introduction to qualitative research
Introduction to Qualitative Research
Qualitative research in psychology is rapidly emerging as an important focus for psychological research and theory. Although there is a long history of qualitative methods in psychology, it is only since the 1980s that qualitative methods have made significant inroads.
Among the distinguishing features of qualitative research are its preferences for data rich in description, the belief that reality is constructed socially, and that reality is about interpretation and not about hypothesis testing, for example.
The ‘quantitative imperative’ in psychology has ancient roots in psychology and first emerges in the work of Pythagoras. The imperative involves the belief that science is about quantification. Early psychology, with its eyes cast firmly in the directly of physics as the best model to follow, was imbued with the spirit of quantification from the start.
Qualitative research is aimed at gaining a deep understanding of a specific organization or event, rather than a surface description of a large sample of a population. It aims to provide an explicit rendering of the structure, order, and broad patterns found among a group of participants. It is also called ethnomethodology or field research. It generates data about human groups in social settings.
Qualitative research aims to get a better understanding through first hand experience, truthful reporting, and quotations of actual conversations. It aims to understand how the participants derive meaning from their surroundings, and how their meaning influences their behavior.
The qualitative design is a holistic process of inquiry that seeks “to understand a social or human problem” rather than being “based on testing a theory composed of variables, measured with numbers and analyzed with statistical procedures,” as occurs in the quantitative research design. (Creswell, 1994)
According to Smith (2008) ‘We are witnessing an explosion of interest in qualitative
Qualitative research in psychology is rapidly emerging as an important focus for psychological research and theory. Although there is a long history of qualitative methods in psychology, it is only since the 1980s that qualitative methods have made significant inroads.
Among the distinguishing features of qualitative research are its preferences for data rich in description, the belief that reality is constructed socially, and that reality is about interpretation and not about hypothesis testing, for example.
The ‘quantitative imperative’ in psychology has ancient roots in psychology and first emerges in the work of Pythagoras. The imperative involves the belief that science is about quantification. Early psychology, with its eyes cast firmly in the directly of physics as the best model to follow, was imbued with the spirit of quantification from the start.
Qualitative research is aimed at gaining a deep understanding of a specific organization or event, rather than a surface description of a large sample of a population. It aims to provide an explicit rendering of the structure, order, and broad patterns found among a group of participants. It is also called ethnomethodology or field research. It generates data about human groups in social settings.
Qualitative research aims to get a better understanding through first hand experience, truthful reporting, and quotations of actual conversations. It aims to understand how the participants derive meaning from their surroundings, and how their meaning influences their behavior.
The qualitative design is a holistic process of inquiry that seeks “to understand a social or human problem” rather than being “based on testing a theory composed of variables, measured with numbers and analyzed with statistical procedures,” as occurs in the quantitative research design. (Creswell, 1994)
According to Smith (2008) ‘We are witnessing an explosion of interest in qualitative