Key terms

Question 1

Bias (not a valid critique of qualitative research) is associated with _ research.

Answer 1

Positivist

Question 2

Big q research..

Answer 2

The application of qualitative methods of data collection/analysis within a qualitative paradigm, rather than a positivist one

Question 3

Social constructionism

Answer 3

Our experience and perception are culturally historically, linguistically mediated (i.e. knowledge is socially constructed). Rather than a single discoverable truth, plural knowledges. Research does not take place isn a void; there are other influences

Question 4

Contextualism

Answer 4

Meaning is related to the context in which it is produced

Question 5

Constructivism

Answer 5

The production of meaning by people. Sometimes used interchangably with constructionism

Question 6

Critical psychology

Answer 6

an umbrella term for a range of different approaches that challenge core assumptions of mainstream psychology. The key components of critical research are the questioning of taken-for-granted truths about subjectivity, experience, and the way the world is, combined with recognition of the cultural, political and historical factors which shape experience.

Question 7

Critical realism

Answer 7

a theoretical approach that assumes an ultimate reality, but claims that the way reality is experienced and interpreted is shaped by culture, language and political interests.

Question 8

Deconstruction

Answer 8

a critical form of analysis (and a philosophy) which is concerned with exposing unquestioned assumptions and internal contradictions.

Question 9

Discourse

Answer 9

patterned meaning within spoken or written language; to systems of meaning and talk which form readily identifiable ways of interpreting or understanding a particular object, or set of objects, in the world, which are theorised to create reality. (Power; Subject Position)

Question 10

Discourse Analysis

Answer 10

a cluster of forms of qualitative analysis that centre on the detailed examination of patterns of meaning within texts, and the effects and implications of particular patterns of meaning. Theoretically-underpinned by the idea that language creates meaning and reality, rather than reflecting it.

Question 11

Discursive Psychology

Answer 11

the application of discourse analysis to psychological phenomena, associated with a ‘fine-grained’ approach to discourse analysis and detailed analyses of textual data.

Question 12

Essentialism

Answer 12

the idea that events result from fixed qualities ‘inside’ people (essences) that are impervious to the social context. Not the same as biology, but frequently closely linked to biology in explanations of human behaviour.

Question 13

Experiential resarch

Answer 13

seeks to understand people’s own perspectives, views and meanings and experiences.

Question 14

Grounded theory

Answer 14

methodology which offers a way of developing theory grounded in data which are systematically gathered and theorised. As the theory evolves throughout the process of the research, data analysis and collection are linked. Often used in a ‘lite’ manner, without full theory-development.

Question 15

Idiographic

Answer 15

approach to knowledge production which is based on, develops and interest in, the specific and the individual (e.g. case study methods), rather than the shared and generalizable (e.g., quantitative survey methods).

Question 16

Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA)

Answer 16

an approach to qualitative research concerned with understanding experiences of the ‘person in context;’ prioritises participants’ experiences and their interpretations of them. Theoretically developed from Phenomenology and Hermeneutics.

Question 17

Hermeneutics

Answer 17

the theory and practice of interpretation.

Question 18

In vivo code

Answer 18

concept in Grounded Theory, essentially a Data-Derived Code.

Question 19

Latent / Semantic meaning

Answer 19

Latent: meaning not explicitly evident in the data

Semantic: literal, evident in the data

Question 20

Member checking

Answer 20

practice of checking your analysis with your participants, to ensure it does not misrepresent the experience; often treated as a form of validation in qualitative analysis.

Question 21

mixed method research

Answer 21

the combination of different methods of data collection and/or data analysis within a single study, frequently combing qualitative and quantitative approaches. Often conducted within a realist framework; qualitative research within mixed-methods approach is rarely Big Q Qualitative Research.

Question 22

Orthographic

Answer 22

records the spoken words and other linguistic utterances in audio or audiovisual data. (Transcript)

Question 23

Phenomenology

Answer 23

an influential philosophy in qualitative research. There are many varieties of phenomenology, but broadly speaking it can be described as the analysis of people’s subjective experiences.

Question 24

Positivism

Answer 24

a theoretical framework for making sense of the world which assumes a fairly straightforward relationship between the world and our perception of it; assumes a world that exists independent of our ways of getting to know it, and if we observe it properly, we can discover this.

Question 25

Purposive sampling

Answer 25

a mode of sampling typical of qualitative research; involves selecting participants or data on the basis that they will be able to provide rich and interesting data to analyse.

Question 26

realism

Answer 26

an ontological and epistemological position which assumes that the world has a true nature which is knowable and real, discovered through experience and research; that we ‘know’ an object because there are inherent facts about it that we can perceive and understand.

Question 27

relativism

Answer 27

a theoretical position that holds that there are multiple, Constructed realities, rather than a single, knowable reality; holds that all we have is representations or accounts of what reality is, and that, at least Epistemologically, all accounts are theoretically equal; there is no foundation on which to claim some version of reality as more true and right than another version. (Ontology)

Question 28

Representation

Answer 28

process of saying something about what participants think, feel, say, believe, etc; the thing we do with research.

Question 29

Theoretical sampling

Answer 29

an approach to sampling most associated with Grounded Theory, where the developing analysis shapes the selection of subsequent data; sampling driven by theoretical considerations.

Question 30

Triangulation

Answer 30

using two or more data sources, types or methods to try and gain a fuller understanding of a topic.

Question 31

Vignette

Answer 31

a short hypothetical scenario; as method for qualitative data collection, a vignette is present to participants, after which they answer a series of questions relating to it.