Evaluate Quality in Qualitative Research Flashcards
Yardley (2000) proposed a set of flexible principles for evaluating the quality of a qualitative study, whilst remaining sensitive to the diversity of qualitative approaches
What are the 4 principles?
1) Sensitivity to context
2) Commitment and rigour
3) Transparency and Coherence
4) Impact and importance
What is sensitivity to context?
Awareness of broader context that the research is conducted in
Awareness of broader context that the research is conducted in
This is known as…?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
a) Sensitivity to context
Considers the relevant literature and previous related empirical work
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
a) Sensitivity to context
Considers ‘common sense’ concepts and assumptions (e.g. philosophical stance)
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
a) Sensitivity to context
Considers socio-cultural setting (of all participants, including the researcher)
25/04/2021
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
a) Sensitivity to context
What is Commitment and Rigour?
- The deep prolonged engagement with the topic and data
- The completeness of data collection
- The deep prolonged engagement with the topic and data
- The completeness of data collection
This is known as…?
Commitment and Rigour
Completeness of data collection
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
There is no magic number for Qualitative research. There’s no specific amount of interviewees or Ps there should be in a qualitative study
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
Samples are purposive – collect enough data to address the question. Quality of research can either be based on the number of recruited participants or how homogenous/heterogenous they are
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
Aim for data saturation – the point at which no new ideas are drawn from the data
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
There are 4 things that make up commitment and rigour. What are they?
1) Completeness of data collection
2) Completeness of analysis
3) Triangulation
4) Validation
One of the problems with qualitative analysis is that themes become paraphrased data which lack analytic narrative
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
One of the problems with qualitative analysis is that themes are summaries of interview questions or accounts from a single interviewee rather than a description of the pattern across data sets
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
One of the problems with qualitative analysis is that themes are unrelated, overlap, vague, and not consistent with data examples
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
One of the problems with qualitative analysis is that alternatives are unconsidered (e.g. alternative interpretations of the data or negative cases within the data)
Which principle does this apply to?
a) Sensitivity to context
b) Commitment and rigour
c) Transparency and Coherence
d) Impact and importance
b) Commitment and rigour
1) Themes paraphrase data without providing an analytic narrative
2) Themes are summaries of interview questions or accounts from a single interviewee
3) Themes are unrelated, overlap, vague, and not consistent with data examples
4) Alternatives are unconsidered (e.g. alternative interpretations of the data or negative cases within the data)
These are all common problems for…?
Completeness of analysis (Commitment and Rigour)
In terms of commitment and analysis, what should qualitative researchers aim to do?
Aim for a complete interpretation that ideally addresses all of the variation and complexity observed in the data, and produces high-quality themes
It can require prolonged engagement with the data and iterative cycles of analysis phases
What is Triangulation?
Combining methods of data collection and analysis to gain a multi-layered understanding of the research topic
Combining methods of data collection and analysis to gain a multi-layered understanding of the research topic
This is known as…?
Triangulation
What do researchers do in triangulation? List 2 things
1) They mainly collect data from 1 group of Ps and develop interpretations based on what they’ve said
2) They may even go further by thinking about which perspectives are important to consider when addressing the research questions
What does triangulation involve? List 2 things
1) Might involve gathering data from various sources (e.g., patients, doctors, nurses)
2) Might involved combining analytic approaches (using more than one type of qualitative analysis)
What is validation?
Checking the interpretation of the data with others can increase the credibility findings
Checking the interpretation of the data with others can increase the credibility findings
This is known as…?
Validation
What are the 2 types of validation in qualitative research?
1) Peer verification
2) Respondent verification
What is peer verification?
Analysts work together to check that interpretations are plausible, consistent with the data and communicated clearly
Analysts work together to check that interpretations are plausible, consistent with the data and communicated clearly
This is known as…?
Peer verification
What is respondent verification?
Study participants reviewing analysis findings to comment on the fit between analysts’ interpretation and their experiences
Study participants reviewing analysis findings to comment on the fit between analysts’ interpretation and their experiences
This is known as…?
Respondent verification
What are the 2 main components of transparency?
1) Auditability
2) Reflexivity
What is auditability?
When the methods section provides details of every aspect of the data collection process, the rules used to code data (e.g. semantic vs. latent), how stages of the analysis progressed
Findings also present excerpts of the textual data so the readers can discern the patterns identified by the analysis
Simply = Shows how the analyst constructs their findings and allows readers to understand how the data eventually became the eventual findings
When the methods section provides details of every aspect of the data collection process, the rules used to code data (e.g. semantic vs. latent), how stages of the analysis progressed
Findings also present excerpts of the textual data so the readers can discern the patterns identified by the analysis themselves
Simply = Shows how the analyst constructs their findings and allows readers to understand how the data eventually became the eventual findings
This is known as…?
Auditability
What is reflexivity?
A discussion of the experiences or motivations which led the researcher to undertake a particular investigation (their assumptions, intentions and actions in the research process)
Papers often include a reflexive statement
What is coherence?
Findings present a coherent narrative that is
consistent with the quotations presented in themes
Simply = Linking quotations together and linking the quotations to each theme
Findings present a coherent narrative that is
consistent with the quotations presented in themes
This is known as…?
Coherence
What is considered good coherence in qualitative research?
1) The discussion links findings to existing knowledge
2) There is a good fit between the research question and the philosophical perspective adopted, and the method of investigation and analysis undertaken (decisions made throughout the research process must link together)
3) An analysis conducted from a critical realist perspective shows sensitivity to how interviewees construct meaning
What is the impact and importance?
Discussion (and abstract) explains why the findings are important and their potential impact
Discussion (and abstract) explains why the findings are important and their potential impact
This is known as…?
Impact and importance
What are the 3 types of potential impact on research findings?
1) Theoretical impact
2) Practical impact
3) Socio-cultural impact
What is a theoretical impact?
How do the findings influence how we view current things?
e.g. how should current theories be updated in light of the findings?
What is a practical impact?
How should services and policies be updated in light of the findings?
What is a socio-cultural impact?
What do the findings indicate about how we think about social problems? (explain why findings are useful)
What do the findings indicate about how we think about social problems? (explain why findings are useful)
What impact is this?
Socio-cultural impact
How should services and policies be updated in light of the findings?
What impact is this?
Practical impact
How do the findings influence how we view current things?
e.g. how should current theories be updated in light of the findings?
What impact is this?
Theoretical impact
How can the importance of qualitative research be demonstrated?
Transferability
What is transferability?
The degree to which the results of qualitative research can be transferred to other contexts or settings with other respondents
The degree to which the results of qualitative research can be transferred to other contexts or settings with other respondents
This is known as…?
Transferability
How does a researcher facilitate transferability judgement by a potential user?
Through thick description
e.g. full description of the participants/their characteristics and socio-cultural setting and a full description of the methods used
True or False?
Ultimately the ‘user’ of the research decides whether the findings are transferrable to their research problem
Simply = Transferability depends on how similar the context is and how similar the Ps involved in the research are
True
Are quality principles in qualitative research rigid or flexible?
Flexible
If you are reviewing a paper on qualitative research, what are the 4 things you must consider?
1) Have they explained their method and analysis in enough detail?
2) Have they been transparent about their assumptions (e.g. provided a reflexive statement)
3) Is their analysis convincing?
4) Why are the study findings relevant to your project/essay?
