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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Journal Article•
TL;DR: The relationship between Black Greek-letter organization membership and African American student engagement in almost exclusively white college classrooms was explored in this paper, which resulted in an explanatory model that showed how underrepresentation, voluntary race representation, and collective responsibility positively affect active participation, while Forced Representation has a negative effect.
Abstract: The relationship between Black Greek-letter organization membership and African American student engagement in almost exclusively White college classrooms was explored in this study. Data were collected through interviews with 131 members from seven undergraduate chapters at a large, predominantly White university in the Midwest. This study resulted in an explanatory model that shows how underrepresentation, voluntary race representation, and collective responsibility positively affect active participation, while Forced Representation has a negative effect. Findings also reveal that faculty teaching styles both positively and negatively affect engagement among African American sorority and fraternity members in their classes. The implications of these findings are discussed at the end of the article. The tide of Kimbrough's (2005) article, "Should Black Fraternities and Sororities Abolish Undergraduate Chapters?" captures the essence of an ongoing debate among students, various stakeholders on college and university campuses across the country, and leaders of the nine national Black Greekletter organizations (BGLOs). Instead of offering a balanced description of risks and educational benefits associated with membership, Kimbrough instead chose to focus almost exclusively on the persistent problem of physical and psychological hazing within undergraduate chapters. Despite being outlawed by the nine national organizations in 1990, hazing continues to occur in BGLOs on many campuses and has resulted in lawsuits, student deaths, and blatant contradictions to espoused purposes and ideals (DeSousa, Gordon, & Kimbrough, 2004; Harper & Harris, 2006; Kimbrough, 1997, 2003). In response to his own question, Kimbrough (2005) suggests that undergraduate BGLO chapters should be eliminated unless the national organizations collectively rethink new member intake processes and initiate bold approaches to hold undergraduates fully accountable for adhering to hazing policies. Despite the known presence of hazing, students on the more than 60 campuses Kimbrough visited offered several justifications for why undergraduate chapters should continue to exist - none of which pertained to the role of BGLOs in advancing the academic missions of the institutions or enhancing academic outcomes among members. Similarly, the academic contributions and limitations accrued through BGLO membership have been understudied and limited academic-related evidence has been furnished in the student affairs literature. Put another way, most explorations of the BGLO experience have focused on matters other than academics. "Although all Black fraternities [and sororities] identify academic excellence as a core value, claims that membership improves academic performance may be overstated" (Harper & Harris, 2006, p. 146). Consequently, those who attempt to justify the continued existence of undergraduate BGLO chapters must rely on anecdotal accounts and literature that focuses primarily on non-academic outcomes and experiences. As an alternative to the popular and defensible focus on hazing in previous literature, a different behavioral manifestation of BGLO membership was explored in the present study. Specifically, while several researchers have examined hazing as a behavioral by-product of membership (e.g., DeSousa et al., 2004; Kimbrough, 1997, 2003, 2005; Jones, 2004; Sutton, Letzring, Terrell, & Poats, 2000; Williams, 1992), emphasis in the present study is placed on exploring classroom behaviors and academic engagement tendencies among undergraduate BGLO members. Although a considerable amount of research has been conducted on the experiences of African American students at predominantly White institutions (PWIs), the outcomes associated with out-ofclass engagement, and hazing within BGLO chapters, published studies regarding the in-class behaviors of African American sorority and fraternity members are non-existent. Likewise, existing literature on BGLOs focuses disproportionately on socially-produced outcomes and the non-academic experiences of members, thus furnishing a one-sided rationale for their continued existence. …
52 citations
Cites methods from "Qualitative research & evaluation m..."
...The focus group method was selected because “the extent to which there is a relatively consistent, shared view or great diversity of views can be quickly assessed” (Patton, 2002, p. 386)....
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TL;DR: To support the prolongation of working life, it seems important to improve the fit between the physical and psychosocial job characteristics on the one hand, and the abilities and wishes of the employee on the other hand.
Abstract: Background: Due to the aging of the population and subsequent higher pressure on public finances, there is a need for employees in many European countries to extend their working lives. One way in which this can be achieved is by employees refraining from retiring early. Factors predicting early retirement have been identified in quantitative research, but little is known on why and how these factors influence early retirement. The present qualitative study investigated which non-health related factors influence early retirement, and why and how these factors influence early retirement. Methods. A qualitative study among 30 Dutch employees (60-64 years) who retired early, i.e. before the age of 65, was performed by means of face-to-face interviews. Participants were selected from the cohort Study on Transitions in Employment, Ability and Motivation (STREAM). Results: For most employees, a combination of factors played a role in the transition from work to early retirement, and the specific factors involved differed between individuals. Participants reported various factors that pushed towards early retirement ('push factors'), including organizational changes at work, conflicts at work, high work pressure, high physical job demands, and insufficient use of their skills and knowledge by others in the organization. Employees who reported such push factors towards early retirement often felt unable to find another job. Factors attracting towards early retirement ('pull factors') included the wish to do other things outside of work, enjoy life, have more flexibility, spend more time with a spouse or grandchildren, and care for others. In addition, the financial opportunity to retire early played an important role. Factors influenced early retirement via changes in the motivation, ability and opportunity to continue working or retire early. Conclusion: To support the prolongation of working life, it seems important to improve the fit between the physical and psychosocial job characteristics on the one hand, and the abilities and wishes of the employee on the other hand. Alongside improvements in the work environment that enable and motivate employees to prolong their careers, a continuous dialogue between the employer and employee on the (future) person-job fit and tailored interventions might be helpful. © 2013 Reeuwijk et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
52 citations
TL;DR: This investigation adds to the understanding about how physicians in the United States consider race when treating patients, and sheds light on issues physicians face when deciding the importance of race in medical decision-making.
