divorce support website is presented, focusing on researcher positioning, field entry and delimitation, public/private boundaries, ethical issues and questions of time with respect to carrying out retrospective online studies while maintaining an ongoing real-time engagement with a research site.
Abstract: This article is concerned with methodological issues arising from a retrospective partially insider study of a divorce support website. I argue that, while we need to conduct detailed retrospective studies into the development of online communities, such studies bring methodological challenges, due to their retrospective nature, the potential size of the data set, and the problems of dealing with past manifestations of sites that continue to function. After an introduction to online and offline ethnography and insider/outsider researcher positioning, I discuss my hybrid insider/outsider status with respect to the research site. I focus in particular on researcher positioning, field entry and delimitation, public/private boundaries, ethical issues, and questions of time with respect to carrying out retrospective online studies while maintaining an ongoing real-time engagement with a research site.
126 citations
TL;DR: The authors present critical vignettes of their selection choices in three separate studies, examining how those choices directed meaning making within and beyond the studies, uncovering a constant interface between personal situations and social agendas as qualitative researchers.
Abstract: Participant selection is one of the most invisible and least critiqued methods in qualitative circles. Researchers do not just collect and analyze neutral data; they decide who matters as data. Each choice repositions inquiry, closing down some opportunities while creating others. After reviewing the selection literature, we present critical vignettes of our selection choices in three separate studies, examining how those choices directed meaning making within and beyond the studies. Our analysis across these vignettes uncovered a constant interface—and often a struggle—between our personal situations and social agendas as qualitative researchers. Four aspects of this Reporting In/Reporting Out tension are discussed: trusting qualitative research, building the story, dealing with powerful others, and accepting unintended consequences. We encourage qualitative researchers to critically think forward their selection choices before and during the research process, to be mindful that selection is a constituti...
98 citations
TL;DR: The ways in which diagrams and drawings were used differently by researchers at various stages to support the research process and ongoing analysis of data are outlined.
Abstract: Despite their potential for yielding an understanding of the conceptualisation being developed, diagrams remain one of the least utilised tools in the analytical process. They have been used by int...
96 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the tension inherent in the interaction between ethics and methodological innovation and highlight the ways in which innovation is about reflexivity as well as new techniques in qualitative research methods in the social sciences.
Abstract: This article is an exploration of the tensions inherent in the interaction between ethics and methodological innovation. The authors focus on three cases of innovation in qualitative research methods in the social sciences: netnography, child-led research and creative research methods. Using thematic analysis of data collected through semi-structured interviews with the innovators and commentators on the innovations, they discuss issues of ethical responsibility, democratisation of research, empowerment and the relationship between research and the academy. This article highlights the ways in which innovation is about reflexivity as well as new techniques. It shows how innovation may be about managing risk rather than taking risks: the innovators are cautious as much as creative, operating within a culture in which procedural ethical regulation acts to limit methodological development and in which they (and other users of their method/approach) communicate the safe qualities alongside the innovative qualities of their approach.
81 citations
TL;DR: Instead of viewing the observer paradox or the presence of tape-affected speech as a methodological problem that spoils natural data, the authors advocate exploring the opportunities to explore the opportunities for exploration.
Abstract: Instead of viewing the ‘observer’s paradox’ or the presence of ‘tape-affected speech’ as a methodological problem that spoils ‘natural’ data, in this article, I advocate exploring the opportunities...
78 citations
TL;DR: The use of artistic forms as an alternative means for representing research findings is gaining acceptance in the research community as discussed by the authors, however, there are important yet unresolved and even contentious issues.
Abstract: The use of artistic forms as an alternative means for representing research findings is gaining acceptance in the research community. There are, however, important yet unresolved and even contentio...
75 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the assumption that anonymity is necessary only for ethical reasons was questioned and three additional functions of anonymity in qualitative research were identified: anonymity as ontology, anonymity as analysis, and anonymity as independence.
