Chapter 17
The nature of qualitative research
Introduction
Noteworthy features of qualitative research:
Inductive view of the relationship between theory & research, whereby the former is
generated by the latter
Epistemological position described as interpretivist
- In contrast to the adoption of a natural scientific model the stress is on the
understanding of the social world through an examination of the
interpretation of that world by its participants
Ontological position described as constructionist
- Social properties are outcomes of the interactions between individuals,
rather than a phenomena ‘out there’
Why qualitative research is not straightforward (Bryman & Burgess 1999):
As a term qualitative research is taken to imply an approach to social research in
which quantitative data are not collected or generated
Qualitative research has compromised various traditions over time
Sometimes, qualitative research is discussed in terms of the ways in which it differs
from quantitative research
o Addressed i.t.o what quantitative research is not
Postmodernism:
Is at least two things
- An attempt to get to grips with the nature of modern society and culture
- It represents a way of thinking about & representing the nature of the social
sciences & their claims to knowledge
Most influential in qualitative research when discussing the nature of ethnographic
accounts & questioning the ethnographer’s implicit claim that he/she has provided a
definitive account of society
1
,Reasons for the unease among some writers concerning the nature of qualitative research:
1. Qualitative research subsumes several diverse research methods that differ from
each other considerably
Main research methods
- Ethnography/participant observation
- Qualitative interviewing
- Focus groups
- Discourse analysis/conversation analysis
- Collection & qualitative analysis of texts & documents
2. The connection between theory & research is somewhat more ambiguous than in
quantitative research
In qualitative research theory is supposed to be the outcome of the research
Main steps in qualitative research
2
, Theory & research
Grounded theory:
Theory that was derived from data, systematically gathered & analyzed through the
research process
Two central features
o Concerned with the development of theory out of data
o Approach is iterative (data collection & analysis proceed in tandem,
repeatedly referring back to each other)
Not a theory – it is an approach to the generation of theory out of data
Concepts in qualitative research
Definitive concepts:
Idea of definitive concepts is typified by the way in which, in quantitative research, a
concepts, once developed becomes fixed through the elaboration of indicators
Blumer (1954):
Recommended that social researchers should recognize that the concepts they use
are sensitizing concepts in that they provide a general sense of reference & guidance
in approaching empirical instances’
Concepts should be employed in such a way that they give a very general sense of
what to look for & act as a means for uncovering the variety of forms that the
phenomena to which they refer can assume
Reliability & validity in qualitative research
Different stances:
1. Adapting reliability & validity for qualitative research
To assimilate reliability & validity into qualitative research with little change of
meaning other than playing down the salience of measurement issues
External reliability
- Degree to which a study can be replicated
- Difficult in qualitative research because it is impossible to ‘freeze’ a social
setting
- Strategies suggested: ethnographic researcher should adopt the same
social role as original researcher
3
The nature of qualitative research
Introduction
Noteworthy features of qualitative research:
Inductive view of the relationship between theory & research, whereby the former is
generated by the latter
Epistemological position described as interpretivist
- In contrast to the adoption of a natural scientific model the stress is on the
understanding of the social world through an examination of the
interpretation of that world by its participants
Ontological position described as constructionist
- Social properties are outcomes of the interactions between individuals,
rather than a phenomena ‘out there’
Why qualitative research is not straightforward (Bryman & Burgess 1999):
As a term qualitative research is taken to imply an approach to social research in
which quantitative data are not collected or generated
Qualitative research has compromised various traditions over time
Sometimes, qualitative research is discussed in terms of the ways in which it differs
from quantitative research
o Addressed i.t.o what quantitative research is not
Postmodernism:
Is at least two things
- An attempt to get to grips with the nature of modern society and culture
- It represents a way of thinking about & representing the nature of the social
sciences & their claims to knowledge
Most influential in qualitative research when discussing the nature of ethnographic
accounts & questioning the ethnographer’s implicit claim that he/she has provided a
definitive account of society
1
,Reasons for the unease among some writers concerning the nature of qualitative research:
1. Qualitative research subsumes several diverse research methods that differ from
each other considerably
Main research methods
- Ethnography/participant observation
- Qualitative interviewing
- Focus groups
- Discourse analysis/conversation analysis
- Collection & qualitative analysis of texts & documents
2. The connection between theory & research is somewhat more ambiguous than in
quantitative research
In qualitative research theory is supposed to be the outcome of the research
Main steps in qualitative research
2
, Theory & research
Grounded theory:
Theory that was derived from data, systematically gathered & analyzed through the
research process
Two central features
o Concerned with the development of theory out of data
o Approach is iterative (data collection & analysis proceed in tandem,
repeatedly referring back to each other)
Not a theory – it is an approach to the generation of theory out of data
Concepts in qualitative research
Definitive concepts:
Idea of definitive concepts is typified by the way in which, in quantitative research, a
concepts, once developed becomes fixed through the elaboration of indicators
Blumer (1954):
Recommended that social researchers should recognize that the concepts they use
are sensitizing concepts in that they provide a general sense of reference & guidance
in approaching empirical instances’
Concepts should be employed in such a way that they give a very general sense of
what to look for & act as a means for uncovering the variety of forms that the
phenomena to which they refer can assume
Reliability & validity in qualitative research
Different stances:
1. Adapting reliability & validity for qualitative research
To assimilate reliability & validity into qualitative research with little change of
meaning other than playing down the salience of measurement issues
External reliability
- Degree to which a study can be replicated
- Difficult in qualitative research because it is impossible to ‘freeze’ a social
setting
- Strategies suggested: ethnographic researcher should adopt the same
social role as original researcher
3
