The ABCs of Qualitative Research

1. The ABCs of Qualitative Research Tuesday, March 4, 2014 The presentation will begin at Noon For in-person participants: Please sign in and help yourself to refreshments For webinar participants: You should hear music playing in the background. If not, please go to Meeting>Audio Setup Wizard and follow the steps If you have questions, please enter them in the CHAT area.

2. THE ABCs OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Nicole L. Sturges Assistant Director Center for Survey Research

3. Qualitative research defined • Qualitative vs. Quantitative • Methods for collecting qualitative data • In-depth interviewing/focus group discussions • Key study design considerations • Qualitative analysis options • Reporting and presenting your qualitative data • CSR qualitative services • Questions? SESSIONAGENDA

4. WHAT IS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH? • Allows researchers to delve deeper and gather an in-depth understanding of a particular topic • The “whys?” and “hows?”

5. QUALITATIVE VS. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

6. QUALITATIVE DATA COLLECTION METHODS • Interviews • In-depth one-on-one interviews with a trained interviewer • Focus Groups • Small group interview, usually 6 to 10 people lead by an experienced moderator • Participant Observation • Recording behaviors of people in their own environment • Other • Self-reports of knowledge or attitude, including: field logs or diaries

7. IN-DEPTH PERSONAL INTERVIEWS

8. IN-DEPTH PERSONAL INTERVIEWS • One-on-One with trained interviewer • Can be conducted face-to-face or via telephone • Typically last 30-60 minutes • Useful when you want detailed information about an individual’s thoughts or behaviors • Useful for more personal or sensitive topics • Some examples: • Program evaluation • Needs assessment • Instrument development

9. ADVANTAGES VS. CHALLENGES OF IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS ADVANTAGES CHALLENGES • Provides more detailed information with little burden for the respondent • Respondents can feel more comfortable to open up and discuss • Utilize non-verbal communication in your research • Flexibility • Time consuming • Not generalizable • Dependent on the skills of the interviewer

10. QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWERS • Interviewing requires a high level of training and skill • Understand what you are trying to get out of interviews • Filter and draw out information • Keep respondent on track • Use proper interviewing techniques • Active listening • Avoiding yes/no and leading questions • Avoiding bias/no personal opinions • Probing • Patience

11. FOCUS GROUPS

12. FOCUS GROUPS • Small group discussions/interviews led by a trained moderator • Useful when: • Looking for a range of ideas or feelings from people • Trying to understand differences between groups or categories of people • Information is needed to help design a quantitative study (i.e. survey instrument development) • Trying to clarify data already collected from a quantitative study

13. ADVANTAGES VS. CHALLENGES OF FOCUS GROUPS ADVANTAGES CHALLENGES • Group dynamic • Utilize non-verbal communication in your research • Flexibility • Client or sponsor involvement • Need a trained focus group moderator • The dominant personality • Time consuming • Not generalizable

14. TRAINED FOCUS GROUP MODERATOR • Highly skilled and trained in moderating skills • Proper techniques including: • Active listening • Probing • Flexibility and patience • Group interaction skills • Pleasant personality – make people feel comfortable • An untrained moderator will not yield high quality data! • CSR has trained moderators

15. KEY CONSIDERATIONS Study design considerations for in-depth interviews and focus groups

16. LOGISTICS • How many groups to conduct/people to interview? • Considerations • Breadth and depth of research on your topic/issue; may need a literature review • Your population • Level of analysis needed • Basic logistics (budget, travel, availability, etc.) • Saturation, or the point when you have heard a variety of ideas and you are no longer getting new information • Krueger & Casey (2000) suggest the rule of thumb is 3-4 focus groups with any one type of participant.

17. MORE LOGISTICS • Consider your participants when setting the date and time for your session or interview. • Focus groups typically last 1-2 hours • In-depth interviews last 30 minutes to an hour • Location • Easily accessible, convenient, good parking • Room considerations • Private – able to close a door • Quiet with minimal distractions • For focus groups consider: • Large table that is conducive to group discussion • Availability of food or catering • Examples - Hotel meeting rooms, community rooms, libraries, etc.

