Book•
Qualitative research & evaluation methods
01 Jan 2002-Iss: 1
TL;DR: In this paper, conceptual issues and themes on qualitative research and evaluaton methods including: qualitative data, triangulated inquiry, qualitative inquiry, constructivism, constructionism, complexity (chaos) theory, qualitative designs and data collection, fieldwork strategies, interviewing, tape-recording, ethical issues, analysis, interpretation and reporting, observations vs. perceived impacts and utilisation-focused evaluation reporting.
Abstract: This book explains clearly conceptual issues and themes on qualitative research and evaluaton methods including: qualitative data, triangulated inquiry, qualitative inquiry, constructivism, constructionism, Complexity (chaos) theory, qualitative designs and data collection, fieldwork strategies, interviewing, tape-recording, ethical issues, analysis, interpretation and reporting, observations vs. perceived impacts and utilisation-focused evaluation reporting.
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TL;DR: An exploratory study to provide an in-depth characterization of a neighborhood’s social and physical environment in relation to cardiovascular health in Madrid, using quantitative and qualitative data following a mixed-methods merging approach.
Abstract: Our aim is to conduct an exploratory study to provide an in-depth characterization of a neighborhood’s social and physical environment in relation to cardiovascular health. A mixed-methods approach was used to better understand the food, alcohol, tobacco and physical activity domains of the urban environment. We conducted this study in an area of 16,000 residents in Madrid (Spain). We obtained cardiovascular health and risk factors data from all residents aged 45 and above using Electronic Health Records from the Madrid Primary Health Care System. We used several quantitative audit tools to assess: the type and location of food outlets and healthy food availability; tobacco and alcohol points of sale; walkability of all streets and use of parks and public spaces. We also conducted 11 qualitative interviews with key informants to help understanding the relationships between urban environment and cardiovascular behaviors. We integrated quantitative and qualitative data following a mixed-methods merging approach. Electronic Health Records of the entire population of the area showed similar prevalence of risk factors compared to the rest of Madrid/Spain (prevalence of diabetes: 12 %, hypertension: 34 %, dyslipidemia: 32 %, smoking: 10 %, obesity: 20 %). The food environment was very dense, with many small stores (n = 44) and a large food market with 112 stalls. Residents highlighted the importance of these small stores for buying healthy foods. Alcohol and tobacco environments were also very dense (n = 91 and 64, respectively), dominated by bars and restaurants (n = 53) that also acted as food services. Neighbors emphasized the importance of drinking as a socialization mechanism. Public open spaces were mostly used by seniors that remarked the importance of accessibility to these spaces and the availability of destinations to walk to. This experience allowed testing and refining measurement tools, drawn from epidemiology, geography, sociology and anthropology, to better understand the urban environment in relation to cardiovascular health.
58 citations
Cites background from "Qualitative research & evaluation m..."
...choosing information-rich cases selected using stratified purposeful sampling [28]....
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TL;DR: Consortium benchmarking as mentioned in this paper is a scholar-practitioner collaborative case study approach that joins rigor and relevance in management research, and it is used to identify the nature of innovative suppliers.
58 citations
Dissertation•
19 Nov 2009TL;DR: In this article, the authors determine the extent to which development and humanitarian interventions promote resilience in disaster-prone areas, and conclude that resilience and vulnerability are confirmed as discrete constructs, the one not being the ‘flip side' of the other.
