1 / 19

Doing qualitative research: study design, sampling, data collection

Doing qualitative research: study design, sampling, data collection. Elizabeth Boyd, PhD EPI 240 January 15, 2008. Recap: Using qualitative methods. To interpret, illuminate, illustrate To understand why or how To describe previously unstudied processes or situations

dard
Download Presentation

Doing qualitative research: study design, sampling, data collection

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. Doing qualitative research: study design, sampling, data collection Elizabeth Boyd, PhD EPI 240 January 15, 2008

  2. Recap: Using qualitative methods • To interpret, illuminate, illustrate • To understand why or how • To describe previously unstudied processes or situations • To learn about subjects who are few or hard to reach • To brainstorm ideas

  3. Meaning Context Unanticipated phenomena Process Explanations Opinions Attitudes Understandings Actions Research questions - what do you want to understand?

  4. Formulating research questions • Pub bias example • Your examples • Common problems: • Too broad • Impossible to find answers or ‘how to operationalize’ • Really asking a quantitative question

  5. Data collection • Based on what you want to know: • Where do you go to find out? • Site selection • Who do you ask/observe? • ‘Sample’ • What do you ask/do? • Data

  6. Choosing your site • Justification: why is this site the best for answering your research questions? • Naturalistic? • Ethnography; video • Public vs. private settings • Neutral? • Interviews; focus groups

  7. Choosing your site • Implications • Ethical • Role as researcher-caregiver • Logistic • How to gain access? • How to gather data?

  8. ‘Sampling’ • Who will you include in your study and why? • Everyone (ethnography) • Sample -- need sampling strategy • Random • Convenience • Purposeful • Typical • Hetereogenous • Extreme cases/comparisons

  9. Data collection • Once you have identified your site and participants, practical matters include: • Timing -- when to go/how long to stay? • Fitting in • Establishing relationships -- Who? How? How much? • Equipment: • Recording devices • Hand notes • Video/digital • Impact on participants • Cost/transportability/impact

  10. Quality in qualitative research • Two ‘phases’ -- data collection and write-up • Overall: quality = credibility • Credibility is achieved through depth, clarity, nuance

  11. Rich and sufficient data • Enough background to understand and portray full range of persons, processes, settings • Detailed description of range of views & actions -- multiple perspectives • Beyond superficial • Analytic categories -- complexity • Comparisons -- generative or general? • Saturation -- stop seeing new cases/instances

  12. Bottom Line • Regardless of the type of data you are working with, • Ground ALL observations, analyses in the particular details of your data

  13. Managing your data … • You’ve interviewed 10 (or 20, or 30, or 100) people, now what? • Transcription • Coding • Analysis

  14. Transcription • Written representation of the interview • Types of transcription: • “Cleansed” transcript • “Just the words” • “Jeffersonian” transcript

  15. The “cleansed” transcript • Dr. E: I’m deputy editor of Annals of Internal Medicine. I was associate editor from 1978 to 1999, and I was deputy editor from 1999 to 2003. My sub-specialty is pulmonary disease which I practice every day at the University of Pennsylvania. Most of the editors at Annals do practice, though not as extensively as I do. …

  16. “Just the words” • IR: So today is March seventh. I’m at Annals of Internal Medicine and I’ll be interviewing Dr. P.E. And for the record can you state your name and position? • DrE: It’s P.E. I’m deputy editor of Annals of Internal Medicine. • IR: Okay. And how long have you been working at Annals? • DrE: Since 1978. It’s a long time. I was associate editor from 1978 to 1999 and I’ve been deputy editor from 1999 to 2003.

  17. “Jeffersonian” transcript • IR: So: today is March seventh, I’m at Annals of Internal Medicine and I’ll be interviewing doctor Pete Ernest. (0.4) A::nd um for the record can you state your name and position? • IE: It’s Pete Ernest, I’m deputy editor of Annals of Internal Medicine. • IR: Okay. And how long have you been working at Annals? • (0.4) • IE: Since nineteen seventy eight. It’s a lo::ng time. I was uh:: associate editor from nineteen seventy eight t nineteen ninety ni:ne, …

  18. Which transcription method to use? • Speed versus detail and accuracy versus cost • What are you most interested in learning -- • Content? • Narrative? • Interaction?/Context?

  19. Assignment • If necessary, refine your research questions • Describe your sample and data collection protocol • Describe how you will prepare your data for analysis • Be sure to defend your choices!

More Related