Martyn Hammersley - What Is Qualitative Research (2012) (A)

Wbat ls Qualltatlve kesearcb:
What is? Research Methods series

Ldlted by Crabam Crow, Unlverslty or Soutbampton
issn. zo(sosz
le Wbat ls: serles provldes autborltatlve lntroductlons to a range or researcb
metbods wblcb are at tbe rorerront or developments ln tbe soclal sclences.
Lacb volume sets out tbe key elements or tbe partlcular metbod and reatures
examples or lts appllcatlon, drawlng on a conslstent structure across tbe wbole
serles. Wrltten ln an accesslble style by leadlng experts ln tbe eld, tbls serles ls an
lnnovatlve pedagoglcal and researcb resource.
What is Online Research?
Uslng tbe lnternet ror Soclal Sclence
kesearcb
1r|srram noo|e, jane we||ens and jonn
Varr|orr
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What is Social Network Analysis?
jonn :corr
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What is Qualitative Research?
Varr,n nammers|e,
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What are Qualitative Research Ethics?
kose w||es
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What is Discourse Analysis?
:repnan|e 1a,|or
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What are Community Studies?
cranam crow
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Forthcoming books:
What is Qualitative Interviewing?
kosa||nd idwards and janer no||and
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What is Narrative Research?
Vo||, Andrews Vark ua.|s c|gdem is|n
Lar-cnr|srer n,den Vargarera n,den
cor|nne :qu|re and 8aroara narr|son
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What is Inclusive Research?
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What is
qualitative
research?
Martyn Hammersley
LONDON NEW DELHI NEW YORK SYDNEY
Bloomsbury Academic
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Uk
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|lrst publlsbed zo,
C Martyn lammersley, zo,

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MC 8ooks Croup, 8odmln, Cornwall.
Contents
Serles roreword vll
rerace lx
Dening qualitative research
Methodological philosophies
Divergent analytic styles
Two methodological disputes
Concluslon ,
kererences +o+
lndex ++
This page intentionally left blank
vll
Series foreword
le ldea beblnd tbls serles ls a slmple one. to provlde conclse and acces-
slble overvlews or a range or rrequently-used researcb metbods and or
current lssues ln researcb metbodology. 8ooks ln tbe serles bave been
wrltten by experts ln tbelr elds wltb a brler to wrlte about tbelr subject
ror a broad audlence wbo are assumed to be lnterested but not neces-
sarlly to bave any prlor knowledge. le serles ls a natural development
or presentatlons made ln tbe Wbat ls: strand at Lconomlc and Soclal
kesearcb Councll kesearcb Metbods |estlvals wblcb bave proved popular
botb at tbe |estlvals tbemselves and subsequently as a resource on tbe
webslte or tbe LSkC Natlonal Centre ror kesearcb Metbods.
Metbodologlcal lnnovatlon ls tbe order or tbe day, and tbe Wbat ls:
rormat allows researcbers wbo are new to a eld to galn an lnslgbt lnto lts
key reatures, wblle also provldlng a userul update on recent developments
ror people wbo bave bad some prlor acqualntance wltb lt. All readers
sbould nd lt belprul to be taken tbrougb tbe dlscusslon or key terms, tbe
blstory or bow tbe metbod or metbodologlcal lssue bas developed, and
tbe assessment or tbe strengtbs and posslble weaknesses or tbe approacb
tbrougb analysls or lllustratlve examples.
le blstory or bow qualltatlve metbods bave developed can seem
partlcularly compllcated, but tbe account oered bere provldes an acces-
slble analysls or wby tbls ls tbe case and an explanatlon or wby someone
looklng ror a slmple answer to tbe questlon wbat ls qualltatlve researcb:
upon wblcb everyone can agree ls bound to be dlsappolnted. ln a eld
rull or long-standlng dlsputes, an account tbat locates tbe bases or tbe
competlng perspectlves serves a valuable purpose ln belplng readers to
get tbelr bearlngs. le autbors development ln tbls context or bls own
dlstlnctlve argument about wbat ls and wbat ls not soclal sclence adds to
tbe benets readers can expect to derlve.
le books cannot provlde lnrormatlon about tbelr subject matter
down to a ne level or detall, but tbey wlll equlp readers wltb a powerrul
vlll wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
sense or reasons wby lt deserves to be taken serlously and, lt ls boped, wltb
tbe entbuslasm to put tbat knowledge lnto practlce.
cranam crow
:er|es ed|ror
lx
Preface
Qualltatlve researcb, ln a wlde varlety or rorms, bas become very lnuen-
tlal across many elds or soclal sclence over tbe past rty years. lt orlglnally
emerged out or reslstance to tbe prevlously common assumptlon tbat
quantltatlve measurement, experlmental metbod, and}or statlstlcal analy-
sls are essentlal lr tbe knowledge produced by soclal sclence ls not to be
meagre and unsatlsractory (lomson ss. ;,(, see Merton er a| s().
lowever, wblle qualltatlve researcbers are agreed ln tbelr opposltlon to
tbls denltlon or sclentlc researcb, or at least lts appllcatlon to soclal
lnqulry, beyond tbls tbere ls llttle general consensus amongst tbem today.
lere are sbarp dlsagreements about bow researcb sbould be pursued, tbe
eplstemologlcal and ontologlcal assumptlons on wblcb lt ougbt to rely,
and even about lts purpose or runctlon. Clven tbls, we mlgbt ask. Wbat
exactly does tbe term qualltatlve researcb now mean: And also. ls lt
userul to tblnk or lt, any longer, as rererrlng to a dlstlnctlve, coberent, and
wortbwblle approacb: lese are tbe questlons around wblcb tbls book ls
organlzed.
Many books, very dlerent ln cbaracter, could be, and lndeed bave
been, wrltten on tbls toplc, eacb reectlng, to some extent, tbe experl-
ence and prererences or tbe autbor, tbese necessarlly belng tbe product or
a partlcular soclal, cultural, and lntellectual patb. lowever, my maln alm
bere bas not been to present my own vlews about qualltatlve researcb,
but ratber to outllne lts cbaracter and varlety, and to explore some or tbe
dlsputes tbat surround and sbape lt, and tbelr lmpllcatlons.
l am very graterul to several people ror tbelr comments on an earller
drart or tbe book. Crabam Crow, tbe edltor or tbe serles ln wblcb lt
appears, Stepbanle 1aylor, Anna 1ralanou, and two colleagues wbo served
as readers ror tbe publlsber. l am sure tbat lt bas been lmproved as a result,
even tbougb l know tbat l bave ralled to address adequately all or tbe
lssues tbey ralsed.
!
le questlon Wbat ls qualltatlve researcb: demands a denltlon or some
sort. an account or wbat tbe pbrase means. lere ls, or course, a very large
metbodologlcal llterature deallng wltb qualltatlve lnqulry, and many de-
nltlons bave been provlded. lere are a couple or examples.
Qualltatlve researcb ls a researcb strategy tbat usually empbaslzes
words ratber tban quantlcatlon ln tbe collectlon and analysls or
data. (8ryman zoosa. ,oo)
Qualltatlve researcb ls an umbrella term ror an array or attltudes
towards and strategles ror conductlng lnqulry tbat are almed at
dlscoverlng bow buman belngs understand, experlence, lnterpret,
and produce tbe soclal world. (Sandelowskl zoo(. s,)
Wblle botb tbese denltlons are certalnly broadly accurate and neltber,
or course, exbausts wbat tbese autbors say about qualltatlve researcb
tbey plck out very dlerent denlng reatures. Otber denltlons oer
addltlonal reatures. |or example, ln a cbapter entltled Wbat ls Qualltatlve
kesearcb:, erttl Alasuutarl (,. ;) ldentles lts central reature as a
partlcular klnd or analysls. wbereas quantltatlve work seeks to explaln
outcomes by examlnlng tbe rrequency wltb wblcb tbey are emplrlcally
assoclated wltb posslble causes, qualltatlve analysls employs a type or
reasonlng tbat ls analogous to rlddle-solvlng. le explalns tbls as rollows.
Any slngle blnt or clue could apply to several tblngs, but tbe more
blnts tbere are to tbe rlddle, tbe smaller tbe number or posslble
solutlons. Yet eacb blnt or plece or lnrormatlon ls or lts own klnd
and equally lmportant, ln unrlddllng or qualltatlve analysls []
[e]very blnt ls supposed to t ln wltb tbe plcture oered as tbe
solutlon.
1 Dening qualitative research
z wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
As tbese tbree denltlons make clear, wbat are taken as tbe denlng crlte-
rla or qualltatlve researcb can vary conslderably. lls perbaps tells us tbat
lt ls not a slmple pbenomenon, not one tbat ls easlly cbaracterlzed.
ldeally, ln trylng to understand wbat qualltatlve researcb ls we are look-
lng ror a set or reatures tbat are sbared by all examples or lt, and tbat are
nor round togetber ln otber klnds or researcb. None or tbe denltlons we
bave dlscussed ls successrul ln tbese terms. Wblle tbat provlded by Alan
8ryman captures sometblng lmportant, tbe maln reature lt ldentles ls, ln
eect, a negatlve one tbe absence or quantlcatlon. Arter all, tbe pres-
ence or words ln data collectlon and analysls ls not dlstlnctlve to quallta-
tlve researcb. words are central to questlonnalres, a common source or
quantltatlve data, and tbere are generally more words tban numbers ln
tbe analysls sectlons or quantltatlve researcb reports.
!
Nor does Margarete Sandelowskls denltlon t tbese requlrements.
lnterpreted at race value, dlscoverlng bow buman belngs understand,
experlence, lnterpret, and produce tbe soclal world ls tbe goal or a great
deal, lr not all, or soclal lnqulry, not just tbat normally llsted under tbe
beadlng or qualltatlve. |or example, mucb survey researcb bas been
concerned wltb documentlng dlerences ln attltude wltb a vlew to
explalnlng peoples bebavlour. Or course, lt may be tbat wbat sbe lntends
by words llke understand, experlence and lnterpret ls dlstlnctlve, but at
race value lt ls not clear wbat marks out qualltatlve researcb bere.
|lnally, wblle Alasuutarls use or tbe rlddle-solvlng metapbor ls lnstruc-
tlve, l doubt tbat tbe mode or reasonlng be ldentles ls llmlted to quallta-
tlve work. lndeed, Susan laack (zoo) bas argued tbat natural sclence,
and all rorms or lnqulry, can best be understood as operatlng ln a manner
slmllar to solvlng a cross-word puzzle, a task tbat lnvolves relatlng ldeas
about wbat tbe solutlon to a clue mlgbt be (emplrlcal data) to blnts rrom
tbe letters supplled by answers to otber clues (exlstlng knowledge) a
process tbat parallels very closely wbat ls lnvolved ln rlddle-solvlng, as
descrlbed by Alasuutarl.
As l bave already lndlcated, tbe problems wltb tbese denltlons do not
reect a rallure on tbe part or tbe autbors concerned. katber, tbey reveal
tbat tbe task or provldlng an account or tbe dlstlnctlve reatures or quallta-
tlve researcb ls rar rrom stralgbtrorward. lndeed, trylng to produce a llst or
Campbell (;,) ramously made tbe polnt tbat quantltatlve researcb ls always
rounded on acts or qualltatlve knowlng.
! uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
reatures tbat a|| or wbat mlgbt be ldentled as qualltatlve lnqulry sbares,
and tbat are exc|us|.e ro |r, ls almost certalnly a bopeless venture. Later we
wlll see wby tbls ls.
Nevertbeless, we can, perbaps, produce a llst or reatures tbat, ln combl-
natlon, rrequently cbaracterlze wbat would be rererred to as qualltatlve
researcb. A number or strategles could be used. One ls to appeal to tbe
root terms rrom wblcb tbe pbrase bas been blstorlcally derlved. lls
er,mo|og|ca| metbod ls lllustrated by |red Lrlcksons (zo. (,) denltlon.
|rom Latln, qua||ras rerers to a prlmary rocus on qualltles, tbe reatures, or
entltles to dlstlnctlons ln klnd wblle tbe contrastlng term quanr|ras
rerers to a prlmary rocus on dlerences ln amount. Appeals to etymology
can sometlmes be lllumlnatlng ln tbls case wbat lt produces ls slmllar to
denltlons produced ln otbers ways, ror example tbat or 8ryman.
Anotber strategy would be to look at examples and to try to ldentlry
reatures tbat are rrequently present. 8ox . provldes summarles or a small
selectlon or studles tbat would probably be regarded as clear lnstances or
qualltatlve lnqulry.
Box . Lxemplars or qualltatlve researcb
Morton on becoming tongan
Having visited Tonga as a teenager, lived in Tongan households in
Australia, and later married a Tongan, the anthropologist Helen
Morton (1996) carried out eight months ethnographic eldwork
living in a village there, along with her young son. She observed what
went on and talked to people in the village, recording her data in the
form of eldnotes; though she also used a questionnaire distributed
to secondary school students. Her aim was to study the experience
of childhood in that society what it means to become Tongan
seeking as part of this to understand the rather harsh treatment to
which Tongan children are often subjected.
Rai on positive loitering
This was a critical ethnographic study of a community policing
practice introduced by the Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy
(CAPS) as a way for community members to combat gang presence,
public drinking, criminal behavior, and drug activity (Rai 2011: 66).
The author examines how positive loitering was used in a gentrifying
4 wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
Chicago neighborhood to try to eradicate an informal street labour
market. It involved passive-aggressive ash mob actions where
people simply show up and hangout in the spaces where the laborers
gather (Rai 2011: 67). She observed monthly CAPS meetings, and
interventions on the street, and interviewed positive loiterers,
some of the people seeking work, and the organizer of the market.
She argues that positive loitering highlights how democratic and
neoliberal rhetoric can dovetail in local practices that obscure
systemic inequality []; and expose the ambivalence of civic
participation (Rai 2011: 68).
Wacquant on boxing
Loc Wacquant, a French sociologist working in the United States,
became an apprentice boxer by default and by accident as part
of a study of the everyday reality of the black American ghetto
(Wacquant 2004:viii). He emphasizes the value of theoretically
armed participant observation, drawing on the work of the French
sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. His aim was to plumb the inner depths
of what it means to be a boxer, so as to capture and represent the
taste and the ache of this profession, as pursued in this community
(Wacquant 2004:vii). In sociological terms, the task was to document
the dispositions and skills involved, and how they are developed and
deployed. His data were eldnotes written up each evening after
being in the gym (Wacquant 2004:ixx).
Bogdan on the autobiography of Jane Fry
In the early 1970s, Robert Bogdan (1974) carried out a series of
life history interviews, several times a week over a period of three
months, with Jane Fry (pseudonym), a transsexual born as a
biological male who believed that she was a woman. He transcribed
and edited around a hundred hours of audio-recorded material with
a view to producing a sociological life history that conveyed her
experience and perspective on life. Her autobiography an account
in her own words, albeit composed from what she said in interviews
forms the central part of the book. In addition, Bogdan provides
a commentary, drawing on medical records, that juxtaposes her
perspective with those of the professionals who had been in contact
with her at various times.
uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
MacLure and Walker on parents evenings in UK secondary
schools
This is a study of the discursive practices displayed in 184 meetings
(typically lasting around ve minutes each) between teachers and
parents in ve UK secondary schools (MacLure and Walker 2000).
The audio-recordings were made by two teachers and two parents,
without the presence of the researchers; though the latter had
observed a parents evening in each school. Follow-up interviews were
carried out with a small number of parents, teachers, and students.
The authors examine the typical structure of these meetings in
sociolinguistic terms. In particular, they document the interactional
absence of students even when they were physically present, the
strong similarity in the pattern of the interaction despite considerable
variation in the characteristics of the parties involved, and the
dominant (though occasionally contested) role played by teachers.
Wetherell and Edley on masculinity
This research was based on thirty audio-recorded interviews with
groups of British men (totaling 61) from diverse occupational
backgrounds, varying in age from 20 to 64 (Wetherell and Edley 1999).
A typical discussion group consisted of the interviewer (Nigel Edley)
and two volunteers, although a few sessions involved three and others
just one. In some interviews photographs of possible role models were
used to stimulate conversation. On the basis of detailed discourse
analysis of this material, the authors challenge the theoretical
concept of hegemonic masculinity, examining specic practices by
which men construct themselves as masculine. The authors state that
We chose discourse as a site for investigating mens identities because
we are persuaded of the central role discursive practices play in the
constitution of subjectivity (Wetherell and Edley 1999: 337).
Wright and Decker on armed robbers
Active armed robbers in St Louis, Missouri were contacted via a
specially recruited and paid eldworker who was an ex-criminal
known to local criminals (Wright and Decker 1997). The researchers
met their informants on the streets, and carried out semi-structured
interviews asking about robberies in which the informants had been
involved. They sometimes took the informant to the scene of a
robbery to test his account; and also compared accounts provided
by co-offenders. On the basis of these data, they drew conclusions
about the role of motivational factors, situational features, and
environmental cues in generating armed robberies.
Mitchell on survivalists
Survivalists are people who anticipate various kinds of imminent
cataclysm economic collapse, race war, nuclear attack, and so
forth and take steps to ensure their own postdisaster welfare
(Mitchell 1991: 97). They often eschew telephones, launder their mail
through letter exchanges, use nicknames and aliases, and carefully
conceal their addresses from strangers (Mitchell 1991: 100). In
order to document survivalist beliefs and practices Mitchell carried
out participant observation, covert and overt, and interviews, and
began to edit a group newsletter, with the result that he became
the recipient of a steady stream of members written opinions and
perceptions (Mitchell 1991: 100). This role then allowed him to use
tape recorders and cameras at group meetings. In his book Dancing
at Armageddon he provides a picture of the world of survivalists and
how it reects and responds to salient features of modern industrial
civilization (Mitchell 2001).
Frake on how to ask for a drink in Subanum
In a classic study of an ethnic group who were farmers occupying part
of the mountainous interior of an island in the Philippines, the author
provides a detailed description of their drinking practices (Frake
1964a). This covers the types of drink available within the culture
and focuses on how one of these, what he refers to as a type of beer,
is drunk at religious festivities that serve important socio-political
functions. His aim was to describe in detail what someone must know
in order to be a competent member of this culture (Frake 1964b:112).
The information was obtained through observation but also by
highly structured interviews designed to elicit the terminological
distinctions about types of drink and the activities surrounding
them employed by the Subanum.
7 uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
Oliver and OReilly on lifestyle migration from Britain to Spain
This study involved a re-analysis of data, derived from observation
and interviews, collected by the two authors in earlier, separate
projects that had each led to a published account. The aim was to
use secondary analysis to explore the continued relevance of social
class in light of arguments about its declining inuence in Western
societies. Oliver and OReilly (2010: 49) argue that despite attempts
to rewrite their own history and to mould a different life trajectory
through geographical mobility migrants reproduced class distinctions
in and through their attitudes to other migrants and to tourists.
Bourdieus theoretical approach was employed here to explore the
limited possibilities for reconstructing institutionalized dispositions
in this eld.
Olson et al. on suicide notes
This is a study in the sociology of health concerned with motivations
for suicide (Olson et al. 2011). It offers a cross-cultural analysis of
suicide notes written by Native Americans, Hispanics, and Anglos
in New Mexico. Ofcial records were used to identify those suicides
where a suicide note was available. For ethical reasons the researchers
did not contact family members to obtain additional information.
The suicide notes ranged in length from several words to several
pages, and took various forms, including a message on the back
of a grocery bag. Five categories emerged describing motivation:
feelings of alienation, of failure or inadequacy, being psychologically
overwhelmed, the wish to leave problems behind, and a desire for
reunication with another in an afterlife. It was concluded that the
ethnic differences in patterns of response across these categories were
surprisingly small.
Levitas on political rhetoric
This study examined ofcial documents relating to social inclusion
produced in the early years of the New Labour government in the
United Kingdom. The author identies three different discourses
in these documents, and studies the relationships amongst them:
a redistributive discourse (acronym, RED) with a primary focus on
poverty and inequality; a moral underclass discourse (MUD) which
concentrated on what is portrayed as the delinquent behaviour
of those excluded; and a social integrationist discourse (SID) that
emphasized the capacity of paid employment to facilitate peoples
reintegration into society. The three discourses differ in what the
excluded are portrayed as lacking: from the point of view of RED
they have too little money, for SID the problem is that they have no
work, while from the perspective of MUD they have no morals (Levitas
1998:7). Levitas offers a critical analysis of how these discourses
operated in New Labour policies.
Lewis on an online support group for irritable bowel syndrome
As part of work for a Masters thesis, Lewis (2006) became a
participating member of an online support group for people with
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), analyzing postings on bulletin boards
and discussions in chatrooms. He supplemented these naturally
occurring on-line data with a qualitative questionnaire, in other
words a questionnaire with open-ended questions, sent and returned
by email to participants who had agreed to complete it. His research
examined how people with this condition experience their illness and
use online support groups to cope with it.
Kaplan on engaging in action research with disadvantaged
students through participatory photography
At the behest of a local education authority, Kaplan (2008) worked
over a nine-month period with disadvantaged students and their
teachers in several schools in the northwest of England. The
aim was to facilitate students using photography to explore, and
share, their perspectives on, and to improve their experiences
of, education. Students were given a workshop on reading/
interpreting photographs and issues about ethics and consent, and
were instructed in basic photographic technique. Subsequently, the
photographs were discussed by the group and some of these selected
and captioned for a powerpoint presentation. In one school, some of
the photographs generated considerable conict, and Kaplan reports
that he was left with a sense that the schools senior management
was unwilling or unable to acknowledge the value of students
perspectives which challenged existing structures of teaching and
learning (Kaplan 2008: 188).
9 uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
le dlerences among tbe studles descrlbed ln 8ox . are probably
more strlklng tban any commonalltles, not just ln terms or substantlve
rocus but also ln tbe metbods employed. Some or tbem lnvolve rorms or
partlclpant observatlon researcbers golng to partlcular soclal settlngs,
observlng and perbaps also taklng on a partlclpant role. Otbers rely
entlrely on lntervlews or on documentary evldence, or varylng klnds.
Also, some or tbe studles were concerned wltb portraylng an aspect or
tbe llves or tbe people concerned wblle otbers rocus on analyzlng rorms or
language-use or on expllcatlng tbe categorles cbaracterlstlc or a partlcular
culture.
So, tbe label qualltatlve researcb covers a beterogeneous eld.
Moreover, we cannot conclude tbat any reature sbared by two or more or
tbe studles llsted ls relevant to denlng qualltatlve researcb. lls ls true,
ror example, or tbe ract tbat a couple or tbem used tbe work or lerre
8ourdleu. wblle bls ldeas are currently very lnuentlal ln some quarters,
qualltatlve lnqulry draws on a very wlde range or tbeoretlcal perspectlves
tbat dler qulte sbarply rrom one anotber.
Te contrast with quantitative research
ln trylng to dene qualltatlve researcb, lt ls lmportant to remember tbat
all questlons, or all lnterpretatlons or tbem, lnvolve an lmpllclt or expllclt
rrame. ln tbe case or wbat ls: questlons, tbls relates to a typology or some
sort. sucb questlons are concerned wltb bow one type or tblng dlers rrom
sometblng else. And tbe most obvlous contrast ln tbls case, lndlcated ln
some or tbe denltlons l bave already quoted, ls. wbat ls qualltatlve, as
opposed ro quanr|rar|.e, researcb:
lls ls almost certalnly tbe prlmary contrast tbat determlnes tbe
meanlng or tbe pbrase qualltatlve researcb ln most contexts, tbougb
some bave suggested tbat lt ls unlnrormatlve (Crabame . (, Sllverman
zooo.,,), and otbers tbat lt ls unadventurous albelt necessary (lolllday
zooz. ). Yet, lr we know tbe reatures or quantltatlve researcb, tbls can belp
us to some degree ln ldentlrylng tbose or qualltatlve work, even lr lt does
not tell us all tbat we mlgbt wlsb to know. |urtbermore, tbls contrast ls
not just semantlcally prlmary but also reects tbe blstorlcal development
or qualltatlve lnqulry. lt emerged as a dlstlnct klnd or soclal sclence ln
competltlon wltb an already establlsbed tradltlon or quantltatlve metbod.
!0 wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
le label qualltatlve researcb began to be wldely used ln tbe oos to
ldentlry devlatlon rrom tbe quantltatlve rorms or researcb tbat were tben
domlnant. experlmental work ln soclal psycbology and some applled
elds, survey researcb ln soclology, polltlcal sclence, and otber areas, tbe
use or o clal statlstlcs, notably ln demograpby, economlcs, and bealtb
researcb, content analysls or medla materlal, and structured observatlon,
notably ln educatlon and crlmlnology. lt ls not tbat qualltatlve data bad
not been used prlor to tbls lndeed tbe development or speclc quan-
tltatlve metbods was rrequently motlvated by a commltment to replace
earller types or non-quantltatlve data tbat were judged to be sclentlcally
unsatlsractory. |or example, questlonnalres and tests were lntroduced as a
more e clent and rellable metbod or galnlng lnrormatlon about attltudes
and values tban tbe llre blstory lntervlews tbat bad prevlously been used
(Stouer ,o), predlctlve psycbologlcal tests were employed as an alter-
natlve to cllnlcal lntervlews by psycbologlsts (Meebl ,(), and structured
rorms or observatlon and lntervlewlng were used as a substltute ror more
open-ended rorms tbat ralled to produce standardlzed data (see latt
o, Cobo zo).
So, lt was tbrougb opposltlon to prevlously used unsclentlc metb-
ods tbat quanr|rar|.e work came to be rormulated as a dlstlnct, labeled
approacb. And lt lncreaslngly came to be presented as generally belng
commltted to.
n,pornes|s-resr|ng. An expllclt researcb deslgn ls developed at tbe
start or lnqulry, wblcb ls almed at testlng some set or bypotbeses.
lls ls done tbrougb operatlonallslng key varlables. ln otber words,
speclrylng tbe data tbat would be relevant to tbem, along wltb tbe
lnstruments needed to produce tbese data, as well as tbe rorm or
analysls to be employed.
1e use oj numer|ca| dara. Uata take tbe rorm or speclc counts or
lnstances or or ranklngs}measurements or objects accordlng to tbe
degree to wblcb tbey possess some reature. Measurement ls orten
treated as superlor to countlng and ranklng, and tbe ldeal ls to
employ scales modeled on tbose used ln natural sclence, sucb as ln
tbe measurement or temperature.
|rocedura| ooecr|.|r,. Countlng, ranklng and measurement
procedures must operate ln ways tbat are objectlve, ln tbe sense
tbat tbey are standardlzed. lls ls deslgned to rule out blas caused
!! uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
by tbe soclal and personal cbaracterlstlcs or tbe researcber, and to
enable cbecks on tbe operatlon or sucb blas tbrougb repllcatlon.
cenera||zar|on. Samples may be studled wltb a vlew to generallzlng
to some larger populatlon, and statlstlcal tecbnlques can be used to
maxlmlze tbe valldlty or tbe generallzatlon and to assess tbe cbances
or serlous error ln tbe process.
|denr|j,|ng s,sremar|c parrerns oj assoc|ar|on. Statlstlcal tecbnlques
are also used to descrlbe tbe patterns to be round ln tbe data, and
perbaps also to test tbe llkellbood tbat tbese could bave been tbe
product or random processes ratber tban or a systematlc causal
relatlonsblp.
conrro|||ng .ar|ao|es. lere ls usually an attempt to control varlables,
pbyslcally vla experlmental metbod or statlstlcally tbrougb cross-
case analysls or a large sample or populatlon. lls ls deslgned to
separate out wbat eects a treatment or causal varlable bas, on a
partlcular type or outcome, rrom tbe systematlc lnuence or otber
varlables tbat mlgbt lmpact on lt.
lt was ln tbe process or cballenglng tbe domlnance or quantltatlve
metbod, rormulated ln tbls way, tbat qualltatlve researcb ltselr came to
be rramed as a general style, approacb, or paradlgm (see, ror example,
|llstead ;o). lls cballenge was based upon a number or arguments,
lncludlng.
tbe lmportance or studylng wbat normally bappens ln tbe real
world, ratber tban wbat bappens under experlmental condltlons,
tbe need to ooser.e wbat bappens ratber tban to rely solely upon
respondents accounts ln rormal lntervlews or questlonnalres,
tbe need to allow people to speak ln tbelr own terms ln lntervlews lr
we are to be able to tbelr dlstlnctlve perspectlves,
tbe danger tbat quantlcatlon results ln tbe meanlng or central
concepts belng lost,
tbe concern tbat tbe klnd or varlable analysls employed by
quantltatlve researcbers lgnores tbe complex, contlngent and
context-sensltlve cbaracter or soclal llre, and tbe extent to wblcb
actlons and outcomes are produced by people |nrerprer|ng sltuatlons
ln dlverse ways, and actlng on tbe basls or tbese lnterpretatlons,
ratber tban passlvely respondlng to external causes.
understand
!z wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
ln llgbt or tbls contrast wltb quantltatlve soclal sclence, we can dene
qualltatlve researcb along tbe rollowlng llnes. a jorm oj soc|a| |nqu|r, rnar
rends ro adopr a ex|o|e and dara-dr|.en researcn des|gn ro use re|ar|.e|,
unsrrucrured dara ro empnas|ze rne essenr|a| ro|e oj suoecr|.|r, |n rne
researcn process ro srud, a sma|| numoer oj narura||, occurr|ng cases |n
dera|| and ro use .eroa| rarner rnan srar|sr|ca| jorms oj ana|,s|s. Lacb or
tbese reatures requlres rurtber elaboratlon.
A ex|o|e |nducr|.e aoducr|.e or dara-dr|.en or|enrar|on. Qualltatlve
researcbers place more empbasls on generatlng and developlng
descrlptlons and explanatlons tban upon testlng pre-dened
bypotbeses. lls means tbat a exlble researcb deslgn ls adopted,
ratber tban one ln wblcb a detalled plan ls lald out at tbe start or tbe
researcb and tben lmplemented. lls ls also reected at tbe stage
or analyzlng data, wbere tbe task ls to generate categorles ratber
tban to place data lnto pre-determlned ones. And tbe categorles
lnltlally developed tend to be open-ended and exlble ln cbaracter,
so tbat eacb data ltem can be asslgned to more tban one or tbem.
ln otber words, tbe categorles do not rorm a mutually excluslve and
exbaustlve set, at least not at tbe start or tbe analytlc process.
ke|ar|.e|, unsrrucrured k|nds oj dara are used. lere ls llttle pressure
to engage ln rormal countlng, ranklng, or measurement. |or example,
ln tbe case or observatlon, qualltatlve researcbers watcb carerully
wbat ls bappenlng, and orten try to wrlte concrete descrlptlons ln
natural language tbat capture relevant aspects or wbat ls observed
and or bow events unrold. Alternatlvely, or as a complement, audlo-
or vldeo-recordlng ls orten used, wltb transcrlpts belng produced
on tbe basls or tbese. Slmllarly, ln tbe case or lntervlews, qualltatlve
researcb typlcally lnvolves a relatlvely unstructured approacb wbere
tbe alm ls to lnvlte lnrormants to talk at lengtb about matters tbat
are broadly relevant to tbe researcb, wltb tbe lntervlewer rollowlng
up to encourage more elaboratlon, detall, or exempllcatlon wbere
necessary. Qualltatlve researcbers may also use documentary data,
sucb as o clal reports, newspapers and magazlnes, pbotograpbs,
maps, dlarles, and so on, wltbout seeklng to quantlry tbelr content
ln tbe manner or mucb content analysls. ln recent years, tbere bas
been a growtb ln tbe use or vlsual data, seeklng to counter tbe
more common rellance upon text. lere bas also been lncreaslng
!! uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
use or materlal avallable electronlcally on tbe lnternet. Qualltatlve
researcbers may also sometlmes e||c|r documentary data, ror example
asklng people to wrlte dlarles, produce drawlngs, take pbotograpbs,
make vldeos, etc.
:uoecr|.|r,. lere ls acceptance, perbaps even celebratlon, or tbe
ract tbat data, and lnrerences rrom tbem, are always sbaped by tbe
soclal and personal cbaracterlstlcs or tbe researcber. lt ls recognlzed
tbat lt ls lmposslble to ellmlnate tbe eect or tbese, and lndeed tbat
tbey may racllltate lnslgbt as well as leadlng to error. lt ls sometlmes
argued tbat reexlvlty tbe provlslon or detalled lnrormatlon about
tbe researcber and tbe researcb process can enable readers to
allow ror any eects or tbe researcbers cbaracterlstlcs, or or bow
tbe researcb was carrled out, tbat mlgbt obscure or tbreaten tbe
valldlty or tbe analysls. ln sbort, tbere ls opposltlon to tbe ldea tbat
researcb sbould be a standardlzed and lmpersonal process to any
requlrement tbat tbe personal be suppressed ln tbe name or sclence.
lowever, tbls does not necessarlly lmply opposltlon to tbe klnd or
concern wltb objectlvlty tbat requlres researcbers to assess and try to
counter potentlal tbreats to tbe valldlty or tbelr concluslons.
1e srud, oj narura| serr|ngs. Lxperlmental researcb creates settlngs,
ror example ln a laboratory, tbat are speclcally deslgned to allow
control over tbe treatment varlable and to rule out conroundlng
varlables. And mucb non-experlmental quantltatlve researcb relles
upon questlonnalres or rormal lntervlews tbat are structured wltb
tbe alm or standardlzlng tbe stlmull to wblcb respondents are
subjected, ln order to render responses comparable. 8y contrast,
most qualltatlve work lnvestlgates wbat goes on ln tbe ordlnary
settlngs ln wblcb people llve and work, and}or uses lntervlews
tbat are deslgned to approxlmate to ordlnary conversatlons ln key
respects.
:ma|| numoer oj cases srud|ed. Survey researcb generally studles large
samples ln order to generallze across many cases, and}or to provlde
enougb cases to employ comparatlve analysls so as to control
varlables. 8y contrast, qualltatlve lnqulry orten lnvolves lnvestlgatlon
or a small number or naturally occurrlng cases, perbaps just one.
lls stems rrom lnslstence on tbe need ror ln-deptb examlnatlon
or eacb case, ln order to document complexlty. Also lnvolved ls tbe
argument tbat eacb reature or a case can only be understood wltbln
tbe context or tbat case, because reatures wlll sbape one anotber,
ratber tban bavlng pre-determlned and xed cbaracters. lere ls
opposltlon, tben, to tbe tendency ln quantltatlve researcb to rely
upon data tbat bave been extracted rrom tbelr local contexts, ror
example questlonnalre responses wbose relatlonsblp to peoples llves
ls uncertaln. |urtbermore, ln-deptb lnvestlgatlon or cases allows tbe
cbecklng or lnterpretatlons tbrougb comparlson or data or dlerent
klnds, ror example tbat rrom observatlon wltb tbat rrom lntervlews,
or accounts rrom dlerent lnrormants. lls ls rarely posslble ln
surveys.
veroa| rarner rnan srar|sr|ca| ana|,s|s oj dara. le predomlnant mode
or analysls ls verbal descrlptlon and lnterpretatlon, supported by
lllustratlve or evocatlve examples. Sucb descrlptlons are sometlmes
seen as slmultaneously rullllng tbe runctlons or explanatlon, as
ror example wltb tbe notlon or tblck or tbeoretlcal descrlptlon
(see Ceertz ;,, lammersley z. cb.). |or lnstance, qualltatlve
researcbers are rrequently concerned wltb dlscoverlng wblcb ractors
tend to produce some outcome, or wbat tbe typlcal consequences
or some event or type or actlon are, and tbey seek to do tbls tbrougb
descrlblng ln detall cbanges ln a small number or cases studled
over tlme. le approacb bere ls qulte slmllar to tbat employed by
blstorlans, wbo produce narratlve accounts or tbe events leadlng
up to some outcome tbey are lnterested ln explalnlng. Qualltatlve
researcbers may also compare one or more cases ln order to try to
assess wblcb or several ractors lnvolved seem to play tbe cruclal role
ln tbe sort or soclal processes belng lnvestlgated.
8y no means all or wbat ls currently labeled qualltatlve researcb would
sbare a|| or tbe reatures llsted bere, tbougb mucb or lt would dlsplay mosr
or tbem. lere may also be otber reatures tbat some qualltatlve researcb-
ers would regard as essentlal. ln addltlon, lt ls necessary to recognlze tbat
tbere are studles tbat como|ne quantltatlve and qualltatlve reatures, some
belng expllcltly labeled mlxed metbods studles,
z
tbougb usually one or
otber type or metbod plays tbe domlnant role (8ryman zoo;). lus, wblle
numerlcal data and analysls are employed ln some qualltatlve studles,
tbls ls subordlnated to tbe central use or relatlvely unstructured data and
verbal rorms or analysls.
z On mlxed metbods, see 1asbakkorl and 1eddlle (zoo).
! uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
Methods or paradigms?
lavlng outllned tbe dlstlngulsblng reatures or quantltatlve and qualltatlve
approacbes to soclal researcb, we need to glve some attentlon next to tbe
questlon or tbe proper relatlonsblp between tbem. lls bas been a matter
ror debate and we can ldentlry two sbarply contrastlng posltlons, tbougb
tbere ls space ror otbers between tbese. |lrst, tbere are tbose wbo argue
tbat qualltatlve and quantltatlve approacbes are slmply two sets or metb-
ods eacb or wblcb ls approprlate ror tackllng dlstlnctlve klnds or researcb
questlon, and}or tbat can contrlbute complementary rorms or evldence ln
addresslng tbe same lssue. lere tbe empbasls ls on cbooslng tbe metbod,
or comblnatlon or metbods, tbat ls t ror purpose. At tbe otber extreme
are tbose wbo argue tbat qualltatlve and quantltatlve approacbes lnvolve
dlvergent assumptlons about tbe nature or tbe world, bow (or even
wbetber) we can galn knowledge or lt, and tbe purpose or lnqulry. On tbls
basls, lt ls argued tbat tbey are lncompatlble, and perbaps even tbat only
one or tbem ls valld or legltlmate, or, alternatlvely, tbey may be treated as
eacb belng valld ln lts own terms, so tbat researcbers must make a cbolce
between tbe two, perbaps as a matter or personal taste, analogous to bow
artlsts cboose one style over anotber, or ln tbe manner tbat people come
to commlt to a partlcular rellglon or to none (Scbrodt zooo).
lt ls probably tbe case tbat most qualltatlve researcbers today adopt tbe
second or tbese two broad vlews. tbey regard quantltatlve and qualltatlve
as lncompatlble approacbes, wltb tbe latter judged superlor.
!
At tbe same
tlme, tbere bave always been tbose wbo bave adopted a posltlon closer to
tbe rst vlew (see, ror lnstance, 1row ,; and Sleber ;,), and ln recent
tlmes tbe ldea or mlxlng qualltatlve and quantltatlve metbods bas galned
lncreaslng lnuence (8ryman zoosb).
A dierent contrast
Wblle tbe contrast wltb quantltatlve work ls tbe most obvlous rrame
wltbln wblcb to answer tbe questlon wbat ls qualltatlve researcb:, otbers
are posslble, and wlll on occaslon be relevant. So, ror example, we could
ask bow qualltatlve lnqulry dlers rrom journallsm, rrom otber klnds
, lere are elds wbere tbls ls not tbe case, notably polltlcal sclence wbere qualltatlve
case study work bas been promoted as an lmportant comp|emenr to quantltatlve
metbod (see 8rady and Colller zoo(, Maboney and Coertz zooo).
or non-ctlon wrltlng, or even rrom lmaglnatlve llterature. lus, bow
does 1appers (zooo) antbropologlcal study or Argbanlstan dler rrom
Selerstads (zooz) 1e 8ookse||er oj kaou|, wblcb ls also prlmarlly concerned
wltb tbe nature or marrlage and ramlly llre ln tbat country: Slmllarly, bow
does 8urords () journallstlc account or bls encounters wltb rootball
tbugs relate to Armstrongs (s) soclologlcal account or soccer rans and
tbe vlolence ln wblcb tbey are sometlmes lnvolved: As we sball see, tbe
relatlonsblp between qualltatlve researcb and tbese otber rorms or wrlt-
lng bas become lncreaslngly central to tbe way ln wblcb some qualltatlve
researcbers tblnk about tbe enterprlse ln wblcb tbey are engaged.
ln tbe past, qualltatlve researcbers usually sougbt to draw a sbarp
dlstlnctlon between tbelr work and tbat or journallsts and novellsts, and
some stlll do. lere, ror example, ls Armstrongs commentary on 8urords
book.
[tbls] supposedly ractual account [], translated lnto (o languages,
ls a selr-aggrandlslng journey amongst rans wbo obvlously wondered
wby tbls (o-year-old Amerlcan was ln tbelr mldst. le autbor,
ln pursult or ttlng ln wltb bls subjects, admlts to pusblng two
pensloners down a rallway statlon stalrcase wblle abuslng tbem,
sucb was bls supposed metbod actlng. lls conrused man produced
a poor book tbat was more ctlonal tban a novel, 8urord rortunately
dld not spend too mucb tlme wltb bls boollgans, and tbe account
ls more about narclsslstlc contemplatlons tban about tbe tbugs
apparently representatlve or a country or llttle sblts. Wltb tbls state
or play tbe questlon could be ralsed as to wbat else tbere ls tbat
a reader needs to know on tbe subject: lr tbey wlll bear wltb me
l belleve wbat rollows ls dlerent, comblnlng, as lt does, rst-band
accounts wltb a tbeoretlcal explanatlon. (Armstrong s. zo)
lere are multlple accusatlons bere. tbat 8urords account ls not accurate,
tbat tbls stems rrom tbe ract tbat be was not able to t ln wltb and be
accepted by tbe soccer rans be was studylng, (by lronlc lmpllcatlon) tbat
be dld not spend long enougb wltb tbem to galn tbe necessary under-
standlng, tbat be bad tbe wrong attltude (selr-aggrandlzlng, narclsslstlc)
and was conrused, and tbat be ralls to provlde a tbeoretlcal explanatlon.
4
( lt ls also suggested tbat 8urords bebavlour was unetblcal, but l wlll leave tbls on
one slde bere. On etblcal lssues ln qualltatlve researcb, see lammersley and 1ralanou
(zoz).
!7 uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
Many qualltatlve researcbers would also argue tbat a dlstlnctlve reature
or tbelr work ls tbat lt ls based upon tbe systematlc collectlon, recordlng,
and analysls or data. lowever, non-ctlon wrlters and even novellsts orten
carry out background researcb ln order to try to make tbelr accounts
accurate, or at least plauslble. |or example Selerstad spent several
montbs llvlng ln kabul, bavlng prevlously served as a reporter elsewbere
ln Argbanlstan coverlng tbe war. |urtbermore, sbe notes tbat wblle sbe
bad to rely upon just tbree members or tbe ramlly wltb wbom sbe llved
as ber lnterpreters and major lnrormants, sbe double-cbecked tbe varlous
verslons and asked tbe same questlons or all tbree [] wbo between tbem
represented tbe large contrasts wltbln tbe ramlly (Selerstad zooz. ,).

lere ls clearly at least some attentlon bere to tbe rellablllty or ber data
and concluslons, even lr tbese may not meet tbe requlrements or soclal
sclence. And wblle 8urords eldwork may bave been lnadequate rrom
Armstrongs polnt or vlew, be spent a conslderable amount or tlme wltb
rans ln many locatlons.
ln ract, wbat Armstrong seems to object to most strongly ls 8urords
negatlve evaluatlons or soccer rans. lt ls a central reature or some
qualltatlve researcb tbat an appreclatlve (Matza o) stance ls adopted
towards tbe people belng studled, especlally wben tbey are vllled or
marglnallsed wltbln tbe wlder soclety. Sometlmes tbls ls seen as a matter
or wbose slde are we on:, tbougb ln ract tbe artlcle tbat ramously ralsed
tbls questlon (8ecker o;) does not argue ror sldlng wltb tbe underdog.
katber, lt lnslsts on tbe need to avold evaluatlons or tbe people, actlons,
lnstltutlons, etc belng studled, and on tbe requlrement to document tbe
perspectlves or all partles, wblle taklng tbe valldlty or none or tbese at race
value (lammersley zooo. cb.,). Moreover, lt sbould be sald tbat, ln ract,
an appreclatlve stance ls rarely adopted as a conslstent pollcy by quallta-
tlve researcbers today across all tbe types or people tbey study. lndeed
Armstrong blmselr engages ln evaluatlon, ror example labelllng some press
coverage or rootball vlolence bysterlcal (Armstrong s. ,), and crltlclz-
lng rootball clubs ror mllklng rans ror prot (Armstrong s. ,o).
Anotber dlerence tbat may be beld to dlstlngulsb qualltatlve researcb
rrom journallsm and lmaglnatlve llterature concerns tbe rorm or wrltlng
, le bookseller wbose ramlly Selerstad studled subsequently read tbe book
and mounted a prosecutlon or tbe autbor. See. bttp.}}www.guardlan.co.uk}
tbeguardlan}zoo}jul},}bookseller-or-kabul-lntervlew-asne-selerstad
employed. lus, ln ber study or marrlage and ramlly ln Argbanlstan, 1apper
adopts a ralrly conventlonal soclal sclentlc mode or exposltlon, wbereas
Selerstad descrlbes ber wrltlng as llterary (zoo(. ,), deploylng a story-
telllng style, and one tbat ls addressed to a general readersblp ratber
tban to a more speclallzed soclal sclence one. Mucb tbe same ls true
lr we compare tbe books or 8urord and Armstrong. le rst autbor
concentrates on telllng a story about bls varlous encounters wltb rootball
rans, wbereas Armstrong seeks systematlcally to locate tbe data rrom bls
partlclpant observatlon wltbln a broader plcture or tbe soclal organlzatlon
or soccer clubs, as well as cbanges ln leglslatlon and pollclng ln tbe Unlted
klngdom relatlng to rootball vlolence.
lowever, tbese are dlerences or degree, tbey do not represent a
dlcbotomy, and tbere are ractors worklng to blur any dlerence between
soclal sclence and journallsm ln tbe mode or wrltlng employed. One or
tbese ls tbat ln recent years tbere bas been pressure on soclal sclentlsts
to maxlmlze tbe dlssemlnatlon or tbelr ndlngs, alongslde a growlng
commltment among some or tbem to publlc soclology (8urawoy zoo,)
or clvlc soclology (Wacquant zoo). An eect or tbls bas been to encour-
age a move towards rorms or reportlng tbat are closer ln cbaracter to
tbose or journallsts and non-ctlon wrlters. lndeed, tbere bave been stud-
les by academlc soclal sclentlsts tbat bave deployed a storytelllng mode
or presentatlon tbat ls qulte slmllar to tbat or Selerstad and 8urord. An
example ls venkatesbs (zoos) lnvestlgatlon or Cblcago gangs, ln wblcb be
beglns by recountlng bow be set out rrom tbe campus or tbe Unlverslty
or Cblcago to do researcb ln tbe predomlnantly black and poor commu-
nlty or Woodlawn nearby, stumbllng lnto a bouse tbat was controlled
by one or tbe local drug gangs. Wbere some qualltatlve researcb studles
begln wltb descrlptlve narratlve or tbls klnd, subsequently sblrtlng to a
more academlc mode, or more generally lntersperse narratlve data wltb
soclologlcal analysls (see, ror example, Uunelers :||ms 1ao|e, wblcb ls
set ln more or less tbe same communlty), venkatesbs book contlnues
tbrougbout ln tbe same narratlve mode. lts subtltle, A kogue :oc|o|og|sr
crosses rne L|ne more or less sums up lts content.
Anotber posslble answer to tbe questlon or tbe dlstlnctlveness or
qualltatlve researcb ln tbls context would, or course, be tbat lt ls sclentlc,
wbereas journallsm and (even more obvlously) novel-wrltlng are not.
8ut tbls ralses tbe rraugbt questlon or wbat tbe term sclentlc means
ln tbls context. Moreover, ln recent years many qualltatlve researcbers
!9 uen|ng qua||rar|.e researcn
bave become more uncertaln about wbetber tbey are engaged ln sclence,
and wbat tbls entalls. lndeed, some bave rejected tbls asplratlon, appeal-
lng lnstead to models rrom tbe bumanltles and tbe arts. As part or
tbls, tbe parallels between tbe rbetorlcal styles employed ln qualltatlve
lnqulry and tbose used by botb non-ctlon wrlters and novellsts bave
been noted (Atklnson s, and o, 8rown s). |urtbermore, some
qualltatlve researcbers bave turned to produclng ctlons, poetry, and
drama as researcb reports (see Lllls and 8ocbner o, klcbardson and
St. lerre zoo,, |aulkner zoo). lere bas also been lncreaslng lnterest ln
llre blstory, blograpblcal metbods, and autoetbnograpby, wblcb ln recent
years bave been taken ln dlrectlons tbat bave very close relatlons to llter-
ary rorms or blograpby and autoblograpby (lummer zoo, 8ocbner and
Lllls zooz, Lllls zoo(). A parallel development bas been tbe move among
some qualltatlve researcbers to vlsual or multl-modal metbods, ln some
cases dellberately blurrlng any dlstlnctlon between tbelr researcb and
vlsual art rorms.
6
ln sbort, many qualltatlve researcbers bave eltber aban-
doned tbe model or sclence expllcltly or lmpllcltly or bave sougbt to
relnterpret lt ln mucb broader and more dlverse terms (see Uenzln and
Llncoln zo.o).
8y contrast wltb tbese developments ln tbe qualltatlve tradltlon, quan-
tltatlve researcbers bave generally remalned unequlvocally commltted to
tbe sclentlc model, relylng upon relatlvely tradltlonal lnterpretatlons or
tbls. As a result, tbe sblrt ln orlentatlon among qualltatlve researcbers just
mentloned bas not only made any dlerence barder to dellneate between
tbelr work and non-ctlon wrltlng and journallsm, and even lmaglnatlve
llterature or art, but bas also lncreased tbe dlvergence between qualltatlve
and quantltatlve approacbes.
Summary
ln tbls openlng cbapter l bave outllned tbe dlverslty or qualltatlve researcb,
and tbe dl cultles tbls creates ror produclng a denltlon or lt. lowever,
l oered one tbat llsted some common reatures or tbls klnd or work by
contrast wltb quantltatlve approacbes ln terms or speclc practlces
o |or dlscusslons or tbe development or vlsual metbods, see 8anks (zoo), Lmmlson
and Smltb (zooo), lnk (zoo;), and kose (zoo;). On multl-modal metbods, see Ulcks
(zooo) and lnk (zoo).
z0 wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
relatlng to researcb deslgn and tbe collectlon and analysls or data. l also
noted tbat wblle qualltatlve researcbers bave tradltlonally sougbt to
draw a sbarp dlstlnctlon between tbelr work and tbat or journallsts and
novellsts, ln recent decades some bave stressed tbe slmllarltles lnstead. As
part or tbls, tbey bave rejected or relnterpreted tbe model or sclence, tbus
lncreaslng tbe dlerences between tbelr approacb and tbat or quantltatlve
researcbers. Or course, tbe key questlon ls wn, do qualltatlve researcb-
ers tend to work ln very dlerent ways rrom quantltatlve researcbers:
One answer ls tbat tbe two approacbes bave been sbaped by dlvergent
metbodologlcal pbllosopbles. ln tbe next cbapter, we wlll explore some or
tbese.
z!
2 Methodological philosophies
lls cbapter wlll look at some or tbe pbllosopblcal ldeas tbat bave sbaped
tbe practlce and development or qualltatlve researcb, and tbat contlnue
to do so. lese ldeas, wblcb relate to tbe nature or tbe soclal world
(ontology), bow knowledge or lt ls posslble (eplstemology), and to tbe
purpose(s) or lnqulry (wblcb mlgbt be seen as an aspect or polltlcs), can
be complex and dl cult. lowever, lt ls lmportant to understand tbem.
|ollowlng on rrom tbe prevlous cbapter, a userul startlng polnt ls to
note tbat quantltatlve soclal sclence was, and ln some respects contlnues
to be, strongly lnuenced by one partlcular set or vlews about soclal
researcb metbodology, tbat bave long been rererred to as posltlvlsm. Not
surprlslngly, perbaps, lt ls common to nd qualltatlve researcbers rejectlng
posltlvlsm and contrastlng tbelr own metbodologlcal ldeas wltb lt. artly
as a result, tbe meanlng or tbls term bas become largely negatlve lt ls
used almost excluslvely as a means or dlsmlsslng otber approacbes. lus,
very rew quantltatlve researcbers today would actually call tbemselves
posltlvlsts. le sense or tbe term posltlvlsm bas also become dlsplaced,
as a result or tbe ract tbat, ln many substantlve elds or soclal enqulry, a
sequence or new qualltatlve approacbes bave appeared over tlme, eacb
one denounclng tbelr predecessors as posltlvlst. lus, an lnuentlal
current lnterpretatlon applles tbe term to anyone wbo belleves tbat tbere
are trutbs tbat can be dlscovered about a common reallty. An example
ls lummers (zoo. x) selr-crltlque or tbe tblnly dlsgulsed posltlvlstlc
concern wltb gettlng at tbe trutb tbat cbaracterlzed tbe rst edltlon or bls
own book on llre blstory metbod (lummer s,).
Over tbe past rew decades, tben, tbere bas been a dlverslcatlon or
qualltatlve researcb lnto competlng verslons, ln large part due to tbe lnu-
ence or metbodologlcal pbllosopbles tbat stand opposed to posltlvlsm,
and also as a result or tbe ract tbat tbese alternatlves are ln conlct wltb
one anotber ln lmportant respects. ln tbls cbapter l wlll examlne tbese
pbllosopbles under tbe broad beadlngs or lnterpretlvlsm, crltlcal researcb,
zz wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
and constructlonlsm. lowever, we need to begln at tbe beglnnlng, wltb
posltlvlsm.
!
Positivism
Wblle tbe meanlng or tbe word posltlvlsm bas become contextually
varlable, and almost always negatlve, we can nevertbeless recover some
lmportant elements or lts orlglnal sense, and tbese are wortb remember-
lng. le word was lnvented by tbe |rencb pbllosopber Auguste Comte,
and became tbe rocus ror a major lntellectual lndeed a rellglous move-
ment ln |rance, and to some degree elsewbere (lckerlng ,, Cbarlton
,, Wrlgbt so). |or Comte, wrltlng ln tbe early nlneteentb century,
posltlvlsm was tbe modern sclentlc outlook tbat was ln tbe process or
replaclng prevlously domlnant supernatural ways or tblnklng about tbe
world. And be developed a comprebenslve vlew or tbe nature or sclence,
and or tbe proper relatlonsblps among tbe varlous sclences. lowever,
tbe most lnuentlal verslon or posltlvlsm ror twentletb-century soclal
sclence was a largely separate development ln tbe zos and ,os, wbat
came to be called loglcal posltlvlsm or loglcal emplrlclsm (kolakowskl
;z, lalrpenny sz, 8ryant s,).
z
erbaps tbe most lmportant reature
or posltlvlsm was tbat lt took natural sclence, as developed ln tbe West
rrom tbe seventeentb century onwards, as tbe prlme or only model ror
lnqulry and knowledge. ln tbls respect, lt bullt upon central strands or
elgbteentb-century Lnllgbtenment tbougbt, altbougb tbe sources or tbese
can be traced back even earller (see Olson ,).
lt ls partlcularly slgnlcant tbat loglcal posltlvlsm generally took pbys-
lcs as lts model ror sclence. lls bad several consequences. One was tbat
sclentlc knowledge was seen as general and abstract ln rorm. conslstlng
lere are no beglnnlngs, or course, and lt ls lmportant to remember tbat posltlvlsm
ltselr developed out or a reactlon agalnst earller ldeas, notably tbose relatlng to natural
law, see dLntreves (,(), Slgmund (;), ortls (so), and lammersley (z). le
labels ror alternatlve pbllosopbles l bave used bere, wblle ln common currency, are
by no means tbe only ones avallable. My dlscusslon wlll, bowever, cover most or tbe
lnuentlal pbllosopblcal ldeas tbat bave sbaped qualltatlve researcb.
z lere were a varlety or lnterpretatlons or natural sclence metbod ln tbe nlneteentb
and twentletb centurles, and some or tbese speclcally dlstanced tbemselves rrom
posltlvlsm. ley lnclude, amongst many otbers, tbe crltlcal ratlonallsm or opper (see
Albert s,), and tbe crltlcal reallsm or larre and 8baskar (see keat and Urry s,,
Sayer zooo).
z! Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
or laws tbat capture relatlons operatlng across all tlmes and places. le
empbasls, tben, was upon tbe need ror researcb to abstract rrom tbe study
or partlcular sltuatlons to produce sucb general knowledge. As a result,
tbere was a tendency ror blstorlcal cbange and cultural varlatlon to be
treated as mere appearances tbat can be explalned only by an analysls or
underlylng, unlversal causal relatlons.
!
Newtons pbyslcs, wltb lts ldentl-
catlon or a small set or prlnclples tbat govern tbe bebavlour or all pbyslcal
objects, wbetber ln tbe beavens or on eartb, was a key exemplar ln tbls
respect.
Anotber lmpllcatlon tbat rollowed rrom taklng pbyslcs as a model was
tbe requlrement tbat all knowledge must be grounded ln sense experlence
tbat ls subjected to metbodlcal control. lls led many soclal sclentlsts to
lnslst on tbe need ror rlgorous measurement or pbenomena, on tbe model
or tbe measurement or pbyslcal attrlbutes llke lengtb or temperature.
Also empbaslzed was tbe need ror experlmental control or varlables to
test bypotbeses. |urtbermore, tbe notlon or metbod was taken to mean
expllclt procedures, wltb tbe lmpllcatlon tbat tbe concluslons reacbed
would be tbe same wboever carrled out tbe researcb, lrrespectlve or varla-
tlon ln tbelr soclal, cultural, or personal cbaracterlstlcs. a notlon tbat came
to be rererred to as procedural objectlvlty (Llsner z, see also Newell
so).
4
kuled out bere are appeals to lntultlon, or to rorms or expertlse
tbat are unlque to a partlcular person or type or person. kellance upon
expllclt or transparent procedures was also seen as provldlng tbe basls ror
otber researcbers to repllcate an lnltlal study. And repllcatlon was regarded
by many posltlvlsts as essentlal ln order to test wbetber tbe knowledge
produced ls sound, preclsely to sbow tbat lt bad not been aected by tbe
subjectlvlty or tbe researcber.
Central to posltlvlsm was a rerusal to extend knowledge clalms beyond
tbose tbat could be rully supported by evldence or tbls klnd, an attltude
tbat bas sometlmes been glven tbe closely related label emplrlclsm.
lndeed, tbe two words posltlvlsm and emplrlclsm are orten treated
as synonyms. lls klnd or emplrlclsm bad two lmportant lmpllcatlons.
|lrst, lt ruled out tbose areas or lnqulry tbat were seen as oerlng no
prospect or emplrlcal evldence or tbe requlred klnd. lese lncluded not
, lnterestlngly, tbls was at odds wltb tbe outlook or Comte, see Scbar (,).
( |or evldence tbat tbls developed only slowly and by no means stralgbtrorwardly ln
natural sclence see Sbapln (() and Uaston and Carrlson (zoo;).
just tbeology and etblcs,
but also sometlmes soclal sclence too, slnce

some posltlvlsts belleved tbat knowledge ls avallable only at tbe level or
tbe descrlptlon or pbyslcal bebavlour, ln tbe manner or psycbologlcal
bebavlourlsm, so tbat any appeal to lntentlons, attltudes, and tbougbts,
etc., or to unobservable entltles llke soclal lnstltutlons, was judged to be
beyond tbe reacb or rlgorous analysls.
Secondly, emplrlclsm lnslsts tbat even ln tbose elds wbere knowledge
|s judged to be posslble, researcb must be strlctly llmlted to questlons ror
wblcb tbe necessary klnd or evldence ls currently avallable. Speculatlon
knowledge clalms not eectlvely supported by sucb evldence must be
avolded.
lere bas, bowever, been varlatlon ln wbat we mlgbt call tbe severlty
or tbe emplrlclsm adopted by posltlvlsts, ln otber words ln bow narrowly
tbey dene tbe domaln or legltlmate evldence, and ln tbe restrlctlons tbey
place upon wbat klnds or lnrerence can be used to draw justled conclu-
slons. As we bave already seen, a very strlngent verslon, modeled on pbys-
lcs, lnslsted tbat tbe only legltlmate data are tbose produced by expllcltly
dened procedures deslgned to measure observable pbenomena tbat can
be subjected to experlmental manlpulatlon, wltb tbe only valld product
belng unlversal laws. On tbls basls, not just qualltatlve, but also most
quantltatlve, soclal sclence would be ruled out as unsclentlc, slnce lt ls
unable to apply tbe strong rorm or measurement cbaracterlstlc or natural
sclence, can use only non-experlmental deslgns, and at best produces only
low-level, probablllstlc generallzatlons. Not surprlslngly, most quantltatlve
researcbers bave adopted a more llberal denltlon or sclentlc metbod,
one tbat legltlmates varlous klnds or approx|mar|on to tbe pbyslcs model
ln tbese tbree respects.
|urtbermore, lt sbould be stressed tbat tbere ls no automatlc connec-
tlon between posltlvlsm and tbe use or quantltatlve metbods. |or one
tblng, many quantltatlve researcbers deny tbat tbey are posltlvlsts (see,
ror example, Marsb ;). Conversely, we sbould note tbat emplrlclsm bad
an lmportant lnuence on tbe early development or qua||rar|.e metbods,
albelt usually relnrorced by otber lnuences. lus, modern antbropology
ls orten dated rrom Mallnowskls lnslstence tbat etbnograpbers must
collect tbelr own data tbrougb dlrect observatlon ratber tban relylng upon
, values came to be lnterpreted by many posltlvlsts as no more tban expresslons or
emotlonal attltude ror or agalnst sometblng.
z Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
travellers tales, and tbe lnuence upon blm or posltlvlst ldeas bas been
documented (Leacb ,;). We can also see tbe eect or emplrlclsm today
not just ln tbe contlnulng commltment or etbnograpbers to partlclpant
observatlon, to belng tbere (Ceertz ss), but also ln tbelr relt need to
carerully record data, wbetber vla eldnotes or transcrlptlon or electronlc
recordlngs, to cbeck tbe testlmony rrom lnrormants, and to provlde
evldence ln tbelr researcb reports. Moreover, some qualltatlve researcb-
ers, especlally dlscourse analysts, lnslst tbat data must be audlo- or vldeo
recorded, on tbe grounds tbat tbls provldes a more accurate and detalled
record tban eldnotes, tbat tbese recordlngs must be transcrlbed ln order
to capture not just wnar was sald but also now lt was sald, and tbat all
tbe data sbould be made avallable to readers so as to allow repllcatlon
or tbe analysls (erkyl zoo,). Alongslde tbls, tbey rrequently lnslst tbat
tbe analysls must not go beyond tbe data, perbaps even tbat lt sbould be
restrlcted to wbat ls observable |n tbe data (Scbeglo ;).
lt ls easy to rorget bow radlcal an orlentatlon posltlvlsm was ln earller
tlmes, and bow radlcal lt stlll ls today ln some contexts. lt cballenges rell-
glous clalms to knowledge about tbe world, varlous klnds or speculatlve
pbllosopby tbat do not pay close attentlon to wbat could be warranted by
emplrlcal evldence, and even any appeal to wbat ls obvlous ln common-
sense terms. lt was orten promoted as a levelllng orlentatlon tbat opens
up knowledge to anyone wllllng and able to employ sclentlc metbod, and
we can see tbls ln current arguments about tbe lmportance or evldence-
based practlce ln medlclne and otber elds (ror lnstance Oakley zooo).
|urtbermore, posltlvlsm orten lnvolved tbe expectatlon tbat sclence,
lncludlng tbe buman sclences, would pave tbe way ror substantlal soclal
and polltlcal progress. by undermlnlng bellers and practlces tbat were
based solely on partlal lnterests, superstltlon or tradltlon (rolk wlsdom),
replaclng tbese wltb ones rounded on sclentlc evldence tbat (lt was
belleved) would be ln everyones lnterests. le role or natural sclence
ln stlmulatlng tecbnologlcal progress ln tbe elgbteentb and nlneteentb
centurles was taken as conrmlng tbls vlslon.
ln sbort, tben, posltlvlsm bad conslderable lnuence upon soclal
researcbers over tbe course or tbe rst balr or tbe twentletb century. lt
stlmulated tbe emergence or quantltatlve metbod, but aspects or lt
also sbaped early rorms or qualltatlve work, and lt contlnues to bave a
subterranean lnuence even today, especlally wbere lt ls relnrorced by
otber metbodologlcal pbllosopbles. lowever, ln tbe second part or tbe
twentletb century tbere was lncreaslng crltlclsm or posltlvlst ldeas, wltb
varlous alternatlve pbllosopbles belng promoted. Some or tbese were
almost as old as posltlvlsm ltselr. one or tbe earllest was wbat bas been
called lnterpretlvlsm.
Interpretivism
le conlct between posltlvlst and lnterpretlvlst ldeas can be traced back
lnto tbe nlneteentb century. At tbls tlme, especlally ln Cermany, tbere
developed lnuentlal arguments to tbe eect tbat a dlstlnctlve klnd or
sclentlc metbod ls requlred ln studylng blstory and tbe soclal sclences,
one tbat ls very dlerent rrom tbat cbaracterlstlc or pbyslcs and tbe otber
natural sclences (see lammersley s. cb.). Along tbese llnes, lnterpre-
tlvlsts argued tbat ln studylng tbe soclal world lt ls essentlal to draw upon
our buman capaclty to understand rellow buman belngs rrom tbe lnslde
tbrougb empatby, sbared experlence and culture, etc ratber tban
solely rrom tbe outslde ln tbe way tbat we are rorced to try to explaln tbe
bebavlour or pbyslcal objects. One or tbe several words ror understand-
lng avallable ln tbe Cerman language versteben came to be used to
rerer to tbls capaclty. lndeed, lt was orten argued tbat versteben provldes
deeper knowledge or buman pbenomena tban we can ever galn or tbe
pbyslcal world (1ruzzl ;(, Outbwalte ;o, lausbeer o, larrlngton
zooo).
lnterpretlvlsm was orten assoclated wltb an lnslstence on tbe runda-
mental dlerences ln nature between tbe pbenomena lnvestlgated by
tbe natural sclences and tbose studled by blstorlans and soclal sclentlsts.
le key dlerence ls tbat people unllke atoms, cbemlcals, and even
most non-buman rorms or llre actlvely lnterpret or make sense or tbelr
envlronment and or tbemselves, tbat tbe ways ln wblcb tbey do tbls are
sbaped by tbe partlcular cultures ln wblcb tbey llve, and tbat tbese dlstlnc-
tlve cultural orlentatlons wlll strongly lnuence not only wbat tbey belleve
but also wbat tbey do. lus, dlverse ways or llre, and assoclated bellers
about tbe world, can be round, botb at dlerent polnts ln blstory and
coexlstlng (peacerully or ln conlct) at any one tlme across varlous soclet-
les, and even wltbln tbe same soclety. le task or tbe soclal sclentlst, rrom
tbe lnterpretlvlst polnt or vlew, ls to document tbese cultures, and perbaps
also tbelr sources and consequences. lowever, as already lndlcated, lt ls
belleved tbat tbls cannot be done tbrougb tbe klnd or sclence advocated
z7 Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
by posltlvlsts. lnstead, researcbers must try to understand otber cultures
by suspendlng tbelr own cultural assumptlons as rar as tbls ls posslble, and
learnlng tbe ways or tblnklng and reellng, and modes or actlon, cbaracter-
lstlc or tbe culture tbey are lnvestlgatlng.
We can see, tben, bow lnterpretlvlsm rejects central tenets or posltlvlsm.
lnterpretlvlsts argue tbat we cannot understand wby people do wbat tbey
do, or wby partlcular lnstltutlons exlst and operate ln cbaracterlstlc ways,
wltbout grasplng bow people lnterpret and make sense or tbelr world
and act on tbelr lnterpretatlons. ln otber words, wltbout understandlng
tbe dlstlnctlve cultural cbaracter or tbelr bellers, attltudes, and practlces,
bow tbese bave developed over tlme, and}or bow tbey ongolngly gener-
ate tbe soclal world. Moreover, to acbleve tbls understandlng, we must
draw upon our own soclal experlence or capaclty ror learnlng, ratber
tban seeklng to acbleve procedural objectlvlty. And, rrom tbls polnt or
vlew, any attempt to nd unlversal causal relatlonsblps grounded ln some
xed buman nature or rorm or soclety ls rutlle. lnstead, tbe prlmary rocus
must be on trylng to understand partlcular people and events ln speclc
soclo-blstorlcal clrcumstances. lls ls sometlmes labeled as an ldlograpblc
rocus, as agalnst posltlvlsms concern wltb nomotbetlc knowledge wltb
knowledge or unlversal, tlmeless laws.
One lnterpretlvlst way or tblnklng about tbe klnd or understandlng
requlred ln soclal sclence derlves rrom bermeneutlcs. lls bad lts orlglns
ln attempts to declpber tbe meanlngs conveyed by anclent texts, sucb
as tbose or tbe Creeks and tbe komans and blbllcal sources. |or some
blstorlans and soclal sclentlsts ln tbe nlneteentb century, tbls dlsclpllne
became tbe model ror tbe soclo-blstorlcal sclences, and tbls contlnued
long lnto tbe twentletb-century (almer o, 1aylor s,. cb.). |or
example, ln a ramous cbaracterlzatlon or tbe task or etbnograpby, tbe
antbropologlst Cllord Ceertz (;,. o) descrlbed lt as amountlng to
constructlng a readlng or a manuscrlpt tbat ls rorelgn, raded, and rull
or elllpses, lncoberencles, susplclous emendatlons and tendentlous
commentarles.
Anotber lmportant strand or tblnklng wltbln lnterpretlvlsm derlves
rrom tbe pbenomenologlcal movement ln pbllosopby. lls argued tbat
all knowledge or tbe world, lncludlng sclence, ls grounded ln processes
or lmmedlate experlence, and tbat tbese processes need to be subjected
to carerul descrlptlon. Moreover, tbls must be done ln ways tbat avold, as
rar as posslble, tbe dlstortlons tbat can be produced by prlor conceptual
presupposltlons. Sucb presupposltlons must be suspended, and carerul
attentlon glven to tbe cbaracter or pbenomena as tbey appear ln our
experlence.
6
Some psycbologlsts and soclal sclentlsts drew tbe concluslon rrom
pbenomenology tbat, lnstead or taklng commonsense knowledge or tbe
world ror granted as a basls ror soclal sclence, or slmply dlsmlsslng lt as
derectlve ln tbe manner or posltlvlsm, we sbould lnstead explore bow lt
comes to take tbe rorm tbat lt does, and lndeed bow tbe psycbologlcal
and soclal pbenomena people experlence are constltuted and sustalned
tbrougb tbe processes or lnterpretatlon and soclal lnteractlon ln wblcb
tbey engage (see, ror example, 8erger and Luckmann o;). At tbe same
tlme tbere was also an empbasls on cultural varlatlon ln tbese constltutlve
processes among lndlvlduals, groups, and communltles. le lnuence
or pbenomenology relnrorced tbe prlmary rocus or some qualltatlve
researcbers on detalled descrlptlon or tbe experlence and perspectlves or
dlverse groups or people.
8otb nlneteentb-century bermeneutlcs and pbenomenology proposed
dlstlnctlve metbods or lnvestlgatlon tbat tbelr advocates clalmed were
just as rlgorous as tbe very dlerent klnd or metbod employed by natural
sclence. A tblrd pbllosopblcal movement tbat strongly lnuenced tbe
development or qualltatlve metbods ln US soclology ln tbe rst balr or tbe
twentletb century was pragmatlsm (lammersley s. cb.z). lls took a
somewbat dlerent llne rrom tbe two otber movements l bave dlscussed.
ragmatlsm drew no sbarp dlstlnctlon between natural and soclal sclence,
but lnslsted lnstead on a generlc rormulatlon or sclentlc lnqulry tbat
downplayed lts dlerences rrom commonsense tblnklng ln everyday llre.
7
lowever, ln tbe twentletb century tbe commltment or lnterpretlvlsm
to some alternatlve, equally rlgorous, metbod began to cbange. Under
tbe lnuence or leldeggers rerormulatlon or pbenomenology, Cadamers
pbllosopblcal bermeneutlcs, and kortys relnterpretatlon or pragmatlsm,
lt came to be argued tbat understandlng otber people ls necessarlly an
uncertaln process tbat relles upon openness to tbe world, and on tbe exer-
clse or personal capacltles, especlally tbe lmaglnatlon, rarner rnan upon
an, mernod. lus, Cadamer argued tbat knowledge ls always generated ln
o On pbenomenology, see Moran (zooz). |or lts appllcatlon ln soclal and
psycbologlcal researcb see Scbutz (oz), 8erger and Luckmann (o;), Clorgl and
Clorgl (zoos) and Smltb and Osborn (zoos).
