methods overview Flashcards
What is epistemology. What is your epistemology? s/l/others
Views about the relationship between the knower and reality and the participant- what inferences are credible or warranted
Mine: acknowledgement that the researcher is never entirely independent of the participant. multiple valid interpretations but knowledge is not purely situational and negotiated between participant and reality
Other: critical realism: all human knowledge is situational- not a single valid interpretation of a given phenom. Differences in viewpoint should not be treated superficially
What is ontology? What is your ontology? s/l/other
Views about the nature of reality- is there one or multiple? It is knowable or never really knowable?
Mine: Reality is socially constructed- there are multiple realities due to the diversity of human experience
Those should be explored- not summarized or ignored
Other: reality negotiated with participants. Inherently involves power, privilege, and inequity
Define paradigm. Whats yours? Why choose? strengths/limitations. Other paradigms?
Paradigm is a set of assumptions about the nature of reality and the researcher’s role in constructing that reality
Involves four dimensions: ontology, epistemology, axiology, methodology
Axiology: how values impact research
Methodology: strategies for generating knowledge
Me: dialectical pluralism: a pragmatic paradigm that deliberately engages with multiple viewpoints and ways of achieving knowledge but focuses on what makes sense for a specific research setting instead of on what may underly the construction of knowledge in a research setting
This paradigm allows for methodological flexibility throughout the research process based on the evolving needs of the research question and is aligned with an ultimate goal of producing practical findings
Limits: Bc doesn’t focus on the construction of knowledge in a research setting, less emphasis on the role of the researcher and reflexivity
Strengths: focuses on utility/transferability, linking research to practice
Could have also considered transformative-emancipatory: issues of power, privilege, inequity as site of inquiry. Decision making about research process guided by needs and interests of those at center of inquiry
Define purpose. Why choose. Strengths/limitations. Other purposes?
purposes of this research are both the enhancement and initiation of previous quantitative evaluation findings of the effectiveness of SSB in reducing HNFS.
Enhancement seeks to understand different aspects of the same complex phenomenon in order to provide a deeper understanding of a phenomenon.
Initiation similarly seeks multiple aspects of a phenomenon but with the goal of understanding a phenomenon through its exceptions: negative cases, unexpected findings, and contradictory findings
Could have taken a more evaluation/process oriented purpose to more directly focus on effectiveness of intervention and improve implementation
How have my experiences informed my research questions
Spent a year immersed in the quantitative data, learning from webster who has been involved w evaluation and implementation of the program since inception in 2007
Coursework and reading about the complex factors that relate to violence specifically in Baltimore (Wes Moore’s book about post Freddie Gray, justin fenton on gun trace task force), and beyond (locking up our own, patrick sharkey uneasy peace)
Live in white L but spent time in W Baltimore professionally at the health department, personally every week doing grocery deliveries. Have made personal connections w people in sandtown and penn north.. Good understanding of baltimore for someone who is not from here and lives w privilege
Define reflexivity. How are you going to be reflexive through various elements of the project?
Examining my own judgments, practices, and belief systems during the data collection process
How my identity and personal beliefs may affect data collection, coding, patterns I see or focus on, how the data is reported
External researcher, represent hopkins. Role hopkins has played in inequitable development. May feel that way more talking to focus from mcelderry
Ive also been trained at hopkins, trained by mostly white priviledged people- that has informed the theorie and methods I have been eposed to, what I find valuable or less valuable in research
Field notes during and after interviews will help: include a description of the setting and participant, important non-verbal information, and any notes about the interview dynamic
Reflexive about:
my background and upbringing
Values and beliefs I hold about the program, about baltimore, about underlying conditions of violence
Documentation of decisions I make, how I feel about them
Things that make me uncomfortable, confused
Procedural notes of what I did and why
How im making meaning from the data
The dynamic of the interaction and my role in creating that dynamic
What is a case study? Why is this a case study not an evaluation
A case study can be defined as an empirical inquiry that uses multiple data types and sources to investigate a specific phenomenon bounded within a specific context
A strength of the case study design is its explicit acknowledgement and exploration of how context may both create and inform findings.
Considered doing more evaluation focused design of both an impact and a process evaluation
Decided in conjunction w Daniel that it was a more important contribution to the field to take a more social behavioral approach to understanding how and why the program is effective vs. Not
The questions were more interesting to me, hopefully would give more voice and power to workers
Difference between assessing for ex. # of mediations vs. Learning what types of mediations are easier/harder to conduct, what are lessons learned from successful and unsuccessful mediations
Can make the findings more generalizable (still thinking about external validity trying to claim)
Something to say about utilization focused evaluation
Its cool!
Aligns with the paradigm of dialectical pluralism- evaluation should be judged by utitility and use
Aligns with qualitative/mixed approach that evaluation is not value free. Values will frame the evaluation and those values should be determined by program staff
Cbpr approach: engendering engagement- help with data collection and utility of findings
What mixed methods design are you using. Strengths/limitations. What is your priority?
This study overall can be conceptualized as a multiphase mixed methods comparative case study design.
Multiphase: iterative sequence of data collection methods that may incorporate elements of sequential and concurrent designs
Case selection and interview guides will be informed by previous quantitative findings of SSB effectiveness, qualitative interviews will explore factors that influence SSB effectiveness, and an alternate spatial analysis to assess SSB effectiveness quantitatively will be informed by qualitative findings.
Aim 1 is a mixed-methods sequential explanatory comparative case study analysis. The overall goal of Aim 1 is to understand the conditions that influence SSB effectiveness in reducing HNFS across sites and over time
One method precedes another, quant comes first
Aim 1 is a mixed priority aim in which the ultimate goal is to integrate findings drawn from the quantitative and qualitative analyses into meta-inferences about the conditions under which SSB is more or less effective at reducing HNFS at the site level.
Note: timing important because its linked to purpose of mixed methods research ( initiation and enhancement
What biases involved in open baltimore data. Who puts the data in and at what frequency.
Data entered by BPD. Crime data is updated almost daily, arrest data is updated much less frequently
Unequal crime reporting rates across social groups and geographic areas
Level of police presence varies across areas, dictate likelihood police witness incidents
Geographic differences in likelihood people report a crime
Talk about engagement for buy in and richness of data. How establish rapport?
Ask and intro of this study is coming after sharing of the quant findings that will be integrated into mixed analyses of aim 1
Work with site directions and outreach staff: what kinds of questions do they think it would be helpful to investigate or elements important to expose
More likely to use and engage if feel ownership over process and findings
Transparent about process
Not ignore my positionality, not ignore what might be negative associations with external presence coming in
Focus that useful findings support action
Drafted ideas here but idea is to start with: what naswers will be useful given the program situation, priorities..
“I would really like to know ___ about X” phrasing in their term, incorporation local nuance of meaning and circumstance. Help realize they have questions they care about/things they would like to know that would make a difference to what you do
How establish rapport: meeting people in their space/spaces theyre comfortable in, genuine engagement and authenticity, starting interviews with some warm up questions
Meetings ahead of interviews should hopefully help
