Methodology: Grounded Theory

Question 1

What is grounded theory?

Answer 1

Developing a theory from research findings.

Question 2

Define ‘inductive’.

Answer 2

The process of gathering qualitative information from research.

Question 3

Describe an inductive grounded theory.

Answer 3

• Research is conducted to gather information on an area of interest
• A theory may then be developed after based on the evidence gained
• The qualitative analysis of the data forms this theory

Question 4

Define ‘deductive’.

Answer 4

The process of gathering quantitative information from research.

Question 5

Describe an deductive grounded theory.

Answer 5

• Researchers identify an area of behaviour that they are interested in then gather information
• As data is gathered, codes and categories are drawn from what they are observing
• The researchers then look for patterns in this data
• As theoretical concepts become apparent codes may become more specific
• As research develops, researchers add more comments to give clarity to the data
• The researcher then codes the relevant data to develop a clear theoretical concept that they can review other literature for and develop the theory with more detail

Question 6

Evaluate the generalisability using a low point.

Answer 6

P - Low
E - Data will come from a specific culture in a specific time frame using specific ppts
E - Therefore research may not be representative of modern times as crime is a social construct

Question 7

Evaluate the reliability using a low point.

Answer 7

P - Low inter-rater
E - Data is qualitative in an inductive method and so open to interpretation
E - This means different researchers may find different themes and so may not be consistent

Question 8

Are there any applications?

Answer 8

P - Yes
E - It can identify new theories on topics with outdated ones that are in need of improvement
E - Therefore can direct more research in a certain direction to gather more important data

Question 9

Evaluate the reliability using a high and low point.

Answer 9

P - High
E - Coding is done carefully and then codes are developed into wider concepts
E - Therefore this is a highly valid measure due to being in-depth and detailed
P - Low
E - It is very difficult to code and categorise concepts without some theory in mind
E - Therefore as the data is largely qualitative so there will be elements of researcher bias in subjectivity by finding the theory in the data

Question 10

Any other evaluative comments?

Answer 10

P - More useful than thematic analysis
E - Thematic analysis is used to analyse qualitative data in a similar way however grounded theory goes on to develop a theory to explain the data
E - Therefore grounded theory allows the creativity that is needed to move from data about people to draw up ideas about how to explain the data