Abstract: Anonymity – its desirability and perceived difficulty divides the domain of qualitative research. This article shows that such divisions are associated with discrepancies in assumptions about what the power relations between the researcher and the researched, as well as the desired goals of the research, should be. This article questions the assumption that anonymity is necessary only for ethical reasons and identifies three additional functions of it in qualitative research: anonymity as ‘ontology’, anonymity as ‘analysis’ and anonymity as ‘independence’. First, ontologically, anonymity is a way of turning into ‘data’ what someone has said or written. Second, anonymization as ‘analysis’ turns the participants into examples of specific theoretical categories, and as such is a part of the data analysis. Third, anonymity as ‘independence’ enables the researcher to interpret the data irrespective of the participants’ wishes. As a conclusion, this article argues that anonymizing research participants has an i...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the power that is manifested between interviewers and interviewees in research interviews and find that power is exercised and distributed diversely and situationally between the interview participants (interviewer and interviewee).
Abstract: We examine the power that is manifested between interviewers and interviewees in research interviews. Our empirical examples are drawn from interviews conducted with: (a) a vocational teacher; and (b) a senior researcher. We analysed the manifestations of power both in the course of the interviews and across interviews. We found that power is exercised and distributed diversely and situationally between the interview participants (interviewer and interviewee) during the interviews. It appeared that in a given interview, the interplay between individual backgrounds and the interview setting was connected to the activities through which power was manifested, and that these activities played a role in shaping the subsequent course and content of the interview. Our findings contribute to discussion concerning the shifting significance of difference and sameness between interview participants with regard to power relations, what is conveyed in interviews, and the manner in which it is conveyed.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the role of the analytic imagination in the process of qualitative data analysis and argue that while team research, secondary data analysis, and the use of computerized data analysis packages may be altering the ways in which research and analysis are carried out, this need not change the processes of interpretation that are at the heart of qualitative analysis.
Abstract: In the light of the changing landscape of social research, this article explores the role of the analytic imagination in the process of qualitative data analysis. It argues that while team research, secondary data analysis and the use of computerized qualitative data analysis packages may be altering the ways in which research and analysis are carried out, this need not change the processes of interpretation that are at the heart of qualitative data analysis. Here, as the article explores, imaginative acts are key to the analytical craftsmanship involved in interpretive analysis. This a process illustrated through the analysis of parent and child narratives gathered during a project about families and food.
TL;DR: The authors used a deviant interview in a study of "being a neighbour" to show that strong efforts of resistance may indicate deeper cultural concerns, and argued that cases where the interviewee pursues a strong agenda may suggest new research areas.
Abstract: Social constructionists consider interviews as mutually co-constructing meaning. But what if the interlocutors do not seem to agree on what they construct? What if the interviewee has a particularly strong agenda, far from the intended research topic? Are these ‘failed’ interviews? We address this issue using a ‘deviant’ interview in a study of ‘being a neighbour’. First, we add to the discussion of interviewees’ category representativeness by acknowledging a situation when the interviewee insists on representing a category not intended by the researcher. Second, we address the notion of asymmetries of power, where it is often assumed that the interviewer has the upper hand. Through this case, we argue that the opposite may well be true. Finally, we argue that cases where the interviewee pursues a strong agenda may suggest new research areas. After all, strong efforts of resistance may indicate deeper cultural concerns.
Abstract: Couple studies generally focus on heterosexual relationships where partners are interviewed together or apart. This article discusses a study of same-sex couples’ Civil Partnerships that interviewe...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that a key component of Hochschild's theory of emotional labour does not fit with the emotional labour enacted by some researchers, and they suggest that the emotional and biological self of the researcher can be foregrounded, sometimes unwillin.
Abstract: A researcher’s emotional labour is inextricably linked to the methodological and ethical underpinnings of ‘doing’ sensitive and some feminist research. However, a key component of the emotional labour theory does not fit with the emotional labour enacted by some researchers. This article sets out to extend the theory of emotional labour in order to make it more applicable to sensitive and feminist methodologies, and in doing so, it reveals the importance of incorporating emotion in the refinement of theory. Drawing on 20 interviews with female in vitro fertilisation patients, and extracts from a systematically recorded reflexive diary of the researcher, this article contests a key aspect of Hochschild’s theory of emotional labour in its application to sensitive and feminist qualitative researchers. Instead of estrangement from the emotional self as a result of enacting emotional labour, this article suggests that the emotional and biological selves of the researcher can be foregrounded, sometimes unwillin...
