Module 2 and 3
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH AND ITS
IMPORTANCE IN DAILY LIFE
IDENTIFYING AND STATING THE PROBLEM
LESSON 1, 2, 3, & 4: The Value of Qualitative Research—
Its Kinds, Characteristics, Uses, Strengths, and
Weaknesses and the Importance of Qualitative
Research Across Fields of Inquiry
Stage I:
Types of Qualitative Research
Phenomenology
It is an approach to philosophy and not specifically a method of inquiry;
this has often been misunderstood. It is first and foremost philosophy, the
approach employed to pursue a particular study should emerge from the
philosophical implications inherent in the question.
Ethnography
It is the direct description of a group, culture or community. Nevertheless,
the meaning of the word ethnography can be ambiguous; it is an overall
term for a number of approaches. Sometimes researchers use it as
synonymous with qualitative research in general, while at other times it‘s
meaning is more specific.
Grounded theory
It is a development of theory directly based and grounded in the data
collected by the researcher. It is a research methodology for discovering
theory in a substantive area.
Case study
It is used for a research approach with specific boundaries and can be
both qualitative and quantitative. In addition, it is an entity studied as a
single unit, and it has clear confines and a specific focus and is bound to
context.
Major Characteristics of Qualitative Research
Naturalistic inquiry
Studying real-world situations as they unfold naturally; non-manipulative,
unobtrusive, and non-controlling; openness to whatever emerges—lack of
predetermined constraints on outcomes.
Inductive analysis
Immersion in the details and specifics of the data to discover important categories,
dimensions, and interrelationships; begin by exploring genuinely open questions
rather than testing theoretically derived (deductive) hypotheses.
Holistic perspective
The whole phenomenon under study is understood as a complex system that is
more than the sum of its parts; focus is on complex interdependencies not
meaningfully reduced to a few discrete variables and linear, cause-effect
relationships.
Qualitative data
Detailed, thick description; inquiry in depth; direct quotations capturing people‘s
personal perspectives and experiences.
Personal contact and insight
The researcher has direct contact with and gets close to the people, situation, and
phenomenon under study; researcher‘s personal experiences and insights are
important part of the inquiry and critical to understanding the phenomenon.
Dynamic systems
Attention to process; assumes change is constant and ongoing whether the focus
is on an individual or an entire culture.
Unique case orientation
Assumes each case is special and unique; the first level of inquiry is being true to,
respecting, and capturing the details of the individual cases being studied; cross-
case analysis follows from and depends on the quality of individual case studies.
Context sensitivity
Places findings in a social, historical, and temporal context; dubious of the
possibility or meaningfulness of generalization across time and space.
Emphatic neutrality
Complete objectivity is impossible; pure subjectivity undermines credibility; the
researcher‘s passion is understanding the world in all its complexity – not proving
something, not advocating, not advancing personal agenda, but understanding; the
researcher includes personal experience and empathic insight as part of the
relevant data, while taking a neutral nonjudgmental stance toward whatever
content may emerge.
Design flexibility
Open to adapting inquiry as understanding deepens and/or situations change;
avoids getting locked into rigid designs that eliminate responsiveness; pursues
new paths of discovery as they emerge.
Source: Fraenkel and Wallen, How To Design And Evaluate Research In Education.
Stage II:
As you go through this lesson, you will have to compose a group and
reflect on these important questions: What topic should we consider in
doing our research? What are our research questions? What problem
would our research solve? Who will benefit from our research? Why do
we need to conduct this research?
Activity 2.1 1
Group Work (Collegial brainstorming)
Brainstorm on the issues that surround your field of specialization. The
objective of the brainstorming is to make you aware of the issues
and topics that are researchable in your own field. This will also help
you in choosing a topic.
The output of this activity should be presented using PowerPoint
presentation or any visual material for critiquing of the teacher.
The output should include:
1. Research Title
2. Reasons for Conducting the Research
3. Research Questions
Strengths of Qualitative Research
1. Issues can be examined in detail and in depth.
2. Interviews are not restricted to specific questions and can be
guided/redirected by the researcher in real time.
3. The research framework and direction can be quickly revised as new
information emerges.
4. The obtained data based on human experience is powerful and
sometimes more compelling than quantitative data.
5. Subtleties and complexities about the research subjects and/or topic are
discovered that are often missed by more positivistic inquiries.
6. Data usually are collected from a few cases or individuals so findings
cannot be generalized to a larger population. Findings can however be
transferable to another setting.
Limitations of Qualitative Research
1. Research quality is heavily dependent on the individual skills of the
researcher and more easily influenced by the researcher's personal
biases and idiosyncrasies.
2. Rigor is more difficult to maintain, assess, and demonstrate.
3. The volume of data makes analysis and interpretation time consuming.
4. It is sometimes not as well understood and accepted as quantitative
research within the scientific community
5. The researcher's presence during data gathering, which is often
unavoidable in qualitative research, can affect the subjects' responses.
6. Issues of anonymity and confidentiality can bring/result to problems
when presenting findings
7. Findings can be more difficult and time consuming to characterize in a
visual way.
Source: Claire, "Presenting And Evaluating Qualitative Research".
Formative Assessment 2.1(Individual)
Creating qualitative research questions
Formulate a ―how‖ or ―why‖ question that would be part of your
statement of the problem for a qualitative research that you will
conduct. Then, think of possible ways to answer the questions
you formulated like conducting a survey questionnaire, interview
or experiment.
Stage III:
Formative Assessment 2.2 (Grouping Activity)
Create a scope and delimitation of your qualitative research.
Cite benefits and beneficiaries of the qualitative research and
present written statement of the problem. Identify the kind of
qualitative research that you would like to conduct.
Stage IV:
Collaborative Work: Discuss in front in class using Powerpoint slides
the research title, describing your justifications/reasons for conducting
the research, stating the research questions, indicating scope and
delimitation of research, and citing the benefits and beneficiaries of
the research.
References
Fraenkel, Jack R., and Norman E. Wallen. How To Design And Evaluate
Research In Education. 5th ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill Education, 2003.
Claire, Anderson. "Presenting And Evaluating Qualitative Research". American
Journal Of Pharmaceutical Education, 2010, 141.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/49703237_Presenting_and_Evaluati
ng_Qualitative_Research.
Paton, Michael. Quantitative Evaluation and Research Methods. 2nd ed.
Newburry Park, CA: Sage, 2003.