; On pragmatlsm, see, ror example, Ue Waal (zoo,).
z9 Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
partlcular soclo-blstorlcal contexts and must draw on tbe resources tbese
provlde, lt cannot rely upon an abstract, sclentlc metbod, even or tbe
klnd ldentled by nlneteentb-century bermeneutlcs or early pbenomenol-
ogy. Strong parallels were drawn bere wltb tbe klnd or understandlng or
llre cbaracterlstlc or llterature and art.
ln summary, tben, lnterpretlvlsm carrles a range or lmpllcatlons ror
researcb. |lrst, lt requlres tbe researcber to adopt an exploratory orlenta-
tlon, and ln partlcular to learn to understand tbe dlstlnctlve perspectlves
or tbe people lnvolved, and perbaps also to observe bow tbelr patterns or
actlon unrold ln partlcular contexts. Above all, any tendency to dlsmlss
otber peoples attltudes or bebavlour as lrratlonal, or as objectlonable ln
some otber way, must be reslsted. lnstead, researcb must be carrled out
on tbe assumptlon tbat tbelr attltudes and bebavlour make sense to, and
are seen as justlable by, tbem, wltb tbe researcber suspendlng any evalu-
atlon. le alm ls to dlscover tbe loglc or ratlonallty or wbat may at rst
seem strange, llloglcal, or even evll, and tbls requlres detalled exploratlon
or peoples experlence and perspectlves. lls, lt ls argued, ls an essentlal
requlrement not just ror explalnlng but even ror descr|o|ng peoples bebav-
lour and tbe soclal lnstltutlons ln wblcb lt ls located, and wblcb lt belps
sustaln. Many or tbe studles llsted ln 8ox . reect tbe lnuence or lnter-
pretlvlsm, but perbaps especlally tbose or Morton, 8ogdan, and Mltcbell.
lnterpretlvlsm was one type or metbodologlcal pbllosopby tbat came
to cballenge posltlvlsm and quantltatlve metbod ln soclal sclence ln tbe
mlddle or tbe twentletb century, and lt bad a buge lmpact on qualltatlve
researcb. lowever, tbere was anotber, ratber dlerent, tradltlon tbat was
at least as lnuentlal durlng tbe same perlod, wbat ls orten rererred to as
crltlcal tbeory and researcb.
8
Te critical tradition
As wltb posltlvlsm and lnterpretlvlsm, tbe lmmedlate orlglns or crltlcal
researcb lle ln tbe nlneteentb century, tbls tlme ln tbe pbllosopblcal work
or legel and Marx. rlor to tbls, kant bad wrltten tbree crltlques, tbe rst
or wblcb was concerned wltb ldentlrylng tbe llmlts or buman knowledge.
s l bave put crltlcal ln quote marks because tbe meanlng bere goes beyond tbe sense
ln wblcb all researcbers adopt a crltlcal orlentatlon ln assesslng knowledge clalms. See
lammersley (z.cb.o) and (,.cb.z).
ln tbe case or legel and Marx tbe scope ror crltlque was extended to
lnclude soclal lnstltutlons and practlces, along wltb tbe rorms or knowl-
edge assoclated wltb tbese.
le most obvlous way ln wblcb a crltlcal orlentatlon contrasts wltb
botb posltlvlsm and lnterpretlvlsm ls tbat wbereas tbey are concerned
solely wltb ldentlrylng causal patterns and}or documentlng otber peoples
perspectlves and practlces, crltlcal researcbers also evaluate tbe pbenom-
ena, sucb as people and lnstltutlons, tbey study. ley do tbls eltber ln
terms or some set or ldeals bullt lnto tbelr own polltlcal or etblcal posl-
tlon or agalnst standards tbat tbey ldentlry as lnberent wltbln tbe soclo-
cultural contexts tbey are examlnlng (tbls second approacb ls sometlmes
rererred to as lmmanent or lnternal crltlque). So, tbelr researcb lnvolves
evaluatlve as well as ractual concepts ror example exploltatlon, oppres-
slon, emanclpatlon and ls seen as properly dlrected towards acblevlng
partlcular klnds or polltlcal goal. reduclng or ellmlnatlng exploltatlon and
oppresslon, and brlnglng about emanclpatlon.
Lqually lmportant, wbereas lnterpretlvlsm alms to a large extent at
understandlng otber cultures ln tbelr own terms, crltlcal researcb usually
lnslsts tbat tbey can be properly understood only wltbln tbe rramework or
a global tbeory tbat locates tbem ln a wlder soclal system and}or a larger
process or blstorlcal development tbat bas been properly tbeorlzed. And,
llke some posltlvlsts but unllke lnterpretlvlsts, crltlcal researcbers lnslst
tbat peoples bebavlour wlll orten need to be explalned by ractors tbat are
beyond tbelr awareness. lndeed, tbey argue tbat ln many cases tbls aware-
ness wlll bave been systematlcally dlstorted by soclal processes.
lese tbree metbodologlcal pbllosopbles also lnvolve very dlerent
attltudes towards blstory. osltlvlsts tend to treat tbe ldeas or tbe past,
wbere tbese are not regarded as precursors or present-day sclentlc
knowledge, as wrong-beaded as tbe product or blas or lrratlonallty.
9

8y contrast, some lnterpretlvlsts reject any notlon or blstorlcal progress,
vlewlng tbe past as conslstlng or dlerent eras, eacb wltb lts own dlstlnc-
tlve worldvlew, and tbey belleve tbat tbese worldvlews cannot be evalu-
ated agalnst one anotber because tbere ls no overarcblng cultural scbeme
wltbln wblcb tbls could be done. Crltlcal researcb sbares sometblng wltb
eacb or tbe otber pbllosopbles ln tbls respect, but also dlers slgnlcantly.
lnterestlngly, once agaln tbls was not tbe vlew or Comte, see Scbar (,).
!! Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
legel, wbose pbllosopblcal work ls one or tbe key sources ror tbe crltl-
cal tradltlon, rejected tbe posltlvlst ldea tbat tbere could be any major
set or bellers or cultural assumptlons ln tbe past tbat was slmply ralse,
tbe product or lrratlonallty. ln tbls be was ln llne wltb tbe lnterpretlvlsts.
lowever, llke tbe posltlvlsts, be saw tbe past as leadlng up to tbe pres-
ent, albelt ln a dlalectlcal ratber tban a llnear rasblon. Wbat be meant by
tbls was tbat blstorlcal progress ls acbleved by struggle between dlerent
worldvlews, on tbe model or a debate, wltb tbls struggle leadlng ln eacb
era to tbe emergence or a new perspectlve tbat transcends prevlous ones
(lncorporatlng and transrormlng elements rrom eacb or tbem), wblcb
ltselr tben comes to domlnate. lowever, tbe same process beglns agaln
ln tbe next blstorlcal era. an opposlng worldvlew wlll develop, leadlng to
rurtber struggle, wltb tbese conlctlng perspectlves tbemselves subse-
quently belng transcended. |urtbermore, tbe worldvlews lnvolved bere
are not just sets or ldeas but wbole ways or llre. cultures embodled wltbln
partlcular socletles. lus, legel traces tbe process or dlalectlcal develop-
ment ln terms or anclent Creece agalnst kome, medleval versus early
modern soclety, and so on.
legel dld not belleve tbat tbls process or blstorlcal development would
go on rorever. katber, be saw lt as comlng to an end at a polnt wbere not
only true knowledge but also all genulne buman ldeals would be reallzed,
and prevlous conlcts among tbem resolved. le clalmed tbat tbls polnt
bad more or less been reacbed ln tbe early nlneteentb century, and tbat
bls own pbllosopby was tbererore tbe nal one tbat, at least potentlally,
captured tbe wbole trutb about tbe world.
Marx gave an lmportant twlst to legels pbllosopblcal system, seek-
lng to transrorm lt lnto a sclentlc tbeory or soclety. Wblle be lnberlted
mucb or wbat l bave just outllned, be dlered rrom legel ln seelng tbe
drlvlng rorce or blstory not as tbe conlct between ldeas but ratber as one
between dlerent soclal classes. And tbe cbaracter or tbls conlct at any
polnt ln tlme reected tbe stage or blstorlcal development tbat bad been
reacbed, tbls belng prlmarlly determlned by tbe development or produc-
tlve economlc rorces. ln otber words, tbe conlct ln ldeas, or ldeologles,
stemmed rrom soclal class dlvlslons and struggle generated by partlcular
modes or productlon, not tbe otber way round. And Marx saw tbe rlse and
rall or soclal classes as belng determlned by tbe soclo-economlc develop-
ment or socletles. ror example, by tbe move rrom buntlng and gatberlng
socletles to peasant rorms or productlon, controlled by landlords, tbrougb
!z wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
to tbe rlse or modern, lndustrlal capltallsm ln tbe nlneteentb century,
assoclated wltb tbe emergence or tbe bourgeolsle as tbe domlnant class
and tbe proletarlat as tbe maln subordlnate class.
Llke legel, Marx belleved tbat tbe process or blstorlcal development
would come to an end, and tbat at tbat polnt buman ldeals, lncludlng our
knowledge or tbe world, would be reallzed. lowever, ror blm tbls bad not
yet bappened, and lt requlred substantlal soclal transrormatlon. lt would
only take place ln tbe ruture, tbougb be belleved tbat tbls would be ln tbe
near ruture. wben tbe lndustrlal worklng class overtbrew capltallsm and
establlsbed a communlst soclety.
An lmpllcatlon or Marxs argument ls tbat ln order to understand any
partlcular sltuatlon one must locate lt wltbln a broader understandlng or
tbe current stage or development or tbe soclety ln wblcb lt occurs, and tbe
blstory or tbat soclety. lls bas very lmportant lmpllcatlons ror tbe prac-
tlce or soclal lnqulry. |or one tblng, lt means tbat a comprebenslve tbeory
or soclety ls requlred, as agalnst a more speclc dlsclpllnary perspectlve
or rocus on a partlcular soclal problem. Lqually lmportant, lt lmplles tbat
tbe researcber ls not located outslde or tbe soclo-blstorlcal process but
ls necessarlly part or, and sbaped by, lt. As a result, be or sbe cannot but
operate wltbln some perspectlve tbat bas been generated by tbe process
or soclal development, and tbls carrles wltb lt tbe dangers or blas, and
tbererore error, our a|so rne on|, porenr|a| jor rrue undersrand|ng rnar |s
a.a||ao|e.
Marx clalmed tbat a dlstlnctlve set or lnterests, and a dlstlnctlve set
or ldeas related to tbem (an ldeology), belonged to eacb soclal class.
|urtbermore, be argued tbat lt was tbe responslblllty or tbe lntellectual
to allgn ber or blmselr wltb wbatever class ls tbe most progresslve one ln
current soclety, and ln tbe case or nlneteentb-century Lurope tbls was
tbe worklng class. Marx saw sucb commltment as etblcally requlred ln
tbat lntellectual work bas value only wben lt ls engaged wltb tbe process
or soclal cbange.
!0
le ldea tbat researcb can be detacbed rrom etblcal
and polltlcal concerns, tbat lt can or sbould try to be value neutral, ln
tbe manner proposed by most rorms or posltlvlsm and lnterpretlvlsm, ls
o An lmportant parallel tradltlon bere ls tbat or actlon researcb, ltselr dlverse but
generally sbarlng a commltment to practlcal engagement, see keason and 8radbury
(zoo).
!! Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
dlsmlssed by crltlcal researcbers as eltber an ldeologlcal dlsgulse or as
selr-deluslon.
Marx also saw sucb polltlcal commltment as provldlng tbe only cbance
or galnlng a true understandlng or tbe world, botb or tbe present and
or tbe past. lls was because be belleved tbat lt ls tbe progresslve soclal
class, tbe one tbat ls destlned to come to power next, tbat bas tbe best
motlve and opportunlty ror galnlng a true understandlng or tbe world.
!!

Accordlng to Marx, once a soclal class bas become domlnant, lts perspec-
tlve on tbe world, wblle contalnlng some orlglnal trutbs, wlll start to be
dlstorted by tbe need to bold on to power ln soclo-economlc condltlons
tbat are lncreaslngly dlsadvantageous ror lt, and be assumed tbat ralse
ldeas would be most eectlve ln tbls task, slnce true ldeas would polnt
to tbe need ror tbls class to be overtbrown. le only exceptlon was tbe
case or tbe worklng class, preclsely because be saw lts comlng to power as
brlnglng tbe process or blstorlcal development to an end, as establlsblng a
classless soclety ln wblcb buman ldeals lncludlng true knowledge or tbe
world would be reallzed.
Uesplte tbls standpolnt eplstemology, Marx dld also lnslst on tbe
need ror sclentlc analysls. be dld not belleve tbat tbe spontaneously
developed understandlngs or worklng class people were automatlcally
valld, not least because tbey are llkely to be sbaped by ldeology. |or tbls
reason, ldeology-crltlque became central to tbe subsequent development
or Western Marxlsm (ay o). Uomlnant ldeas were seen as legltlmatlng
tbe srarus quo, orten tbrougb portraylng lt as natural and uncbangeable.
lndeed, lt was argued by Marx tbat soclal rormatlons lnberently gener-
ate ralse appearances tbat are taken by most people to be reallty. lus,
undermlnlng tbe domlnant ldeology tbrougb crltlque came to be vlewed
as a precondltlon ror slgnlcant cbange, and a major responslblllty ror
lntellectuals a category to wblcb soclal researcbers would clearly belong.
Crltlcal researcbers today lnberlt many or tbe ldeas outllned above,
tbougb tbey bave abandoned, or downplay, otbers. One cbange ls tbat,
orten, tbe rocus ls no longer prlmarlly on soclal class lnequalltles and
conlcts but on otber klnds or soclal dlvlslon as well or lnstead, notably
tbose surroundlng gender, race and etbnlclty, sexuallty, and dlsablllty.
lls ls a rorm or wbat bas come to be called standpolnt eplstemology, later
cbamploned ln a revlsed rorm by some remlnlsts. see lartsock (s;) and ror an
overvlew Anderson (zo).
Wbereas tradltlonal Marxlsts would see tbese otber rorms or dlvlslon as
ultlmately derlvlng rrom soclal class dlerences, and as belng abollsbed
at tbe same tlme tbat soclal class lnequallty ls overcome, most crltlcal
researcbers today treat tbem as bavlng at least tbe same lmportance, and
as belng lndependent or, and just as rundamental as, soclal class. As part
or tbls, many crltlcal researcbers bave abandoned tbe partlcular global
tbeory and meta-narratlve developed by Marx, and eltber replaced lt wltb
a new one or adopted a narrower and more speclc orlentatlon rocused
on brlnglng about partlcular sorts or soclal cbange related to tbe klnd or
soclal dlvlslon wltb wblcb tbey are prlmarlly concerned.
Uesplte tbese cbanges ln tbe crltlcal tradltlon, wbat ls usually retalned
ls tbe ldea tbat researcb sbould operate wltbln a rramework or polltlcal
assumptlons, and sbould be geared to servlng polltlcal goals. Many
remlnlsts, ror example, belleve tbat tbelr researcb must be prlmarlly
dlrected towards tbe emanclpatlon or women, tbougb some soclallst
remlnlsts lnslst tbat tbls must be done ln assoclatlon wltb class struggle.
Almost all crltlcal researcbers belleve tbat researcbers bave a responslblllty
to reslst domlnant ldeologles and to cballenge lnequltable soclal relatlons
tbrougb tbelr researcb.
ln carrylng out bls analysls or capltallsm, Marx drew on quantltatlve
as well as qualltatlve data, but most crltlcal researcb ln tbe twentletb
century, and more recently, bas adopted a more qualltatlve approacb.
|or lnstance tbere bas been a very lnuentlal tradltlon or Marxlst blsto-
rlograpby, as well as substantlal etbnograpblc work and lntervlew studles
lnsplred by tbe crltlcal tradltlon, especlally by soclal movements llke
remlnlsm, antl-raclsm, and dlsablllty actlvlsm. Nevertbeless, tbere bas been
some slgnlcant Marxlst work or a quantltatlve klnd (see ror example
Wrlgbt ;) and some dlscusslon among Marxlsts about tbe relatlon-
sblp between quantltatlve and qualltatlve approacbes (see 8urawoy
s;, Morrow (. cb.s). le studles by kal, Wacquant, and Wetberell
and Ldley ln 8ox . bave been lnuenced by tbe crltlcal tradltlon ln key
respects.
As noted earller, tbe pbllosopblcal ldeas beblnd botb tbe lnterpretlvlst
and tbe crltlcal tradltlons bave tbelr orlglns ror tbe most part ln tbe nlne-
teentb century. le nal pbllosopblcal approacb we wlll look at emerged
more recently, and lt amounts to a slgnlcant reactlon agalnst tbe otbers,
tbougb some or lts ldeas are lnberlted rrom tbem. lt also revlves some
even older ldeas, notably rrom anclent sceptlclsm.
! Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
Constructionism
lls nal type or metbodologlcal pbllosopby ls even broader and more
dlverse tban tbe otber tbree. le word constructlonlsm, or constructlv-
lsm, bas become wldely used ln soclal sclence over tbe past twenty or
tblrty years. Wblle lt bas been employed to rerer to a range or ratber dler-
ent ldeas, lt ls posslble to outllne a rew core assumptlons.
!z
Wbat ls central, rst or all, ls rejectlon or any ldea tbat cognltlon, or
even perceptlon, ls a process wbereby objects and tbelr cbaracterlstlcs,
exlstlng ln tbe world, lmpress tbemselves upon our understandlng.
lnstead, lt ls argued tbat perceptlon and cognltlon are actlve processes,
ln wblcb anytblng apparently glven ls actually a product or processes or
selectlon and constructlon. Anotber key tbeme ls tbat tbese processes are
soclo-cultural ln cbaracter, wltb dlerent cultures generatlng dlvergent
experlentlal worlds and stocks or knowledge. lls ls, or course, slmllar
to lnterpretlvlsm, but tbere remaln lmportant dlerences. ln partlcular,
constructlonlsts orten questlon wbetber understandlng otber people,
and perbaps even oneselr, ls ever posslble. ley also suggest tbat multlple,
lncommensurable lnterpretatlons are rrequently generated and clrculate
wltbln tbe same contexts.
le two key ldeas tbat l bave ldentled as central to constructlonlsm
up to tbls polnt are compatlble, ln prlnclple, wltb tbe notlon tbat tbrougb
perceptlon and cognltlon tbe lntrlnslc, lndependent reatures or objects and
events ln tbe world, and tbe prlnclples upon wblcb tbey operate, can be
understood (see Maxwell zoz.cb.). lowever, mucb constructlonlsm goes
beyond tbls to suggest tbat tbe cbaracter and content or any knowledge
and understandlng reects prlmarlly, or perbaps even entlrely, tbe nature
or tbe constructlon process, lncludlng tbe reatures, dlsposltlons, etc or tbe
agent lnvolved. ln otber words, lt ls denled tbat knowledge can correspond
to tbe lntrlnslc cbaracter or a set or lndependently exlstlng objects.
lls sceptlcal ldea, wbose blstory can be traced back to anclent pblloso-
pby (lanklnson s), bas lmportant lmpllcatlons ror bow lnqulry sbould
be pursued. le task can no longer be to document tbe reatures or varl-
ous types or object exlstlng ln tbe world tbelr relatlonsblps, causes and
consequences, etc. lt ls lnslsted tbat we must not be mlsled by appearances
z Advocates or some rorms or work l am lncludlng under tbe beadlng or
constructlonlsm would reslst tbat label. See, ror lnstance, 8utton and Sbarrock (z).
|or a general lntroductlon to constructlonlsm}constructlvlsm, see 8urr zoo, and zoo(.
lnto rorgettlng tbat sucb objects owe tbelr exlstence and tbelr cbaracter
to tbe constltutlve processes tbat generated tbem. lnstead, tbe proper
rocus or study must be tbose processes tbemselves. As sbould be clear,
tbls lnvolves a major sblrt, or re-speclcatlon, or tbe goal or sclentlc
lnqulry. An example would be to treat peoples personal cbaracterlstlcs
not as lntrlnslc to tbem but ratber to examlne tbe dlscurslve practlces
tbrougb wblcb people are cbaracterlzed as lntelllgent}stupld, motlvated}
lazy, condent}besltant, and so on, and bow tbese operate ln partlcular
contexts, rrom lnrormal sltuatlons among rrlends or ramlly to more lnstl-
tutlonal ones sucb as job lntervlews or psycblatrlc assessments.
!!
lere ls anotber reature or constructlonlsm tbat adds rurtber complex-
lty. Some verslons or lt do not vlew soclal pbenomena as belng constructed
tbrougb tbe perceptual and cognltlve dlsposltlons or lndlvlduals wbo eacb
lndependently make sense or tbelr envlronment. katber, tbe constructlon
or soclal worlds ls seen as occurlng tbrougb sbared processes or commu-
nlcatlon and soclal lnteractlon, lt ls rnese processes tbat are constltutlve or
tbe cbaracter or soclal pbenomena ratber tban tbe perceptual and cognl-
tlve capabllltles or lndlvlduals. lndeed, ror some constructlonlsts tbe very
exlstence or lndlvlduals wltb partlcular ldentltles ls ltselr only constltuted
ln and tbrougb soclo-cultural processes, wbetber tbose assoclated wltb
partlcular, occasloned patterns or soclal lnteractlon or tbose generated by
relatlvely large-scale soclo-blstorlcal rormatlons tbat produce dlstlnctlve
rorms or dlscourse. l wlll call tbls more complex posltlon, ltselr dlsplaylng
several varletles, soc|a| constructlonlsm.
We can ldentlry at least two major stances wltbln soclal constructlon-
lsm, as lt relates to qualltatlve researcb. le most common one lnvolves
a rocus on studylng tbe metbods or practlces tbrougb wblcb people
collectlvely construct tbelr sbared worlds. key examples or tbls stance
can be round ln varlous rorms or dlscourse analysls, wbere tbe goal ls to
document dlscurslve practlces or broader dlscurslve rormatlons tbat
are seen as constltutlve or soclal pbenomena. lere can be dlerences
bere ln wbat ls taken to be a dlscurslve practlce, ln wbat ls regarded as
legltlmate and su clent evldence, and no doubt ln otber respects too. 8ut
wbat ls sbared ls tbe ldea tbat by means or dlscourse analysls tbe cbar-
acter or tbe practlces tbrougb wblcb soclal pbenomena are constltuted
, |or a dlscusslon or dlscurslve psycbology, see Ldwards and otter (z), Ldwards
(; and zoo,).
!7 Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
can be documented (see, ror example, Wetberell er a|. zoo). le studles
mentloned ln 8ox . by MacLure and Walker, Wetberell and Ldley, and
Levltas are examples or tbls sort or approacb.
Orten, tbls bas been assoclated wltb an argument tbat all language-use
ls perrormatlve, ln tbe sense tbat lt ls not slmply concerned (or concerned
at all) wltb representlng tbe world, wltb gettlng tbe racts stralgbt, but
ls prlmarlly lr not excluslvely dlrected at perrormlng actlons w|rn|n tbe
world. lus, some commentators bave stressed tbe rbetorlcal cbaracter or
all accounts, ln otber words, tbat even wben tbey appear to be concerned
solely wltb descrlptlon or explanatlon tbey are lnevltably almed at
persuadlng audlences. One lmpllcatlon or tbls ls tbat dlerent people wlll
lnevltably produce conlctlng accounts or tbe same scene, dependlng
upon tbelr assumptlons, lnterests and purposes.
!4
Wltb mucb tbe same
result, otber researcbers bave noted tbat accounts orten take tbe rorm or
narratlves, and tbat tbe same set or events can be narrated ln many dler-
ent ways, leadlng to dlvergent verslons or wbat bappened.
!
A second, ratber dlerent, rorm or soclal constructlonlsm questlons tbe
ldea, bullt lnto tbe rst one, tbat tbe analyst can document tbe cbaracter
and propertles or dlscurslve practlces, or otber sorts or practlce, ln some
rlgorous analytlc manner. lt ls objected tbat tbls treats tbese practlces as
lr tbey exlsted lndependently or tbe constltutlve practlces employed by
tbe analyst ber or blmselr. lt ls lnslsted, lnstead, tbat all researcbers are
necessarlly lmpllcated ln tbe processes wbereby soclal pbenomena are
constructed, and cannot escape tbls. lt ls also sometlmes argued tbat tbe
task or tbe analyst sbould be to subvert wbatever seems to be tbe doml-
nant constltutlve reglme ln order to open up tbe prospect or sometblng
new, or to seek to ldentlry and encourage novel or reslstant rorms.
!6
lere are many sources or constructlonlst ldeas. lndeed, as l noted
earller, some are even to be round wltbln posltlvlsm, lnterpretlvlsm, and
( |or examples or work along tbese llnes, see ollner (s;), otter (o), Cu (,)
and 1aylor and Llttleton (zooo).
, |or an enjoyable blstorlcal exploratlon or narratlve varlatlon, traclng tbe telllng and
retelllng or an elgbteentb-century murder story, see 8rewer (zoo().
o lere are also verslons ln wblcb any dlstlnctlon between agent, wbetber partlclpant
or analyst, and passlve objects on wblcb tbey act ls erased, ln ravour or a vlew wblcb
presents objects or many klnds as lnvolved ln mutually constltutlng relatlonsblps
tbat generate complex, contlngent, and cbanglng patterns. |or an exploratlon or tbe
lmpllcatlons or tbls sort or vlew ror researcb metbod, see Law (zoo().
tbe crltlcal tradltlon. |or example, seventeentb century emplrlclsm
drew a dlstlnctlon between prlmary and secondary cbaracterlstlcs or
pbyslcal objects, wltb tbe latter ror example colour belng dependent
upon buman perceptual capabllltles ratber tban belng lntrlnslc reatures
or objects (Murpby er a| s). Slmllarly, as we saw, pbenomenology
was concerned wltb bow experlence ls constltuted tbrougb subjectlve
processes, ratber tban belng tbe result or a dlrect apprebenslon or tbe
world. And we also noted tbat a central ldea or crltlcal researcb ls tbat
tbe domlnant ldeology emerges out or exlstlng soclal clrcumstances and ls
taken ror granted by most people lndeed, treated as natural obscur-
lng tbe ract tbat tbose clrcumstances are a soclo-blstorlcal product and
can be cbanged.
lowever, prlor to tbe second balr or tbe twentletb century, none or
tbese ldeas were rully developed wltbln soclal sclence lnto tbe klnds or
constructlonlsm l bave outllned. One major stlmulus ror tbls development
was tbe work or tbe pbllosopber or sclence lomas kubn (;o).
!7
le
cballenged tbe posltlvlst ldea tbat twentletb-century pbyslcs represented
a cumulatlve development rrom earller work ln tbat dlsclpllne, sucb as
tbat or Newton. lnstead, be suggested tbat lt was lncommensurable wltb
wbat bad gone berore. ln otber words tbat at tbe tlme lt emerged tbere
was no common ground on wblcb tbese two verslons or pbyslcs could
be compared and evaluated. lere, kubn lald empbasls on tbe soclal and
cultural cbaracter or natural sclence researcb. le argued tbat, ratber tban
belng a process or loglcally derlvlng knowledge rrom emplrlcal evldence,
lt necessarlly relles upon concepts sbared wltbln researcb communltles
exlstlng ln partlcular tlmes and places, concepts tbat are open-ended ln
cbaracter but ancbored by exemplary studles recognlzed as sucb by tbe
relevant communlty. lese concepts and exemplars make up wbat be
rerers to as a paradlgm, and tbls provldes a rramework or assumptlons
wblcb botb lndlcates wbat ls already known and contalns puzzles tbat
requlre rurtber work.
kubn saw mature sclences llke pbyslcs, or partlcular elds wltbln
tbem, as belng domlnated durlng any one perlod by one slngle paradlgm.
lowever, over tlme some or tbe puzzles wltbln tbe paradlgm would come
to prove recalcltrant and be recognlzed as anomalles, at wblcb polnt tbere
was tbe potentlal ror a sclentlc revolutlon tbat could eventually lead to
; |or detalled dlscusslon or bls work, see 8lrd (zooo) and Sbarrock and kead (zooz).
!9 Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
tbe adoptlon or a new paradlgm, ror example, tbe move rrom Newtonlan
to twentletb-century pbyslcs.
ln sbort, wbat kubn oered was a very dlerent plcture or natural
sclence rrom tbe prevlously common vlew, adopted botb by posltlvlsts
and by many lnterpretlvlsts. tbat natural sclentlc knowledge gradually
accumulates, wltb errors belng corrected, and new dlscoverles addlng to
rurtber knowledge. lnstead, accordlng to kubn, tbe process or develop-
ment ls dlscontlnuous, punctuated by paradlgmatlc revolutlons lnvolvlng
dlsagreement tbat cannot be resolved at tbe tlme by ratlonal means.
lt ls wortb notlng tbat kubn speclcally descrlbes soclal sclence as
belng ln a pre-paradlgmatlc, or non-paradlgmatlc, state, prec|se|, oecause
|r conr|nuous|, d|sp|a,s a nosr oj comper|ng approacnes. lowever, ln appro-
prlatlng bls work soclal sclentlsts tended to treat tbelr own approacbes as
competlng sclentlc paradlgms. Moreover, bls ldeas were taken to ralse
rundamental questlons about tbe status or tbe accounts or soclal sclen-
tlsts tbemselves lt relnrorced tbe ldea tbat tbese sbould be vlewed as
constructlons generated by partlcular paradlgmatlc assumptlons none or
wblcb could clalm eplstemologlcal prlvllege over otbers.
lere we can see one lmportant respect ln wblcb constructlonlsm
breaks wltb lnterpretlvlsm, perbaps tbrowlng lnto doubt tbe very possl-
blllty or knowledge ln tbe conventlonal sense or tbat term. And tbere ls
slgnlcant overlap bere wltb tbose ldeas, derlvlng rrom |rencb twentletb-
century pbllosopby, tbat are orten placed under tbe beadlngs or post-
structurallsm and postmodernlsm, and wblcb were very lnuentlal ln tbe
latter decades or tbe twentletb century. lese cballenge many attltudes
tbat are regarded as cbaracterlstlc or tbe modern world (orten traced back
to tbe Lnllgbtenment) sucb as beller ln tbe valldlty, value, and power or
sclentlc knowledge and ln tbe prospect or progress, botb ln tbe spbere or
knowledge and ln soclal, economlc and polltlcal llre. lowever, postmod-
ernlsm tends to lnvolve not a slmple rejectlon or modernlsm but ratber a
rerusal to treat wbat lt stands ror as prlvlleged as agalnst wbat lt opposes.
lnstead, tbere ls a commltment to boldlng opposltes ln tenslon, on tbe
grounds tbat tbere ls no basls ror decldlng between tbem.
!8
One or tbe sources on wblcb kubn drew was tbe work or tbe |rencb
pbllosopbers and blstorlans or sclence Caston 8acbelard and Ceorges
s Agaln, tbere ls a parallel bere wltb tbe attltudes or some anclent sceptlcs, see vogt
(zoo).
Cangullbem. lese wrlters also saw tbe development or sclentlc elds
as marked by dlscontlnulty, ln wblcb new problematlcs (rrameworks or
assumptlons organlsed around some set or problems to be lnvestlgated)
arose to replace older ones. Moreover, tbey denled tbat tbere was any
substantlal unlty or tbeoretlcal and metbodologlcal assumptlon across
tbe varlous elds or modern natural sclence, and rerused to treat any or
tbem, lncludlng pbyslcs, as metbodologlcally exemplary. lnstead, tbey
stressed tbe dlscontlnultles among sclentlc elds, as well as tbose occur-
rlng ln tbe development or partlcular elds over tlme as new problematlcs
emerged to replace prevlously lnuentlal ones. Wbere, prlor to tbls, lt bad
orten been assumed, ror example by posltlvlsm and pragmatlsm, tbat
tbere was a unltary sclentlc metbod, tbese wrlters empbaslzed varlatlon
ln tbe metbods or tbe dlerent sclences.
lese |rencb exploratlons ln tbe blstory and pbllosopby or sclence were
among tbe maln lnuences on tbe work or Mlcbel |oucault (see Cuttlng
s), wbo bas come to be ldentled by many as a key gure ln post-
modernlsm (tbougb be blmselr dld not accept tbe label). le lnvestlgated
bow tbe buman sclences notably psycbology, medlclne and crlmlnol-
ogy developed ln dlscontlnuous ways, and especlally bow tbey became
embedded ln speclc lnstltutlonal practlces tbat bave come to constltute
modern soclal llre. |or lnstance, be traced wbat be saw as a transrorma-
tlon ln tbe treatment or madness between tbe slxteentb and nlneteentb
centurles. Worklng wltb detalled blstorlcal data or many klnds, be sougbt
to ldentlry tbe dlstlnctlve dlscourses, texts and networks or power rela-
tlons tbat domlnated dlerent perlods, and bow tbese generated varlous
klnds or occupatlonal and organlzatlonal practlce, accompanled by tbelr
own trutb reglmes, tbese denlng tbe ldentltles and constltutlng tbe
perceptlons and actlons or tbose lnvolved. |or |oucault tbere were sbarp
dlscontlnultles between dlerent epocbs ln tbese terms, cbaracterlzed by
very dlerent types or dlscurslve constructlon and lnstltutlonal practlce.
And tbe task be took on was to document tbese, tbougb be also saw bls
work as provldlng tools ror polltlcal struggles, ror example tbat around tbe
rlgbts or prlsoners (see |oucault and Ueleuze ;;, Macey ,. z,os,
Mlller ,. s;().
!9
lls work bas stlmulated dlstlnctlve rorms or dlscourse analysls, see Macdonell
(so) and lowartb (zooo).
4! Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
Otber lmportant stlmull to constructlonlsm ln contlnental Lurope were
tbe movements or twentletb-century tbougbt rererred to as structurallsm
and post-structurallsm. lt ls not posslble clearly to separate tbese rrom one
anotber slnce, once agaln, tbe label post lndlcates a process or elabora-
tlon and cbange ratber tban a complete abandonment or tbe earller posl-
tlon so tbat post-structurallsm lnberlts lmportant assumptlons rrom
structurallsm.
Structurallsm bad lts orlglns ln tbe work or tbe Swlss llngulst |erdlnand
de Saussure. le transrormed tbe study or language ln tbe late nlneteentb
century by sblrtlng tbe maln rocus away rrom traclng tbe development or
partlcular languages, and bow words and otber language elements bad
cbanged over tlme, to an lnterest ln tbe structural cbaracter or languages
as tbey exlst and operate at any one polnt ln tlme. ln partlcular, bow tbey
generate dlstlnctlve yet lntelllglble patterns or sound and meanlng. le
explalned tbls capaclty as resultlng rrom tbe deployment or structural
contrasts between speclc sounds, words, and grammatlcal rorms. |or
example, at a pbonemlc level, ln Lngllsb tbe dlerence between tbe words
cat, cut, and cot all blnge on contrasts ln vowel sounds tbat are by no
means always slgnlcant ln otber languages. ln semantlcs, tbe terms ror
colours used ln dlerent languages dlvlde up tbe spectrum ln varylng
ways, eacn rerm ga|n|ng |rs sense jrom now |r re|ares ro rne orners. le key
polnt ls tbat meanlng ls generated w|rn|n tbe system or language, words do
not get tbelr sense rrom pre-exlstlng objects to wblcb tbey rerer, nor rrom
tbe lntentlons or tbe speaker or wrlter. lls sort or structurallst approacb
became tbe domlnant one ln llngulstlcs ln tbe twentletb century, and lts
lnuence spread mucb more wldely lnto tbe study or llterature, antbropol-
ogy, and even psycboanalysls and Marxlsm.