18. Room on Penn State Harrisburg campus in Church Hall Comfortably seats 15 Ample parking Private viewing room with a one-way mirror Audio/visual equipment available IT support Other services available, contact CSR if interested csr@psu.edu FOCUS GROUP FACILITY RENTAL

19. RECRUITING PARTICIPANTS • How do you find participants? • List • Random mailing/phone screening • Advertisements/flyers • Key stakeholder groups • Onsite intercepts • Piggyback • Snowball recruiting • Over-recruit or create a waiting list Recruiting is the most challenging and time-consuming part of qualitative data collection!

20. TIPS AND STRATEGIES TO HELP YOU RECRUIT

21. BOOST YOUR RECRUITING NUMBERS • Offer incentives – worth the investment! • Money • Food • Gift cards • Show the importance of participation • Make personal contact • Pre-notification letter or email • Send a confirmation letter or email • Make reminder calls to each participant

22. LINE OF QUESTIONING • Remember your research question! • Open-ended and conversational • Clear and easy to say • Stick with short • How many? • Focus Groups - 8 to 12 questions • In-depth Interviews - Up to 15 questions

23. FUNNEL APPROACH One way to help you design your moderator’s guide or in-depth interview guide.

24. Greeting & Pre-Session Activities Greet participants as they arrive Engage in small talk Make participants feel comfortable Pre-session activities Informed consent forms (if applicable) Intake form (demographics) Answer questions Address concerns

25. Start of your questioning Thank participants Give your name and names of any other researchers in the room Purpose of the focus group or interview Confidentiality Duration Instructions Reminder if audio recording Introductions of participants

26. Introduce discussion topic Broad, open-ended questions Easier to answer to encourage participation

27. Specific questions that will answer your main research goals Plan to spend most of your time here Be sure to probe and clarify responses to get as much information as you can

28. Wrap up discussion If time allows, give participants time to provide additional comments Thank participants for their time and effort

29. ANALYSIS & REPORTING Data analysis options and showcasing your qualitative data

30. What the participants say during the interview or discussion is the essential data Notes, audio or video files, and transcripts can all capture your data Purpose helps drive analysis of your qualitative data Identify key themes/topics Use quotes for support ANALYZING QUALITATIVE DATA

31. Qualitative Analysis Software Many software options available Helps researchers to organize, code, and analyze non-numerical data Is this the right tool for me to analyze my qualitative data?

32. QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS SOFTWARE

33. REPORTING What is the purpose of your report? *NOTE: this should be determined at the beginning of your research project! Brief or full report? Five principles of reporting (Krueger/Casey 2000) Get to your point quickly! Make sure your report is clear and conveys your ideas effectively Enlighten your audience If possible, involve others in the study and reporting Use multiple reporting strategies (narrative, audio, video, visuals, etc.)

34. “JAZZ UP” YOUR REPORT Can include visualization tools from qualitative analysis software Word clouds www.wordle.net www.worditout.com Pull quotes throughout your report Charts/tables Maps Audio or video clips Consider your audience and what you are trying to convey with your report!

35. CSR QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SERVICES Study design Interview guide /intake form development Literature reviews Sampling Recruiting Logistics Moderating services In-depth interviewing Interviewer training Transcription Analysis Reporting FREE cost estimates!

36. OTHER CSR RESEARCH SERVICES Telephone surveys (both landline and cell phone calling) Penn State Poll – statewide omnibus poll 20-seat call center on Penn State Harrisburg campus Web surveys Digital Dashboards Research workshops and lectures FREE cost estimates and much more! Visit our website for more information http://csr.hbg.psu.edu

37. LIKE CSR ON FACEBOOK! https://www.facebook.com/PSUCSR • Be the first to get CSR news • Learn about upcoming CSR workshops • Keep up on research trends • Connect with other researchers

38. Nicole L. SturgesAssistant DirectorCenter for Survey Researchnls17@psu.edu717-948-6117http://csr.hbg.psu.edu QUESTIONS?