24 Key concepts in qualitative research

Qualitative studies use an inductive method. Meaning, they seek to understand a phenomenon, and then use an emergency design that evolves as the research takes place to finally produce a theory. Qualitative designs are also subjective and use an analysis of words to understand the meaning of viewpoints and realities of the participants.

1. Definition of qualitative methodology
2. Assumptions of qualitative methods
3. Types of qualitative studies
4. Population and samples
5. Common data collection methods
6. Data analyses
7. Mixed methods – combining quantitative and qualitative
8. Common statistical analyses.

Qualitative research methodology

A key concept is to remember that qualitative research is generally not generalizable, as we are not testing a hypothesis and not making inferences based on data. However, in qualitative research, it is often revolving around the concept of transferability. Transferability is established by providing evidence that the research study’s findings could be applicable to other contexts, situations, times, and populations.

Foundational assumptions of qualitative methods.

The overarching assumptions in qualitative methodology include:

1. Truth is fluid. Meaning, it is flexible and holistic.
2. Some aspects of humanity and the human experience is best examined with qualitative methods so that we can have a deeper understanding of a person’s experience and viewpoints.

In general, qualitative design (methodology):

• Is flexible and capable to changing as the study progresses, depending on what is learned during the data collection.
• It often uses various data collection strategies in order to collect rich data.
• Is holistic in nature, with the goal of understanding of the whole.
• Researchers are involved, reflexive, and can interact with participants during data collection.

Types of qualitative studies

The common types of qualitative research include:

• Phenomenology: the lived experiences; useful to learn about the human experience.
• Grounded theory: to discover the process; often a social process in nursing.
• Ethnography: to describe a culture; used commonly in nursing to describe cultures (Brown, 2017).
• Historical: a retrospective examination of events to explain and understand (Schmidt & Brown, 2019).
• Case study: a comprehensive investigation of individuals or groups of people to gain insight into a specific situation (Brown, 2017).

Sampling in qualitative research

Sample sizes in qualitative research are often much smaller than quantitative research. Remember, we are not generalising findings to a larger population, so the sample size can be very small.

One of the reasons samples are smaller is because each participant contributes a large amount of data in the form of a narrative. The narrative (words) is then analyzed for themes (thematic analysis), and this takes a lot of time.

Data saturation involves sampling until no new information is obtained and redundancy is achieved. This can vary the sample size, depending on various factors. Data quality can absolutely affect the sample size. If participants are insightful and can share their narrative well, then saturation may be achieved with a relatively small sample.

Common data collection methods and data analyses in qualitative research

Types of data collection methods in qualitative research include:

• Self-reports: These can include unstructured interviews that begin with a general question, and then subsequent questions are guided by the initial answers. Researchers utilise a general topic guide so that the interviews progress.
• Focus group interviews: As above, but in a group setting when opinions and experiences are solicited simultaneously. The researcher/interviewer acts as moderator to keep conversation progressing.
• Open-ended questions in a survey: Participants can fill in a narrative as they wish. This sometimes elicits information that may not have been obtained in an in-person interview.
• Personal diaries: A standard data course in historical research.
• Observations: The aim of observational is to understand the behaviors and experiences of people as they occur. The researcher participates in whatever group is being studies, which often elicits insights that would have eluded more passive or concealed observers.

Next are commonly used data analysis strategies used in qualitative methods. The intent to introduce terms and how these relate to qualitative analysis.

• Coding: line by line coding of the transcript is done to identify reappearing concepts in the data (Schmidt & Brown, 2019)
• Open coding: the grouping of data into main categories (Schmidt & Brown, 2019)
• Axial coding: after open coding is completed, the categories are analyzed (Schmidt & Brown, 2019)

There are some software programs that analyze qualitative data in transcripts to look for themes or commonly appearing concepts (Schmidt & Brown, 2019).

This can also be done manually by researchers. Some use index cards, tally marks, and other methods to note common themes/patterns (Leibold, 2020).

Mixed methods research

Finally, not all research is simply qualitative or quantitative. Research in which both types of methodology is utilised is called mixed-methods research. Mixed methods is a research approach whereby researchers collect and analyze both quantitative and qualitative data within the same study.

Growth of mixed methods research in nursing and healthcare has occurred at a time of internationally increasing complexity in healthcare delivery. Mixed methods research draws on potential strengths of both qualitative and quantitative methods, allowing researchers to explore diverse perspectives and uncover relationships that exist between the intricate layers of our multifaceted research questions. As providers and policy makers strive to ensure quality and safety for patients and families, researchers can use mixed methods to explore contemporary healthcare trends and practices across increasingly diverse practice settings (Shorten & Smith, 2017).

References

Brown, S. J. (2017). Evidence-based nursing: The research-practice connection (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Leibold, N. (2020). Measures and Concepts Commonly Encountered in EBP. The Art and Science of Evidence Based Practice in Nursing. https://www.softchalkcloud.com/lesson/serve/WRv13aMxnzutFS/html. Creative Commons BY-NC 4.0 license.

Schmidt, N. A. & Brown, J. M. (2019). Evidence-based practice for nurses: Appraisal and application of research (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Shorten, A., & Smith, J. (2017). Mixed methods research: Expanding the evidence base. Evidence-Based Nursing, 20, 74-75.