Qualitative Research

Qualitative research is a scientific method of observation to gather non-numerical data. This type of research "refers to the meanings, concepts, definitions, characteristics, metaphors, symbols, and description of things" and not to their "counts or measures". This research answers why and how a certain phenomenon may occur rather than how often. Qualitative research approaches are employed across many academic disciplines, focusing particularly on the human elements of the social and natural sciences; In less academic contexts, areas of application include qualitative market research, busine ...more

Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing among Five Approaches
Qualitative Research & Evaluation Methods
Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory
Qualitative Data Analysis: An Expanded Sourcebook, 2nd Edition
Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches
Writing Up Qualitative Research
Constructing Grounded Theory: A Practical Guide through Qualitative Analysis (Introducing Qualitative Methods series)
Case Study Research: Design and Methods (Applied Social Research Methods)
The Art of Case Study Research
Qualitative Research Design: An Interactive Approach (Applied Social Research Methods)
The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research
Completing Your Qualitative Dissertation: A Roadmap From Beginning to End
InterViews: Learning the Craft of Qualitative Research Interviewing
Becoming Qualitative Researchers: An Introduction
The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers

[…] a student in our class asked disdainfully why quantitative methodologists do not openly criticize qualitative methods. He scoffed, 'They don't even mention it. But in courses in qualitative methods, quantitative methods always come up.' […] I pointed out that the lack of critical remarks and the absence of any mention of qualitative research in 'methods' courses indicate the hegemony of the quantitative approach. Were not his statistics professors making a strong statement about the place of ...more
Sherryl Kleinman, Emotions and Fieldwork

The complexities of validating qualitative research need not be due to a weakness of qualitative methods, but on the contrary, may rest upon their extraordinary power to reflect and conceptualize the nature of the phenomenon investigated, to capture the complexity of the social reality. The validation of qualitative research becomes intrinsically linked to the development of a theory of social reality.
S Kvale

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