1.5 Qualitative Research Methods

Question 1

What are the 4 main types of qualitative research methods?

Answer 1

1. Observation
2. Interview
3. Focus Group
4. Case Study

Question 2

Why may observation be used as a research method?

Answer 2

• focus of research is on how people interact and their behaviours
• researchers believe that the most meaningful knowledge can only be acquired via observations
• allows researcher to become deeply immersed into the phenomenon

Question 3

What are the 7 main types of observation?

Answer 3

• laboratory
• naturalistic
• overt
• covert
• participant
• structured
• unstructured

Question 4

What is laboratory observation?

Answer 4

An observation carried out in an artificial/research setting

Question 5

What is the advantage of a laboratory observation?

Answer 5

An experiment can be tightly controlled, for example decreasing the risk of confounding variables

Question 6

What is the disadvantage of a laboratory observation?

Answer 6

It is difficult to generalize the findings to a natural environment

Question 7

What is naturalistic observation?

Answer 7

Naturalistic observation is carried out in naturally occurring settings, i.e one that has not been arranged for the purposes of the study

Question 8

What is the advantage of naturalistic observation?

Answer 8

Sometimes it may be the only choice as it may be unethical to choose laboratory setting e.g when observing violence

Question 9

What is the disadvantage of naturalistic observation?

Answer 9

May be time-consuming to wait for behaviour of interest to occur

Question 10

What is overt observation?

Answer 10

Overt observation occurs when participants are aware of the fact that they are being observed

Question 11

What is the advantage of overt observation?

Answer 11

Ethics are adhered to as participants give consent

Question 12

What is the disadvantage of overt observation?

Answer 12

here are methodological constraints, for example participant bias such as social desirability bias.

Question 13

What is covert observation?

Answer 13

In covert observation the participants are not informed about the fact that they are being observed

Question 14

What are the advantages of covert observation?

Answer 14

Researcher gains access to groups to which would not normally agree to be observed

Avoidance of participant bias i.e. participants behave naturally

Question 15

What is the disadvantage of covert observation?

Answer 15

Unethical as participants do not give informed consent

Question 16

How could you avoid the ethical issue surrounding covert observation?

Answer 16

Participants can be debriefed after the observation session and are asked for their consent before the data is used

Question 17

What is participant observation?

Answer 17

In participant observation the observer becomes part of the observed group

Question 18

What is the advantage of participant observation?

Answer 18

It allows the researcher to gain first hand experiences

Question 19

What are the disadvantages of participant observation?

Answer 19

Researcher may lose objectivity if they begin to identify with the group

Unethical not to inform group that one of the members is a researcher

Question 20

What is structured observation?

Answer 20

In structured observation the information is recorded systematically and in a standardised way e.g a checklist of behaviours

Question 21

What is the advantage of structured observation?

Answer 21

It produces easily comparable data

Question 22

What are the disadvantages of structured observation?

Answer 22

may be hard to fit observation into one category

- takes away natural aspect of observation

Question 23

What is unstructured observation?

Answer 23

Unstructured observations do not have a pre-defined structure and observers simply register whatever behaviours they find noteworthy

Question 24

What is the advantage of unstructured observation?

Answer 24

It provides detailed qualitative data

Question 25

What is the disadvantage of unstructured observation?

Answer 25

Researcher may not be able to note down all note-worthy behaviours
- not enough time or simply not able to notice every behaviour

Question 26

Why might an interview be used as a research method?

Answer 26

• may be the only way to get an insight into subjective experiences and interpretations
• a better way to understand the participants point of view
• in-depth individual interviews are useful when sensitive topics are discussed

Question 27

What is an interview transcript?

Answer 27

A written record of the interview

Question 28

What are the 3 types of interviews?

Answer 28

• structured interviews
• semi-structured interviews
• unstructured interviews

Question 29

What is a structured interview?

Answer 29

An interview which includes a fixed list of questions that are asked in a fixed order

Question 30

What is a semi-structured interview?

Answer 30

Do not specify an order or a particular set of questions

Question 31

What are the advantages of a semi-structured interview?

Answer 31

Researcher knows questions but can also add questions or ask for clarifications

Researcher can change the question order if it fits the flow of the interview better

Question 32

What is a disadvantage of a semi-structured interview?

Answer 32

Better suited for smaller research projects or in studying the unique experiences of each participant

Question 33

What is an unstructured interview?

Answer 33

Mostly participant-driven

Every new question is determined by the interviewee’s answer to the previous one

Question 34

What is an advantage of an unstructured interview?

Answer 34

Unstructured interviews may encourage the participant to be more honest in their answers

Question 35

What are disadvantages of an unstructured interview?

Answer 35

Two different interviewee’s may get very different sets of questions

Hard to standardise

Question 36

What is a focus group?

Answer 36

Special type of semi-structured interview that is conducted simultaneously with 6-10 people

Key idea is that participants are encouraged to interact with each other and researcher is facilitator

Participants discuss responses to each question and react to each other’s statements

Question 37

What are 4 advantages of a focus group?

Answer 37

Quick way to get info from several participants at same time

Creates more natural environment ensuring less participant bias

Easier to respond to sensitive question in group

Multiple perspectives are discussed

Question 38

What are 3 limitations of a focus group?

Answer 38

If one participant is particularly dominant, may distort responses of other participants, facilitators responsibility to ensure each person contributes

More difficult to preserve anonymity and confidentiality

Demanding in terms of sampling and creating interview transcripts

Question 39

What is a case study?

Answer 39

An in-depth investigation of an individual or a group

It is anything (any method) that deepens our understanding of an individual or a group of interest

Question 40

why are case studies deemed as a different research method even though they’re a mix of other methods?

Answer 40

Individual or group is unique in some way - want to gain a deeper understanding for this particular group
Less focus on generalisability
Case is studied thoroughly, using a combination of different methods

Question 41

What are 3 advantages of case studies?

Answer 41

Useful to investigate phenomena that are unique e.g groups hard to get into
Can be used as a base to help develop new theories or contradict other theories
Case is studied thoroughly using a combination of different methods

Question 42

What are 4 disadvantages of case studies?

Answer 42

Participant bias - may get too close to researcher, acquiescence or social desirability bias more likely

Generalisability is problematic (from a single case to a wider population)

Researcher bias - researchers may get too involved and connected with person/group being studies

Demanding in terms of anonymity and confidentiality - difficult to preserve the anonymity of unique cases