Basics of Qualitative

Research Design
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 Caelli (2003, ‘Clear as Mud’) says:
 “Qualitative approaches do not encompass a
single universally understood position.
Arising as they do from multiple and evolving
philosophic understandings of the world and
the nature of humanity, there are many
different standpoints from which to evaluate
qualitative research (Sandelowski, 2002).
Sandelowski and Barroso’s (2002) argument
correctly posits that qualitative research can
be judged only on its individual merits based
on the research report.”
Credibility of qualitative research…

 Is established through assessing

 “1. the theoretical positioning of the researcher;
 2. the congruence between methodology and
methods;
 3. the strategies to establish rigor; and
 4. the analytic lens through which the data are
examined.” (Caelli, 2003)
 All are critical aspects of the research design
Characteristics of Qualitative
Research
 Context is critical
 In depth, detailed
 Researcher immerses self in data (non-
objective)
 Researcher integrity
 Bias recognized
 Use of grounded theory
 Can detect process and sequence
 Data are interpreted rather than analyzed
Janesick (1994) in Berg (2009)….

“design is the choreography

that establishes the
research dance”

 What are the implications of this

statement?
The Research Design
 The plan for conducting a study
 Foresee possible glitches
 Consider appropriate pacing
 Appraise ethical proprieties

 Feasibility is contingent on many factors:

 Length of time to do the study
 Ethical constraints
 Cooperation of others
 Cost of conducting the research
 Researcher’s own skills
Qualitative Research Designs
 Field studies or ethnographies
 Long term involvement in the field
 Grounded theory studies
 Development of new theory grounded in the data
 Action research
 Collaboration with stakeholders for social change
 Case study designs
 Observational designs:
 phenomenological or ethnomethodological
 Historiography
 Examination of the past
Qualitative Research Methods
 Observation
 Participant and non-participant
 Interviewing
 Structured, semi-structured, unstructured
 Focus groups
 Group interviews and observation
 Unobtrusive methods
 Examining the artifacts of social communication
Data Analysis in Qualitative
Research
 Content analysis
 Coding
 Building grounded theory
Your YouTube Research
 Will be a grounded theory study
 Use unobtrusive methods
 Content analysis and coding to analyze
the data
 End product will be a research report that
outlines creates concepts and linkages
between them and carefully grounds your
ideas in actual observations
 The concepts and linkages are the theory
What is Theory?

 “a statement of relationships between

concepts” or “a roadmap for organizing
ideas and knowledge about the social
world”
 Berg (2009) says “inter-related ideas
about various patterns, concepts,
processes, relationships, or events”
Theory Parts
 Concepts
 Typologies
 Concept clusters
 Classification concepts (ideal types)

 Relationships
 Taxonomies

 Assumptions
Concepts
 Are the abstract symbolic elements of
thought and communication that we
use to represent objects, processes,
phenomena, etc.
 Meanings vary from person to person
 Must be clearly defined in research
 Two distinct parts
Symbolic elements (word, symbol, term)
Definitional element Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010
Operationalization of a
Concept
 Conceptualize
 Providinga working definition of a concept
 Use theory and research

 Operationalize
 providingthe criteria for measuring a concept
 What, specifically, will you be observing?
 Often continues throughout the research
process
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010
 The Research Process
 “Spiraling Research Approach” (Berg, 2009)
Begin with a rough idea


 Gather theoretical information

 Reconsider/redefine ideas grounded in what you see

Process:
Your idea(s) about an aspect of YouTube videos
Your review of relevant literature and theories
Your research design and sample
Your observations (data collection/organization)
Your analysis/findings and generalizations (new theory?)
Dissemination of ideas – your presentation and paper
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010
Starting your Research:
Choosing a Research Problem
 Where do problems come from?
 Practical problems in the field
 The literature in the field
 Personal interest
 Start by thinking about what you know and
have seen on YouTube
 Look at some of the literature in the area
 Refine your idea to create an actual problem
statement of what you will observe
Creating a concept map
(see Berg (reserve) Ch. 2 Fig. 2.4)
 Try this!
 Will help you to focus your research
question or problem
 Helps to plan your research design
 Start a rough map while developing your
problem statement and modify it as you
go: while you conduct your literature
search and while you gather and analyze
data
The problem statement:
 A good problem statement will answer the following
questions:
 Who does the problem affect?
 What would the outcome be if the problem was not investigated?
 Where is the problem taking place?
 Is it important for the problem to be fixed? Why?
 It should have the following elements:
 1. a lead-in
 2. declaration of originality (e.g., mentioning a knowledge void,
or contradictions in knowledge)
 3. indication of the central focus of the study
 4. explanation of study significance or the benefits to be derived
from an investigation of the problem
 Writing style: very clear and to the point, concise (no
more than a few sentences)
Reviewing the Literature
 Recommended Sources:
 Journal articles
 Books
 Conference proceedings
 Government / corporate reports
 Library Databases

 Other Sources (not recommended)

 Newspapers and Magazines
 Internet esp. sites like Wikipedia
The Annotated Bibliography
 A very useful first step…

 Consists of a bibliographic citation and a

descriptive and evaluative annotation of a
selection of your most useful sources
Reviewing the Literature
 Formulate a rough question
 Visit the Library
Conduct both online and in-print
searches
 Make a list of search terms
 Evaluate the results

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Evaluating Web Sites

 Information to check on every website

 URL
 Domain
 Date of last update
 Corroborating information

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010

Writing The Literature Review
 Concentrates on the scientific research

 Provides the context for your research

 Justifies and grounds the study

 Summarizes and evaluates the literature in

the field
 Questions to consider when
doing a literature review:
 1. What do we already know in the immediate area concerned?
 2. What are the characteristics of the key concepts?
 3. What are the relationships between these key concepts?
 4. What are the existing generalizations or theories?
 5. Where are the inconsistencies/shortcomings in our knowledge
and understanding?
 6. What views need to be (further) explored?
 7. What information or evidence is lacking, inconclusive,
contradictory or too limited?
 8. Why study (further) the research problem?
 9. What contribution can the present study be expected to make?
 10. What research designs or methods seem unsatisfactory?
Tips:
 Remember the purpose
 Read with a purpose
 Write with a purpose

 Always put citations into your writing

immediately
 Keep a bibliographic file
Setting
 Identification of a data-collection site
Practical
 entry or access - gatekeepers
 availability

Reasonable in size and complexity

Appropriateness

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Sampling Strategies
 Probability Sampling
 Mathematically representative of the larger
population
 Relies on random sampling

 Non-Probability Sampling
 Doesn’trequire a list of the population elements
 Can be used with difficult or sensitive populations

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010

Probability Sampling (used for
quantitative research)
 Simple Random Sampling
 Every unit has the same chance of inclusion
 Systematic Random Sampling
 Every nth unit is selected from the list
 Stratified Random Sampling
 Independent samples from subgroups of the
sample
 Cluster Sampling
 Clusters are randomly and elements within are
randomly selected
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010
Non-probability Sampling
(qualitative research)
 Convenience Samples
 Relies on available subjects
 Purposive Samples
 Researcher knowledge or expertise
 Snowball Samples
 Respondent-driven
 Quota Samples
 Proportional matrix
Data Analysis
 Data Reduction
Reduce and transform the data
 Data Display
Organize and assemble the data
 Conclusions and Verification
Confirm initial conclusions through
double checking and independent
examination
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2010
Dissemination

 Writing the final report on your research

for presentation, submission or publication
 Integral part of the research process