Abstract: The role of patient race in medical decision-making is heavily debated. While some evidence suggests that patient race can be used by physicians to predict disease risk and determine drug therapy, other studies document bias and stereotyping by physicians based on patient race. It is critical, then, to explore physicians' attitudes regarding the medical relevance of patient race. We conducted a qualitative study in the United States using ten focus groups of physicians stratified by self-identified race (black or white) and led by race-concordant moderators. Physicians were presented with a medical vignette about a patient (whose race was unknown) with Type 2 diabetes and untreated hypertension, who was also a current smoker. Participants were first asked to discuss what medical information they would need to treat the patient. Then physicians were asked to explicitly discuss the importance of race to the hypothetical patient's treatment. To identify common themes, codes, key words and physician demographics were compiled into a comprehensive table that allowed for examination of similarities and differences by physician race. Common themes were identified using the software package NVivo (QSR International, v7). Forty self-identified black and 50 self-identified white physicians participated in the study. All physicians - regardless of their own race - believed that medical history, family history, and weight were important for making treatment decisions for the patient. However, black and white physicians reported differences in their views about the relevance of race. Several black physicians indicated that patient race is a central factor for choosing treatment options such as aggressive therapies, patient medication and understanding disease risk. Moreover, many black physicians considered patient race important to understand the patient's views, such as alternative medicine preferences and cultural beliefs about illness. However, few white physicians explicitly indicated that the patient's race was important over-and-above medical history. Instead, white physicians reported that the patient should be treated aggressively regardless of race. This investigation adds to our understanding about how physicians in the United States consider race when treating patients, and sheds light on issues physicians face when deciding the importance of race in medical decision-making.
52 citations
Cites background from "Qualitative research & evaluation m..."
...to include same race participants and race-concordant physician moderators since choosing moderators with similar characteristics to focus group participants is an effective strategy toward reducing discomfort when discussing sensitive issues [22,23]....
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Book•
01 Jan 2007
TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide an alternative view for addressing natural resource management conflict by focusing on the so-called "conflict capability", i.e., how can we develop and institutionalize capacities for dealing with conflict effectively.
Abstract: Keywords: natural resource conflict, conflict capability, impairment, escalation This study concerns natural resource management (NRM) conflict particularly conflict in forestry sector and how such conflict can be addressed effectively. It consists of two major parts. The first deals with the theoretical review of conflict literature. It shows how conflict can conceptualized distinctively and how such distinctive conceptualization can be used as a strong basis for understanding and addressing conflict. The second part is empirical studies in three locations in Indonesia, namely: Jambi, Sumatra, Bulungan Research Forest, East Kalimantan and Danau Sentarum national Park, West Kalimantan. Forest conflicts studied in these locations cannot be separated with the ongoing decentralization processes in Indonesia. This study finds various horizontal and vertical conflicts that take place as a result of decentralization processes. The study provides an alternative view for addressing NRM conflict by focusing on the so-called “conflict capability”, i.e. how can we develop and institutionalize capacities for dealing with conflict effectively.
52 citations
TL;DR: The findings emphasize the importance of meaningful consumer involvement in the development of national medicines policies, and strategic campaigns targeting consumers and prescribers regarding the quality of generic and essential medicines.
Abstract: OBJECTIVES Like many other developing countries, South Africa provides free medicines through its public health care facilities. Recent policies encourage generic substitution in the private sector. This study explored South African consumer perceptions of drug quality and whether these perceptions influenced how people procured and used their medicines. METHODS The study was undertaken in Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg in South Africa between December 2005 and January 2006. A combination of purposive and snowball sampling was used to recruit participants from low and middle socio-economic groups as well as the elderly and teenagers. Data were collected through 12 focus group discussions involving a total of 73 participants. Interviews were tape-recorded. Thematic analysis was performed on the transcripts. RESULTS Irrespective of socio-economic status, respondents described medicine quality in terms of the effect the medicine produced on felt symptoms. Generic medicines, as well as medicines supplied without charge by the state, were considered to be poor quality and treated with suspicion. Respondents obtained medicines from three sources: public sector hospitals and/or clinics, dispensing doctors and community pharmacies. Cost, avoidance of feeling 'second-class', receiving individualized care and choice in drug selection were the main determinants influencing their procurement behaviour. Selection of over-the-counter medicines was influenced by prior knowledge of products, through advertising and previous use. Participants perceived that they had limited influence on selection of prescription medicines. Generic substitution would be supported if the doctor, rather than the pharmacist, recommended it. CONCLUSIONS Our findings emphasize the importance of meaningful consumer involvement in the development of national medicines policies, and strategic campaigns targeting consumers and prescribers regarding the quality of generic and essential medicines. Where consumers perceive free or generic medicines as inferior, this could significantly undermine attempts to implement national medicines policies aimed to improve access to medicines.
52 citations