TL;DR: In this article, an augmented form of the think-aloud method is presented to gain situated and participant-generated knowledge, which can increase social scientists' understandings of complex phenomena such as learning or problem solving.
Abstract: Most applications of think-aloud protocols have been conducted from theoretical perspectives that prioritize knowledge that is predictable and controlled by the researchers. In this article, we present an augmented form of the think-aloud method in which we aim to gain situated and participant-generated knowledge. The context for our study is examination of the problem-solving processes used by engineering students. We illustrate how our adaptation of traditional think–aloud protocols provides insights into participants’ thoughts and beliefs and how such think-alouds can increase social scientists’ understandings of complex phenomena such as learning or problem solving. In contrast to a typical focus on researcher-defined processes or an analysis of the products generated by students, our approach to think-aloud utilizes think-aloud procedures in combination with follow-up interviews to expand participants’ perspectives and investigate their experiences more deeply.
TL;DR: The authors argued that value neutrality is an impossible goal, particularly in research of a political nature, and argued that social researchers will inevitably take sides whether or not they are willing to admit so.
Abstract: This article contributes to debates regarding the issue of researcher partisanship and bias within social research and situates it within the current trend towards reflexivity. The discussion draws upon the researcher’s experiences of conducting fieldwork with the ‘boy racer’ culture and societal groups affected by their behaviour. In this instance, the researcher unintentionally sided with the ‘underdogs’ – the ‘boy racers’. Hence, it is argued that value neutrality is an impossible goal, particularly in research of a political nature. Social researchers will inevitably ‘take sides’ whether or not they are willing to admit so. The discussion also touches upon the prevalence of media culture in ethnographic research and the dilemmas faced when making our research public at key moments.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that the process of research should be considered in conjunction with the empirical outcomes of research and that the researcher must be constantly aware of, and respond to, these conditions and practices if he or she wishes to remain in a particular setting.
Abstract: At the same time that research tells us of empirical conditions, the process of conducting research illuminates underlying social conditions as well. By considering the differing approaches necessary in multiple research sites, this article argues that access, as a continually negotiated process, reflects localized socially embedded conditions and practices. From the initial access the researcher has to a site, to the repeated negotiations necessary to remain in the field, this article demonstrates that the researcher must be constantly aware of, and respond to, these conditions and practices if he or she wishes to remain in a particular setting. Based on a broader study of minority children in two different communities in Japan, this article also considers the approaches taken to minority issues as a contributing factor in accessing field sites. Finally, it argues that the process of research should be considered in conjunction with the empirical outcomes of research.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the methodological implications of a qualitative research project that examined the experiences of bisexual men living in three metropolitan cities, and argue that rigidly sticking to a predetermined methodological procedure can hinder the quality of data collected, and stultify the innovation of methods.
Abstract: In this article, we discuss the methodological implications of a qualitative research project that examined the experiences of bisexual men living in three metropolitan cities. A detailed research proposal was approved in advance by both the funder and our university ethics review board. Once in the field however, we found our methods inadequate for recruiting the sufficient number of participants. With only a week to collect data before leaving the city, it was necessary to substantially revise how we recruited participants. We took our research to the crowded streets, shouting for participants. In order to explore the benefits of changing methods in situ, we describe the genesis of the research project and its failings and the development of a new data collection plan. The significance of this article is in the argument that it is important to maintain flexibility when conducting research: that rigidly sticking to a predetermined methodological procedure approved by funding bodies and ethical review panels can hinder the quality of data collected, and stultify the innovation of methods.
TL;DR: In this paper, a set of qualitative semi-structured interviews with persons identifying as, and having experiences of volunteering as "class grandparents" in schools for children, is presented.
Abstract: The aim of this article is not only to discuss how the interview method has implications for the construction of aged identities, but also how the research area conditions the positionings that are made within the interview. Drawing on a set of qualitative semi-structured interviews with persons identifying as, and having experiences of volunteering as ‘class grandparents’ in schools for children, this article highlights and investigates three regimes that proved central in these interviews and that affected the construction of the data: the ‘confessional mode’, the ‘use of life scripts’ and the ‘theoretical identifications’ affecting the interview conversations.
TL;DR: Geographies of the Imagination as mentioned in this paper is an arts-based ethnography about long-term exile, as a form of public ethnography that unveils the acquisition and transmission of ethnographic knowledge as interactive, emergent, and creative.