An lmportant reature or structurallsm was lts commltment to sclence,
albelt ln a rorm tbat was not modeled on pbyslcs or any otber natural
sclence. Wltbln llngulstlcs, tbls demanded carerul and detalled atten-
tlon to llngulstlc materlal ln order to detect relatlvely slmple underlylng
generatlve structures made up or slgnlcant contrasts. Sometlmes tbese
structures were seen as unlque to partlcular languages, so tbat lt was
orten concluded tbat languages construct tbe world ln dlscrepant ways,
but tbere were also attempts to nd unlversal rorms (most notably ln
tbe blgbly lnuentlal work or Cbomsky). Lltber way, tbese generatlve
structures served a slmllar runctlon wltbln tbe structurallst project as
tbe assumptlon or xed unlversal laws dld ln posltlvlsm. Moreover, tbls
4z wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
dlstlnctlve conceptlon or sclence lnuenced some rorms or qualltatlve
researcb, most notably wltbln antbropology tbrougb tbe work or Levl-
Strauss and tbe practltloners or cognltlve antbropology (1yler o), as
exemplled by |rakes study mentloned ln Cbapter . le general trend
ln tbe later decades or tbe twentletb century was, bowever, to questlon
structurallsms assumptlons about sclence, and tbls was central to mucb
post-structurallsm.
le ldea, central to structurallsm, tbat slgns are not natural ln cbaracter
but matters or cultural conventlon, and are ln tbat sense arbltrary, was
capltallzed upon by a number or |rencb wrlters, most notably koland
8artbes (see Culler zooz). le stlmulated mucb work ln cultural studles by
applylng lt to aspects or popular culture. One example be used was all-ln
wrestllng, argulng tbat tbls sport amounts to tbe excbange or symbols
ratber tban to tbe expresslon or natural aggresslon. lndeed, be suggests
tbat lt relles upon a klnd or autbentlc but knowlng pretense on tbe part
or botb tbe wrestlers tbemselves and tbelr audlences. le latter, as wltb
any klnd or tbeatre, are requlred wllllngly to suspend dlsbeller. treatlng as
real wbat ls known to be contrlved. le key polnt ror 8artbes ls, bowever,
tbat tbere ls no reallty tbat ls nor contrlved or constructed ln-and-tbrougb
soclal and dlscurslve practlces. ln tbls way, be developed structurallst ldeas
ln a radlcal dlrectlon tbat stlmulated a conslderable body or emplrlcal
researcb, under tbe beadlng or semlotlcs (see 8lgnell ;).
Anotber lnuentlal wrlter orten assoclated wltb post-structurallsm
and postmodernlsm, but also rejectlng tbese labels, was acques Uerrlda.
le started rrom a crltlque or pbenomenologlcal pbllosopby, cbarglng
tbat lt treated language as ancbored ln a dlrect relatlonsblp to tbe world
(concept to object, sound to meanlng), and as bavlng a stable structure
tbat tbereby produced xed, essentlal meanlngs accesslble to anyone wbo
knows tbe language. 8y contrast, Uerrlda empbaslzed tbe extent to wblcb
structures, wbetber wltbln languages or wltbln partlcular texts, lnvolve
conlctlng and sblrtlng elements. As a result, meanlng always escapes our
grasp even wblle we nevertbeless manage to communlcate wltb otbers,
reellng tbat we understand wbat tbey say or wrlte. lndeed, a key reature
or mucb post-structurallsm and postmodernlsm ls a denlal tbat language
or dlscourse can be a tool tbat ls under our control. katber, lt ls clalmed,
dlscourse rorms us, and ln a sense even speaks tbrougb us.
le wrlter wbo applled tbe term postmodernlsm to bls own work,
ean-|rancols Lyotard, empbaslzed tbat we must tblnk or dlscourses not so
4! Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
mucb as languages but as language games. as rorms or practlce tbat gener-
ate meanlng, and tbat are lncommensurable wltb one anotber.
z0
As tbls
lndlcates, wbat postmodernlsm opposes above all ls tbe ldea tbat tbere ls,
or can be, a slngle comprebenslve perspectlve ln terms or wblcb we sbould
understand or approacb tbe world, wbetber tbat or sclence or or crltl-
cal pbllosopby. lnstead, lt ls argued tbat any partlcular dlscourse leaves
untoucbed an eluslve remalnder, some or wblcb may be central ror otber
dlscourses. lls means tbat we must recognlze and accept radlcal dlver-
slty ln perspectlve. Moreover, tbe opposltlon to purportedly totallslng
perspectlves bere ls not just on eplstemologlcal or ontologlcal grounds,
but also on etblcal and polltlcal ones. lt ls argued tbat sucb perspectlves
are totalltarlan ln polltlcal terms, and bave generated soclal oppresslon,
ror example tbe lmprlsonment or polltlcal opponents ln mental bospltals
and ln tbe gulag ln Lastern Lurope durlng tbe twentletb century.
Wblle belonglng to tbe polltlcal Lert, many or tbe |rencb wrlters assocl-
ated wltb post-structurallsm and postmodernlsm were reactlng dlrectly
agalnst Marxlsm, wltb lts clalm to know tbat blstory ls leadlng to a soclety
ln wblcb all dlvlslons wlll be overcome. le cballenge bere was not just to
any ldea or blstorlcal lnevltablllty (8erlln ,(, opper ,;) but also to tbe
very ldea tbat sucb a trend would be deslrable. katber, lt was seen as llkely
to erase or overlook lmportant dlerences ln ldentlty and experlence.
lls llne or tblnklng parallels developments wltbln tbe study or gender,
etbnlclty, sexuallty, and dlsablllty, wbere tbere bas been an ongolng
conlct between a rerusal to treat tbese sources or dlerence as blologlcal
ln cbaracter (tbls belng dlsmlssed as essentlallsm) and tbe lnslstence tbat
tbey are nevertbeless rundamental and must be recognlzed and valued ror
tbemselves.
l bave empbaslzed tbe dlverse ldeas to be round under tbe beadlng or
constructlonlsm.
z!
lese bave been very lnuentlal among qualltatlve
researcbers ln tbe past rew decades. ln partlcular, tbey bave stlmulated
researcb on text, dlscourse, narratlve, and lmages. Mucb or tbls work
bas been deslgned to examlne ln detall bow tbe use or symbols, broadly
zo le took tbe concept or language games rrom tbe pbllosopber Wlttgensteln,
wbose work bas also lnuenced otber soclal sclentlsts drawlng on lnterpretlvlsm and
constructlonlsm. See, ror lnstance, lutcblnson er a|, zoos.
z And tbere bave been otber lmportant sources, even wltbln |rance, tbat l bave
not mentloned. rrom tbe work or Ueleuze to tbat or Latour. See Cuttlng (zo), ames
(zoz), larman (zoo), and kestlvo (zoo).
concelved, actlvely constltutes psycbologlcal and soclal pbenomena,
constructlng tbem ln some ways ratber tban otbers, and generatlng dlver-
slty or rragmentatlon. lls work bas also sometlmes been closely related
to a polltlcal concern wltb wbat ls seen as cultural lmperlallsm (Cllord
and Marcus so). As part or tbls, tbere bas been a sblrt ln some quarters
rrom vlewlng sclence as a progresslve rorce to seelng lt as an expresslon or
Western polltlcal and economlc domlnance, wltb some wrlters derendlng,
as an alternatlve, modes or knowlng tbat are marglnallzed, ror example
tbose or lndlgenous groups (see Uenzln er a|. zoos).
Moreover, as we saw, tbere are rorms or constructlonlst researcb tbat
are not concerned slmply wltb documentlng bow psycbologlcal and soclal
pbenomena are constructed tbrougb tbe dlscourses and practlces operat-
lng wltbln partlcular sltuatlons, but ratber wltb bow researcb accounts
tbemselves are lmpllcated ln tbls. lndeed, tbere bas been a small body or
work tbat bas applled dlscourse and narratlve analysls to researcb reports,
especlally to tbose or qualltatlve researcbers (see lammersley ().
8eyond tbls, tbere bave been calls ror researcbers to dlsplay a reexlve
awareness or bow tbey slmultaneously document and construct tbe
world tbrougb studylng lt, and bow tbls betrays tbelr own commltments
and orlentatlons. As a result, constructlonlsm bas sometlmes stlmulated
rorms or researcb wrltlng tbat are speclcally deslgned to undercut not
only tbe sclentlc lmage or researcb but also any clalm on lts bebalr to
well-establlsbed knowledge (see, ror lnstance, Asbmore s).
Summary
ln tbls cbapter we bave looked at some or tbe metbodologlcal pblloso-
pbles tbat bave sbaped qualltatlve researcb. We started wltb posltlvlsm,
wblcb was a major lnuence on quantltatlve researcb, tbougb we also
noted respects ln wblcb lt bad sbaped qualltatlve work as well. We moved
on to lnterpretlvlsm, wblcb bas been among tbe most lmportant sets or
ldeas underplnnlng qualltatlve enqulry. lt stresses cultural dlerence,
wblle lnslstlng tbat understandlng can take place across cultures. We
noted bow ln some or lts rorms lnterpretlvlsm proposed an alternatlve
conceptlon or rlgorous lnqulry to tbat ascrlbed to natural sclence by posl-
tlvlsm, wblle otber rorms rejected any ldea or rellance upon metbod, and
especlally sclentlc metbod. A tblrd set or pbllosopblcal ldeas, collected
togetber under tbe beadlng or crltlcal pbllosopby, sbares some reatures
4 Vernodo|og|ca| pn||osopn|es
wltb botb posltlvlsm and lnterpretlvlsm, but also dlers slgnlcantly
rrom botb notably ln lts empbasls on tbe need ror a comprebenslve
tbeoretlcal rramework and expllclt soclal crltlque, and on tbe lnevltabll-
lty or polltlcal engagement. |lnally, we looked at varlous ldeas tbat can
be loosely grouped under tbe beadlng or constructlonlsm. We saw tbat
some or tbese were qulte close to lnterpretlvlsm, at least ln recommend-
lng tbe carerul documentatlon or bow partlcular soclal pbenomena are
culturally or lnteractlonally constructed ln partlcular places at partlcular
tlmes, tbougb constructlonlsm usually lnvolves a dlerent understand-
lng or wbat tbls requlres. We also noted more radlcal verslons or tbls
metbodologlcal pbllosopby tbat turn tbe notlon or constructlon back on
qualltatlve lnqulry ltselr, lmplylng tbat tbe accounts lt produces can clalm
no more eplstemlc autborlty tban any otbers. lere, at most, tbe role or
sucb lnqulry can only be to blgbllgbt tbe constructed, ratber tban natural
or sclentlc, cbaracter or domlnant ways or tblnklng, and perbaps tbereby
to subvert tbem.
47
3 Divergent analytic styles
ln tbe prevlous cbapter l outllned some metbodologlcal pbllosopbles
tbat bave sbaped qualltatlve researcb, and tbat bave been a major ractor
ln generatlng tbe dlverse rorms lt now takes. One consequence or tbls
dlverslcatlon bas been a degree or termlnologlcal conruslon. tbere ls now
a pletbora or terms surroundlng tbe practlce or qualltatlve researcb, and
tbe meanlng or tbese ls contextually varlable and sometlmes dlsputed. ln
partlcular, tbere are many words or pbrases used eltber as near-synonyms
ror qualltatlve lnqulry, or to ldentlry sub-types or lt, tbat do not rorm part
or a well-rormed typology, ln otber words, tbelr relatlons wltb one anotber
are uncertaln. lese terms lnclude. etbnograpby, case study, naturallstlc
lnqulry, eld researcb, partlclpant observatlon, lnterpretlve study,
pbenomenologlcal lnqulry, bermeneutlc lnvestlgatlon, etbnometbodol-
ogy, narratlve lnqulry, dlscourse analysls, vlrtual etbnograpby, vlsual
antbropology, llngulstlc etbnograpby, and otbers.
!
ln dlscusslng dlerent klnds or qualltatlve researcb, a commonly used
contrast ls between etbnograpby and dlscourse analysls. lls can be belp-
rul. lt certalnly slgnals an lmportant dlerence ln orlentatlon. le term
etbnograpby generally rerers to work tbat draws on a varlety or data
sources, wltb partlclpant observatlon orten treated as central. lus, tbe
etbnograpber usually partlclpates, overtly or covertly, ln peoples dally llves
ror an extended perlod or tlme, watcblng wbat bappens, llstenlng to wbat
ls sald, and}or asklng questlons tbrougb lnrormal and rormal lntervlews,
collectlng documents and artlracts lndeed, gatberlng any avallable
data tbat can lllumlnate tbe emerglng rocus or lnqulry (lammersley and
Atklnson zoo;). 8y contrast, dlscourse analysls tends to employ as data
varlous types or text, wbetber documents or some klnd, or transcrlptlons
or audlo-or vldeo-recordlngs. lt usually employs relatlvely small amounts
A userul source ror clarlcatlon or tbe meanlngs or tbese and otber terms assoclated
wltb qualltatlve researcb ls Scbwandt (zoo).
or data, compared to etbnograpby, and does not normally mlx dlerent
klnds. |urtbermore, lt rocuses speclcally upon tbe runctlonlng or partlcu-
lar textual reatures or patterns, tbese sometlmes belng analysed ln relatlon
to local or wlder contexts.
Uesplte tbese dlerences, eacb or tbe two labels covers a beteroge-
neous eld, lnvolvlng very slgnlcant lnternal dlvergences ln orlentatlon
(lammersley zoo,). Nor do tbey exbaust tbe range or work tbat comes
under tbe beadlng or qualltatlve researcb. So, lnstead, l wlll ldentlry
rour relatlvely dlstlnct sorts or rocus tbat qualltatlve researcbers bave
adopted. ldentlrylng causes, lnvestlgatlng experlence, penetratlng rronts,
and documentlng constltutlve practlces. lese are ldeal types ldentlrylng
slgnlcant dlerences across tbe eld or qualltatlve researcb, not just ln
terms or rocus but also ln underlylng assumptlons.
z
Identifying causes
Causal analysls bas orten been regarded as central to sclence, and lt was
tbe rocus or mucb dlscusslon or sclentlc metbod ln tbe nlneteentb
century. lt ls also central to most quantltatlve researcb today. lnterestlngly,
tbougb, some early advocates or qualltatlve metbod cballenged tbe ablllty
or statlstlcal metbod to ldentlry causes, on tbe grounds tbat lt can only
produce probablllstlc statements wbereas, tbey clalmed, causal laws
state wbat a|wa,s bappens wben certaln condltlons bold. lese wrlters
argued tbat qualltatlve case study, by contrast, ls unlquely capable or
uncoverlng causal relatlons, ror example tbrougb uslng analytlc lnductlon
(see 7nanleckl ,().
1oday, under tbe lnuence or lnterpretlvlsm and constructlonlsm,
many qualltatlve researcbers would deny tbat tbey are engaged ln causal
analysls, or even tbat causal relatlons operate ln tbe soclal world. One
reason ror tbls ls tbat tbey orten see tbe very notlon or causallty as denylng
buman agency, and tbey regard agency as a central reature or soclal llre,
recognltlon or wblcb ls also an lmportant etblcal or polltlcal prlnclple. ln
otber words, tbey belleve tbat to rocus on bow bebavlour ls soclally deter-
mlned debumanlzes buman belngs, portraylng tbem as lndeed perbaps
z |or a slmllar typology, omlttlng tbe rst type, see Crabame (). lere are stlll
klnds or work tbat tbls typology does not take lnto account. lese lnclude qualltatlve
actlon researcb, sucb as tbat or kaplan mentloned ln 8ox ., and also tbose rorms or
qualltatlve lnqulry tbat bave turned to soclo-poetlcs, see Lllls and 8ocbner (o).
49 u|.ergenr ana|,r|c sr,|es
lnduclng tbem to become automatons or dopes. |urtbermore, tbe
concept or causallty ls sometlmes taken to lmply tbat tbere ls no posslbll-
lty or cbanglng soclal arrangements ror tbe better, and most qualltatlve
researcbers oppose tbls as polltlcal conservatlsm.
Anotber reason wby qualltatlve researcbers orten reject tbe ldea tbat
causatlon operates ln tbe soclal world ls tbat tbls ls taken to deny tbe
complexlty and contlngency tbat tbey belleve ls cbaracterlstlc or tbat
world. lowever, tbls rejectlon ls based on a very strong lnterpretatlon or
tbe concept or causallty, lronlcally, exactly tbe one tbat 7nanleckl lnslsted
upon. lls assumes tbat unlversal laws can be dlscovered wblcb state tbat
one type or tblng (x) ls a|wa,s rollowed by anotber (Y), and tbat wbat
precedes a Y ls a|wa,s an x. lowever, tbere are weaker notlons or causal
relatlon, one or wblcb clalms only tbat an x rends ro oe jo||owed o, a Y,
as a result or some rorce exerted by tbe occurrence or an x ratber tban
by bappenstance. lls ls tbe sense or tbe term cause adopted by most
quantltatlve researcb.
Wblle many qualltatlve researcbers now expllcltly reject causal analysls,
ln practlce most nevertbeless engage ln lt, tendlng to assume tbe weaker
notlon or causatlon just outllned. lls ls slgnaled by tbe ract tbat tbey
routlnely use words llke lnuence, sbape, leads to, results ln, etc.
(lammersley zoosb). lus, mucb qualltatlve researcb dlsplays an lnterest
ln wbat leads to or lnuences wbat, and}or ln wbat are tbe consequences
or partlcular practlces or lnstltutlonal arrangements. kererrlng back to tbe
examples or qualltatlve researcb clted ln Cbapter , tbls ls most obvlously
true or Wrlgbt and Ueckers work on ractors contrlbutlng to tbe occur-
rence or armed robbery and Olson er a|s study or sulclde notes, but ln one
way or anotber lt applles to almost all tbe otber examples as well.
lr we look at dlscusslons or qualltatlve metbodology we can sometlmes
nd acknowledgement tbat causal analysls ls tbe alm. One example ls tbe
very lnuentlal account or grounded tbeorlzlng put rorward by Claser
and Strauss (see Uey zoo;. ;s), ln wblcb tbe alm ls to bulld tbeorles
tbrougb an lteratlve process or collectlng data, generatlng explanatory
ldeas, and developlng tbem tbrougb tbe systematlc selectlon or cases ror
subsequent lnvestlgatlon. lndeed, tbe rocus or tbls klnd or work on causal
processes bas been retalned lmpllcltly even ln recent attempts to exorclse
posltlvlst aspects or lt ln ravour or a more constructlonlst approacb (see
Cbarmaz zooo, zooo. o, 8ryant and Cbarmaz zoo;. ,o( and zo).
ln tbe eld or polltlcal sclence ln recent years a strong case bas been
made ror tbe value or qualltatlve case study as a means or causal analysls,
tbougb tbls tlme as a complement to quantltatlve work ratber tban (as
ln tbe case or 7nanleckl) a replacement ror lt (see Maboney and Coertz
zooo). Case study, orten blstorlcal ln cbaracter, bas long played an lnuen-
tlal role ln Western polltlcal sclence. Wblle, ln tbe second balr or tbe twen-
tletb century, lt was marglnallzed by tbe development or sopblstlcated
quantltatlve work, ln tbe past decade or so tbere bas been a sustalned
metbodologlcal derence or tbe capaclty or qualltatlve case study to lden-
tlry causes, and an lncreaslng number or qualltatlve studles adoptlng tbls
orlentatlon (see, ror lnstance, 8ennett and Llman zooo).
Methods used
lere ls llttle or no restrlctlon on tbe metbods or data collectlon tbat
can be used ln qualltatlve researcb almed at causal analysls. Larly work ln
soclology tbat bullt on 7nanleckls analytlc lnductlon tended to rely upon
lntervlews, tbougb orten supplemented by some partlclpant observa-
tlon and tbe use or documents (see Llndesmltb ,;, os, Cressey ,,,
8ecker ,,, ,,, ;,). Studles employlng grounded tbeorlzlng bave also
employed a wlde range or qualltatlve data. Meanwblle, ln polltlcal sclence,
as already noted, tbe maln klnd or data bas orten been blstorlcal docu-
ments or one sort or anotber, or secondary textual sources.
ln seeklng to ldentlry causes, qualltatlve researcb typlcally relles, to
varylng degrees, upon two rorms or analysls. |lrst tbere ls ln-deptb study
or partlcular cases seeklng to trace patterns or causatlon over tlme wltbln
tbem, botb tbrougb observatlon by researcbers and}or by drawlng on
tbe reports or partlclpants. Wbat are lnvolved bere are lnrerences about
causes rrom data about sequences and patterns or events, partlclpants
attltudes, etc, along tbe llnes or Alasuutarls rlddle-solvlng (see Cbapter
). ln many respects, tbls ls slmllar to tbe work or blstorlans seeklng to
explaln key events (see koberts o).
le second metbod, cross-case analysls, ls concerned wltb slmllarltles
among cases wbere tbe outcome or process belng studled occurred, and}
or dlerences oerween tbese cases and tbose wbere lt dld not occur. Sucb
comparlsons can be used as a basls ror developlng, and tben cbecklng,
lnrerences about llkely causal relatlonsblps, ln sbort, bulldlng explanatlons
or tbeorles. lls ls a strategy tbat ls sbared wltb quantltatlve researcb, but
wltbln qualltatlve work tbe concern ls usually wltb carerul comparlson or
! u|.ergenr ana|,r|c sr,|es
a small number or cases ratber tban lnvestlgatlng assoclatlons across large
samples or populatlons. |urtbermore, tbere ls orten an lnterest ln explor-
lng tbe role or como|nar|ons or causal ractors, ratber tban slmply seeklng
to assess tbe causal contrlbutlon or eacb ractor separately ln tbe manner
or most quantltatlve work. lls conguratlonal approacb ls central to
qualltatlve comparatlve analysls, wblcb was rst developed ln tbe eld or
polltlcal sclence but ls now belng applled mucb more wldely (kagln zooo,
klboux and kagln zoo).
Criticisms
As already lndlcated, many qualltatlve researcbers reject causal analysls ror
etblcal and polltlcal reasons, and}or on tbe grounds tbat tbe soclal world
ls cbaracterlzed by complex and contlngent relatlons tbat are not causal
ln cbaracter, ln tbe sense tbat tbey are very dlerent rrom tbose operatlng
ln tbe pbyslcal world. lere are also crltlclsms or qualltatlve causal analysls
rrom tbe quantltatlve slde. lere tbe maln cbarges are tbat too rew cases
are studled ror general concluslons to be reacbed, and tbat lt lnvolves
lnadequate control over varlables, so tbat even ndlngs about tbe cases
lnvestlgated are unllkely to be rellable (klng er a|. (, Lleberson and
(, but see also 8rady and Colller zoo().
Investigating experience
ln tbls second orlentatlon, researcb ls almed at explorlng ln deptb tbe
experlence and perspectlves or some group or type or people, perbaps
even just one person. Lxamples mentloned ln Cbapter lnclude 8ogdans
llre blstory or ane |ry and Lewlss study or peoples experlences or lrrltable
bowel syndrome. lls second orlentatlon ls orten strongly lnuenced by
lnterpretlvlsm, lncludlng pbenomenology.
A central assumptlon bere ls tbat peoples experlences and perspectlves
are more dlverse, complex and lnterestlng tban ls generally recognlzed, and
tbat documentlng tbem ls tbererore lntrlnslcally wortbwblle, tbls polnt or
vlew sometlmes belng labeled crltlcal bumanlsm (see lummer zoo).
lere ls orten a partlcular empbasls on tbe need to study tbe experlences
and perspectlves or people wbo are marglnallzed, lgnored, or oppressed
wltbln a soclety, ror example mlnorlty etbnlc or rellglous groups, mental
patlents and prlsoners, tbe poor and tbe bomeless, gays and lesblans, etc.
lndeed, sometlmes tbe analytlc task ls seen as glvlng volce to sucb people,
z wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
or galnlng volce oneselr as sucb a person, as wltb mucb remlnlst researcb
and queer tbeory. At tbe very least, a prlmary alm may be to overcome
wbat ls vlewed as mlsrepresentatlon or tbese groups ln o clal accounts,
establlsbed tbeorles, popular stereotypes, and current ldeologles.
lt ls also sometlmes argued tbat documentlng peoples experlence and
perspectlves |n dera|| ls essentlal lr we are to understand tbelr actlons. 1o
take just one example, lt bas long been recognlzed tbat tbe bebavlour
or many patlents, partlcularly older people, wbo bave been prescrlbed
drugs ralls to conrorm wltb lnstructlons about bow tbese sbould be used.
lowever, slmply labellng tbem non-compllant wltb prescrlbed reglmens
provldes us wltb llttle lnslgbt, lndeed lt leads ln tbe dlrectlon or blame
and}or dlsmlssal or tbelr bebavlour as lrratlonal. lnstead, lt ls argued, we
need to lnvestlgate peoples attltudes towards tbelr medlcal condltlon,
and towards tbemselves, and tbelr vlews about tbe cbaracter and eec-
tlveness or partlcular drugs and tbelr slde-eects. Unless we understand
tbelr perspectlves on tbese matters, lt ls lnslsted, we wlll not be able to
understand tbelr bebavlour.
!
lnvestlgatlng experlence may, tbererore, be prompted by, or lead to, a
concern wltb exp|a|n|ng peoples bebavlour. lls ls orten seen as a matter
or documentlng tbe reasons wby tbey bebave as tbey do ln otber words
tbe rocus ls on tbelr lntentlons and expressed motlves. lndeed, tbere ls
orten an assumptlon tbat people are experts on tbemselves, and tbat no
purely external account ln terms or sltuatlonal adaptatlon or background
ractors can be adequate. lt ls argued tbat people bave more lnrormatlon
about tbemselves and wbat tbey do tban any researcber could ever bope
to galn, or lt may be assumed tbat tbrougb selr-analysls tbey are unlquely
placed to grasp tbe complexlty or tbe motlvatlons beblnd tbelr actlons.
Cenerally speaklng, tbose adoptlng tbls orlentatlon assume tbat under-
standlng otber peoples perspectlves ls a cballenglng task, not to be taken
on llgbtly ln eltber metbodologlcal or etblcal terms, and one tbat ls by no
means assured or success. |or example, ln relatlon to llre blstory work, tbe
study or peoples blograpbles, lummer wrltes.
ln a way, l am slmply advocatlng gettlng close to llvlng buman
belngs, accurately yet lmaglnatlvely plcklng up tbe way tbey express
tbelr understandlngs or tbe world around tbem, perbaps provldlng
, See ound er a| (zoo,) ror a syntbesls or ndlngs rrom qualltatlve studles on tbls
toplc.
! u|.ergenr ana|,r|c sr,|es
an analysls or sucb expresslons, presentlng tbem ln lnterestlng ways,
and belng selr-crltlcally aware or tbe lmmense dl cultles sucb tasks
brlng. (lummer zoo. z)
le dl cultles lnvolved take a varlety or rorms. |or one tblng, lt ls not
always stralgbtrorward to get people to talk. tbey may not be lnterested ln
researcb, tbey may not understand wby tbe researcber would be lnterested
ln wbat tbey bave to say, or wbat tbey could say tbat would be or lnterest,
tbey may rear tbat wbat tbey reveal wlll be embarrasslng puttlng tbem-
selves or otbers ln a bad llgbt or damaglng, and}or tbere may be secrets
tbey do not wlsb to dlsclose.
Aslde rrom tbls, researcbers tbemselves must overcome tbe eects or,
or at least try to suspend, many or tbelr personal and cultural assump-
tlons, and perbaps especlally tbelr routlne attltudes and evaluatlons.
lls ls necessary lr tbey are to ask questlons and make responses tbat
encourage candld accounts or peoples experlences and polnts or vlew. lt
ls also cruclal lr tbey are to be able to undersrand tbese experlences and
perspectlves, so as to document tbem accurately and ln detall. very orten
tbls wlll requlre a process or learnlng one tbat ls lnrormal ln cbaracter
and necessarlly open-ended ln wblcb tbe lnuence or tbe researcbers
lnltlal ldeas must be mlnlmlzed to prevent tbelr operatlng as a source or
bllndness or blas.
We can lllustrate tbe dl cultles bere by conslderlng tbe case or adult
researcbers seeklng to understand tbe experlence and perspectlves or cbll-
dren. lt bas been argued tbat tbls ls a very dl cult task because cblldren
are allen or otber ln relatlon to adults. cblldren operate at dlstlnctlve
stages or psycbologlcal development, bave not yet been rully soclallzed,
and tbey bave dlstlnctlve condltlons or llre. lls means tbat ln order to
understand tbem adults must work bard to put aslde wbat seems normal
and obvlous, and attempt to learn to see and reel tblngs dlerently. And
tbere are tbose wbo ralse doubts about wbetber, or about tbe extent to
wblcb, tbls can ever be posslble. |or example, ones (zoo. ;;) bas argued.
Once cblldbood ls superseded by adult stocks or knowledge, tbose
adult lters can never be removed to get back to earller states. Adult
constructlons and memorles or wbat lt ls}was to be a cblld are
lnevltably processed tbrougb adultness.
Slmllar arguments can be round ln otber cases men ln relatlon to
women, or people rrom one soclal class, culture, or generatlon seeklng to
understand tbose rrom otbers. lndeed, bere tbe problem could be even
more cballenglng tban ln tbe case or understandlng cblldren, slnce all
adults bave at some tlme actually oeen cblldren.
Or course, wblle researcbers wlll always dler ln some respects rrom tbe
people tbey study, tbere wlll usually be mucb tbat tbey also sbare. lls
suggests tbat tbere ls normally at least some scope ror learnlng to under-
stand otbers perspectlves, even lr tbere are also barrlers tbat create poten-
tlal mlsunderstandlngs. Lqually lmportant ls tbe otber slde or tbls polnt.
tbat even wben a researcber sbares a key ldentlty wltb tbe people belng
studled, understandlng cannot be guaranteed, slnce tbere wlll always be
otber ways ln wblcb be or sbe dlers rrom tbem. |or example, kelnbarz
(;), ln ber researcb on elderly klbbutzlm members ln lsrael, came to
reallze botb tbe value or belng an Asbkenazl ew, llke tbe people sbe was
studylng, but also tbe slgnlcance or ber dlerences rrom tbem, especlally
tbe ract tbat sbe was only a temporary member or tbe klbbutz.
Methods used
kesearcbers adoptlng tbls second orlentatlon rrequently rely prlmar-
lly upon ln-deptb lntervlews as tbe best means or ellcltlng accounts or
peoples experlence and perspectlves. lese lntervlews wlll generally be
relatlvely unstructured ln cbaracter, and orten carrled out ln contexts
wbere lntervlewees reel relaxed, wltb tbe alm or allowlng tbem to speak at
lengtb ln tbelr own terms. As part or tbls, tbe lntervlewer wlll orten engage
ln conslderable eorts to bulld and sustaln rapport, wblle at tbe same
tlme trylng to mlnlmlze ber or bls lnuence. Or course, lt may be necessary
ror tbe lntervlewer to lntervene to stlmulate people to talk about toplcs
tbat tbey bave glossed over, or to prompt tbem to provlde more detall
about examples tbat tbey bave only mentloned, but tbls wlll usually be
done ln ways tbat go along wltb tbe ow or wbat tbe lnrormant ls saylng
ratber tban dlsruptlng lt. ln sbort, tbe usual lntervlewlng style adopted ls
responslve ln cbaracter, almlng to racllltate tbe ellcltatlon or data relevant
to understandlng peoples experlences and perspectlves. lls sort or
u|.ergenr ana|,r|c sr,|es
approacb ls cbaracterlstlc, ror example, or tbe klnds or lntervlew used ln
mucb llre-blstory and blograpblcal work.
4
Wltbln tbls orlentatlon, lntervlews may sometlmes be supplemented
by observatlon or people ln tbe contexts tbat tbey normally lnbablt, on
tbe grounds tbat tbls can racllltate tbe researcbers understandlng or wbat
tbey belleve and wby, as well as or wbat tbey do. |or example, ln tbelr
study or rst-tlme motbers, lomson er a| (zo) comblned repeated
lntervlews wltb day ln tbe llre observatlons.
Or course, tbere are occaslons wben neltber lntervlew nor observatlon
wlll be posslble, and bere rellance may be placed entlrely upon documents.
lndeed, lt may be argued tbat wbat ls provlded tbrougb tbe wrltten word
ls superlor ln some respects, ror lnstance because lt lnvolves more rore-
tbougbt and carerul rormulatlon. varlous klnds or documents can be used
tbrougb wblcb tbe researcber attempts to understand peoples bellers
and actlons. lese lnclude, most obvlously, personal dlarles or blogs, but
tbere are otber klnds too. As we saw ln Cbapter , ln tbelr study or sulclde
Olson er a| (zo) used sulclde notes, and ln ber study or rrlendsblp among
teenage glrls ln scbool valerle ley (;) made conslderable use or tbe
notes tbat tbey passed to one anotber ln lessons. kesearcbers may also
e||c|r documents, ror example by asklng people to keep dlarles or to take
pbotograpbs or make vldeos or slgnlcant places or events ln tbelr llves. ln
bls researcb on lrrltable bowel syndrome, clted ln Cbapter , Lewls (zooo)
used an open-ended on-llne questlonnalre to galn lnrormatlon about
peoples experlences.
As we bave seen, lt ls orten recognlzed tbat any understandlng tbat
researcbers obtaln or otbers perspectlves wlll necessarlly be ltered
tbrougb tbelr own dlstlnctlve vlew or tbe world, tbelr attltudes, reellngs,
and so on, tbougb lt mlgbt reasonably be argued tbat tbese are not slmply
a source or potentlal bllndness or blas but are also essentlal ln racllltatlng
understandlng. Nevertbeless, lt rollows rrom tbls tbat wbat ls produced
reects a transactlon between tbe two perspectlves, ratber tban a slmple
representatlon by researcbers or otber peoples vlewpolnts and experl-
ences. lls orten motlvates a requlrement tbat tbe researcber expllcate
ber or bls own perspectlve berore provldlng an account or tbe perspec-
tlves or otbers, so tbat readers or researcb reports can understand tbe
( See, ror example, tbe 1lmescapes projects (accessed z(.(.z). bttp.}}www.
tlmescapes.leeds.ac.uk}researcb-projects}
lnterplay between tbe two (altbougb, or course, readers understandlngs
or tbls lnterplay wlll, ln turn, be ltered tbrougb tbelr own perspectlves).
Some bave pressed tbls requlrement ror reexlvlty rurtber, ror example
comlng to argue tbat autoetbnograpby (see Lllls zoo() ls superlor to
studylng otbers dlrectly, glven tbat no-one can get beyond ber or bls own
experlence.
Criticisms
lls second orlentatlon bas by no means escaped crltlclsm. Aslde rrom
doubts about tbe very posslblllty or understandlng otbers experlence
and perspectlves, tbere bave also been arguments tbat lt relles upon a
derectlve psycbology. le cbarge ls tbat lt ralls to recognlze tbat lnner
experlence ls always soclo-culturally constltuted, ror lnstance, tbat tbe
klnds or talk ellclted tbrougb ln-deptb lntervlews about peoples experl-
ences wlll reect tbe partlcular genres concerned wltb tbougbts, reellngs,
etc. tbat are avallable wltbln tbe culture concerned, and bow tbese bave
been moblllzed on tbe partlcular occaslon ratber tban slmply dlsplaylng
lndlvldual rorms or lnner experlence and beller ln tbemselves. Moreover,
tbese genres wlll dler across socletles and soclal groups. Also cballenged
sometlmes ls tbe ldea tbat people truly understand tbemselves and tbelr
bebavlour. Urawlng on Marxlsm or psycboanalysls, ror example, lt may
be argued tbat tbere are psycbologlcal or soclal rorces tbat lead people
systematlcally to mlsunderstand tbemselves and tbelr world.
ln addltlon, tbere are some etblcal and polltlcal arguments agalnst
tbls orlentatlon. Most obvlously, lt may be seen as lnvadlng prlvacy, and
tbere are assoclated arguments tbat lt reects tbe prevalence or an lndl-
vlduallzlng dlscourse tbrougb wblcb peoples very selves are opened up
to publlc survelllance, or tbat lt transrorms wbat sbould be publlc lssues
lnto a preoccupatlon wltb personalltles (see Atklnson and Sllverman ;,
Cubrlum and lolsteln zoo, 8auman zooo).
Penetrating fronts
le tblrd orlentatlon or style l wlll dlscuss ls concerned wltb ndlng out
wnar acrua||, nappens ln some sltuatlon as agalnst wbat o clal accounts
, |or an lmportant debate about autoetbnograpby, see tbe journa| oj conremporar,
irnnograpn,, vol ,,, lssue (, August zooo.
say bappens, or dlscoverlng wbat people acrua||, do ratber tban wbat tbey
say tbey do, or documentlng wbat tbey rea||, belleve or reel as agalnst
wbat tbey clalm to belleve or reel. Mltcbells (zoo) study or survlval-
lsts, outllned ln 8ox . provldes an example or tbls sort or approacb.
