International Journal of Qualitative Methods: ARCHIVE
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403 research outputs found
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Progressing through the Haze in Science and Mathematics Education Research: Contemporary Use of Spradley’s Qualitative Inquiry in Two Case Studies
No full textSpradley’s developmental research sequence (DRS) has been used primarily for ethnographic studies. However, this ethnographic tool has been employed in case studies without an examination of the merits of its modification. In this article the authors discuss how adapting analytical steps of DRS to case studies can be methodologically advantageous. They found that transforming Spradley’s ethnographic approach rendered it useful for articulating implicit conceptualizations in case studies, one from science education and the other from mathematics education. Investigating this issue will necessarily involve looking closely at the substantive aspects of the case studies themselves. Findings from the case studies and results from the methodological investigation are reported along with suggestions for future research
Use of Rapid Ethnographic Methodology to Develop a Village-Level Rapid Assessment Tool predictive of HIV infection in rural India
No full textIn rural India, with hundreds of thousands of villages, a priority from a programmatic perspective is to efficiently determine which villages are at highest risk of HIV/AIDS transmission. The authors first report on the use of a rapid ethnographic approach in 10 rural villages of Karnataka, India, to develop a domains and indicators framework of village-level HIV/AIDS risk and a subsequent rapid assessment tool. They then analyze the rapid ethnographic approach and the rapid assessment tool to discuss differences and commonalities among rapid designs. They also discuss if these studies can be properly categorized as ethnographies, are mainly qualitative in nature, and are in essence participatory, and how appropriate they are to the public health field in general and the HIV/AIDS field in particular
Editorial: Growing Quality in Qualitative Health Research
No full textQualitative methodologies are growing in popularity in health research; however, the integration of these methodologies into the clinical context is not always straightforward. In this article the author discusses some of the paradigmatic and methodological tensions that characterize the use of qualitative methodologies in clinical health research and showcase one solution to these tensions. The McGill Qualitative Health Research Group is a scholarly group of qualitative health researchers working together to advance a qualitative research agenda in clinical disciplines
Lost and Found in Translation: An Ecological Approach to Bilingual Research Methodology
No full textTranslation issues emerged from a qualitative study, conducted in French and English, that gathered patient perspectives on a newly implemented undergraduate medical curriculum entitled Physicianship: The Physician as Professional and Healer. French-speaking participants were interviewed using a translated interview guide, originally developed in English. A major finding that francophone participants contested the idea of the physician-healer in a manner not witnessed among the Anglophone participants. Consultation with multilingual health professionals was undertaken to explore whether the contestation was the result of poor translation of the word healer. This process confirmed that no appropriate French equivalent could be found. With hindsight, the authors emphasize the importance of pretesting translated research instrumentation. An ecological perspective on language equivalency is also emphasized, in which emergent linguistic discrepancies are viewed as opportunities for learning about the culture-language relationship
Redefining Qualitative Methods: Believability in the Fifth Moment
No full textIn this article the author addresses the history of reliability and validity in qualitative research as this method of inquiry has progressed through various paradigms. The importance of the concepts of reliability and validity in research findings is traced from the traditional era, where there was only a modest distinction between qualitative and quantitative researchers involving their definitions of research reliability and validity, through the current era, where some researchers question the need to be restricted in their research by attempting to control for or account for the reliability and validity of their research findings. The author rejects a strict need for reliability and validity as traditionally defined in quantitative research and outlines a less restrictive approach to ensuring reliability and validity in qualitative research
Building a Conceptual Framework: Philosophy, Definitions, and Procedure
No full textIn this paper the author proposes a new qualitative method for building conceptual frameworks for phenomena that are linked to multidisciplinary bodies of knowledge. First, he redefines the key terms of concept, conceptual framework, and conceptual framework analysis. Concept has some components that define it. A conceptual framework is defined as a network or a “plane” of linked concepts. Conceptual framework analysis offers a procedure of theorization for building conceptual frameworks based on grounded theory method. The advantages of conceptual framework analysis are its flexibility, its capacity for modification, and its emphasis on understanding instead of prediction
The Space Between: On Being an Insider-Outsider in Qualitative Research
No full textShould qualitative researchers be members of the population they are studying, or should they not? Although this issue has been explored within the context of qualitative research, it has generally been reserved for discussions of observation, field research, and ethnography. The authors expand that discussion and explore membership roles by illustrating the insider status of one author and the outsider status of the other when conducting research with specific parent groups. The strengths and challenges of conducting qualitative research from each membership status are examined. Rather than consider this issue from a dichotomous perspective, the authors explore the notion of the space between that allows researchers to occupy the position of both insider and outsider rather than insider or outsider
Conducting Qualitative Metasynthesis Research: Insights from a Metasynthesis Project
No full textThe need to synthesize qualitative research in order to inform fields of study has been highlighted as a critical imperative in recent years. Since that time, there have been a number of attempts to identify methodological approaches to achieving such a goal. Despite some notable efforts in this regard, the metasynthesis research approach continues to be somewhat
elusive with regard to its steps and procedures. The authors of this article describe their experience conducting a metasynthesis of qualitative research regarding transformation in chronic illness and disability. The particular emphasis of the article will be the practical strategies and procedures that assisted them in conducting the project in a rigorous and meaningful way. The authors emphasize the need for continued dialogue about strategies and procedures in metasynthesis that will aid researchers who are contemplating this complex research approach