Abstract: I present the installation Geographies of the Imagination, an arts-based ethnography about long-term exile, as a form of public ethnography that unveils the acquisition and transmission of ethnographic knowledge as interactive, emergent, and creative. I will show how the methods of collaboration and art making created bodily forms of knowledge among the participants and the audience at the exhibition of the installation that have the potential for stimulating new thinking. The use of these methods advanced the acquisition of ethnographic knowledge, and heightened the development of empathy among the participants and the researcher. Furthermore, the public exhibition of this installation allowed the participants to exercise social justice, and created a setting for socially experiencing embodied knowledge.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors of these two books would thoroughly disagree with each other on a number of points, although by title their books are so alike, and the two main differences between the books are in their analytical perspective on case study research and in their style of communicating.
Abstract: My guess is that the authors of these two books would thoroughly disagree with each other on a number of points, although by title their books are so alike. I have not applied the constant comparative method rigorously in my reading of the two books, but the two main differences between the books are in their analytical perspective on case study research and in their style of communicating. The book by Yves-Chantal Gagnon, The Case Study as Research Method: A Practical Handbook, has a very clearly stated aim:
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an interactive research methodology for young people's participation in research, based on the Scandinavian study-circle tradition with democra and a model of the research circle.
Abstract: This article presents an interactive research methodology for young people's participation in research. A model of the research circle, based on the Scandinavian study-circle tradition with democra ...
TL;DR: The authors investigated the experiences of Japanese women who were married to Australian men and currently reside in Australia, focusing on the reflexive nature of research they conducted investigating the experiences they had with Japanese men.
Abstract: This article addresses the reflexive nature of research I conducted investigating the experiences of Japanese women who are married to Australian men and currently reside in Australia.It highlights...
TL;DR: The authors argue for transforming students into authorities and agents in research on educational practice, using the conceptual framework offered by translation to argue for transformation of students into agents and authorities in the field of education.
Abstract: This article uses the conceptual framework offered by ‘translation’ to argue for transforming students into authorities and agents in research on educational practice. Drawing on various definition...
TL;DR: In this article, the potential of cartooning as a vehicle for processing and transmitting qualitative research findings is explored and some methodological advantages and concerns of using cartoons in this way are outlined.
Abstract: Cartoons are a ubiquitous form of visual communication. Yet they are often overlooked in methodological debates about dissemination. In this article, the potential of cartoons as a vehicle for processing and transmitting qualitative research findings is explored and some methodological advantages and concerns of using cartoons in this way are outlined. Discussion stems from a small-scale, experimental ‘knowledge transfer’ project located within a larger qualitative study about higher functioning men and women with dementia who campaign for social change. It concludes that cartooning can bring to life in a playful way serious issues, but as form of visual communication, cartoons are not for everyone, and must therefore be used judiciously to disseminate research findings.
TL;DR: The Talking Dads Project as mentioned in this paper explored the experiences of young fathers in a UK seaside city and provided an analysis of five critical processes that created intense debate and became sites for negotiation of the delicate balance of powers between participants.
Abstract: The Talking Dads Project brought together young fathers, an NGO and university researchers to explore the experiences of young fathers in a UK seaside city. Young fathers took a lead role in developing the content of, and conducting, interviews with peer participants. Drawing on an analytical framework derived from participatory research literature, this paper provides an analysis of five critical processes that created intense debate and became sites for negotiation of the delicate balance of powers between participants. These included young fathers' initial engagement, the translation of their research ideas into research tools, research ethics such as confidentiality and duty of care, the academic researchers' role in making adjustments to facilitate comprehensive, in-depth data-collection, and the differential impact of the research on the lives of all involved. The learning emerging from this evaluation of the research process contributes to understanding of the challenges of participatory research and the value of flexibility in responding to challenges and constraints
TL;DR: The extensive reflexive literature from many social science disciplines suggests that there are multiple factors that combine to affect the process of research as discussed by the authors, however, the relatively weak reflexivity of these factors may not be a good fit for all of them.
Abstract: The extensive reflexive literature from many social science disciplines suggests that there are multiple factors that combine to affect the process of research. However, the relatively weak reflexi...