Section Introduction:
The purpose of qualitative research study is to describe, interpret, verify, and evaluate (Plano Clark & Creswell, 2015). Qualitative research differs from quantitative research in that the focus is on defining and describing rather than examining relationships and testing theories. Qualitative research is multi-method in focus, involving an interpretive, naturalistic approach to understanding a phenomenon. This means that qualitative researchers study things in their natural settings, attempting to make sense of or interpret phenomena in terms of the meanings people bring to them (Plano Clark & Creswell, 2015). Qualitative researchers use logic to evaluate the quality, meaning, context, or perceptions of reality. Qualitative researchers use a variety of methods to gather and analyze data including case studies, personal experiences, interviews, observations, historical analysis, ethnographic evaluations, and grounded theory creation.
Qualitative Research Analysis
When a qualitative study is conducted, these are critical components of the inquiry process: - The researcher must pay careful consideration to context and meaning
- Research should be conducted in naturally occurring settings
- The human is the instrument and source of data
- Descriptive data are gathered
- An inductive analysis must be conducted
Based on these considerations, the researcher must process and analyze qualitative data differently than he or she would for quantitative data. Typically, data are coded and organized to understand the phenomena under study. While many researchers analyze and process data by hand, there are software programs that can be used to assist with qualitative analysis.
References
Plano Clark, V. L., & Creswell, J. W. (2015). Understanding research: A consumer’s guide (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
|