Underlylng lt ls tbe ldea tbat people, groups, and organlzatlons put up
rronts, wbetber consclously or unconsclously, wbetber routlnely or on
partlcular occaslons, and wbetber ror tbe protectlon or tbemselves and
otbers or to promote sectlonal lnterests (Coman ,, Uouglas ;o).
Wbatever tbe motlve, lt ls assumed tbat tbese rronts obscure or mlsrepre-
sent peoples real lntentlons, attltudes, bellers, goals, and practlces, so tbat
tbe task or tbe researcber ls to get beblnd tbem to dlscover tbe trutb.
lls ls clearly very dlerent rrom tbe second orlentatlon, wblcb treats
people as rellable experts on tbemselves and tbelr own bebavlour. lnstead,
wbat seems to be requlred bere ls wbat bas been rererred to as a berme-
neutlcs or susplclon (Cadamer s(, Lelter zoo,), ln wblcb tbe prlnclple
or cbarlty, wbereby we assume tbat people are bonest and know wbat
tbey clalm to know, ls suspended.
lt ls sometlmes argued tbat tbe creatlon or rronts ls especlally common
among tbose ln powerrul posltlons, and tbat lt ls tbe responslblllty or
soclal sclentlsts to lnvestlgate tbe attltudes and actlons or sucb people and
publlclze wbat tbey nd ln tbe lnterests or openness, accountablllty and
democracy. ln otber words, tbls orlentatlon may be seen as perrormlng an
lmportant polltlcal runctlon, analogous to tbat or tbe lnvestlgatlve jour-
nallst (kalnwater and lttman o;, Cbrlstle ;o, Uouglas ;o, Lundman
and Mc|arlane ;o). ln some respects, tbls rocus ls lnuenced by tbe
crltlcal metbodologlcal pbllosopby we dlscussed ln tbe prevlous cbapter,
but lt ls not restrlcted to tbat tradltlon. At tbe very least, wbat ls assumed
ls tbat soclety ls cbaracterlzed by conlctlng lnterests and endemlc decep-
tlon, at least ln certaln quarters.
Or course, researcb almed at penetratlng rronts need not be dlrected
at tbe most powerrul groups ln a soclety. lt can be argued tbat most or
us use rronts or one sort or anotber, so tbat tbere are many areas or llre
wbere wbat really goes on ls not publlcly known, even wben lt ls wldely
suspected. Lxamples tbat bave been researcbed lnclude wbat goes on ln
massage parlours (Uouglas ;o), wbat bappens ln gay batb bouses (Styles
;), and tbe servlces (lncludlng tbe supply or drugs) provlded by some
bouncers on tbe doors or nlgbt clubs (Calvey zooo).
Methods used
kesearcbers employlng tbls orlentatlon orten stress tbe lmportance or
carrylng out observatlons ln natural settlngs, golng to wbere tbe actlon
ls orten beblnd closed doors, and studylng everyday bebavlour tbat
ls unaected, or only mlnlmally aected, by tbe researcb process. As ln
tbe case or Uouglass and Calveys work, tbls may rrequently lnvolve tbe
use or covert strategles. taklng on some role ln order to get access to a
settlng secretly, or lnltratlng a scene by passlng as a member. Arter all,
lt ls unllkely tbat people wlll agree to glve access to a researcber wbo tbey
know ls golng to expose wbat ls really bappenlng, and tbereby undercut
tbelr carerully constructed and asslduously malntalned rronts.
lntervlews may also be used, eltber as tbe maln source or data or as an
lmportant supplement to observatlon. ley can supply evldence about
tbe rronts to be penetrated, but also perbaps provlde access to lnslde
lnrormatlon about wbat goes on beblnd tbem. Wblle ln tbls latter role
lntervlews are sometlmes treated as second-best to dlrect observatlon,
ln many cases tbey wlll be tbe only source or data avallable. lt ls orten
argued tbat tbe selectlon or lnrormants ls cruclal bere. tbat lt ls necessary
to target tbose wbo botb know wbat really goes on and bave a motlve ror
reveallng lt. lls mlgbt lnclude, ror lnstance, people central to a group or
organlzatlon wbo bear a grudge agalnst otbers wltbln lt, tbose wbo are ln
subordlnate posltlons but wbo wltness key declslons (sucb as advlsers or
secretarles), and old-tlmers wbo may reel tbey bave llttle to lose, as well
as people wbo bave recently lert tbe group or organlzatlon, wbo may reel
rreer and more motlvated to talk about wbat goes on wltbln lt tbougb
llke tbe otbers tbey may bave axes to grlnd.
lntervlews ln tbls klnd or researcb wlll orten be ratber dlerent ln cbar-
acter rrom tbose used ror lnvestlgatlng experlence. Wblle galnlng lnslde
lnrormatlon may requlre tbe researcber to bulld trust wltb lntervlewees,
and to provlde a context ln wblcb tbey can relax, at otber tlmes lntervlew
tactlcs wlll need to be cballenglng and even aggresslve almed at rorclng
people to come clean, to race up to contradlctlons and explaln tbem-
selves rully ratber tban oerlng superclal justlcatlons or maklng excuses
(see Uouglas ;o).
kesearcb concerned wltb penetratlng rronts may also sometlmes use
documents. lese can certalnly provlde data about o clal accounts, but
tbey can also sometlmes be used to get beblnd tbese to nd out wbat really
goes on, especlally wben tbey bave been produced ror prlvate purposes.
lnternal memos or emalls, secret les, etc., generated wltbln organlzatlons
ror lnternal consumptlon may become avallable as a consequence or legal
prosecutlon or uno clal leaks. And tbey may well contradlct tbe o clal
llne presented ln publlcly avallable documents, wbere tbe alm ls usually
to portray tbe organlzatlon ln tbe best publlc llgbt and to promote lts
lnterests. lowever, even o clal documents lntended ror publlcatlon can
sometlmes be lnadvertently reveallng.
ln tbe case or lndlvlduals, prlvate dlarles or letters may or course dlsplay
mucb more about tbelr actual attltudes and bebavlour tban wbat tbey say
ln more publlc rorums. An example, rrom wltbln qualltatlve researcb ltselr,
ls provlded by tbe roundlng ratber or modern antbropology, 8ronlslaw
Mallnowskl (ss((z), wbose publlsbed account or eld-work practlce
blgbllgbted tbe need ror sympatbetlc understandlng or tbe natlve polnt
or vlew. lls account was taken as a klnd or mlsslon statement by many
antbropologlsts. lowever, arter bls deatb, bls personal dlarles datlng rrom
tbe tlme or bls rst plece or eldwork were publlsbed, and tbese revealed
ratber unsympatbetlc, perbaps even raclst, attltudes towards tbe people
be was studylng (see Mallnowskl, o;, Wax, ;z).
Criticisms
le commltment to penetratlng rronts ls probably less common among
qualltatlve researcbers ln most elds today tban lt was ln tbe past,
tbougb lt bas by no means entlrely dlsappeared. le decllne probably
reects concerns about tbe etblcs or tbls klnd or work, tbese no doubt
compounded by tbe rlse or etblcal regulatlon (see lammersley and
1ralanou zoz. cb.). lt may also stem rrom uncertalnty about wbetber
researcb can ever get beblnd appearances to wbat actually occurred or
to wbat people truly belleve. lndeed, as we saw ln Cbapter z, tbere can be
doubts ruelled by constructlonlsm about wbetber tbese pbrases bave
any meanlng at all.
Documenting constitutive practices
lls rourtb orlentatlon wltbln qualltatlve researcb ls strongly lnuenced
by constructlonlsm, or one sort or anotber. lere, tbe rocus ls on tbe constl-
tutlve practlces tbat generate soclal pbenomena. lese practlces can be
conceptuallzed ln a varlety or ways. Wblle, most commonly, tbey relate to
dlscourse, tbere bas also been mucb researcb or tbls klnd concerned wltb
lmages, rrom early work on semlotlcs to more recent vlsual antbropology
or soclology (8all and Smltb z, 8lgnell ;, 8anks zoo, lnk zoo;).
|urtbermore, some researcbers argue tbat tbe wbole or buman bebavlour
ls deslgned to be accountable ln tbe sense or belng lntelllglble to otbers
(Carnkel o;, lerltage s(). Lxamples or tbls rourtb orlentatlon clted
ln Cbapter would be tbe studles by MacLure and Walker, Wetberell and
Ldley, and Levltas, all or tbem rocuslng on dlscourse, but employlng ratber
dlerent strategles and types or data rrom one anotber.
Central to mucb dlscourse analysls, as noted earller, ls tbe argument
tbat llngulstlc accounts do not slmply re-present tbe objects to wblcb
tbey rerer but ratber consr|rure tbose objects. ln addltlon, some dlscourse
analysts empbaslze tbat language-use ls not slmply a means or communl-
catlon, lt ls a medlum tbrougb wblcb actlons and actlvltles are perrormed.
lus, dlscurslve strategles are always almed at partlcular audlences, and
are usually deslgned to produce partlcular eects. Lqually lmportant, lt ls
empbaslzed tbat dlscurslve strategles can lead us to belleve tblngs wltbout
questlon. to see tbe world as bavlng some essentlal cbaracter, rullng
out otber posslbllltles as eectlvely untblnkable. |or tbls reason, some
approacbes under tbls beadlng, notably tbose lnuenced by tbe work or
|oucault, empbaslse tbe close relatlonsblp between dlscourse and tbe
exerclse or power.
le emergence or tbls klnd or approacb can be lllustrated by a slgnl-
cant cbange tbat bas taken place amongst soclologlsts studylng tbe ramlly.
|or most or tbe twentletb century, tbe rocus ln tbls eld was typlcally on
bow and wby ramlly structures bave cbanged over tbe course or Western
blstory, ror example rrom predomlnantly extended ramlly rorms to nuclear
ramllles, on bow sucb structures vary across dlerent types or soclety, and
on tbe lmpllcatlons or tbls ror gender roles, care or cblldren, etc. lowever,
many soclologlsts now rocus lnstead on ramlly practlces (Morgan o,
zoa and b), tbls term rererrlng to tbe varlous klnds or actlvlty tbrougb
wblcb people seek to establlsb and malntaln wbat tbey see as tbelr ramlly,
or at least some rorm or ramlly llre. ln some cases, tbls bas resulted ln a
preoccupatlon wltb bow ramlly ls constltuted ln and tbrougb tbe dlscur-
slve practlces ln wblcb people engage, lncludlng ln researcb lntervlews
(see Cubrlum and lolsteln o). |or example, Cubrlum and lolsteln
(,. oo,) declare tbat. |amlly ls enacted wberever lt ls talked about,
descrlbed, cballenged, pralsed, or expllcltly dlsmlssed. Anotber rocus bas
6! u|.ergenr ana|,r|c sr,|es
been on tbe role or artlracts, sucb as pbotograpbs, used to dlsplay ramlly
(|lncb zoo;).
Wltb tbls rourtb orlentatlon, tben, researcbers are lnterested ln bow
tbe accounts tbat people glve (wbetber ln lntervlews, ln ordlnary talk, ln
documents, or vlsually tbrougb pbotograpbs) are constructed, tbereby
representlng tbe world ln one way ratber tban anotber, and}or on bow
tbey runctlon to brlng o, or brlng about, partlcular rorms or actlon or
lnstltutlonal pattern. One aspect or tbls ls explorlng bow storles are struc-
tured and tbe way tbat tbls sbapes bow tbey are read. Sucb narrar|.e ana|-
,s|s draws many or lts tecbnlques rrom earller lnvestlgatlons or lmaglnatlve
llterature, and tbe capaclty or tbls to create bellevable worlds (Atklnson
;, Andrews er a| zooo, Atklnson and Uelamont zoo(, klessman zoos).
A major rocus bas been on tbe narratlves tbat people construct about
tbemselves, and bow tbese rormulate tbelr ldentltles ln some ways ratber
tban otbers.
lere ls also dlscourse analysls concerned wltb conversatlonal and
otber klnds or soclal lnteractlon, rocuslng on tbe dlscurslve resources
and strategles employed (ten lave zoo( and zoo;). lere, very orten, lt
ls argued tbat partlcular practlces generare rne|r own conrexrs. ln otber
words, tbese strategles are seen as reexlvely constltutlng tbe world ln
wblcb tbey occur. ln llne wltb tbls, tbere ls sometlmes an lnslstence tbat
tbere must be mlnlmal rellance by tbe analyst, and by readers, upon any
lnrormatlon about external context. lt ls lnslsted tbat wbat ls relevant
to understandlng any plece or dlscourse ls restrlcted to wbat ls actually
dlsplayed as contextually relevant |n rne dara.
8y contrast, otber researcb on dlscurslve practlces seeks to locate tbese
wltbln a context dened by tbe researcber, eltber tbrougb some tbeoretlcal
account or tbe nature or tbe wlder soclety or vla evldence rrom otber klnds
or researcb. An example or tbls klnd or work would be crltlcal dlscourse
analysls (Caldas-Coultbard and Coultbard o, |alrclougb zoo,). lere lt ls
argued, ror example, tbat lr we are to understand wby members or etbnlc
mlnorltles are descrlbed ln negatlve ways ln tablold newspapers tben we
need to understand tbe ldeologlcal roles tbat sucb mlnorltles play wltbln
capltallst socletles, as well as studylng tbe dlscurslve strategles employed
by tbe mass medla and tbe soclal runctlons tbey perrorm (van Uljk ).
So, researcb rollowlng tbls rourtb orlentatlon can range rrom studles
or bow storles are told or bow partlcular klnds or soclal lnteractlon are
collaboratlvely reallzed, tbrougb to lnvestlgatlons or bow textual strategles
ln tbe medla reproduce capltallsm or raclsm, or |oucault-lnsplred analysls
or tbe dlscourses operatlng ln partlcular lnstltutlonal elds wltbln partlcu-
lar blstorlcal perlods.
Methods used
Clven tbe dlverse range or work and ldeas lncluded under tbls beadlng, lt
ls perbaps not surprlslng tbat tbere are conlctlng vlews about wbat sort
or data sbould be employed. |leldnotes produced by tbe researcber are
generally ruled out by dlscourse analysts, or wbatever strlpe, because tbey
depend so beavlly upon wbat tbe researcber bas looked out ror, notlced
and recorded. lnstead, lt ls usually argued tbat observatlonal data must
be recorded electronlcally, ln audlo- or vldeo-rorm, and tben transcrlbed,
perbaps ln sucb a way as to capture not just tbe words but tbe detalls
or language-use sucb as besltatlon, repetltlon, overlap, pauses, and
non-verbal contrlbutlons. Some or tbose engaglng ln tbls klnd or work also
reject tbe use or data rrom researcb lntervlews. because wbat lnrormants
say ln tbose contexts ls beavlly sbaped by tbe researcber. ley lnslst,
lnstead, on tbe excluslve use or naturally occurrlng talk, or or avallable
documents or one klnd or anotber.
So, tbose adoptlng tbls orlentatlon are lnterested ln studylng lnterac-
tlonal, dlscurslve, narratlve, representatlonal, or communlcatlve strategles
or processes. 8y comparlson wltb tbe tblrd orlentatlon (penetratlng
rronts), lt could be sald tbat mucb or tbe researcb under tbls rourtb bead-
lng ls excluslvely lnterested ln bow rronts are constructed and malntalned.
le lmportant dlerence, bowever, ls tbat, generally speaklng, tbls rourtb
orlentatlon does not assume lndeed, lt may speclcally deny tbat
tbere ls any reallty beblnd tbe rronts to be dlsgulsed or obscured. Many
dlscourse analysts (crltlcal dlscourse analysls ls an exceptlon bere) lnslst
tbat tbere are slmply dlerent verslons or tbe world produced tbrougb
dlscurslve strategles all tbat tbere can be beblnd a rront, rrom tbls polnt
or vlew, are tbe practlces tbat generated lt.
Sometlmes, ln tbls klnd or work, tbere ls a reluctance to ascrlbe motlves
to tbose employlng tbe dlscurslve strategles documented, or to see tbese
strategles as belng consclously selected and deployed by buman belngs.
lnstead, tbe rocus ls solely on tbe strategles and bow tbey runctlon. Arter
all, to ascrlbe motlves would requlre researcbers engaglng ln reallty-
constructlon tbemselves, ratber tban slmply descrlblng tbe processes,
procedures or strategles tbrougb wblcb partlcular soclal realltles are
6! u|.ergenr ana|,r|c sr,|es
created and sustalned, partlcular actlvltles brougbt o, or partlcular
rorms or llre constltuted. lt would also assume tbe operatlon or agency
on tbe part or tbose uslng tbe strategles, and tbls ls cballenged by some,
notably tbose lnuenced by post-structurallsm.
Criticisms
lls rourtb approacb bas also been subjected to conslderable crltlclsm.
1o one degree or anotber, lt amounts to a major re-speclcatlon, lndeed
a transrormatlon, or tbe rocus or soclal researcb ln eect, rullng out
many toplcs and metbods as lnapproprlate, lncludlng tbose tbat are
central to tbe rst tbree orlentatlons we bave dlscussed.
6
lere bas orten
been crltlclsm or work concerned wltb tbe detalls or partlcular dlscurslve
practlces, sucb as conversatlon analysls, on tbe grounds tbat lt ls trlvlal
and polntless, ln otber words, tbat lt does not address lssues tbat bave
soclal and polltlcal slgnlcance. 8y contrast, tbose approacbes tbat seek to
locate dlscurslve practlces wltbln a wlder analytlc context supplled by tbe
researcber bave orten been cballenged ror tbe speculatlve cbaracter or tbe
rramework tbey deploy. |lnally, lt may be argued tbat tbese klnds or work
rely upon constructlonlsm but do not recognlze lts radlcal lmpllcatlons ror
any treatment or materlal as data, or ror any clalm to bave documented
practlces operatlng ln tbe world (Asbmore and keed zooo, Asbmore er a|
zoo().
Relationships among the four orientations
1o varylng degrees, and ln dlerent ways, tbese rour styles or qualltatlve
work oer a sbarp contrast wltb quantltatlve researcb, wltb lts alm or
produclng rellable measurement or manlpulated varlables rrom wblcb
wldely generallzable concluslons can be derlved tbrougb bypotbesls-
testlng. At tbe same tlme, lt ls not bard to see tbat tbe rour orlentatlons
are also ln conlct wltb one anotber ln lmportant respects.
le rst orlentatlon, ldentlrylng causes, ls perbaps tbe closest to
quantltatlve researcb. lt ls concerned wltb tbe same sort or task devel-
oplng and testlng explanatory bypotbeses even lr lt approacbes tbls ln a
o lt ls sometlmes argued tbat dlscourse and narratlve analysls can be applled to any
soclal toplc, but tbls ls dlslngenuous slnce tbe appllcatlon transrorms tbe toplc, as
normally understood, lnto one tbat ls amenable to tbls rorm or analysls.
dlerent way. lt dlsplays mlnlmal slgns or tbe lnuence or lnterpretlvlsm,
and vlrtually none or constructlonlsm, tbougb lt ls compatlble wltb some
verslons or crltlcal pbllosopby, and wltb a commltment to penetratlng
rronts, and lt does not rule out an lnterest ln explalnlng tbe perspectlves
or lndlvldual actors.
le second orlentatlon, lnvestlgatlng experlence, treats wbat people
say as a wlndow lnto dlstlnctlve personal or cultural worlds, ones tbat,
lt ls assumed, wlll make sense ln tbelr own terms. 8y contrast, tbe tblrd
approacb, penetratlng rronts, adopts a more crltlcal attltude. tbe
researcber ls concerned wltb tbe reallty beblnd tbe rronts tbat people
present, wblcb may only be detectable by lgnorlng wbat tbey say, or at
least treatlng lt wltb great susplclon, and observlng wbat tbey acrua||, do
or wbat tbey say ln unguarded moments. Wbereas tbe second orlentatlon
requlres tbe researcber to accept lndlvlduals own accounts on trust, even
wbere tbese do not lnltlally make mucb sense, ln tbe expectatlon tbat lt ls
ln prlnclple posslble to understand tbem, tbe prevalllng stance ln tbls tblrd
orlentatlon ls to be susplclous or wbat people say even lr lt apparently
makes good sense, slnce lt may slmply be blgbly eectlve ratlonallzatlon.
le rourtb approacb, documentlng constltutlve practlces, ls, ln lts
purer rorms, slgnlcantly at odds wltb all tbe otbers. lt may deny botb tbe
exlstence or causal relatlons and tbe posslblllty or accesslng tbe subjectlve
realltles or otber people bow tbey truly see and reel about tbe world
as well as denylng tbat tbese are tbe well-sprlngs or tbelr actlons. lt may
also questlon tbe exlstence or any objectlve reallty beblnd tbe rronts tbat
people put up. lnstead, tbe rocus ls prlmarlly upon bow soclal pbenomena
are constltuted ln and tbrougb varlous practlces, tbe use or partlcular
cultural resources, and so on.
Uesplte tbe tenslons among tbe rour orlentatlons, many qualltatlve
researcbers ln ract draw on several or tbem, tbougb one or otber ls usually
glven prlmary empbasls. As we saw, tbe second may be used to dlscover
causal processes, and tbe rocus on wbat goes on beblnd rronts may also be
concerned wltb tbls. le second and tblrd may be comblned, sometlmes
even ln tbe same study, one belng applled to tbose people wltb wbom tbe
researcber bas some sympatby, polltlcal or personal, tbe otber to tbose
wltb wbom be or sbe bas none (see lammersley s). lere ls also a
tendency ror researcbers to apply tbe rourtb orlentatlon to accounts tbat
tbey assume to be spurlous, on tbe (mlstaken) assumptlon tbat because
an account can be sbown to be a constructlon lt must tbererore be ralse.
|urtbermore, as we noted, tbere are less pure rorms or dlscourse analysls
and semlotlc analysls tbat seek to locate tbe study or constltutlve prac-
tlces wltbln broader accounts or tbe world, wblcb mlgbt be supplled by
researcb carrled out under one or more or tbe otber orlentatlons.
ln tbe next cbapter we wlll look at a couple or controversles among
qualltatlve researcbers tbat bave speclcally revolved around tenslons
between tbese approacbes, and tbe metbodologlcal pbllosopbles tbat
underpln tbem.
67
4 Two methodological disputes
lt wlll perbaps come as no surprlse, glven tbe substantlal dlerences ln
pbllosopblcal assumptlon and practlcal orlentatlon to be round amongst
soclal researcbers today, tbat tbere bave been, and contlnue to be, major
metbodologlcal and tbeoretlcal dlsputes. Moreover, tbese bave occurred
not just across tbe qualltatlve-quantltatlve dlvlde but also very rrequently
among dlerent verslons or qualltatlve researcb. At tbe most rundamental
level, tbese dlsputes relate to wbat sorts or knowledge are posslble and
deslrable, and to tbe nature and goal or tbe researcb enterprlse. lt ls not
posslble to cover all or tbe lssues tbat dlvlde qualltatlve researcbers, but
l wlll rocus on two very dlerent dlsputes eacb or wblcb ralses lmportant
and dl cult metbodologlcal problems. Ulscusslon or tbese ls deslgned
to glve a sense or tbe varlatlons ln underlylng commltment tbat generate
mucb or tbe dlverslty, ln botb rbetorlc and practlce, now to be round ln
qualltatlve researcb.
le rst dlspute centres on tbe legltlmacy or employlng lntervlews as a
source or data, tbougb as we sball see lts lmpllcatlons extend mucb more
wldely to tbe use or observatlonal data and documents as well. le
second dlspute rocuses on recent etbnograpblc work concerned wltb tbe
llves or tbe urban poor ln tbe Unlted States, ralslng cballenglng questlons
about tbe role or tbeory and evldence, and about tbe publlc or polltlcal
responslblllty or researcbers.
Te radical critique of interviews
lntervlews bave long been used by qualltatlve researcbers as a central
source or data, and ln ract studles relylng prlmarlly or entlrely on tbls type
or data bave become lncreaslngly common ln recent decades, a trend tbat
bas attracted crltlclsm (see, ror example, Atklnson and Sllverman ;,
Sllverman zoo;.cb.z). ln Cbapter , we saw tbat lntervlews are orten central
to researcb tbat ls concerned wltb lnvestlgatlng peoples experlence and
perspectlves, and tbat tbey may also play an lmportant role ln work almed
at ldentlrylng causal relatlons or penetratlng rronts, and even ln some
researcb tbat seeks to document dlscurslve practlces.
Qualltatlve researcbers bave generally adopted a very dlerent approacb
to lntervlewlng rrom survey researcbers. ley bave used lnrormal as well
as rormal (ln otber words, pre-arranged) lntervlews, and tbelr alm, gener-
ally speaklng, bas been to encourage lnrormants to talk ln tbelr own terms
about matters relevant to tbe researcb toplc. ln otber words, tbey bave
tended to use a relatlvely unstructured approacb. As part or tbls, tbe alm
bas usua||, been to mlnlmlze tbe lmpact or tbe lntervlewer on wbat tbe
lnrormant says (tbls lmpact sometlmes belng rererred to as reactlvlty).
ln addltlon, stress ls placed upon tbe lmportance or llstenlng, on tbe
researcber trylng to suspend ber or bls preconceptlons and prejudlces ln
order to understand tbe perspectlves, reellngs, or accounts or lnrormants.
Uesplte tbese dlstlnctlve reatures, mucb qualltatlve analysls uses lnter-
vlews ror more or less tbe same purposes as otber klnds or soclal sclence.
As a source oj w|rness |njormar|on aoour rne soc|a| wor|d. lere,
lntervlews are treated as supplylng lnrormatlon about lnrormants
blograpbles, about events tbey bave observed, about relevant stable
or varlable reatures or sltuatlons tbey are ramlllar wltb, and}or about
tbe rrequency or one or more types or event ln sucb sltuatlons.
As a source oj parr|c|panr-ana|,s|s. lere, lntervlewees are asked
to reect upon tbelr own bebavlour, attltudes, cbaracter, and}or
personallty, and perbaps also on tbat or otber people tbey know, so
as to supply tbelr own lnterpretatlons. lese are tben used by tbe
researcber subject to crltlcal assessment.
As an |nd|recr source oj e.|dence aoour |njormanrs arr|rudes or
perspecr|.es. lere, tbe analyst uses bow lnrormants respond to
questlons as a basls ror drawlng lnrerences about tbelr cbaracterlstlc
lntentlons, motlves, preoccupatlons, prererences, perspectlves,
attltudes, etc. lt ls rrequently assumed tbat wbat can be detected
bere are stable orlentatlons tbat generate bebavlour beyond tbe
lntervlew settlng, tbougb perbaps ln a contextually varlable manner.
And tbe responses or lnrormants may be treated as typlcal or some
general category or person, or or a larger populatlon.
Mucb analysls or lntervlew data ln qualltatlve researcb ls dlrected at all
tbree or tbese purposes, to varylng degrees, and lt ls not always easy to
69 1wo mernodo|og|ca| d|spures
dlstlngulsb between tbem ln practlce, even tbougb tbey are analytlcally
dlstlnct.
lere bave long been dlscusslons among qualltatlve researcbers
about tbe value and use or lntervlew data, ralslng questlons ror example
about wbetber and bow we can know tbe lnrormant ls telllng tbe trutb
(Uean and Wbyte ,s), about tbe lncompleteness or lntervlew data
as compared wltb tbat rrom partlclpant observatlon (8ecker and Ceer
,;), and about tbe dlerence between wbat people say and wbat tbey
do (Ueutscber ;,). lowever, tbe more recent radlcal crltlque or lnter-
vlews takes a skeptlcal, constructlonlst llne tbat ls at odds not only wltb
mucb current practlce but also wltb tbese earller crltlclsms (Murpby er a|.
s). ln eect, tbe radlcal crltlque rejects tbe use or lntervlew data as a
wlndow on tbe world and}or lnto tbe mlnds or lnrormants (Ulngwall ;,
Sllverman ;, Atklnson and Coey zooz).
As an example or tbls crltlque, l wlll rocus on an artlcle by otter and
lepburn (zoo,) entltled Qualltatlve lntervlews ln psycbology. problems
and posslbllltles. lls artlcle was accompanled by tbree commentarles ln
tbe same journal lssue, to wblcb otter and lepburn tben replled. ln tbelr
lnltlal artlcle tbe autbors outllne tbelr alm as to cballenge tbe taken-ror-
granted posltlon or tbe open-ended lntervlew as tbe metbod or cbolce
ln modern qualltatlve psycbology (otter and lepburn zoo,. zsz). ley
crltlclze, ln partlcular, tbe way ln wblcb lntervlew data are usually reported
and lnterpreted, but wbat tbey say also bas lmpllcatlons ror wben, lr ever,
lntervlews sbould be used.
!
otter and lepburn dlstlngulsb between problems tbat are remedlable
(contlngent), and otbers tbat tbey suggest may be lnberent ln tbe use or
lntervlews (necessary). Under tbe rst beadlng tbey llst tbe rollowlng.
le lntervlewer ls typlcally vlewed by researcbers as slmply ellcltlng
pre-exlstlng attltudes, perspectlves, etc, possessed by tbe lnrormant,
and as a result ber or bls role ls glven llttle attentlon ln tbe analysls.
Lqually lmportant, lnrormatlon about questlons asked ls rarely
lncluded ln tbe transcrlpt excerpts publlsbed ln researcb reports. le
eect or tbls, otter and lepburn suggest, ls to treat wbat lnrormants
say as lr tbey were oerlng abstract pronouncements about matters
Wblle tbelr artlcle ls concerned wltb qualltatlve metbods ln psycbology, tbelr
arguments apply across soclal sclence. |or a slmllar crltlque relatlng to qualltatlve
researcb more generally, see kapley (zoo).
ratber tban glvlng a speclc answer to a speclc questlon put by a
speclc lntervlewer (otter and lepburn zoo,.zso).
lere ls a rallure to attend to otber aspects or tbe |nreracr|ona|
cbaracter or lntervlews. otter and lepburn argue tbat tbe rorms or
transcrlptlon generally used by qualltatlve researcbers systematlcally
strlp out mucb tbat ls relevant, ror example besltatlons, overlaps, tbe
tlmlng or pauses, empbasls, etc.
z
Lqually lmportant, researcb reports
quote very sbort extracts rrom transcrlpts tbat glve llttle sense or
surroundlng context.
8ecause tbey use transcrlpts tbat omlt lnteractlonal detall, wben
analyzlng tbelr data most qualltatlve researcbers rall to relate tbelr
clalms to speclc reatures, maklng global statements wbose valldlty
ls dl cult to assess.
lere ls orten llttle lnrormatlon provlded about tbe set-up or tbe
lntervlew. Yet, bow lt was arranged, not least wbat lntervlewees were
told about tbe researcb, and about wby tbey were belng lnvlted
to partlclpate, could bave sbaped tbe data ln lmportant ways. As
a result, readers may bave dl culty assesslng tbe valldlty or tbe
evldence accurately.
A central complalnt bere, tben, concerns tbe rorms or transcrlptlon
used by qualltatlve researcbers and bow tbese aect botb tbe analysls
carrled out and tbe evldence made avallable to readers. On tbe basls or
tbese complalnts, otter and lepburn lay down rour requlrements.
l) 1ranscrlpt extracts ln researcb reports sbould lnclude tbe relevant
lntervlew questlons.
ll) lese extracts sbould be transcrlbed to a level tbat allows lnterac-
tlonal reatures to be appreclated even lr lnteractlonal reatures are
not tbe toplc or tbe study (otter and lepburn zoo,.z).
lll) 1ranscrlpts sbould be presented uslng llne numbers, and sbort llnes,
to allow speclc rererences to reatures wltbln tbem.
lv) kesearcb reports sbould lnclude lnrormatlon about bow partlcl-
pants were approacbed, under wbat categorles, wltb wbat lntervlew
tasks (otter and lepburn zoo,.z).
z |or an example or speclc advlce to exc|ude sucb reatures, see |lnnegan (z.o;)
(quoted ln lummer zoo.,o).
7! 1wo mernodo|og|ca| d|spures
le otber type or problem tbat otter and lepburn ldentlry ln quallta-
tlve researcbers use or lntervlew data, wblcb tbey regard as lntrlnslc and
unavoldable, lncludes tbe rollowlng.
lntervlews tend to be ooded by soclal sclence agendas and
categorles. lls ls not just a matter or researcb questlons belng
expllcltly mentloned to lnrormants, or tecbnlcal soclal sclence terms
lncluded ln lntervlew questlons, but also or tbe more lnexpllclt ways
ln wblcb tbe assumptlons cbaracterlstlc or a partlcular dlsclpllne may
lnruse tbe orlentatlon or tbe researcber and aect tbe lnrormant.
lese assumptlons mlgbt lnclude tbe ldea tbat tbe soclal world ls
cbaracterlzed by tbe operatlon or causal varlables, or tbat people
necessarlly know about tbelr own attltudes and bebavlour (otter
and lepburn zoo,. z). le suggestlon ls tbat tbrougb tbelr
questlons, and ln otber ways, lntervlewers eectlvely coacb [..]
tbe partlclpant ln tbe relevant soclal sclence agenda (otter and
lepburn zoo,. zz), and tbereby subtly sbape wbat be or sbe says.
otter and lepburn summarlse tbls concern as rollows. [] tbese
lssues present us wltb tbe posslblllty tbat a plece or lntervlew researcb
ls cbaslng lts own tall, oerlng up lts own agendas and categorles,
and gettlng tbose same agendas and categorles back ln a rened or
ltered or lnverted rorm (otter and lepburn zoo,.z,).
katber tban partlclpants ln lntervlews slmply speaklng ror
tbemselves, ln ract wbat we nd ls tbat tbey ecbo otber volces,
speak on bebalr or otbers, and so on. lls ls captured, ln part, by tbe
dlstlnctlons drawn by Coman (s) among varlous rootlngs tbat
can be adopted ln talk. ror lnstance between tbe speaker and tbe
composer or tbe spoken talk as lllustrated by a polltlclan readlng
a speecb wrltten by someone else and between tbe speaker and
tbe volce belng represented as wben a spokesperson speaks on
bebalr or a government or otber organlzatlon. otter and lepburn
argue tbat analysts must attend to tbe dlerent rootlngs people
adopt ln lntervlews, and tbey ralse questlons about tbe posslblllty or
abstractlng rrom tbese ln order to make clalms about peoples general
attltudes or perspectlves, as lr tbey always or prlmarlly spoke wltb
slngle volces. More generally, wblle people are usually lntervlewed by
researcbers preclsely because tbey are members or some category
teacbers, soclal workers, polltlclans, etc lt ls clear tbat not all or
wbat tbey say ls spoken under tbe ausplces or tbls partlcular ldentlty.
eople always operate wltb a multlpllclty or potentlally relevant
ldentltles, and tbese are more or less sallent at dlerent tlmes, even
wltbln tbe course or tbe same plece or soclal lnteractlon. lere ls also
tbe reverse questlon or to wbom lnrormants are talklng. lt cannot be
assumed tbat tbelr prlmary or only audlence ls tbe lntervlewer, slnce
tbey wlll probably antlclpate tbat otbers are llkely to bear wbat tbey
say, even lr only vla tbe researcb report. Moreover, even lr we take tbe
lntervlewer as tbe audlence, be or sbe wlll bave multlple ldentltles,
and may be orlented to by lnrormants ln terms or dlerent ones at
dlerent tlmes wltbln tbe same lntervlew.
Wben people talk, wbat tbey say ls attuned to tbe stakes tbey bave
ln bow tbey mlgbt be lnterpreted, and tbe potentlal consequences
or tbls. ley are not, tbererore, slmply expresslng tbelr vlews, but
seeklng to posltlon tbemselves ln response to antlclpatlons or bow
tbey mlgbt be posltloned by otbers. lndeed, lt ls unclear wbetber,
aslde rrom tbls, tbey bave some slngle posltlon wblcb underplns
wbat tbey say. le lmpllcatlon or tbe argument bere ls tbat once we
abandon tbe assumptlon tbat wbat ls sald ls tbe slmple expresslon
or lnner, personal tbougbts or reellngs, we can do no more tban
document tbe dlerent attltudes dlsplayed on partlcular occaslons
by speakers and seek to understand tbese dlsplays.
