INTRODUCTION TO

QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
Dr Assaf Givati and Dr Karen Burnell
Quantitative Qualitative

Mixed
methods
INDUCTION AND DEDUCTION
 LETS SAY THAT YOU WOULD LIKE
TO EXPLORE BURNOUT AMONGST
NURSES IN EMERGENCY CARE
DEPARTMENTS (A&E)

• % of nurses experiencing burnout in A&E in QAH compared

with the country average (prevalence)
• Understanding the experiences of nurses in A&E and how
burnout is developed
• What is the impact of burnout among A&E nurses on the
provision of patient care?
QUANTITATIVE VERSUS
QUALITATIVE OR BOTH?
BEFORE WE START…..

…..what are your views, opinions, experiences, of

qualitative research?
DEFINITION OF QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
WHAT IS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH?

Any type of research that produces

findings not arrived at by statistical
procedures or other means of
quantification
• Qualitative research seeks to explore,
describe, or expand our knowledge of
the world around us
• Therefore, it aspires to position the
investigation and its findings in the
social world of the study participants
and of the studies phenomenon
 IT IS THEREFORE IMPORTANT
THAT THE INVESTIGATION IS SET
IN RELATION TO SOCIAL CONTEXT
(WHERE DOES IT TAKE PLACE?)
“ GILLESPIE, M., & MELBY, V. (2003).
BURNOUT AMONG NURSING STAFF IN
ACCIDENT AND EMERGENCY AND ACUTE
MEDICINE. JOURNAL OF CLINICAL
NURSING, 12(6), 842-851.

Qualitative or Quantitative?
”
WELL, FIRST, WE NEED TO KNOW
THE STUDY OBJECTIVES

WHAT IS IT EXACTLY THAT THE

RESEARCHERS WOULD LIKE TO
FIND OUT?
Quantitative Qualitative

Mixed
methods
THIS STUDY WAS DESIGNED TO IDENTIFY
THE PREVALENCE OF BURNOUT AMONG
NURSES WORKING IN ACCIDENT AND
EMERGENCY (A & E) AND ACUTE MEDICINE,

TO ESTABLISH FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE

TO STRESS AND BURNOUT,

TO DETERMINE THE EXPERIENCES OF

NURSES AFFECTED BY IT

AND HIGHLIGHT ITS EFFECTS ON PATIENT

CARE

AND TO DETERMINE IF STRESS AND

BURNOUT HAVE ANY EFFECTS ON
INDIVIDUALS OUTSIDE THE CLINICAL
SETTING.
WHAT CAN QUALITATIVE METHODS DO?
• Explore
 the lived experiences of an individual, a group, or a community
 a specific incident or situation

• Develop
 interventions
 research instruments

• Confirm, refute or modify

 theories that have not been empirically tested (or even when
they have)

• Explain/understand
 the how and why of an outcome/process
PSYCHOSOCIAL RESEARCH

• Where knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour patterns

are associated with personal and social factors:
• Inquiry into subjective meanings and their socio-
cultural context
EXAMPLES

• Poor or inappropriate uptake of health care services

 Reveal some of the underlying reasons for over/under
utilization of services

• Low rates of compliance

 Reasons for adherence or non-adherence to treatment

• Rising rates of preventable illness

 Determining attitudes, behaviours, and beliefs of individuals or
communities to enable and maintain good health
 Explore the relationship between individual actions, lifestyles
ad pathways to ill health
EXAMPLES

• The experience of crisis in dementia

 “Causes of crises and appropriate interventions: The views of
people with dementia, carers and healthcare professionals” (Toot
et al, 2012 Aging and Mental Health)
 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13607863.2012.732037
COMMON TYPES OF QUALITATIVE DATA

• Interviews
• Focus groups
• Participant observation
(ethnography)
• Diaries
• Blogs
• Pictures
• Archival materials
• Films
DATA ANALYSIS

Which ever the data collection, data analysis

has to be based on a systematic, well
designed, well rationalised and tested
approach, grounded in theoretical tradition
that is well established academically
QUALITY CRITERIA

• Quantitative • Qualitative
• Internal validity • Credibility
• External validity • Rigour
• Reliability • Transparency
• Generalisability • Transferability
• Objectivity • Dependability
• Confirmability
CREDIBILITY

• Topic accurately identified and described, reflecting

multiple realities
• Coherent fit between theory and method
• E.g.
 Respondent validation (not always appropriate)
 Do the authors cite actual data?
 Do the authors tell us why this particular quote?
 Does it produce a convincing argument
 Do they lead to predictions for what needs to be researched next?
RIGOUR

• Method is adequately described, adhered to, and well

conducted
• Do we know…
 How the analysis was done?
 Are the categories/themes adequately described and come
from data collected?
 Are we clear that all the data has been used?
 Who said what?
 Position of the researcher(s)
TRANSPARENCY

• Clear method and data presentation

 Paper trail of method and analysis
• traced back to the raw data and the codes

• Reflexivity – we know the researcher’s position

 Do we know the position of the researcher?

NB. Links with audibility - the consistencies demonstrated when the researcher’s
decision trail can be followed, and a similar conclusion reached.
TRANSFERABILITY

• Useful to others in similar situations, comparisons through

triangulation, reference to theory
 Is this relevant to our practice?
 Is there a description of the sample so you can decide if it is
relevant?
 Are there explanations as to what is going on in a particular social
location/operation of a set of social processes?
 Does it provide comparisons that are relevant in “supporting your
argument”

N.B. links with dependability Attempt to account for changing conditions of the phenomena and
the changing conditions of the design
CONFIRMABILITY

• A clear rationale for all decisions should be

documented – known as a decision trail
• Is there evidence of contrast or challenge to the
theories derived from the majority?
(e.g. Exception cases, negative cases, deviant cases)
OVERALL VIEW

• Does it produce a convincing argument?

• Are there explanations as to what is going on in a
particular social location/operation of a set of social
processes?
• Does it increase our understanding?
• Does it bring new awareness?
• Does it lead to predictions for what needs to be
researched next?
ANY (QUALITATIVE…)
QUESTIONS?