Abstract: The connections between disaster recovery and the resilience of affected communities have become common features of disaster risk reduction programmes since the adoption of The Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005–2015. Increasing attention is paid to the capacity of disaster-affected communities to recover with little or no external assistance following a disaster. This highlights the need for a change in the disaster risk reduction work culture, with stronger emphasis being put on resilience rather than just needs or vulnerability. The aim of this thesis is to determine the extent to which development and humanitarian interventions promote resilience in disaster-prone areas. Three case studies with elements of resilience building were examined in 2002, 2004 and 2005 using an evaluation framework. Survey and participatory interviewing methods involving more than 1200 participants were employed to gain insights from the implementation of: The Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe; The Institutional Support Project in Ethiopia; and The Agricultural Rehabilitation Project in East Timor. There are no easy answers for enhancing disaster resilience through development and humanitarian interventions. However, four conclusions emerging from this study contribute to the emerging disaster resilience body of knowledge, spanning social science disciplines such as geography, environmental management and sociology. Firstly, disaster resilience is the ability to ‘bounce forward’ rather than ‘bounce back’ following a disaster. The notion of ‘bounce back’ implies the capacity to return to a pre- disaster state, which fails to capture the ‘new’ reality created by the disaster. ‘Bounce forward’ encapsulates community continuity within the context of changed realities brought about by the disaster. Secondly, resilience and vulnerability are confirmed as discrete constructs, the one not being the ‘flip side’ of the other. Thirdly, local resilience to disasters is about agency, albeit in a political and economic context. Community agency continuously creates and re-creates, and owns and controls the disaster institutional structures. Fourthly, resilience building resonates with the contiguum approach - it can occur at any phase or multiple phases of the disaster cycle. Thus, the process of resilience building does not necessarily need to adopt a ‘linear’ or continuum approach. The contiguum approach offers opportunities for linking (existing) resilience, relief, rehabilitation and development (LRRRD). Finally, on the basis of the author’s broader experience with similar evaluations elsewhere, the findings of this thesis are robust and generalisable and would not have been significantly different, if different case studies were used. Similarly, the focus of this thesis has been on structures and evaluation processes and outcomes; a different approach might have given rise to different findings.
58 citations
Cites background from "Qualitative research & evaluation m..."
...It adopts what Patton (2002) terms ‘pragmatism’ or ‘methodological appropriateness’ which aims at superseding one-sided paradigm allegiance by increasing the concrete and practical methodological options available....
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...Therefore, research is approached with an open mind, willingness to learn, and making no claims about what relevant questions are (Bryman, 2001; Clarke, 1999; Yin, 1989; Guba and Lincoln, 2005; Wengraft, 2002; Patton, 2002)....
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...Positivism is mainly associated with the quantitative methodology (Bryman, 2001; Clarke, 1999; Yin, 1989; Guba and Lincoln, 2005; Wengraft, 2002; Patton, 2002) ....
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...(Patton, 2002:10)....
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TL;DR: It is suggested that care and support interventions should be sensitive to culture and context, should be holistic and participatory, and should include income generation and child care services.
Abstract: The millions of people living with HIV/AIDS are in urgent need of effective care and support interventions. Such interventions should take people's reported needs, coping strategies, and context into account. Usually, active problem-focused coping strategies have been encouraged because they are considered to be more beneficial than passive emotion-focused strategies. However, this may not be the case in the South African context. This study was based on in-depth interviews with Black, rural, South African women about their coping strategies. The overriding aim of coping was to solve the tasks of physical, psychological, and social survival. Strategies involving avoidance of, escaping from, or minimizing HIV/AIDS and its accompanying emotional distress were predominant. We argue that such strategies could be adaptive in a society with scarce resources and marked by gender inequalities. Our findings suggest that care and support interventions should be sensitive to culture and context, should be holistic and participatory, and should include income generation and child care services.
58 citations
Cites background from "Qualitative research & evaluation m..."
...This strategy of comparing different people’s situations, beliefs, behavior, and accounts of the same type of event and issue is also called “cross-case analysis” (Patton, 2002)....
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TL;DR: The nursing work environment is a complex entity comprising multiple constituents; its attributes affect nurses’ perceptions of their work and work environment, which warrant special attention in addressing the phenomenon of increasing nurse turnover.
58 citations
Additional excerpts
...…en co th fa 20 co tio m w ni he sh ho nu 4.4 nu Th lo w at formation because of a pre-understanding of the study ue shaped by their own experiences (Patton, 2004). vertheless, this study has contributed to a fuller derstanding of nurses’ lived experiences of working in cal public hospitals,…...
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