So, wbat concluslon sbould be drawn rrom tbls crltlque: On tbe race
or lt, tbe autbors bedge tbelr bets, oerlng two sllgbtly dlerent ones.
ley wrlte tbat tbelr ultlmate alm ls to lmprove tbe quallty or lntervlews
and tbelr targetlng at partlcular researcb problems. le ldeal would be
mucb less lntervlew researcb, but mucb better lntervlew researcb (otter
and lepburn zoo,. zsz). le lmpllcatlon bere ls tbat tbe ndlngs rrom
studylng lntervlews as lnteractlonal processes can be red back to lmprove
tbe deslgn, conduct and analysls or lntervlews so tbat [tbese] can be
used more eectlvely ln cases wbere [tbey] are tbe most approprlate
data-gatberlng tools (otter and lepburn zoo,. zs). Along tbese llnes,
tbe autbors argue tbat wbatever tbe analytlc perspectlve, lnrerrlng tblngs
approprlately rrom lntervlews lnvolves understandlng wbat ls golng on ln
tbem lnteractlonally, and tbat ln turn lnvolves tbe complex and demand-
lng task or analyzlng tbe development or an lmpllclt researcb agenda,
ldentlrylng rootlng sblrts, expllcatlng orlentatlons to stake and so on
(otter and lepburn zoo,.,oo).
lowever, otter and lepburn also comment tbat. As researcbers wltb
some expertlse ln lnteractlon analysls we would llke to empbaslse tbat tbls
ls a cballenglng analytlc requlrement. Sucb analysls ls rarely done wltb any
degree or serlousness ln current lntervlew researcb, and, wbere lt ls, tbe
analysls orten blgbllgbts just bow mucb tbe lntervlewees talk ls a product
or speclc reatures or tbe lntervlew. (otter and lepburn zoo,.,oo). lls
polnts to a second, ratber dlerent, concluslon. tbat lntervlews are not a
satlsractory source or data, tbat lt would be better to use naturally occur-
rlng data (otter and lepburn zoo,.,o).
!
lt ls strlklng tbat, even ln tbe case or tbls second more radlcal conclu-
slon, otter and lepburn seem to lmply tbat lt derlves rrom metbod-
ologlcal conslderatlons tbat would apply to all klnds or researcb, ratber
tban speclcally rrom a conversatlonal analytlc and dlscurslve psycbo-
loglcal perspectlve (otter and lepburn zoo,. z).
4
lndeed, tbls polnt
about general relevance ls one tbat tbey make at varlous tlmes ln tbelr
artlcle. Larly on tbey comment tbat we expect researcbers wbo work wltb
lntervlews to recognlze [tbe problems we are golng to dlscuss] wltbout
dl culty ( otter and lepburn zoo,. zsz), and suggest tbat tbe polnts
tbey are maklng are lntended to bave a mucb broader relevance tban
speclcally to tbose researcbers wltb a dlscourse or conversatlonal lnter-
est (otter and lepburn zoo,.zsz).
Yet, even tbelr dlscusslon or tbe problems tbey see as remedlable
ls governed by dlstlnctlve assumptlons about tbe nature or tbe soclal
world, and bow we can galn sound knowledge or lt, tbat derlve rrom an
etbnometbodologlcal or conversatlon analytlc polnt or vlew. Wblle otber
researcbers would not deny tbat answers are sbaped by tbe questlons
asked, even ln relatlvely unstructured lntervlews, and tbat wbat ls sald
tbere ls lnuenced by otber aspects or tbe lnteractlonal process, many are
llkely to regard tbe dangers as mucb less serlous a potentlal source or error
tban otter and lepburn clalm. Slmllarly, wblle most would agree tbat
, As otter and lepburn acknowledge (zoo,. ,o), tbere bas been some debate
about tbe posslblllty or naturallstlc data, and about wbetber lt ls essentlal ror tbe
klnd or work tbey propose. see Speer (zooz), otter (zooz), ten lave (zooz), Speer and
lutcbby (zoo,), lammersley (zoo,).
( Coulter () bas questloned tbe llnk between etbnometbodology and dlscurslve
psycbology, see also otter and Ldwards (zoo,), and Coulter (zoo().
analytlc lnterpretatlons sbould be tled to evldence ln researcb reports,
tbere are dlerences ln vlew about exactly wbat tbls entalls.
Mucb tbe same can be sald or tbe problems tbat tbe autbors vlew as
unavoldable. ln ract, tbere was a rourtb sucb problem tbey ldentled,
wblcb l bave not yet mentloned, and tbls demonstrates tbe polnt partlcu-
larly clearly. ley call tbls rourtb lssue tbe reproductlon or cognltlvlsm.
lere ls some amblgulty ln wbat tbey say bere. ley reject cognltlvlsm,
wblle at tbe same tlme recognlslng tbat. |or many lntervlew researcbers
some klnd or cognltlve perspectlve wlll be entlrely approprlate. (otter
and lepburn zoo,. z;). ln ract, tbelr arguments are at odds wltb tbe
orlentatlon or most qualltatlve researcbers, and lndeed even wltb tbat or
many otber dlscourse analysts.
otter and lepburn ldentlry two racets or cognltlvlsm tbat are to be
rejected. tbe prlvlleglng or rumlnatlon over actlon and tbe treatment or
cognltlve language as descrlptlve. Wbat becomes clear bere ls tbat otter
and lepburn are, ln eect, denylng tbat lntervlew data can be used ror
any or tbe tbree standard purposes l outllned earller. As regards tbe rst,
tbey complaln tbat ln mucb qualltatlve work tbe lntervlewee ls treated as
a reporter on events, actlons, soclal processes and structures, and cognl-
tlons (otter and lepburn zoo,. zs), wbereas, ln ract, lnrormants are
engaged ln a qulte dlerent mode or actlvlty, wblcb mlgbt be descrlbed as
constructlng and reconstructlng tbemselves and tbelr world tbrougb talk.
ln relatlon to tbe second runctlon or lntervlews, otter and lepburn
expllcltly abandon tbe ldea or uslng peoples own rumlnatlon[s] (otter
and lepburn zoo,.z;) as a source or data. ln part tbls stems rrom tbelr
denlal tbat people bave prlvlleged access to an lnner domaln or experlence
tbat tbey express tbrougb talk, slnce tbey must use common dlscurslve
resources to present s|ruar|ona||, appropr|are accounts or tbemselves.
lndeed, otter and lepburn denounce tbe ldea, taken ror granted ln
mucb researcb concerned wltb lnvestlgatlng experlence, tbat people are
tbe best experts (otter and lepburn zoo,. z) on tbelr own percep-
tlons, oplnlons, bellers, attltudes, etc. Lqually, lt ls clear tbat tbey object to
researcbers acceptlng peoples explanatlons ror wbat bappens ln tbe world,
wbere tbey are, ln eect, treated as proto-soclal sclentlsts (otter and
lepburn zoo,.z;). otter and lepburn blgbllgbt, by wblcb (lt seems to
me) tbey mean cballenge, tbe assumptlon tbat lntervlewees can provlde
lnrormatlon about soclal processes (otter and lepburn zoo,.zs).
|lnally, tbey reject tbe use or lntervlews as a means by wblcb attltudes,
perspectlves, etc. can be ldentled because tbey deny tbat actlons are
causal products or sucb attltudes or perspectlves. As we bave seen, tbey
questlon tbe exlstence or all sucb cognltlve objects. lus, tbey wrlte.
Our polnt ls tbat to rully understand tbe qualltatlve lntervlew as
an lnteractlon we wlll need to pay attentlon to tbe practlcal and
lnteractlonal role or cognltlve terms and be very cautlous about
treatlng sucb terms as lr tbey rererred to psycbologlcal objects or
some klnd wltbln lndlvlduals. (otter and lepburn zoo,.z)
Agaln, read ln tbe context or tbe wbole artlcle, lt ls clear tbat cautlon ls a
eupbemlsm bere, wbat tbey mean ls tbat we sbould nor treat tbese terms
as rererrlng to psycbologlcal objects.
So, ln tbls sectlon on cognltlvlsm, otter and lepburn contlnue to pres-
ent tbelr arguments as lr tbey derlved stralgbtrorwardly rrom commonly
recognlsable metbodologlcal problems wltb lntervlews, but ln eect tbey
are cballenglng rundamental assumptlons underlylng mucb qualltatlve
researcb. Wblle tbey clalm tbat tbelr concluslons derlve slmply rrom
recognlslng tbe lnteractlonal nature or lntervlews, ln ract tbe cbaracter and
serlousness or tbese problems bave been and contlnue to be subject to
conlctlng lmpllcatlons and debate.
ln otber words, tbere ls dlsagreement

among soclal researcbers about bow mucb or an obstacle tbese problems
represent. Moreover, presumably tbey are problems tbat race all or us ln
our everyday llves wben we are lnterpretlng evldence and constructlng
explanatlons about otber peoples bebavlour, so does tbls mean tbat bere
too we must avold rellance upon testlmony rrom otbers: le answer ls,
presumably, no. At lssue, tben, ls tbe dlerence between researcb and otber
actlvltles, ln terms or tbe evldentlal requlrements tbey entall. lnterestlngly,
, Most qualltatlve researcbers are concerned wltb reactlvlty and bow tbls mlgbt
dlstort tbelr ndlngs, but tbey do not usually belleve tbat because lntervlews lnvolve
lnteractlonal processes lt ls lmposslble to draw concluslons rrom tbem about tbe
experlences and perspectlves or lnrormants, and about tbe world ln wblcb tbey llve.
|or example, tbey do not assume tbat wbat an lnrormant says ln answer to a questlon
ls entlrely determlned by tbe nature or tbe questlon. Nor do tbey belleve tbat because
lnrormants must use a partlcular natural language, and avallable dlscurslve resources,
tbat wbat tbey say ls entlrely determlned by tbese resources. See tbe tbougbtrul
dlscusslon ln Murpby and Ulngwall (zoo,. cb.,) or wbat klnd or lnrormatlon can we
get rrom lntervlew data:, lllustrated by examples rrom tbe bealtb eld.
tbls ls a contested matter even wltbln tbe etbnometbodologlcal tradltlon
on wblcb otter and lepburn draw (see Lyncb ,).
|lnally we sbould note tbat tbe radlcal lmpllcatlons or tbe klnd or
constructlonlsm tbat otter and lepburn adopt extend well beyond tbe
use or lntervlews. ln practlce, tbese apply to all rorms or data, wbetber
audlo-recordlngs or naturally occurrlng soclal lnteractlon, textual docu-
ments, or vlsual lmages. |or lnstance, wben studylng naturally occurrlng
talk, dlscourse analysts (or tbe klnd represented by otter and lepburn)
do not use tbe data to draw concluslons about tbe experlences or
perspectlves or tbe people lnvolved ln tbe lnteractlon, to sbow wbat ls
actually golng on as agalnst wbat ls sald to bappen, or to ldentlry causal
relatlonsblps. katber, tbey rocus upon wbat tbey see as tbe constltutlve
practlces revealed ln lnteractlonal processes. lere ls a very sbarp contrast
bere not only wltb most qualltatlve lntervlew studles but also wltb most
qualltatlve lnqulry or otber klnds.
6
So, desplte lnltlal appearances, otter and lepburn are not argulng just
tbat researcbers uslng lntervlews must pay more attentlon to tbe lnter-
vlew process, nor slmply tbat lt ls prererable to base analysls on natural-
lstlc materlals. katber, tbey are lnslstlng tbat tbe only vlable or legltlmate
rocus ror researcb ls on tbe lnteractlonal practlces tbrougb wblcb tbe
soclal world ls constltuted. Most or tbe toplcs typlcally studled wltbln
psycbology, and soclal sclence more generally, are ruled out by tbls stance,
because tbese presuppose tbat tbere are cognltlve and otber objects tbat
exlst lndependently or bow tbey are rormulated ln and tbrougb dlscurslve
practlces, tbat tbese causally or lntentlonally sbape buman bebavlour, and
tbat lnrormants can provlde lnrormatlon about tbem and}or researcbers
observe tbem.
o ln tbe case or etbnograpby, tbe contrast was neatly demonstrated ln Wleders (;()
book Language and :oc|a| kea||r,, ln wblcb tbe autbor rst provldes an etbnograpblc
account or bow an lnrormal set or rules seems to operate among lnmates or a balrway
bouse ror ex-prlsoners, sbaplng tbelr bebavlour, ror example ln rullng out tbelr glvlng
lnrormatlon about otber lnmates to tbe sta. len, ln tbe second balr or tbe book,
Wleder adopts a more constructlonlst approacb (llke otter and lepburn lnuenced
by etbnometbodology), ln wblcb tbe rocus ls on bow lnmates rormulate tbelr actlons
tbrougb appeal to tbls code, and ln tbe process contlnually rormulate and rerormulate
tbe code ltselr. lere tbe code cannot serve as an explanatory ractor accountlng
ror lnmates bebavlour slnce lt ls recognlsed to be part or bow tbe meanlng or tbat
bebavlour ls ongolngly constltuted.
Commentaries on Potter and Hepburns article and their
response
As l noted earller, otter and lepburns artlcle was accompanled by tbree
commentarles. le rst came rrom a researcber wbo bas cbamploned tbe
use or ln-deptb lntervlews ror pbenomenologlcal analysls ln psycbology
(Smltb zoos, Smltb er a|. zoo). le expresses sympatby ror tbelr general
argument, and ror some or tbelr recommendatlons, agreelng about tbe
need to pay more attentlon to lntervlew processes. lowever, be comments
tbat tbe autbors prlvllege one type or qualltatlve work (tbat cbaracterlstlc
or conversatlon analysls and dlscurslve psycbology), and tbat key aspects
or tbelr argument do not apply to otber klnds. |or example, be rejects tbe
requlrements otter and lepburn lay down about transcrlptlon, and tbelr
suggestlon tbat, generally speaklng, lt ls better to rely upon naturallstlc
data. lndeed, be lnslsts tbat lntervlews are partlcularly userul ror ln-deptb
ldlograpblc studles explorlng bow partlclpants are maklng sense or experl-
ences bappenlng to tbem (Smltb zoo,.,). le concludes tbat wblle sucb
researcb requlres carerul attentlon to tbe lntervlew process, tbls ls no
barrler to drawlng concluslons about peoples perspectlves and llves.
le second commentator also accepts some or otter and lepburns
arguments but lnslsts, once agaln, tbat tbey prlvllege a partlcular approacb.
lowever, wbere Smltb more or less accepts tbe value or tbat approacb,
lollway (zoo,) suggests tbat lt ls preoccupled wltb tbe most lnconse-
quentlal and least lmportant (lollway zoo,. ,,) aspects or soclal lnter-
actlon. Urawlng on psycboanalysls as part or a psycbo-soclal approacb,
sbe argues tbat tbe klnd or work done by otter and lepburn neglects
tbe role or wbat sbe calls subconsclous posltlonlng (lollway zoo,. ,z).
As part or tbls, sbe clalms tbat tbe meanlng or any part or an lntervlew
(or conversatlon) lnberes ln tbe wbole, so tbat extracts or text can never
runctlon satlsractorlly as wbole unlts ror analysls, only as selected blts or
evldence (and counterevldence, wbere approprlate) ror an argument tbat
ls belng constructed bearlng ln mlnd tbls larger wbole (lollway zoo,.,z).
Sbe also crltlclzes otter and lepburn ror assumlng tbat tbere ls some
slngle rorm or transcrlptlon, namely tbat used by conversatlon analysts,
wblcb rully captures tbe nature or partlcular stretcbes or soclal lnterac-
tlon. Sbe argues tbat dlerent sorts or transcrlpt are requlred ror dlerent
tbeoretlcal purposes, to brlng out dlerent aspects or soclal process. ln
partlcular, wbat sbe ls objectlng to ls tbe way ln wblcb, tbrougb tbe klnd or
transcrlptlon tbat otter and lepburn recommend, tbe rocus or lnqulry ls
narrowed to wbat ls observable.
8y contrast wltb tbe otber two commentators, Mlsbler (zoo,) dlsmlsses
most or otter and lepburns argument as a rorm or naive reallsm,
posltlvlsm or bebavlourlsm, clalmlng tbat ln tbls respect lt ls cbaracter-
lstlc or recent developments ln conversatlon analysls, wblcb bas become
transrormed lnto a tecbnlcal enterprlse.
7
Llke lollway, be cballenges tbe
assumptlon tbat tbere ls some atbeoretlcal way or transcrlblng tbat wlll
provlde a rull, l.e. complete and accurate transcrlptlon [] (Mlsbler
zoo,.,;). lndeed, be argues tbat lt may sometlmes be necessary to reduce
tbe amount or detall ln a transcrlpt to brlng lnto reller tbe reatures tbat
are relevant to a partlcular study.
8
On tbe basls or tbls, be questlons tbe
requlrements tbey lay down regardlng transcrlptlon. And, llke tbe otber
two commentators, be lnslsts on tbe value or lntervlews as a source or data
ror qualltatlve researcb, argulng tbat tbe problems tbese lnvolve must be
addressed and dealt wltb ln practlcal terms, not on tbe basls or abstract
metbodologlcal argument.
lnterestlngly, Mlsblers use or lntervlews ln bls own researcb, employlng
wbat be calls narratlve analysls, ls close ln some lmportant respects to
wbat otter and lepburn recommend (Mlsbler and zoo(). le too
bas complalned, ror example, about bow ln mucb qualltatlve analysls
uslng lntervlews tbe sequence and patternlng or successlve excbanges ls
deleted rrom tbe analysls (Mlsbler zoo(. z,). And bls work lnvolves tbe
use or a systematlc transcrlptlon procedure tbat represents parallngulstlc
reatures or speecb and tbe lnteractlon between speakers. |urtbermore, be
lncludes transcrlpts ln tbe text so as to provlde readers wltb tbe evldence
on wblcb l base my lnterpretatlons (Mlsbler zoo(.zo). lowever, tbere ls
at least one key respect ln wblcb be dlers rrom otter and lepburn. be
belleves tbat tbrougb attentlon to tbe narratlve structure or lntervlew data
lt ls posslble to learn about tbe llves or tbe people lntervlewed and bow
tbese bave been sbaped by soclal clrcumstances. ln otber words, be does
not see a constructlonlst empbasls on tbe constltutlve role or dlscourse as
blocklng tbe soclal sclentlc use or lntervlew data to understand peoples
; lls ls a common crltlclsm. |or a sopblstlcated example rrom wltbln
etbnometbodology, clted by Mlsbler, see Lyncb (,.cb.o).
s ln tbelr artlcle otter and lepburn acknowledge tbe power or tbls ldea but
counter tbat tbey nd tbe reverse argument more compelllng (otter and lepburn
zoo,. zss).
llves. Qulte tbe reverse, be belleves tbat tbe metapbors and otber tropes
tbat tbey use ln lntervlews can tell us a great deal about wbat bas sbaped
tbelr llves and bow tbey responded and adapted to tbls.
ln replylng to tbese commentarles, otter and lepburn (zoo,) lnslst
tbat tbelr crltlcs bave not provlded an eectlve response to tbelr argu-
ments. ley state tbat tbey recognlze tbat dlerent klnds or transcrlptlon
are approprlate ror dlerent purposes. And tbey dlsmlss accusatlons or
posltlvlsm, and seek to sbow tbat tbelr arguments bave stronger and more
slgnlcant lmpllcatlons tban tbe commentators bave recognlzed. ley say,
ror example, tbat tbey are not agalnst researcbers bavlng dlerent goals
rrom tbose cbaracterlstlc or tbelr own work, but lnslst tbat satlsrylng any
goal ls llkely to requlre an understandlng or prec|se|, wnar rne |nrer.|ewee
|s sa,|ng (otter and lepburn zoo,. ,z) and tbat tbe sort or transcrlp-
tlon tbey recommend ls tbe best means ror acblevlng tbls, slnce lt allows
attentlon to be glven to tbe lnteractlonal accompllsbment or lntervlew
talk. ln eect, tben, tbey contlnue to malntaln tbat tbe klnd or detalled
attentlon to observable processes tbat tbey tbemselves practlce ls (at tbe
very least) an essentlal prerequlslte ror any rlgorous rorm or analysls uslng
lntervlew data.
Reections on the dispute
At race value, wbat we bave ln tbls debate are dlerences ln vlew about
wbat ls requlred lr sound lnrerences are to be made on tbe basls or
lntervlew data. One source or tbese ls a dlerence between otter and
lepburn, on tbe one band, and tbelr crltlcs, on tbe otber, ln wbat mlgbt
be called metbodologlcal severlty (lammersley and Comm zoos). ln
otber words, ln judgments about bow serlous a tbreat tbe lnteractlve and
co-constructed cbaracter or lntervlews poses to tbe valldlty or lnrerences
drawn about perspectlves and practlces outslde tbe lntervlew context.
As we noted, otter and lepburn suggest tbat tbere ls a real danger tbat
tbe researcber-as-lntervlewer prompts responses rrom lnrormants tbat
are largely structured by tbe analytlc rramework be or sbe bas adopted. ln
eect, tbey are clalmlng tbat wblle qualltatlve researcbers adopt unstruc-
tured lntervlewlng to mlnlmlze reactlvlty, ln ract tbe responses tbey get
rrom lnrormants may be just as strongly sbaped by tbe lntervlewer and tbe
lntervlew context as tbose or respondents ln structured lntervlews. Most
qualltatlve researcbers would dlsagree, lnslstlng tbat tbere ls, at tbe very
least, an lmportant dlerence ln degree bere.
At tbe same tlme, as we bave seen, sucb metbodologlcal severlty, or
emplrlclsm, ls not tbe only or tbe most slgnlcant dlerence between
otter and lepburn and tbelr crltlcs. lere ls also a rundamental dlscrep-
ancy ln assumptlons about tbe nature or tbe soclal world and bow we can
understand lt. |or otter and lepburn, drawlng on etbnometbodologlcal
conversatlon analysls, tbere are neltber psycbologlcal nor soclal objects
exlstlng ln tbe world tbat sbape buman bebavlour, or tbat lle beblnd tbe
accounts tbat people provlde. All objects are constltuted ln and tbrougb
speclc lnteractlonal processes taklng place on partlcular occaslons,
wbetber ln lntervlews or ln otber settlngs, tbey bave no exlstence apart
rrom tbls.
At root, tben, wbat we bave ln tbls partlcular debate ls a clasb between
very dlerent assumptlons about tbe nature or tbe soclal world, wbat
klnd or knowledge lt ls posslble ror psycbologlcal (and soclal) researcb
to produce, and about tbe means tbat would be requlred to acbleve tbls.
lowever, wltb tbe partlal exceptlon or Mlsbler, tbe rundamental cbaracter
or tbe conlct tends to be obscured by botb sldes.
9
Te critique of urban ethnography
le second dlspute we wlll look at ls very dlerent ln rocus rrom tbe rst,
and ln tbe lssues lt ralses. lt was prompted by a lengtby, and blgbly crltlcal,
revlew (Wacquant zooz) or tbree etbnograpblc studles or lmpoverlsbed
Arrlcan-Amerlcans llvlng ln lnner-clty contexts ln tbe Unlted States,
tbose or Uuneler (), Anderson () and Newman (). le tbree
autbors tben responded to tbls crltlque (Uuneler zooz, Anderson zooz
and Newman zooz).
!0
Background to the dispute
1o start wltb, we sbould note tbat tbere ls a back-story to tbls debate.
Anderson (zooz. ,;;) reports tbat long berore lts publlcatlon ln
tbe Amer|can journa| oj :oc|o|og, ln zooz, Wacquant bad been busy
|or one attempt to sketcb a mld-posltlon between radlcal crltlcs or lntervlewlng llke
otter and lepburn and tbe wldespread complacency about lts capacltles tbat tbey
rlgbtly crltlclse, see lammersley and Comm (zoos).
o See also tbe debate over Wacquants own book 8od, and :ou| (zoo(), ln tbe pages
or tbe journal :,moo||c |nreracr|on. Adler and Adler (zoo,), May (zoo,), Sanders
(zoo,), Wacquant (zoo,).
dlstrlbutlng bls attack around tbe globe and across tbe proresslon. Lven
more lmportantly, tbls dlspute sbould be seen agalnst tbe background or
prevlous work (and dlsputes) ln tbe eld concerned. lere ls a long blstory
or qualltatlve, especlally etbnograpblc, studles or worklng class and poor
urban communltles. |or lnstance, one or tbe alms or Cblcago soclologlsts
ln tbe zos and ,os was to map tbe cbaracter or varlous parts or tbelr
clty, lnbablted by people ln very dlerent materlal clrcumstances and wltb
very dlerent backgrounds, cbaracterlstlcs, preoccupatlons, and attltudes
(8ulmer s(). As part or tbls, tbe Cblcagoans lnvestlgated slum and skld
row areas, and slnce tbat tlme tbere bave been many otber studles rocus-
lng on lnner-clty, poor, urban communltles ln otber parts or tbe Unlted
States, and elsewbere.
One long-runnlng tbeme ln tbls body or researcb bas, or course, been
about tbe ractors tbat generate and sustaln poverty. Wllson (zoo) rormu-
lates tbls ln terms or dlerentlal empbasls upon structural or cultural
ractors. ln otber words, on soclal ractors tbat aect tbe sltuatlons raced by
people (sucb as restrlctlon to low pald jobs, unemployment, poor quallty
bouslng, etc) or on ractors to do wltb dlerences ln bow people respond
to sltuatlons (notably, tbelr local cultures, attltudes, bellers, knowledge
and skllls). And dlscusslons about tbe role or tbese two types or ractor
bave been preoccupled not just wltb tbelr relatlve causal power but also
wltb wbat are taken to be tbelr polltlcal and moral lmpllcatlons. A stress
on soclal structural ractors (sucb as de-lndustrlallsatlon, punltlve govern-
ment pollcles, etc) tends to undercut any blamlng or poor communltles
ror tbelr clrcumstances but at tbe same tlme may seem to portray tbem as
passlve vlctlms. 8y contrast, empbaslzlng cultural ractors ls orten vlewed
as recognlzlng tbat people can respond ln creatlve ways to tbelr sltuatlons,
tbat tbey are nor passlve, but also as openlng up tbe posslblllty or blamlng
tbe vlctlm. Sucb debates bave a long blstory (see Matza o;).
!!
Mucb or tbe debate lmmedlately prlor to Wacquants crltlque bad
rocused on tbe concept or an underclass. Wacquant and Wllson (,)
put rorward an argument tbat polnted to tbe lmportance or structural
ractors produclng lnner-clty, black communltles tbat are largely separated
lere ls no automatlc connectlon between empbasls on one or otber or tbese
ractors and partlcular polltlcal and soclal lmpllcatlons. people can, ror lnstance,
be portrayed as passlve vlctlms or tbe culture lnto wblcb tbey bave been soclallsed.
Comm (zoo) bas documented tbe dlscurslve ploys generated by osclllatlon between
tbese two empbases.
rrom malnstream soclety ln materlal terms. lowever, tbe notlon or an
underclass bad also been taken up by some soclal sclentlsts and polltlcal
commentators wbo rormulated lt ln cultural terms, sometlmes ln ways
tbat denled or downplayed tbe role or structural ractors, tbereby, lt was
clalmed, blamlng tbese communltles ror tbelr own lmpoverlsbment. lere
ls Wllsons (,a.z) summary or tbese developments ln tbe Unlted States.
Uurlng tbe decade or tbe ;os, slgnlcant cbanges occurred ln
gbetto nelgbbourboods or large central cltles, bowever tbey were
not carerully monltored or researcbed by soclal sclentlsts durlng
tbe ;os and early sos. [lls was because ln] tbe artermatb or
tbe controversy over Uanlel atrlck Moynlbans report on tbe black
ramlly [ln tbe late oos] scbolars, partlcularly llberal scbolars,
tended to sby away rrom researcblng any bebavlor tbat could be
construed as stlgmatlzlng or unatterlng to lnner-clty mlnorlty
resldents. [] Accordlngly, [] tbe problems or soclal dlslocatlon ln
tbe lnner-clty gbetto dld not attract serlous researcb attentlon. lls
lert [tbe eld] open to conservatlve analysts wbo, wltbout benet
or actual eld researcb ln tbe lnner clty, put tbelr own pecullar
stamp on tbe problem, so mucb so tbat tbe domlnant lmage or
tbe underclass became one or people wltb serlous cbaracter aws
entrencbed by a welrare subculture and wbo bave only tbemselves
to blame ror tbelr soclal posltlon ln soclety.
Wacquants critique
Wacquant (zooz. (o) summarlses tbe tbree books be ls crltlclslng as
rollows.
Mltcbell Uunelers :|dewa|k tracks tbe trlals and trlbulatlons or black
bomeless book vendors and magazlne scavengers wbo ply tbelr trade
ln a tourlsty sectlon or Lower Manbattan, Llljab Andersons code oj
rne :rreer cbronlcles tbe raglng battle between street and decent
ramllles ln tbe gbetto or blladelpbla, and katberlne Newmans |o
:name |n V, came deplcts tbe gallant struggles or tbe worklng
poor or larlem to upbold tbe ballowed values or tbrlrt, ramlly, and
communlty ln tbe bowels or tbe deregulated servlce economy.
|rom tbls Wacquant (zooz.(o) moves very qulckly lnto evaluatlon.
lese books assemble a mass or rlcb and nuanced emplrlcal data
varlously drawn rrom rstband observatlon, ln-deptb lntervlews, llre
storles, and lnstltutlonal reports gatbered over years or eldwork
conducted lndlvldually or ln a team. ley would bave greatly
advanced our knowledge and understandlng or tbe ground-level
soclal dynamlcs and llved experlence or urban marglnallty and raclal
dlvlslon ln tbe Unlted States at centurys end, were lt not ror tbelr
eager embrace or tbe cllcbes or publlc debate (albelt ln lnverted
rorm), tbe pronounced dlscordance between lnterpretatlon and tbe
evldence tbey oer, and tbe tblck coat or morallsm ln wblcb tbelr
analyses are wrapped, wblcb togetber severely llmlt tbe questlons
tbey ralse and tbe answers tbey glve.
Wacquant (zooz.(o;o) lls out tbese crltlclsms as rollows.
lus :|dewa|k proers a sprawllng stockplle or data wltbout any
tbeory to organlze lt and strlves, by derault, to brlng tbese data
to bear on a crlme-and-pollclng lssue tbat tbey are lll-sulted to
address, code oj rne :rreer ls anlmated by a tbesls, tbat proxlmate
mentorlng makes a dlerence ln tbe rate or gbetto resldents, tbat ls
glarlngly dlsconnected rrom, even lnvalldated by, lts own ndlngs,
and |o :name |n V, came subordlnates botb observatlons and
tbeorlzatlon to publlc pollcy conslderatlons, sucb as tbe ldeologlcal
dlspute over ramlly values, tbat are so constrlctlng tbat lt ends up
sllgbtlng lts own dlscoverles and readlng llke a buslness tract ln
pralse or low-wage work.
More slgnlcantly, all tbree autbors put rortb truncated and
dlstorted accounts or tbelr object due to tbelr abldlng wlsb
to artlculate and even celebrate tbe rundamental goodness
bonesty, decency, rrugallty or Amerlcas urban poor. 1o do
tbls Uuneler san|r|zes tbe actlons and nelgbborbood lmpact or
sldewalk bookselllng by systematlcally downplaylng or suppresslng
lnrormatlon tbat would talnt tbe salntly lmage or tbe vendors be
wlsbes to project, Anderson d|cnorom|zes gbetto resldents lnto good
and bad, decent and street, and makes blmselr tbe spokesman
and advocate or tbe rormer, and Newman g|amor|zes tbe skllls and
deeds or ber low-wage workers, extolllng tbelr submlsslon to servlle
labor as evldence or tbelr lnner devotlon to tbe countrys ordalned
work etblc. All tbree autbors make tbe urban poor, and to be more
exact tbe o|ack subproletarlat or tbe clty, lnto paragons oj mora||r,
because tbey remaln locked wltbln tbe prejaor|cared proo|emar|c or
publlc stereotypes and pollcy pundltry, ror wblcb lt ls tbe only gulse
under wblcb tbls subproletarlat ls deemed presentable.
Identifying the grounds of disagreement
At race value, Wacquant ls cballenglng tbese studles ln terms or tbe qual-
lty or tbelr academlc scbolarsblp, ln otber words accordlng to prlnclples
tbat would be sbared by most soclal sclentlsts. le complalns tbat tbey dld
not deploy an adequate tbeory to organlze tbelr data, tbat tbelr conclu-
slons are not supported by tbe evldence tbey provlde, and may even be
contradlcted by lt, and tbat tbese raults derlve, ln large part, rrom blas
caused by tbe ract tbat tbe autbors set out to cballenge prevalllng ldeas
about an underclass seeklng to undercut publlc assumptlons about tbe
lmmorallty or poor, black lnbabltants or lnner-clty areas and to reveal tbelr
commltment to respectable ways or llre. Most qualltatlve researcbers,
and soclal sclentlsts more generally, would surely want studles to dlsplay
adequate tbeorlzatlon, concluslons well-supported by evldence, and tbe
avoldance or blas.
le rejolnders by Uuneler, Anderson, and Newman also operate wltbln
tbese terms. tbey are largely concerned wltb sbowlng tbat Wacquant
bas mlsrepresented tbelr work.
!z
lus, Uuneler argues tbat Wacquant
uses selectlve quotatlon to produce a mlsleadlng lmpresslon or wbat be
was clalmlng ln :|dewa|k. |or example, at one polnt Wacquant rerers to
Uunelers uncrltlcal acceptance or bls lnrormants selr-portralts, and
provldes tbe rollowlng quotatlon rrom Uuneler ln support. l bave ne.er
doubted an, or tbe tblngs laklm told me about bls llre. (Wacquant
zooz. (;s). lowever, tbe rootnote to Uunelers book tbat tbls comes
rrom reads as rollows. Altbougb l bave never doubted any or tbe tblngs
laklm told me about bls llre, ln conductlng tbls study l bave looked upon
lt as my responslblllty to cbeck sallent tblngs people tell me about tbem-
selves berore reportlng tbem. (Uuneler . ,oo). lus, Wacquant bas
added mlsleadlng empbasls and exclsed materlal tbat counts agalnst bls
lnterpretatlon. And, Uuneler goes on to explaln bow be asked laklm to
apply ror a copy or bls college records and to obtaln o clal employment
z |or reasons or space, l wlll rocus prlmarlly on Wacquants crltlque or Uuneler and
tbe latters response to tbls.
lnrormatlon about tbe last rm ror wblcb be worked, so as to valldate
wbat be bad clalmed, reportlng tbat everytblng cbecked out (Uuneler
. ,oo, Uuneler zooz. ,,,). ln tbls and otber cases, lt appears tbat
Wacquants crltlque lnvolves serlous mlsrepresentatlon.
lowever, tbls ls not tbe most slgnlcant aspect or tbls dlspute ror my
purposes bere. l suggest tbat wblle lt may seem as lr tbe protagonlsts are
all engaged ln tbe same enterprlse, and are tbererore slmply dlsagreelng
about bow well lt bas been pursued ln partlcular studles, tbls ls not ln ract
tbe case. |or example, lr we take Wacquants rst crltlclsm, wbat be means
by tbeory, and bow be vlews lts role ln organlslng tbe data, are almost
certalnly at odds wltb tbe assumptlons about tbeory and evldence on
wblcb Uuneler, and perbaps also Anderson and Newman, operate.
leory ls a notorlously problematlc term. Wblle most, tbougb not all,
soclal sclentlsts are concerned wltb produclng and drawlng on tbeory, and
empbaslze lts lmportance, ln practlce tbey orten use tbe word to rerer to
dlerent tblngs. rrom broad metbodologlcal pbllosopbles, tbrougb compre-
benslve soclal tbeorles, to speclc explanatory ldeas (lammersley zozb).
Wacquant seems to assume tbat any etbnograpblc study sbould be located
wltbln a macro-level tbeory tbat ldentles tbe domlnant soclal rorces and
structural patterns tbat cbaracterlze tbe wlder soclety. And be also seems
to belleve tbat sucb a tbeory must precede and structure any emplrlcal
researcb. tbat tbe pbenomena to be lnvestlgated must be tbeoretlcally
constltuted (Wacquant zoo,, 8ourdleu and Wacquant z). A slgn or tbls
ls bls rererence to grounded tbeorlzlng as an eplstemologlcal ralry tale
(Wacquant zoo,.(s), tbe lmpllcatlon belng tbat lt ls a rorm or emplrlclsm.
lndeed, Wacquant bad already put rorward a tbeoretlcal rramework ror
tbe study or lnner-clty black communltles (see, ror example, Wacquant
; and zoos). lt ls largely on tbe basls or tbls tbat be accuses Uuneler,
and bls rellow etbnograpbers, or neglectlng wlder structural rorces ln
ravour or rocuslng on local cultural ractors. le cbarges tbem wltb bllnd-
ness to lssues or class power and a stubborn dlsregard ror tbe deep and
multlslded lnvolvements [] or tbe state ln produclng tbe derellctlon and
buman wretcbedness tbey senslbly portray [] (Wacquant zooz. (;o).
