Introduction to Qualitative Research

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Introduction to Qualitative Research
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Philosophical Assumptions

• Ontology Metaphysical study of being and the
  nature of reality
• Axiology Study of nature of values and
  judgements (overriding goal)
• Epistemology Study of the nature of knowledge,
  its presuppositions and foundations, and its
  extent and validity

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Positivistic vs. Interpretive

• Ontological nature of reality
• Objective
• Single
• Divisible
• Nature of social beings
• Deterministic
• Reactive

• Ontological nature of reality
• Socially constructed
• Multiple
• Holistics/Contextual
• Nature of social beings
• Voluntaristic
• Proactive

4
Positivistic Vs. Interpretive

• Axiological
• Explanation via subsumption under general laws

• Axiological
• Understanding based on Verstehen

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Positivistic Vs. Interpretive

• Epistemological
• Knowledge Generation
• Idiographic
• Time-bound
• Context-dependent
• View of Causality
• Multiple, simultaneous shaping
• Research relationship
• Interactive, cooperative
• No privileged point of observation

• Epistemological
• Knowledge Generation
• Nomothetic
• Time-free
• Context-independent
• View of Causality
• Real causes exist
• Research relationship
• Dualism, separation
• Privileged point of observation

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Qualitative Inquiry

• Qualitative questions why or how
• Fit of Question and Method
• Sampling and Saturation
• Purposeful, convenience, nominated, theoretical
• Data saturation

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Methods

• Ethnography
• Focused ethnography (decision making)
• Critical ethnography (aids emancipation)
• Phenomenology
• Experience snapshots
• Describing the essence of human experience
• Grounded theory
• Highly inductive
• Iterative process evolving theory

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Methods

• Narrative
• Story that reveals persons experiences
• Represents larger social experience
• Case Study
• Intrinsic (understanding 1 case)
• Instrumental (refining theory)
• Collective (several instrumental cases, looking
  for broader context)

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Methods

• Participatory Action Research
• Reflects needs of the people
• Group ownership of process (involvement of
  participants from design to results)
• Conducted to solve social or community problems

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Data Collection

• Interviews (depth)
• Observation
• Field Notes
• Documents
• Video, photographs

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Triangulation

• Uses a combination of more than one research
  strategy in a single investigation.
• Data time, space, person
• Investigator complimenting areas of expertise
• Theory testing and comparison of theories
• Methods simultaneous sequential implementation
  (separate analysis)