Qualitative Research Methods Matrix
Submit in Week 2
Approach Disciplinary Roots Focus of Central Research Question Unique Terminology Primary Data Sources Sampling Issues Analysis Plan Guidelines References
Basic Qualitative Inquiry Philosophy, history constructionism, phenomenology How can the experience of [an event, circumstance, program, a context] be described or explored?
What is the meaning of [a process, program, or event] to the target individual(s) of interest?
What “practical” knowledge can be learned? Use of the words “describe,” “explore,” “experience,” and “meaning” in title and research questions Interviews Choice is a function of the question Content analysis is a good choice as it is generic and exploratory Elo et al., 2014 Merriam, 2009
Saldana, 2016
Worthington, 2013
Qualitative Case Study Sociology This research is used to come to an understanding of issues with simple solutions Use of the words “understand”, “explore,” “discover”, in the research questions Interviews, Documents and Reports, Audios visuals, Observations Sample Selection Mauthner, N et Al. (2003), Shenton, A. (2004), Corbin, J et al. (2015)
Grounded Theory and Realism Social Science, Methodology Emergence of theory, inductive, theoretical sampling, constant comparison, open coding, axial coding, saturation, memo writing Interviews, Open-ended Questions, Fieldwork, Data Analyzations, Reports, Charmaz, K (2016)
Phenomenology and Heuristic Inquiry What is the meaning, structure, and essence of the lived experience of this phenomenon for this person or group of people?
What is my experience of this phenomenon and the essential experience of others who also experience this phenomenon intensely? Interviews, questionnaires Moustakas, C. (1994), Smith, J. et Al. (2009), Sloan, A et Al. (2014)
Submit in Week 3
Approach Disciplinary Roots Focus of Central Research Question Unique Terminology Primary Data Sources Sampling Issues Analysis Plan Guidelines References
Social Constructivism and Narrative Inquiry Sociology Interviews, observation, questionnaires, focus groups Select individuals who have directly experienced the phenomenon of interest
Creswell, & Poth, 2017
Systems Theory Interdisciplinary How and why does this system as a whole function as it does?
What are the system’s boundaries and interrelationships, and how do these affect perspectives about how and why the system functions as it does?
Ethnography and Autoethnography Liberal Arts What’s the culture of this group of people? How is the perspective and behaviors changed bases on their culture? Fetterman,D (2010)
Bochner, A et al. (2016)
Interactive and Participatory Qualitative Applications Action research, co-researcher, participant-researcher, learning organization, dialogue, appreciative inquiry
The italics text indicates example response.
Modified from Patton, M.Q. (2014). Qualitative Research & Evaluation Methods: Integrating Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications
Moustakas, C. (1994). Phenomenological research methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Smith, J. A., Flowers, P., & Larkin, M. (2009). Interpretative phenomenological analysis: Theory, method and research. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Fetterman, D. M. (2010). Ethnography: Step-by-step (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
Bochner, A. P., & Ellis, C. (2016). Evocative autoethnography: Writing lives and telling stories. New York, NY: Routledge.
Sloan, A., & Bowe, B. (2014). Phenomenology and hermeneutic phenomenology: The philosophy, the methodologies, and using hermeneutic phenomenology to investigate lecturers’ experiences of curriculum design. Quality & Quantity, 48(3), 1291–1303. doi:10.1007/s11135-013-9835-3
Charmaz, K. (2016). The power of constructivist grounded theory for critical inquiry. Qualitative Inquiry, 23(1), 34–35. doi:10.1177/1077800416657105
Mauthner, N. S., & Doucet, A. (2003). Reflexive accounts and accounts of reflexivity in qualitative data analysis. Sociology, 37(3), 413–431. doi:10.1177/00380385030373002
Shenton, A. K. (2004). Strategies for ensuring trustworthiness in qualitative research projects. Education for Information, 22(2), 63–75. https://doi.org/10.3233/EFI-2004-22201
Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. (2015). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2017). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Sage publications.