Speclcally ln tbe case or Uuneler, Wacquant clalms tbat be does not
dlscuss tbe structural rorces tbe desoclallzatlon or labor, tbe eroslon
or tbe patrlarcbal bousebold, tbe retrencbment or tbe welrare state, tbe
crlmlnallzatlon or tbe urban poor, tbe conatlon or blackness and danger-
ousness ln publlc space tbat dlrectly sbape and bound tbe materlal and
symbollc space wltbln wblcb tbe vendors [studled by Uuneler] operate
(Wacquant zooz.(so).
As we saw ln Cbapter z, tbls empbasls on tbe structurlng role or macro
tbeory ls a central reature or a crltlcal orlentatlon, and tbls ls more or
less tbe stance tbat Wacquant adopts. Anotber closely related reature
ls tbe assumptlon tbat tbe commonsense ldeas prevalent wltbln a socl-
ety are llkely to be ldeologlcal ln otber words, botb ralse and servlng
regresslve soclal lnterests. |or tbls reason, tbese ldeas sbould not be used
as a rramework ror soclal analysls, tbey tbemselves must be cballenged
and explalned. And lt ls a key part or tbe task or tbeory to do tbls. lus,
Wacquant crltlclzes Uuneler and tbe otbers ror tbelr naive acceptance
or ordlnary categorles or perceptlon as categorles or analysls (Wacquant
zooz. (;o). le asks. Wby does Uuneler swallow wbole tbe slng-song
clalm or bls subjects tbat tbey made a consclous declslon to respect
soclety by scavenglng trasb or panbandllng (lnstead or breaklng lnto
parked cars or selllng drugs) []: (Wacquant zooz. (s).
!!
As tbls makes
clear, Wacquant, llke otter and lepburn, does not belleve tbat people are
experts on tbelr llves, altbougb ror very dlerent reasons rrom tbem.
8y contrast, Uuneler seems commltted to a ratber dlerent metb-
odologlcal approacb, wbere tbe startlng polnt ls a partlcular researcb
toplc and tbe selectlon or a speclc locatlon or group or people tbat
allows lts lnvestlgatlon. lere, tbeoretlcal ldeas play tbe role or tools tbat
can be deployed and developed |n so jar as rne, make sense oj wnar |s
go|ng on and enao|e us ro answer rne e.o|.|ng researcn quesr|ons (Uuneler
zooz. ,oo;). |urtbermore, ror blm, tbe perspectlves and experlence
or partlclpants are an essentlal startlng polnt ror understandlng wbat ls
bappenlng ln a settlng.
lere seem to be several polnts or dlerence wltb Wacquant bere. |lrst,
tbe tbeoretlcal resources tbat Uuneler employs are multlple ratber tban
rormlng a slngle, closely-structured rramework. Secondly, Uuneler regards
selectlon rrom and development or tbe tbeoretlcal resources avallable
to tbe researcber as an lnductlve process, wltb wbat ls dlscovered ln tbe
, Wacquants work bas been strongly lnuenced by tbe work or 8ourdleu (see
8ourdleu and Wacquant z). lowever, Cole and Uumas (zoo) argue tbat tbe
relatlonsblp between analytlc and commonsense perspectlves ls treated as more
complex ln tbe book tbat 8ourdleu and Wacquant produced togetber, and ln
8ourdleus work generally, tban lt ls ln Wacquants crltlque or Uuneler, Anderson and
Newman.
eld playlng a guldlng role. llrdly, tbe concepts and understandlngs or
tbe people studled are treated as potentlally provldlng key lnrormatlon
and lnslgbts, even tbougb tbey are not to be adopted uncrltlcally. lus,
ror Uuneler, any wlder plcture or bow socletal rorces are aectlng tbe
settlng lnvestlgated must be generated out or detalled study or lt and or
tbe perspectlves or partlclpants. ln sbort, a prlor comprebenslve tbeory
ls not requlred, lndeed lt ls not deslrable slnce lt could operate as a set or
bllnkers. lnstead, tbe relevance and valldlty or any explanatory ldeas must
emerge rrom detalled emplrlcal lnvestlgatlon or tbe partlcular case.
lus lt ls not tbat Uuneler lgnores structural condltlons ln :|dewa|k, but
be does place prlmary empbasls on local ractors, seelng tbese as playlng a
slgnlcant role ln medlatlng wlder soclal rorces, so tbat tbe relevance and
eects or tbe latter can be dlscovered only tbrougb local lnvestlgatlon.
Moreover, be belleves tbat mucb ls to be learned by tbe etbnograpber
rrom tbe experlence and perspectlves or tbe people belng studled. Wbat
ls at lssue bere, tben, ls not dlerentlal empbasls on cultural or structural
ractors, but ratber dlerences ln assumptlons about tbe nature and role
or tbeory, about tbe relatlve empbasls tbat sbould be glven to macro and
mlcro ractors, about bow tbese are related to one anotber, and about tbe
proper relatlonsblp between analytlc and commonsense understandlngs.
As tbls sbould make clear, Uunelers approacb sbows strong slgns or tbe
lnuence or lnterpretlvlsm, and :|dewa|k was, lndeed, largely rocused on
documentlng and explalnlng tbe experlence or a speclc group or people.
lndeed, be places partlcular empbasls upon wbat be calls sbowlng tbe
people. le bas crltlclzed mucb prevlous qualltatlve researcb ror neglect-
lng tbls.
lr you are golng to get at tbe bumanlty or people, you cant just
bave a buncb or dlsembodled tbougbts tbat come out or subjects
moutbs ln lntervlews wltbout ever developlng cbaracters [].
(Uuneler and 8ack zooo.,,().
ln llne wltb tbls ldlograpblc orlentatlon, Uuneler lncludes pbotograpbs ln
bls book, and uses peoples real names, wbere tbey bave agreed to tbls. le
wrltes.
8elng able to sbow tbe people ln pbotograpbs, ratber tban keeplng
tbem anonymous, lends a certaln klnd or lmmedlacy to tbe people
as people and makes lt posslble to really concelve or tbem as rull
buman belngs [...]. (Uuneler and 8ack zooo.,,()
lnterestlngly, one or tbe ways ln wblcb Wacquant (zooz.,z,) rormulates
bls crltlclsms or Uuneler ls to accuse tbe latter or recognlzlng no eplstemo-
loglcal dlvlde between soclologlcal researcb and journallsm. ln response,
Uuneler acknowledges tbat tbere are some slmllarltles, slngllng out a concern
wltb cbecklng evldence, but be lnslsts tbat tbere are lmportant dlerences.
My etbnograpby [] bas otber commltments tbat most
journallsts do not sbare. belng publlc about procedures and clear
about uncertalntles, presentlng alternatlve lnterpretatlons and
counterevldence, conslderlng rlval bypotbeses, strlvlng to acbleve
repllcablllty, seeklng to be aware or lnvestlgator eects, and uslng
eldwork to modlry and lmprove tbeory.
As we bave seen, Wacquant also crltlclses Uuneler and tbe otbers
ror morallsm. Wbat tbls amounts to, ln large part, ls tbe clalm tbat tbe
account or tbe llves or street vendors tbat Uuneler provldes ls blased. tbat
lt de-empbaslses or relnterprets tbose aspects or tbelr llves tbat would
generally be regarded as morally unacceptable, and tbat lt glves undue
attentlon to tbose tbat are taken to sbow tbe vendors ln a good llgbt. lls
ls a cbarge tbat Uuneler vlgorously denles.
Wbat ls or lnterest bere ls tbat tbls crltlclsm could be taken to lmply tbat
Wacquant ls commltted to documentlng tbe worklngs or soclety rrom a
non-moral or value-neutral perspectlve. Yet tbls ls rar rrom tbe case. Wbat
be ls objectlng to ls wbat be sees as tbe rallure or Uuneler and tbe otber
etbnograpbers to locate tbelr work wltbln tbe moral rramework provlded
by tbe sort or comprebenslve tbeory tbat be belleves ls necessary. lus,
Wacquant certalnly does not reslst engaglng ln evaluatlon blmselr. be
crltlclzes state pollcles and tbe structural lnequalltles bullt lnto US soclety,
ror example tbe way ln wblcb tbe lnbabltants or black lnner-clty commu-
nltles are restrlcted to lousy jobs (Wacquant zooz. (;z) or deprlved or
any legltlmate lncome at all. And, elsewbere, be bas blmselr provlded a
blgbly value-laden vlew or tbe llves or Arrlcan-Amerlcans ln black gbettoes
and or tbe soclal rorces lncarceratlng tbem tbere (Wacquant zoo).
lls mlgbt seem to lmply tbat wbat ls at stake ls a clasb or substan-
tlve value perspectlves about US soclety. Yet lt ls not clear tbat tbe two
autbors dler very greatly ln terms or tbelr substantlve values. le real
dlerence between tbem can be clarled by rererence to a very lnuentlal
artlcle by a researcber wbose posltlon ls qulte slmllar to tbat or Uuneler. As
we saw ln Cbapter , 8eckers (o;) Wbose slde are we on: ls rrequently
clted as suggestlng tbat soclal researcb sbould be partlsan. tbat lt must
support some partlcular soclal group or polltlcal posltlon agalnst otbers,
more or less ln tbe manner or crltlcal researcb. lowever, a carerul readlng
or 8eckers artlcle makes clear tbat tbls ls not bls vlew (see lammersley
zooo. cb.,). le argues tbat tbe researcbers prlmary commltment sbould
be to document wbat ls actually bappenlng ln tbe soclal world, ratber
tban settlng out to crltlclze lt. le argues tbat tbls requlres strenuous eort
to avold taklng over tbe perspectlves tbat are domlnant wltbln a soclety,
and to take serlously tbe experlence and perspectlves or tbose wbo are at
tbe bottom or tbe blerarcby or credlblllty wltbln tbat soclety. At tbe same
tlme, be lnslsts on tbe lmportance or avoldlng wbat be calls sentlmen-
tallty, one aspect or wblcb would be a rerusal to lnvestlgate lssues tbat
tbe researcber nds polltlcally or etblcally uncomrortable, ror example
wbetber tbe bebavlour or marglnallzed groups matcbes malnstream
stereotypes or tbem. 8ecker wrltes.
Wbatever slde we are on, we must use our tecbnlques lmpartlally
enougb tbat a beller to wblcb we are especlally sympatbetlc could be
proved untrue. We must always lnspect our work carerully enougb
to know wbetber our tecbnlques and tbeorles are open enougb to
allow tbat posslblllty (8ecker o;.z(o).
Wblle 8ecker assumes tbat researcb rollowlng tbls pattern wlll bave
polltlcally progresslve soclal consequences, be does nor belleve tbat
researcbers sbould set out to support any partlcular slde, or lndeed tbat
tbey sbould act dlrectly to promote sucb consequences. lls seems to be
Uunelers posltlon too. Certalnly, be ls prlmarlly concerned wltb docu-
mentlng ratber tban evaluatlng tbe bebavlour or tbe people be studled.
And be ls keen to avold conventlonal assumptlons blaslng bls account.
Wblle be clearly boped tbat bls researcb would dlspel stereotypes and
tbereby lead to better pollcles, lt was not dlrectly geared to brlnglng about
tbese cbanges, but ratber to provldlng a true account or tbe vendors llves
and or tbe ractors tbat sbape tbem.
!4
ln otber words, Uuneler seeks to malntaln some detacbment ror bls
researcb rrom polltlcal struggles over raclal dlscrlmlnatlon and poverty. 8y
( lls morallsm, to tbe extent tbat tbls label applles, amounts to an lnterest ln
bow people relate to moral values, and a concern to establlsb a relatlonsblp wltb tbe
people be was studylng tbat was slgnlcantly more egalltarlan tban ln some prevlous
etbnograpbles, see Uuneler and 8ack (zoo,).
contrast, crltlcal researcbers deny tbat tbere ls any scope ror sucb detacb-
ment, tbey lnslst tbat, wbetber researcbers are aware or lt or not, tbelr
work always amounts to some klnd or polltlcal lnterventlon. |urtbermore,
Wacquant seems to assume not only tbat blgb quallty researcb wlll bave
deslrable polltlcal eects but also tbat any plece or researcb bavlng wbat
be takes to be undeslrable polltlcal lmpllcatlons must be ralse. lus, ror
blm tbere ls an lntrlnslc connectlon between wbat be sees as metbodolog-
lcal derects ln Uunelers work and tbe polltlcal lmpllcatlons be belleves lt
carrles (see Loader and Sparks zoo. (oo). lls rundamental complalnt
ls tbat lt serves to relnrorce tbe prevalllng ldeologlcal rramework ln
terms or wblcb urban poverty ls publlcly dlscussed. le wrltes. One could
bardly rormulate a better brler ror contlnulng tbe state pollcles or urban
abandonment, soclal dlslnvestment, workrare, and prlsonrare tbat bave
spawned tbe mountlng soclal reruse strewn on tbe streets or tbe U.S.
metropolls. (Wacquant zooz.(s,o). le argues tbat tbese etbnograpblc
accounts dlstract attentlon rrom tbe rundamental causes or poverty, ln
eect suggestlng tbat lr poor people would only take proper responslblllty
ror tbelr llves tbey could work tbelr way out or poverty.
So, tbe key dlerence bere concerns tbe role tbat Wacquant sees soclal
researcb as playlng and tbat be belleves lt sbould play. lls ls not just a
matter or wbat role researcbers mlgbt adopt, ln terms or bow tbey dene
tbe task or lnqulry, but also or tbe role tbat ls, lr you llke, tbrust upon tbem.
wbat ls lnvolved ls not slmply tbe lntentlons or tbe etbnograpbers wbose
work be ls dlscusslng, but ratber wbat objectlve runctlon tbelr work serves
ln tbe wlder soclety. Any ldea or detacbment seems to be rejected by
Wacquant, as botb lmposslble ln practlce and unetblcal as an ldeal.
lls ls lllustrated at one polnt wbere be rerers to a prevlous debate rrom
tbe oos, ln wblcb tbe work or 8ecker and some otber Cblcago-Scbool
soclologlsts or tbe tlme was crltlclzed. le wrltes tbat.
just as tbe romantlc etbnograpbles or tbe cool, tbe marglnal, and
tbe lowly produced durlng tbe progresslve slxtles ln tbe style or
tbe second Cblcago Scbool were organlcally tled to tbe llberal
polltlcs or Amerlcas seml-welrare state and lts tben-expandlng
soclal-problems complex (Couldner ;,), tbe neo-romantlc
tales spun by Uuneler, Anderson, and Newman at tbe close or
tbe regresslve nlnetles suggest tbat U.S. soclology ls now tled and
party to tbe ongolng constructlon or tbe neollberal state and lts
carceral-asslstentlal complex ror tbe punltlve management or tbe
poor, on and o tbe street (Wacquant .s,() ((;o).
lere Wacquant ls allgnlng bls crltlque or tbe work or Uuneler, Anderson,
and Newman wltb Couldners crltlclsms or tbe work or 8ecker and otbers
ln an earller perlod. |or Couldner, as ror Wacquant, soclal researcb must
be understood as playlng a reexlve role wltbln tbe wlder soclety. unless
lt ls speclcally dlrected at reslstlng wlder soclal rorces lt wlll lnadvertently
serve tbose rorces, lrrespectlve or wbetber tbls was lntended by tbe
researcbers concerned.
So, lt seems tbat Wacquant belleves tbat tbe prlmary responslblllty or
tbe researcber ls to orlent ber or bls work ln relatlon to tbe current polltl-
cal sltuatlon ln sucb a way tbat lt wlll bave deslrable polltlcal lmpllcatlons
and consequences. lls maln objectlon to tbe researcb be crltlclzes ls tbat
lt does not do tbls, and tbererore relnrorces tbe soclo-polltlcal status quo.
lowever, be belleves tbat tbls ls lntlmately related to tbe metbodologlcal
derects tbat be sees ln tbls researcb, ln tbe sense tbat only lr researcb bas
tbls orlentatlon, operatlng wltbln an approprlate tbeoretlcal rramework,
wlll lt be metbodologlcally sound.
Wbat tbls sbows ls tbat tbe metbodologlcal crltlclsms tbat Wacquant
makes or tbese studles, wblcb are tbe maln rocus or tbe tbree autbors
responses to blm, are secondary to more baslc dlsagreements between
tbem. Llke otter and lepburn ln tbe rst dlspute l dlscussed, Wacquant ls
laylng down a more severe set or crlterla regardlng wbat sbould be treated
as rellable evldence and lnrerence, and one tbat relles upon dlstlnctlve
assumptlons about tbe proper nature or lnqulry, tbougb, or course, bls
assumptlons are very dlerent rrom tbelrs. lls crltlque ls based upon a
notlon or crltlcal soclology as a dlsclpllne tbat ls botb sclentlc and polltl-
cally engaged, tbese two aspects belng closely lnterrelated (see 8ourdleu
and Wacquant z.(;).
!
, lowever, lt seems to me tbat bls assumptlons about tbe nature or tbls relatlonsblp
are ratber unclear. As we saw ln Cbapter z, ror Marx tbe connectlon between sclence
and polltlcs lay ln lts capaclty to ldentlry tbe potentlal ror reallslng genulne buman
nature and tbe barrlers to acblevlng tbls. lt ls not clear wbetber 8ourdleu and Waquant
accept tbls or rely upon some alternatlve means or derlvlng ougbt rrom ls. ln my
vlew none or tbe proposed strategles ror dolng tbls are successrul. |or dlscusslon
or tbe sopblstlcated attempt to solve tbls problem proposed by crltlcal reallsts, see
lammersley (zoo).
We can see bere, tben, tbat tbls dlspute, llke tbe prevlous one, ls under-
plnned by some qulte rundamental pbllosopblcal dlerences. concernlng
tbe purpose and cbaracter or soclal researcb, tbe nature or soclal sclentlc
knowledge and bow lt can best be produced, tbe role or polltlcal values
ln tbe researcb enterprlse, and (rollowlng on rrom tbls) tbe soclal role and
polltlcal responslbllltles or tbe researcber.
!6
Conclusion
ln tbls cbapter we bave looked at two lmportant dlsputes among quallta-
tlve researcbers tbat are very dlerent ln rocus and ln tbe lssues tbey ralse,
as well as ln tbe sorts or approacb cbamploned by tbe protagonlsts. Yet,
wbat botb tbese dlsputes sbow, l suggest, ls tbat qualltatlve researcb ls
currently rlven by a range or rundamental dlerences ln metbodologlcal
pbllosopby and practlcal orlentatlon, albelt ones tbat are orten partly
obscured tbrougb appeals to common lssues. lus, otter and lepburn
seek to persuade researcbers or all klnds tbat tbere are serlous problems
wltb uslng lntervlews, appeallng to wbat tbey present as common ground.
lowever, tbey base tbelr arguments on assumptlons about tbe nature
or psycbologlcal and soclal pbenomena, and bow we can understand
tbem, tbat are lnrormed by radlcal constructlonlsm, and at tbe same tlme
by an emplrlclsm wblcb demands tbat any analysls ls tled down to tbe
observable detalls or lnteractlon. lese assumptlons are sbarply at odds
wltb tbose adopted by many otber qualltatlve researcbers, lncludlng tbe
commentators on tbelr artlcle.
Slmllarly, Wacquant appeals to varlous klnds or lnaccuracy and metb-
odologlcal weakness ln tbe studles be revlews. Yet bls crltlque ls motlvated
ln large part by a crltlcal orlentatlon tbat, lt seems to me, tbe people
wbose work be ls revlewlng do not sbare. le lnslsts on tbe lmportance or
a general tbeory about tbe nature or US soclety tbat provldes blm wltb a
rramework wltbln wblcb botb to descrlbe and explaln tbe bebavlour or
Arrlcan-Amerlcans wbo llve ln lnner-clty communltles, and to evaluate tbe
varlous structural rorces and agents lnvolved. And be lnslsts tbat soclo-
loglcal work must be dlrected at cballenglng exlstlng soclety so as to brlng
o 8y contrast wltb tbe approacb l bave taken bere, Cole and Uumas (zoo), wblle
recognlslng lmportant dlerences between Wacquant and Uuneler, empbaslse wbat
tbey see as slmllarltles.
about cbange, and above all lt must not relnrorce tbe domlnant ldeology.
lowever, tbose wbose work be ls crltlclzlng do not rully sbare tbls vlew or
tbe cbaracter and role or soclal researcb, even lr tbey bave slmllar values.
9
Conclusion
ln tbe openlng cbapter or tbls book l blgbllgbted some or tbe complexltles
lnvolved ln answerlng tbe questlon Wbat ls qualltatlve researcb:. My alm
was to sbow tbe uncertaln and contested nature or any answer to tbat
questlon. lls ls true even or attempts to provlde a conventlonal denl-
tlon concerned wltb bow tbe term ls currently used, or wltb tbe sorts or
work generally lncluded under tbls beadlng. lt ls even more true or ldeas
about bow qualltatlve lnqulry ougnr ro oe dened.
We saw tbat wblle lt ls posslble to ldentlry a number or reatures tbat
studles wblcb are typlcally classled as qualltatlve usually sbare, as
contrasted wltb quantltatlve work, lt ls lmposslble to ldentlry a set or
essenr|a| cbaracterlstlcs. lt ls also lmportant to note tbat many or tbese
sbared reatures are matters or degree. sucb as tbe exrenr to wblcb tbe data
are structured at tbe polnt or collectlon, and tbe numoer or cases lnvestl-
gated. lls sbould warn us tbat trylng to draw a very sbarp llne, ar rne |e.e|
oj pracr|ce, between qualltatlve and quantltatlve work ls problematlc, even
tbougb tbe degree or varlatlon ls conslderable.
At tbe same tlme tbere are major dlerences ln terms or metbodologl-
cal pbllosopby. 1o one degree or anotber, qualltatlve researcb ls sbaped
by very dlerent ldeas about tbe nature or soclal pbenomena and bow
tbey can be understood rrom quantltatlve work. 8ut later cbapters
also revealed tbat conlctlng metbodologlcal pbllosopbles bave gener-
ated dlvergent modes or lnqulry, and major dlsputes, w|rn|n qualltatlve
researcb. lndeed, tbese dlvlslons are today probably deeper and more
lntractable tban any between qualltatlve and quantltatlve work.
ln part, tbe dlverslty ln orlentatlon bas arlsen slmply rrom expanslon
or tbe soclal sclences over tbe second balr or tbe twentletb century and
lnto tbe twenty-rst. Uurlng tbls perlod tbere bas been. a buge lncrease ln
tbe number or soclal sclentlsts, and ln tbe amount or researcb, across tbe
world, a prollreratlon or substantlve elds or lnvestlgatlon, along wltb tbe
development or dlstlnctlve tbeoretlcal and metbodologlcal ldeas wltbln
tbem, tbe emergence or new dlsclpllnes, sucb as cultural studles and cblld-
bood studles, and a mlgratlon or some parts or exlstlng ones lncludlng
rrom blstory, geograpby, and psycbology lnto a broader lnterdlsclplln-
ary eld or soclocultural researcb, tbe re-emergence or soclal tbeory as
relatlvely autonomous rrom emplrlcal researcb, but at tbe same tlme very
lnuentlal upon lt, tbe lmpact or soclal movements or varlous klnds, rrom
remlnlsm to dlsablllty actlvlsm, and lncreased pressures ror publlc and
practlcal engagement or soclal sclentlc work derlvlng rrom governments
and commerclal sources. le eect or tbese ractors bas been to produce
a masslvely expanded, blgbly complex, and only very loosely structured
terraln, ln wblcb dlerent parts or soclal sclence bave developed and
devolved ln many dlerent dlrectlons. 1o some degree, tbe beterogeneous
rorms tbat qualltatlve work now takes reects tbls process or dlverslca-
tlon ln tbe soclal sclences more generally, and perbaps also tbe weakness
or lts boundarles wltb rorms or soclal and polltlcal practlce.
As ls orten tbe case wben tbere ls rapld dlerentlatlon, tbere bave also
been some moves towards relntegratlon, tbougb tbese are necessarlly
partlal ln cbaracter. |or example, some lnuentlal commentators bave
sougbt to dene qualltatlve researcb as a eld or lnqulry ln lts own rlgbt
(Uenzln and Llncoln zo. ,). lt ls presented as a trans-dlsclpllnary move-
ment tbat draws on a melange or lnterpretlvlst, crltlcal, and constructlon-
lst ldeas, ln wblcb new rorms or researcb presentatlon are to be employed
ln tbe promotlon or soclal justlce. lus Uenzln and Llncoln report tbat.
tbe qualltatlve researcb communlty conslsts or groups or globally
dlspersed persons wbo are attemptlng to lmplement a crltlcal
lnterpretlve approacb tbat wlll belp tbem (and otbers) make sense
or tbe terrlrylng condltlons tbat dene dally llre at tbe rst decade
or tbls new century. lese lndlvlduals employ constructlvlst, crltlcal
tbeory, remlnlst, queer, and crltlcal race tbeory, as well as cultural
studles models or lnterpretatlon. (Uenzln and Llncoln zo.xll)
Wbetber lts alm ls rormulated as promotlng arts-based researcb or a
sacred sclence (Uenzln and Llncoln (. ,sz,) tbls movement brlngs
togetber many qualltatlve researcbers rrom dlerent elds. At tbe same
tlme, lt also excludes or marglnallzes a great deal or wbat l bave lncluded
ln tbls book under tbe beadlng or qualltatlve researcb.
A very dlerent lntegratlve approacb ls tbe mlxed metbods move-
ment, wblcb stresses tbe complementarlty or qualltatlve and quantltatlve
97 conc|us|on
metbods and tbe benets or comblnlng tbem wltbln partlcular researcb
projects. Yet, lt sbould be clear rrom earller cbapters tbat tbe dlscrepant
rorms tbat qualltatlve researcb now takes, and tbe ratlonales assoclated
wltb tbese, cannot be easlly reconclled wltb one anotber, nor wltb tbe
predomlnant orlentatlon or quantltatlve researcbers. Mlxlng quantltatlve
and qualltatlve metbods rrequently lnvolves abandonlng key assumptlons
assoclated wltb many sorts or qualltatlve work. lere ls notblng wrong
wltb tbls, ln prlnclple, but tbere ls llttle agreement wltbln tbe mlxed
metbods movement about wbat metbodologlcal pbllosopby ougbt to
underpln lt (1asbakkorl and 1eddlle zoo). |urtbermore, ln practlce, tbere
ls a tendency ln mlxed metbods work to asslmllate tbe use or qualltatlve
metbods lnto tbe rramework or assumptlons cbaracterlstlc or quantltatlve
work yet tbese requlre just as mucb carerul scrutlny (see lammersley
zoza).
All tbls ralses some very dl cult questlons.
ls tbe label qualltatlve researcb belprul any longer: Uoes lt plck out
a reasonably coberent set or practlces and}or metbodologlcal ldeas
tbat are sound: ln sbort, does lt make a dlstlnctlon tbat ls or value:
Wbat attltude sbould be taken towards tbe beterogenelty or quallta-
tlve researcb today: Sbould we be tolerant or approacbes tbat are
dlscrepant wltb our own, or sbould tbe boundarles or wbat ls legltl-
mate be pollced, and lr so bow:
Wbat sbould be tbe operatlonal goal or qualltatlve researcbers,
and ror wbat sbould tbey be beld accountable: Sbould tbe alm
be to brlng about soclo-polltlcal cbange, as proposed by crltlcal
approacbes, or to subvert clalms to expert knowledge and recover
subjugated volces, as some constructlonlsts suggest: Or ls tbe task
solely to produce knowledge: lr knowledge ls tbe goal, sbould tbls be
ldlograpblc or more general ln cbaracter: Sbould tbe alm or researcb
be to capture embodled llved experlence or to produce objectlve
answers to researcb questlons:
ln tbe race or constructlonlst arguments, can any clalm to produce
sclentlc knowledge about tbe soclal world be warranted: lr so, wbat
rorms or sucb knowledge are vlable: And bow do tbey dler rrom
journallsm, llterature, or art:
ls soclal sclence des|rao|e as a speclallzed source or knowledge about
tbe world: Or ls lt lnevltably an oppresslve dlsclpllnary tecbnology:
Qualltatlve researcbers today would, or course, glve conlctlng answers
to tbese questlons. l can only sketcb my own response ln wbat remalns or
tbls Concluslon.
|or me, qualltatlve researcb ls notblng lr lt ls not soclal sclence. And tbls
lmplles tbat lt ls dlstlnctlve as a rorm or actlvlty preclsely ln belng dlrected
excluslvely at tbe operatlonal goal or produclng proposltlonal knowledge
(answers to speclc, ractual questlons), albelt knowledge tbat bas some
value, eltber ln terms or belng relevant to lmportant lssues to do wltb
pollcy or practlce ln some eld or ln relatlon to general buman concerns
(lammersley zo).
Adoptlng tbls posltlon means dlsmlsslng some elements or all tbe
metbodologlcal pbllosopbles lntroduced ln Cbapter z, wblle retalnlng
otbers. One element tbat must be excluded ls tbe ldea, central to a crltl-
cal approacb, tbat researcb sbould be deslgned to cballenge tbe srarus
quo or to brlng about soclal cbange. lese tasks are no more a proper part
or tbe responslblllty or researcbers tban ls seeklng to preserve tbe status
quo or to serve natlonal or rellglous lnterests.
Lqually problematlc, ln my vlew, ls tbe notlon, at tbe beart or some klnds
or lnterpretlvlsm, tbat tbe goal or soclal researcb ls to understand unlque
lndlvlduals and to present accounts or tbelr llves and experlence. lls
ls tbe task or blograpby and ctlonal wrltlng, and tbere ls an lmportant
dlerence between tbls and tbe proper use tbat soclal sclentlsts can make
or blograpblcal materlals, llre blstorles, or ctlonal deplctlons. le sole alm
or soclal sclence must be to produce knowledge about soclal lnstltutlons,
pollcles, and}or processes, tbelr cbaracter, sources, or consequences.
Slmllarly, tbose elements or constructlonlsm tbat questlon tbe very
posslblllty or knowledge ln general, or about tbe soclal world ln partlcu-
lar must be rejected, slmply on tbe grounds tbat tbey are lncompatlble
wltb a commltment to researcb. Arter all, we cannot engage ln tbat actlv-
lty wltbout assumlng tbe posslblllty and deslrablllty or knowledge. lt may
be legltlmate to cballenge tbese assumptlons, but tbls cannot be done as
parr oj soclal sclence. And attempts to do tbls vla appeal to tbe model or
tbe bumanltles and arts are mlsgulded, slnce tbat complex eld ls ltselr
dlvlded between tbose areas or work tbat are commltted to tbe produc-
tlon or knowledge sucb as most blstorlcal work and mucb pbllosopby
and tbose tbat bave very dlerent and lnternally dlverse orlentatlons
sucb as creatlng artlstlc or llterary works. My polnt ls not tbat tbere ls
anytblng wrong wltb tbese otber actlvltles, rar rrom lt, only tbat tbey bave
99 conc|us|on
a dlerent cbaracter and purpose rrom researcb, and we sbould be clear
about wblcb actlvlty we are engaged ln, slnce lr we are not we wlll very
llkely do neltber or tbem well.
|lnally, glven tbat, ln practlcal terms, tbe dlerence between quallta-
tlve and quantltatlve metbods ls a matter or degree, l do not belleve tbat
qualltatlve researcb ls a genulne or userul category any more tban ls
quantltatlve researcb. Wblle, at present, we cannot avold rellance upon
tbls dlstlnctlon, we need to move towards a more adequate typology,
explorlng tbe varlous optlons open to soclal researcbers as regards bow
tbey rormulate researcb questlons, engage ln researcb deslgn, collect and
produce data, analyze lt, and report tbelr ndlngs. le qualltatlve-quantl-
tatlve dlvlde reles wbat ls varlable, and obscures tbe scope ror comblnlng
strategles tbat can be employed to deal wltb tbese dlerent aspects or
tbe researcb process. ln sbort, we need to nd a way or overcomlng tbe
quantltatlve-qualltatlve dlvlde, or replaclng lt wltb a more subtle and real-
lstlc set or dlstlnctlons tbat capture varlatlon ln researcb practlce better.
Or course, tbe posltlon l bave just sketcbed ls not one tbat would be
accepted by many qualltatlve researcbers today. le lssues remaln unre-
solved, so you, dear reader, wlll bave to come to your own concluslons
about tbem.
!0!
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Ceertz, C. (ss) works and L|.es rne anrnropo|og|sr as aurnor, Stanrord
CA, Stanrord Unlverslty ress.
Clorgl, A. and Clorgl, 8. (zoos) benomenology, ln Smltb (ed.).
Cobo, C. (zo) 8ack to Llkert. 1owards a conversatlonal survey, ln
Wllllams and vogt (eds.)
Coman, L. (,) 1e |resenrar|on oj :e|j |n i.er,da, L|je,
larmondswortb, enguln.
Coman, L. (s) lorms oj 1a|k, blladelpbla, Unlverslty or ennsylvanla
ress.
Comm, k. (zoo) Unblamlng vlctlms and Creatlng leroes. keputatlonal
management ln soclologlcal wrltlng, u|scourse :rud|es |n rne cu|rura|
|o||r|cs oj iducar|on, zz, z, zz;(;.
Couldner, A. (;,) lor :oc|o|og, renewa| and cr|r|que |n soc|o|og, roda,,
larmondswortb, enguln.
Crabame, . () Uolng qualltatlve researcb. tbree problematlcs,
craduare |rogram |n App||ed :oc|o|og,, z, , (o, 8oston Unlverslty,
Massacbusetts.
Cubrlum, . and lolsteln, . (o) wnar |s lam||,?, Mountaln vlew CA,
Mayeld.
!07 kejerences
Cubrlum, . and lolsteln, . (,) benomenology, Ltbnometbodology,
and |amlly Ulscourse, ln 8oss, ., Uoberty, W., Lakossa, k., Scbumm, W.,
and Stelnmetz, S. (eds.) :ourceoook oj lam||, 1eor|es and Vernods A
conrexrua| Approacn New York, lenum.
Cubrlum, . and lolsteln, . (zoo) lntroductlon, ln Cubrlum, . and
lolsteln, . (eds.) nandoook oj |nrer.|ew kesearcn, lousand Oaks CA,
Sage.
Cuttlng, C. (s) V|cne| loucau|rs Arcnaeo|og, oj :c|enr|c keason,
Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
laack, S. (zoo) i.|dence and |nqu|r, rowards a reconsrrucr|on oj
ep|sremo|og,, Second edltlon, New York, rometbeus ress. (|lrst
edltlon publlsbed ln , by 8lackwell.)
lalrpenny, . (sz) |os|r|.|sm and :oc|o|og,, London, Allen and Unwln.
lammersley, M. (s) 1e u||emma oj Qua||rar|.e Vernod neroerr
8|umer and rne cn|cago 1rad|r|on, London, koutledge.
lammersley, M. (za) wnars wrong w|rn irnnograpn,?, London,
koutledge.
lammersley, M. (zb) le aradlgm Wars. keports rrom tbe |ront.
kevlew or 1e |arad|gm u|a|og by L. Cuba and 1e |arure oj :oc|a|
and iducar|ona| |nqu|r, by . k. Smltb, 8r|r|sn journa| oj :oc|o|og, oj
iducar|on, ,, , ,(,.
lammersley, M. (() Ltbnograpblc wrltlng, :oc|a| kesearcn updare ,,
Culldrord, Unlverslty or Surrey. Avallable at (accessed z(..). bttp.}}
sru.soc.surrey.ac.uk}SkU,.btml
lammersley, M. (s) artlsansblp and credlblllty. tbe case or antl-raclst
educatlonal researcb, ln . Connolly and 8. 1royna (eds) kesearcn|ng
kace |n iducar|ona| :err|ngs, 8ucklngbam, Open Unlverslty ress.
lammersley, M. (zooo) 1ak|ng :|des |n :oc|a| kesearcn, London,
koutledge.
lammersley, M. (zoo,) Analytlcs are No Substltute ror Metbodology. a
response to Speer and lutcbby, :oc|o|og,, ,;, z, ,,,.
lammersley, M. (zoo,) Ltbnograpby and dlscourse analysls.
lncompatlble or complementary:, |o||jon|a, o, zo. Avallable at
(accessed .z.). bttp.}}cpd.urmt.br}meel}arqulvos}artlgos},.pdr
lammersley, M. (zoosa) Quesr|on|ng Qua||rar|.e |nqu|r,, London, Sage.
lammersley, M. (zoosb) Causallty as conundrum. le case or qualltatlve
lnqulry Vernodo|og|ca| |nno.ar|ons Cn||ne, z, ,. Avallable at (accessed
;..z). bttp.}}erdt.plymoutb.ac.uk}mlonllne}publlc_btml}vlewartlcle.
pbp:ld=o,8layout=btml
lammersley, M. (zoo) Wby Crltlcal keallsm |alls to ustlry Crltlcal Soclal
kesearcb, Vernodo|og|ca| |nno.ar|ons Cn||ne , (, z, .
lammersley, M. (zo) Vernodo|og, wno |eeds |r?, London, Sage.
lammersley, M. (zoza) Wbats wrong wltb quantltatlve researcb:, ln
Cooper er a|. (zoz).
lammersley, M. (zozb) 1roubllng tbeory ln case study researcb, n|gner
iducar|on kesearcn and ue.e|opmenr, ,, ,, ,,(o,.
lammersley, M. and Atklnson, . (zoo;) irnnograpn, |r|nc|p|es |n
pracr|ce, llrd edltlon, London, koutledge.
lammersley, M. and Comm, k. (zoos) Assesslng tbe radlcal crltlque or
lntervlews, ln lammersley zoosa.
lammersley, M. and 1ralanou, A. (zoz) irn|cs |n Qua||rar|.e kesearcn,
London, Sage.
lanklnson, k. (s) 1e :cepr|cs, Second edltlon, London, koutledge.
larman, C. (zoo). |r|nce oj |erworks 8runo Larour and Verapn,s|cs
Melbourne AU, re.press.
larrlngton, A. (zooo) ln derence or versteben and erklaren. Wllbelm
Ulltbeys ldeas concernlng a descrlptlve and analytlcal psycbology,
1eor, and |s,cno|og,, o, (, (,,(,z.
lartsock, N. (s;) le remlnlst standpolnt. developlng tbe ground ror a
speclcally remlnlst blstorlcal materlallsm, ln lardlng, S. (ed.) lem|n|sm
and Vernodo|og, :oc|a| :c|ence |ssues, 8loomlngton lNU, lndlana
Unlverslty ress.
lausbeer, k. (o) lree major orlglnators or tbe concept or versteben.
vlco, lerder, Scblelrmacber, |n||osopn,, ;, z;s, (;;,.
lave, . ten (zooz) Ontology or metbodology: Comments on Speers
natural and contrlved data. a sustalnable dlstlnctlon:, u|scourse
:rud|es, (, ,z;,o.
lave, . ten (zoo() undersrand|ng qua||rar|.e researcn and
ernnomernodo|og,, London, Sage.
lave, . ten (zoo;) uo|ng con.ersar|on Ana|,s|s A |racr|ca| cu|de, Second
edltlon, London, Sage.
legel, C. W. |. (szo) i|emenrs oj rne |n||osopn, oj k|gnr, Cambrldge,
Cambrldge Unlverslty ress, .
!09 kejerences
lerltage, . (s() carnke| and irnnomernodo|og,, Cambrldge, ollty
ress.
ley, v. (;) 1e compan, :ne keeps An ernnograpn, oj g|r|s jr|endsn|ps,
8ucklngbam, Open Unlverslty ress.
lolllday, A. (zooz) Qua||rar|.e researcn, London, Sage.
lollway, W. (zoo,) Commentary z, Qua||rar|.e :rud|es |n |s,cno|og,, z, (,
,z(.
lowartb, U. (zooo) u|scourse, 8ucklngbam, Open Unlverslty ress, zooo.
lutcblnson, ., kead, k., and Sbarrock, W. (zoos) 1ere |s |o :ucn 1|ng as
:oc|a| :c|ence, Aldersbot, Asbgate.
ames, l. (zoz) 1e |ew lrencn |n||osopn,, Cambrldge, ollty.
ay, M. (o) 1e u|a|ecr|ca| |mag|nar|on, 8erkeley, Unlverslty or Callrornla
ress. (|lrst publlsbed ln ;,.)
ones, O. (zoo) 8erore tbe dark or reason. some etblcal and
eplstemologlcal conslderatlons on tbe otberness or cblldbood, irn|cs
||ace and in.|ronmenr, (, z, ;,;s.
kaplan, l. (zoos) 8elng seen belng beard. engaglng wltb students
on tbe marglns or educatlon tbrougb partlclpatory pbotograpby, ln
lomson, . (ed.) uo|ng v|sua| kesearcn w|rn cn||dren and Young |eop|e,
London, koutledge.
keat, k. and Urry, . (s,) :oc|a| 1eor, as :c|ence, Second edltlon,
London, koutledge and kegan aul.
klng, C., keobane, k. O., and verba, S. (() ues|gn|ng :oc|a| |nqu|r,,
rlnceton, rlnceton Unlverslty ress.
kolakowskl, L (;z) |os|r|.|sr |n||osopn,, larmondswortb, enguln.
kubn, 1. (;o) 1e :rrucrure oj :c|enr|c ke.o|ur|ons, Second edltlon,
Cblcago, Unlverslty or Cblcago ress.
Law, . (zoo() Ajrer Vernod Vess |n soc|a| sc|ence researcn, London,
koutledge.
Leacb, L. (,;) le eplstemologlcal background to Mallnowskls
emplrlclsm, ln |lrtb, k. (ed.) Van and cu|rure, London, koutledge and
kegan aul.
Lelter, 8. (zoo,) le lermeneutlcs or Susplclon. kecoverlng Marx,
Nletzscbe, and |reud, Unlverslty or 1exas Law, ubllc Law, kesearcb
aper No. ;z. Avallable at. bttp.}}ssrn.com}abstract=oooz.
Levltas, k. (zoo,) 1e |nc|us|.e :oc|er,? :oc|a| ixc|us|on and rne |ew
Laoour, Second edltlon, 8aslngstoke, algrave Macmlllan.
!!0 wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
Lewls, . (zooo) Maklng Order out or a Contested Ulsorder. tbe utlllsatlon
or onllne support groups ln soclal sclence researcb, Qua||rar|.e
kesearcner, lssue ,, zooo.(;.
Lleberson, S. () Small Ns and blg concluslons. an examlnatlon or tbe
reasonlng based on a small number or cases, :oc|a| lorces, ;o, ,o;zo.
Lleberson, S. (() More on tbe uneasy case ror uslng Mlll-type metbods
ln small-N comparatlve studles, :oc|a| lorces, ;z, zz,,;.
Llndesmltb, A. (,;) 1e |arure oj Cp|are Add|cr|on, Cblcago, Unlverslty
or Cblcago Llbrarles.
Llndesmltb, A. (os) Add|cr|on and Cp|ares, Cblcago, Aldlne.
Loader l. and Sparks, k. (zoo) Wacquant and clvlc soclology. |ormatlve
lntentlons and rormatlve experlences, cr|m|no|og, and cr|m|na|
jusr|ce, o, (, (o,,.
Lundman, k. and Mc|arlane, . (;o) Conlct metbodology. an
lntroductlon and prellmlnary assessment, :oc|o|og|ca| Quarrer|,, ;,
,o,z.
Lyncb, M. (,) :c|enr|c |racr|ce and Crd|nar, Acr|on irnnomernodo|og,
and soc|a| srud|es oj sc|ence, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
Lyncb, M. (zooo) Agalnst reexlvlty as an academlc vlrtue and source or
prlvlleged knowledge, 1eor, cu|rure and :oc|er,, ;, ,, zo,(.
Macdonell, U. (so) 1eor|es oj u|scourse an |nrroducr|on, Oxrord,
8lackwell.
Macey, U. (,) 1e L|.es oj V|cne| loucau|r, NY, antbeon.
MacLure, M. and Walker, 8. (zooo) Ulsencbanted Lvenlngs. le soclal
organlzatlon or talk ln parent-teacber consultatlons ln Uk secondary
scbools, 8r|r|sn journa| oj :oc|o|og, oj iducar|on z, , ,z,
Maboney, . and Coertz, C. (zooo) A tale or two cultures. contrastlng
quantltatlve and qualltatlve researcb, |o||r|ca| Ana|,s|s, (, zz;(.
Mallnowskl, 8. (o;) A u|ar, |n rne :rr|cr :ense oj rne 1erm, London,
koutledge and kegan aul.
Marlalre, C. and Maynard, U. (o) Standardlsed testlng as an
lnteractlonal pbenomenon, :oc|o|og, oj iducar|on, o,, s,o.
Marsb, C. (;) roblems wltb Surveys. Metbod or Lplstemology:
:oc|o|og,, ,, z, z,,o,.
Matza, U. (o;) le dlsreputable poor, ln 8endlx, k. and Llpset, S. (eds.)
c|ass :rarus and |ower, London, koutledge and kegan aul.
Matza, U. (o) 8ecom|ng ue.|anr, Lnglewood Clls, rentlce lall.
!!! kejerences
Maxwell . (zoz) A kea||sr Approacn ro Qua||rar|.e kesearcn, lousand
Oaks CA, Sage.
May, k. 8urord (zoo,) Sbadowboxlng. A kevlew or Loic Wacquants 8ody
8 Soul, :,moo||c |nreracr|on, zs, (z(,.
Meebl, . (,() c||n|ca| .ersus :rar|sr|ca| |red|cr|on, Mlnneapolls,
Unlverslty or Mlnnesota ress.
Merton, k. k., Sllls, U, L., and Stlgler, S. M. (s() le kelvln dlctum and
soclal sclence, an excurslon lnto tbe blstory or an ldea, journa| oj rne
n|sror, oj rne 8ena.|ora| :c|ences, zo, ,,.
Mlller, . (,) 1e |ass|ons oj V|cne| loucau|r, New York, Slmon and
Scbuster.
Mlsbler, L. () kesearcn |nrer.|ew|ng conrexr and narrar|.e, Second
edltlon, Cambrldge MA, larvard Unlverslty ress.
Mlsbler, L. (zoo() :ror,||nes crajrarr|srs |arrar|.es oj |denr|r,, Second
edltlon, Cambrldge MA, larvard Unlverslty ress.
Mlsbler, L. (zoo,) Commentary ,, Qua||rar|.e kesearcn |n |s,cno|og,, z, (,
,,s.
Mltcbell, k. () Secrecy and dlsclosure ln eldwork, ln Sba r, W. and
Stebblns, k. (eds.) ixper|enc|ng e|dwork An |ns|de .|ew oj qua||rar|.e
researcn, Newbury ark CA, Sage.
Mltcbell, k. (zoo) uanc|ng ar Armageddon sur.|.a||sm and cnaos |n
modern r|mes, Cblcago, Unlverslty or Cblcago ress.
Moran, U. (zooz) |nrroducr|on ro |nenomeno|og,, London, koutledge.
Morgan, U. (o) lam||, connecr|ons An |nrroducr|on ro jam||, srud|es,
Cambrldge, ollty ress.
Morgan, U. (zoa) Locatlng |amlly ractlces, :oc|o|og|ca| kesearcn
Cn||ne, o (() (. Avallable at (accessed zo.z.). bttp.}}www.
socresonllne.org.uk}o}(}(.btml
Morgan, U. (zob) kern|nk|ng lam||, |racr|ces 8aslngstoke, algrave
Macmlllan.
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lousand Oaks CA. Sage.
Morton, l. (o) 8ecom|ng 1ongan An ernnograpn, oj cn||dnood,
lonolulu ll, Unlverslty or lawall ress.
Murpby, L., Ulngwall, k., Creatbatcb, U., arker, S., and Watson, . (s)
Qualltatlve researcb metbods ln bealtb tecbnology assessment. a
revlew or tbe llterature, nea|rn 1ecnno|og, Assessmenr, z(o), zoo.
!!z wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
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Murpby, L. and Ulngwall, k. (zoo,) Qua||rar|.e Vernods and nea|rn |o||c,
kesearcn, New York, Aldlne de Cruyter.
Newell, k. (so) Coecr|.|r, imp|r|c|sm and 1rurn, London, koutledge
and kegan aul.
Newman, k. () |o :name |n V, came rne work|ng poor |n rne |nner
c|r,, New York, knopr.
Newman, k. (zooz) No Sbame. le vlew rrom tbe Lert 8ank, Amer|can
journa| oj :oc|o|og,, o;, o, ,;;.
Oakley, A. (zooo) ixper|menrs |n know|ng cender and mernod |n rne
soc|a| sc|ences Cambrldge, ollty ress.
Ollver, C. and Okellly, k. (zoo) A 8ourdleuslan Analysls or Class and
Mlgratlon. labltus and tbe lndlvlduallzlng rocess, :oc|o|og, ((, ,
(oo.
Olson, L., Wabab, S., lompson, C., and Uurrant, L. (zo) Sulclde Notes
Among Natlve Amerlcans, llspanlcs, and Anglos, Qua||rar|.e nea|rn
kesearcn, z, , (s(((.
Olson, k. (,) 1e imergence oj rne :oc|a| :c|ences :e;z:),z, New York,
1wayne ress.
Outbwalte, W. (;o) undersrand|ng soc|a| ||je 1e mernod ca||ed
.ersrenen, London, Allen and Unwln.
almer, k. (o) nermeneur|cs, Lvanston lLL, Nortbwestern Unlverslty
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erkyl, A. (;) valldlty and rellablllty ln researcb based on tapes and
transcrlpts, ln Sllverman, U. (ed) Qua||rar|.e Ana|,s|s |ssues oj 1eor,
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ln Seale, C. (ed.) :oc|a| kesearcn Vernods A keader. London. koutledge
(zoo,).
lckerlng, M. (,) Augusre comre an |nre||ecrua| o|ograpn,, tbree
volumes, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
lnk, S. (zoo;) uo|ng v|sua| irnnograpn, |mages Ved|a and
kepresenrar|on |n kesearcn, Second edltlon, London, Sage.
lnk, S. (zoo) uo|ng :ensor, irnnograpn,, London, Sage.
latt, . (o) A n|sror, oj :oc|o|og|ca| kesearcn Vernods |n Amer|ca
:,zc:,ec, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
lummer, k. (s,) uocumenrs oj L|je, London, Unwln lyman.
!!! kejerences
lummer, k. (zoo) uocumenrs oj L|je z An |n.|rar|on ro cr|r|ca| numan|sm,
Second edltlon, London, Sage.
ollner, M. (s;) Vundane keason kea||r, |n e.er,da, and soc|o|og|ca|
d|scourse, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
opper, k. (,;) 1e |o.err, oj n|sror|c|sm, London, koutledge and kegan
aul.
otter, . (o) kepresenr|ng kea||r, u|scourse rneror|c and soc|a|
consrrucr|on, London, Sage.
otter, . (zooz) 1wo klnds or natural, u|scourse :rud|es, (, (, ,,(z.
otter, . and Ldwards, U. (zoo,) ketblnklng Cognltlon. On Coulter on
Ulscourse and Mlnd, numan :rud|es zo, o,s.
otter, . and Wetberell, M. (s;) u|scourse and :oc|a| |s,cno|og,,
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otter, . and lepburn, A. (zoo,a) Qualltatlve lntervlews ln psycbology.
problems and posslbllltles, Qua||rar|.e kesearcn |n |s,cno|og,, z, (,
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otter, . and lepburn, A. (zoo,b) Autbors response, Qua||rar|.e
kesearcn |n |s,cno|og,, z, (, ,z,.
ound, ., 8rltten, N., Morgan, M., Yardley, L., ope, C., Uaker-Wblte, C.,
and Campbell, k. (zoo,) keslstlng medlclnes. a syntbesls or qualltatlve
studles on medlclne taklng, :oc|a| :c|ence and Ved|c|ne, o, ,,,,.
kagln, C. (zoos) kedes|gn|ng :oc|a| |nqu|r,, Cblcago, Unlverslty or Cblcago
ress.
kal, C. (zo) osltlve lolterlng and publlc goods. le amblvalence or
clvlc partlclpatlon and communlty pollclng ln tbe neollberal clty,
irnnograpn,, z, , o,ss.
kalnwater, L. and lttman, U. (o;) Ltblcal problems ln studylng a
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kapley, 1. (zoo) le art(rulness) or open-ended lntervlewlng. some
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,o,z,.
keason, . and 8radbury, l. (eds.) (zoo) nandoook oj Acr|on researcn
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Uenzln, N. and Llncoln, Y. (eds.) nandoook oj Qua||rar|.e kesearcn,
llrd Ldltlon, lousand Oaks CA, Sage.
klessman, C. (zoos) |arrar|.e Ana|,s|s, Second edltlon, London, Sage.
klboux, 8. and kagln, C. C. (zoo) (eds.) congurar|ona| comparar|.e
Vernods Qua||rar|.e comparar|.e Ana|,s|s (QcA) and ke|ared
1ecnn|ques, London, Sage.
koberts, C. (o) 1e Log|c oj n|sror|ca| ixp|anar|on, Unlverslty ark A,
ennsylvanla State Unlverslty ress.
kose, C. (zoo;) v|sua| Vernodo|og|es An |nrroducr|on ro rne |nrerprerar|on
oj v|sua| Varer|a|s, Second edltlon, London, Sage.
Sandelowskl. M. (zoo() Qualltatlve kesearcb, ln Lewls-8eck, M., 8ryman,
A., and Llao, 1. (eds) 1e :age inc,c|oped|a oj :oc|a| :c|ence kesearcn
Vernods, lousand Oaks CA, Sage.
Sanders, C. (zoo,) le Sweet (Soclal) Sclence, :,moo||c |nreracr|on, zs,
(,;((o.
Sayer, A. (zooo) kea||sm and :oc|a| :c|ence, London, Sage.
Scbar, k. (,) comre ajrer |os|r|.|sm, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty
ress.
Scbeglo, L. A. (;) Wbose text: Wbose context:, u|scourse and
:oc|er,, s, z, o,s;.
Scbrodt, . (zooo) 8eyond tbe llnear rrequentlst ortbodoxy, |o||r|ca|
Ana|,s|s, (, ,, ,,,,,.
Scbutz, A. (oz) co||ecred |aper vo|umes :,, le lague, Martlnus
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Scbwandt, 1. (zoo) u|cr|onar, oj Qua||rar|.e |nqu|r,, Second edltlon,
lousand Oaks CA, Sage.
Selerstad, A. (zoo() 1e 8ookse||er oj kaou|, London, vlrago.
Sbapln, S. (() A :oc|a| n|sror, oj 1rurn, Cblcago, Unlverslty or Cblcago
ress.
Sbarrock, W. and kead, k. (zooz) kunn pn||osopner oj sc|enr|c re.o|ur|on,
Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
Sleber, S. U. (;,) le lntegratlon or eldwork and survey metbods,
Amer|can journa| oj :oc|o|og, )s, o, ,,,,,.
Slgmund, . (;) |arura| Law |n |o||r|ca| 1ougnr, Cambrldge MS,
Wlntbrop.
!! kejerences
Sllverman, U. (;) 1owards an aestbetlcs or researcb ln U. Sllverman
(ed.) Qua||rar|.e kesearcn rneor, mernod and pracr|ce, London, Sage.
Sllverman, U. (zooo) |nrerprer|ng Qua||rar|.e uara, llrd edltlon, London,
Sage.
Sllverman, U. (zoo;) A ver, :norr la|r|, |nreresr|ng and keasonao|, cneap
8ook Aoour Qua||rar|.e kesearcn, London, Sage.
Smltb, . (ed.) (zoos) Qua||rar|.e |s,cno|og, A pracr|ca| gu|de ro researcn
mernods, Second edltlon, London, Sage.
Smltb, . (zoo,) Commentary , Qua||rar|.e kesearcn |n |s,cno|og,, z, (,
,o.
Smltb, ., |lowers, ., and Larkln, M. (zoo) |nrerprerar|.e |nenomeno|og|ca|
Ana|,s|s, London, Sage.
Smltb, . and Osborn, M. (zoos) lnterpretatlve pbenomenologlcal
analysls, ln Smltb (ed.).
Speer, S. (zooz) Natural and contrlved data. a sustalnable dlstlnctlon:,
u|scourse :rud|es, (, (, ,z,.
Speer, S. A. and lutcbby, l. (zoo,a) |rom etblcs to analytlcs. aspects or
partlclpants orlentatlons to tbe presence and relevance or recordlng
devlces, :oc|o|og,, ,;, z, ,,,;.
Speer, S. A. and lutcbby, l. (zoo,b) Metbodology Needs Analytlcs. A
kejolnder to Martyn lammersley, :oc|o|og,, ,;, z, ,,,,,.
Stouer, S. (,o) An Lxperlmental Comparlson or Statlstlcal and
Case-llstory Metbods ln Attltude kesearcb, bU tbesls, Unlverslty or
Cblcago. keprlnted. New York, Arno ress, so.
Styles, . (;) kesearcblng Cay 8atbs, uroan L|je , s, z, ,,,z.
1apper, N. (zooo) 8arrered 8r|des po||r|cs gender and marr|age |n an
Ajgnan rr|oa| soc|er,, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
1asbakkorl, A. and 1eddlle, C. (eds.) (zoo) nandoook oj V|xed Vernods
|n :oc|a| and 8ena.|ora| kesearcn, Second edltlon, lousand Oaks CA,
Sage.
1aylor, C. (s,) |n||osopn, and rne numan :c|ences |n||osopn|ca| papers
z, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty ress.
1aylor, S. (zoz) wnar |s u|scourse Ana|,s|s? London, 8loomsbury.
1aylor, S. and Llttleton, k. (zooo) 8lograpbles ln talk. A narratlve-
dlscurslve researcb approacb, Qua||rar|.e :oc|o|og, ke.|ew, , z.
Avallable at (accessed ;..z). bttp.}}www.qualltatlvesoclologyrevlew.
org}LNC}volume,}QSk_z__1aylor_Llttleton.pdr
lomson, k., keblly, M.., ladeld, L. and Sbarpe, S. (zo) Vak|ng Vodern
Vorners, 8rlstol, ollcy ress.
lomson, Slr Wllllam (Lord kelvln) (ss) |opu|ar Lecrures and Addresses,
volume , London, Macmlllan.
1row, M. (,;) Comment on partlclpant observatlon and lntervlewlng. A
comparlson, numan Crgan|zar|on, o, ,,,,.
1ruzzl, M. (ed.) (;() versrenen :uoecr|.e undersrand|ng |n rne soc|a|
sc|ences, keadlng MS, Addlson-Wesley.
1yler, S. (ed.) (o) cogn|r|.e Anrnropo|og,, New York, lolt, klnebart and
Wlnston.
1yler, S. (z) On belng out or words, ln Marcus, C. (ed.) keread|ng
cu|rura| Anrnropo|og,, Uurbam NC, Uuke Unlverslty ress.
van Uljk, 1. () kac|sm and rne |ress, London, koutledge.
venkatesb, S. (zoos) cang Leader jor a ua,, London, Allen Lane.
vogt, k. (zoo) Anclent skeptlclsm, ln :ranjord inc,c|oped|a oj
|n||osopn, Avallable at (accessed ..z). bttp.}}plato.stanrord.edu}
entrles}skeptlclsm-anclent}
Wacquant, L. (;) lree pernlclous premlses ln tbe study or tbe
Amerlcan gbetto, |nrernar|ona| journa| oj uroan and keg|ona| kesearcn,
z, z, ,(,,.
Wacquant, L. (zooz) Scrutlnlzlng tbe Street. overty, Morallty, and tbe
ltralls or Urban Ltbnograpby, Amer|can journa| oj :oc|o|og,, o;, o,
(os,,z.
Wacquant, L. (zoo() 8od, and :ou| |oreoooks oj an Apprenr|ce 8oxer,
New York. Oxrord Unlverslty ress.
Wacquant, L. (zoo,) Sbadowboxlng wltb Ltbnograpblc Cbosts. A
kejolnder, :,moo||c |nreracr|on, zs, ,, ((((;.
Wacquant, L. (zoos) uroan Curcasrs A comparar|.e soc|o|og, oj ad.anced
marg|na||r,, Cambrldge, ollty ress.
Wacquant, L. (zoo) |r|sons oj |o.err,. Mlnneapolls, MN, Unlverslty or
Mlnnesota ress.
Wacquant, L. and Wllson, W. (,) le cost or raclal and class excluslon
ln tbe lnner clty, ln Wllson (ed.).
Wax, M. (;z) 1entlng wltb Mallnowskl, Amer|can :oc|o|og|ca| ke.|ew ,;,
, ,.
Wetberell, M. and Ldley, N. () Negotlatlng legemonlc Mascullnlty.
lmaglnary osltlons and sycbo-Ulscurslve ractlces, lem|n|sm and
|s,cno|og,, , ,, ,,,,,o.
!!7 kejerences
Wetberell, M., 1aylor, S. and Yates, S. (eds) (zoo) u|scourse rneor, and
pracr|ce, London. Sage.
Wleder, U. (;() Language and :oc|a| kea||r,, le lague, Mouton.
Wllllams, M. and vogt, W. . (eds.) (zo) 1e :age nandoook oj |nno.ar|on
|n :oc|a| kesearcn Vernods, London, Sage.
Wllson, W. (,a) le underclass. lssues, perspectlves, and publlc pollcy,
ln Wllson (ed.).
Wllson, W. (ed.) (,b) 1e cnerro underc|ass :oc|a| :c|ence |erspecr|.es,
Newbury ark CA, Sage.
Wllson, W. (zoo) Vore 1an jusr kace 8e|ng 8|ack and |oor |n rne |nner
c|r,, New York, W. W. Norton.
Wllson, W. and Cbaddba, A. (zoo) le role or tbeory ln etbnograpblc
researcb, irnnograpn,,o, z,, zozs(.
Wood, A. (s) kar| Varx London, koutledge and kegan aul.
Wrlgbt, k. and Uecker, S. (;) Armed koooers |n Acr|on, Lebanon Nl,
Nortbeastern Unlverslty ress.
Wrlgbt, 1. (so) 1e ke||g|on oj numan|r, 1e |mpacr oj comrean
pos|r|.|sm on v|cror|an ing|and, Cambrldge, Cambrldge Unlverslty
ress.
7nanleckl, |. (,() 1e Vernod oj :oc|o|og,, New York, |arrar and
klnebart.
!!9
Index
NAME INDEX
Adler so
Alasuutarl , z
Albert zz
Anderson (Lllzabetb) ,,
Anderson (Llljab) so, sz, s,, s(, s,,
so, o,
Andrews o
Armstrong o, ;, s
Asbmore ((, o,
Atklnson , (;, ,o, o, o;, o
8acbelard ,(o
8ack s;, s
8all oo
8anks , oo
8artbes (z
8auman ,o
8ecker ;, ,o, o, ss, o
8ennett ,o
8erger zs
8erlln (,
8baskar zz
8lgnell (z, oo
8lrd ,s
8ocbner , (s
8ogdan (, z, ,
8ourdleu (, ;, , s,,
8radbury ,z
8rady ,, ,
8rewer ,;
8rown
8ryant, A. (
8ryant, C. zz
8ryman , z, ,, (, ,
8urord o, ;, s
8ulmer s
8urawoy s, ,(
8urr ,o
8utton ,,
Caldas-Coultbard o
Calvey ,;, ,s
Campbell z
Cangullbem ,(o
Cbarlton zz
Cbarmaz (
Cbrlstle ,;
Cllord ((
Coey o
Cole so, z
Colller ,, ,
Comte zz, z,, ,o
Coulter ;,
Cressey ,o
Cu ,;
Culler (z
Uaston z,
Uean o
Uecker ,o, (
!z0 wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
Uelamont o
Ueleuze (o
ULntreves zz
Uenzln , ((, o
Uerrlda (z
Ueutscber o
Ue Waal zs
Uey (
Ulcks
Ulngwall o, ;,
Uouglas ,;, ,s
Uumas so, z
Uuneler s, so, sz, s,, s(, s,, so, s;,
ss, s, o, , z
Ldley ,, ,(, ,;, oo
Ldwards ,o, ;,
Llsner z,
Lllls , ,o
Llman ,o
Lmmlson
Lrlckson ,
|alrclougb o
|aulkner
|llstead
|lncb o
|lnnegan ;o
|oucault (o, oo
|rake o
Cadamer zs, ,;
Carnkel oo
Carrlson z,
Ceer o
Ceertz (, z,, z;
Clorgl zs
Claser (
Cobo o
Coertz ,, ,o
Coman ,;, ;
Comm ;, s
Couldner o,
Crabame , (s
Cubrlum ,o, oo
Cuttlng (o, (,
laack, z
lalrpenny zz
lammersley (, ;, zz, zo, zs, z, ((,
(;, (s, (, ,, o(, ;,, ;, s,, s,
, ;, s
lanklnson ,,
larman (,
larre zz
larrlngton zo
lartsock ,,
lausbeer zo
legel ,o, ,
leldegger zs
lepburn oso, so, , z
lerltage oo
ley ,,
lolllday
lollway ;;s
lolsteln ,o, oo
lowartb (o
lutcbby ;,
lutcblnson (,
ames (,
ay ,,
ones ,,
kant z,o
kaplan s, (s
keat zz
klng ,
!z! |ndex
kolakowskl zz
kubn ,s
Law ,;
Leacb z,
Lelter ,;
Levltas ;, ,;, oo
Lewls s, ,, ,,
Lleberson ,
Llncoln , o
Llndesmltb ,o
Llttleton ,;
Loader o
Luckmann zs
Lundman ,;
Lyncb ;o, ;s
Lyotard (z,
MacUonell (o
Macey (o
MacLure ,, ,;, oo
Maboney ,, ,o
Mallnowskl z(, ,
Marsb z(
Marx ,o, ,(,
Matza ;, s
Maxwell ,,
May so
Mc|arlane ,;
Meebl o
Merton lx
Mlller (o
Mlsbler ;s
Mltcbell o, z, ,;
Moran zs
Morrow ,(
Morgan oo
Morton ,, z
Moynlban sz
Murpby ,s, o, ;,
Newell z,
Newman so, sz, s,, s(, s,, so, o,
Okellly ;
Oakley z,
Ollver ;
Olson, L. ;, (, ,,
Olson, k. zz
Osborn zs
Outbwalte zo
almer, k. z;
erkyl z,
lckerlng zz
lnk , oo
lttman ,;
latt o
lummer , z, ,, ,z,, ;o
ollner ,;
opper zz, (,
ortls zz
otter ,o, ,;, oso, so, , z
ound ,z
kagln ,
kal, ,, ,(
kalnwater ,;
kapley o
keason ,z
kead ,s
keed o,
kelnbarz ,(
kestlvo (,
klcbardson
klessman o
klboux ,
!zz wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
koberts ,o
korty zs
kose
Sandelowskl, M. , z
Sanders so
Saussure (
Sayer zz
Scbar z,, ,o
Scbeglo z,
Scbrodt ,
Scbutz zs
Scbwandt (;
Selerstad o, ;, s
Sbapln z,
Sbarrock ,,, ,s
Sleber ,
Slgmund zz
Sllverman , ,o, o;, o
Smltb, C. oo
Smltb, . zs, ;;
Sparks o
Speer ;,
Stouer o
St. lerre
Strauss (
Styles ,;
1apper o, s
1asbakkorl (, ;
1aylor ,;
1eddlle (, ;
ten lave o, ;,
lomson, k. ,,
lomson, W. (Lord kelvln) lx
1lmescapes ,,
1ralanou o, ,
1row ,
1ruzzl zo
1yler (z
Urry zz
van Uljk o
venkatesb s
vogt ,
Wacquant (, s, ,(, soz
Walker ,, ,;, oo
Wax ,
Wetberell ,, ,(, ,o, ,;, oo
Wbyte o
Wleder ;o
Wllson s, sz
Wlttgensteln (,
Wrlgbt, L. O. ,(
Wrlgbt, k. ,o, (
Wrlgbt, 1. zz
7nanleckl (s, (
!z! |ndex
SUBJECT INDEX
Actlon researcb s, (s
Adults understandlng cblldren,
problem or ,,(
Argbanlstan o, ;, s
Appreclatlve stance ;
Armed robbers ,o
Autoblograpby
Autoetbnograpby , ,o
8lograpblcal metbods
8oxlng (
Case study
ln-deptb study or partlcular
cases ,o
Cross-case analysls ,o
Causatlon, see ldentlrylng causes
Cblcago, ,, s, s
Cblcago soclology s
Clvlc soclology s
Cognltlvlsm ;(,
Comprebenslve tbeory (crltlcal
tradltlon) ,z
see a|so leory
Conguratlonal analysls ,
Constltutlve practlces, see
Uocumentlng constltutlve
practlces
Constructlonlsm ,,((, ,oo, o,
Soclal constructlonlsm ,o
Conversatlon analysls o, o,, ;,
Crltlcal dlscourse analysls o, oz
Crltlcal tradltlon z,(,
Cross-case analysls ,o
Crossword puzzle z
Ulalectlcal development ,
Ulscourse analysls z,, ,;, (;s, oo,
o, oz, o,, o,
Ulscurslve psycbology ,o
Uocumentlng constltutlve prac-
tlces ,o,, o(
Uocuments, use or ,,, ,s
Lmplrlclsm z,,
Lplstemology z
Ltbnograpby (;
Ltbnometbodology ;,, ;o
Ltymologlcal denltlon ,
|amlly practlces oo
|emlnlsm ,(
|lctlon
|ootball rans, see Soccer rans
|ootlngs ;
|ronts, see enetratlng rronts
Crounded tbeorlzlng (
lermeneutlcs z;
llerarcby or credlblllty s
ldentlrylng causes (s,, o,(
ldlograpblc rocus z;
lmmanent crltlque ,o
ln-deptb study or partlcular cases
,o
lnternal crltlque ,o
lnterpretlvlsm zo
lntervlews ,(,, ,s, o;so
lnvestlgatlng experlence ,o, o(
lrrltable 8owel Syndrome s
ane |ry (
!z4 wnar |s qua||rar|.e researcn?
ournallsm, contrast wltb quallta-
tlve researcb ,, ss
Llrestyle mlgratlon ;
Marxlsm ,o, ,(, (,
Mascullnlty (
Measurement z,
Mlgrants (to Spaln) ;
Mlxed metbods (, o;
Morallsm s
Multl-modal metbods
Narratlve analysls ,;, o, o,
Natural settlngs ,
Naturallstlc data ;,
New Labour ;s
Newtons pbyslcs z,
Nomotbetlc rocus (or posltlvlsm)
z;
Non-compllance wltb drug reglmes
,z
Observatlon, use or ,,, ,s
Ontology z
aradlgms, kubn on ,s
Qualltatlve and quantltatlve
researcb as ,
arents evenlngs (
artlclpatory pbotograpby s
enetratlng rronts ,o
benomenology z;s
olltlcal rbetorlc ;s
osltlve lolterlng ,(
osltlvlsm z, zzo
ostmodernlsm ,, (z,
ost-structurallsm ,, (z,, o,
overty sz, o
ragmatlsm zs
rocedural objectlvlty z,
publlc soclology s
Qualltatlve analysls
Qualltatlve comparatlve analysls ,
Qualltatlve researcb, denltlons or
, ,, , z(, ,, o
As concerned wltb words
ratber tban numbers , z
As contrasted wltb quantltatlve
metbod (
Quantltatlve researcb , o
kadlcal crltlque or lntervlews
o;so
keactlvlty os
keexlvlty ,,o
kepllcatlon z,
klddle-solvlng , z
Soccer rans o, ;
Soclal class (and Marx) ,,
Soclal constructlonlsm, see
Constructlonlsm
Standpolnt eplstemology ,,
Statlstlcal metbod (s
Structurallsm (z
Subanum o
Subjectlvlty ,
Sulclde notes ;
Survlvallsts o
leory ,z, s,o, ss
1onga ,
1ranscrlptlon ;o, ;;, ;s, ;
1ransparency, see rocedural
objectlvlty
!z |ndex
Underclass, concept or sz
value neutrallty ,z, ss
versteben zo
vlsual metbods
Wbose slde are we on: ;, ss

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