Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Lecture 1
dr. John Gelissen
Course Introduction
Course Details . . . . .
Goals of the course . .
Obligatory readings . .
Topics . . . . . . . . . . .
Reading schedule. . . .
Exam and final grade .
Important stuff . . . . .
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Foundations
Definitions . . . . . . . . . . .
Definitions . . . . . . . . . . .
Important concepts . . . . .
Historical developments . .
Historical developments . .
Further developments . . .
Ontological issues . . . . . .
Epistemological issues . . .
Approach Ritchie & Lewis
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Applications
Types of research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ad 1. Contextual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ad 2. Explanatory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ad 3. Evaluative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ad 4. Generative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
QR as independent research strategy . . . . . . .
Functions of qualitative methods . . . . . . . . . .
Combining qualitative & quantitative methods
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Course Introduction
Page 2 / 28
Course Details
Lecturers
John Gelissen Course coordinator, Lectures, Seminar/Lab meetings
Margot Bennink Seminar/Lab meetings
Ingrid Vriens Seminar/Lab meetings
Zsuzsa Bakk Seminar/Lab meetings
Course organisation
Lectures Explanation of concepts, procedures, additions & comments on readings
Seminars Interviewing, coding, research proposal
Lab session Software: Atlas.ti
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
Obligatory readings
1. Lecture notes
2. Ritchie, J., & Lewis, J., Qualitative Research Practice: A Guide for Social Science Students and
Researchers, London: Sage Publications, 2003, ISBN 0761971106
3. Swanborn, P., Case study research: What, Why and How? London: Sage Publications, 2010,
ISBN: 9781849206129
4. Gelissen, J. (ed.), Qualitative Research Methods: Readings on Collection, Analysis and Critiques.
London: Sage Publications, 2010, second edition: ISBN 978-0-85702-862-4
Details about obligatory and non-obligatory parts in Course Syllabus on Blackboard
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
Topics
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Topic
Course intro, Foundations, Applications
Research design, sampling strategies
Data collection I: interviewing
Data collection II: Focus groups, observation
Data analysis I: Principles of analysis
Data analysis II: Grounded Theory, application
Data analysis III: Thematic analysis, Narrative analysis
Case study: definition, designs
Case study: case-selection, causality issues
Case study: data-enrichment and analysis
Quality criteria for (qualitative) research, critique
Reporting qualitative research, Thesis proposals
Reading schedule
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
Lecture
1
2
3
4
5
6
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Readings
R&L, Ch. 1,2
R&L, Ch. 3,4
R&L, Ch. 5,6
R&L, Ch. 7, Gelissen, Ch. 1
R&L, Ch. 8, Gelissen, Ch. 4,5
Gelissen, Ch. 2,3
R&L, Ch. 9, Gelissen, Ch. 6
Swanborn, Ch. 1.,2
Swanborn, Ch. 3, 4
Swanborn, Ch. 5, 6, Gelissen, Ch. 7
R&L, Ch. 10, Gelissen, Ch. 8
R&L, Ch. 11
Important stuff
Enroll into Blackboard a.s.a.p.
Read the syllabus
get the books a.s.a.p.
Keep track of Announcements in Blackboard
Stick to your Seminar/Lab group
Do not only read or scan the readings, but study them well and keep up with the readings
Do not bother your professor with (simple) questions for which the answers are in the syllabus
Bother your professor with questions 1) not (clearly) answered in the books or syllabus 2) about
the lectures 3) other stuff related to qualitative methods
Register for the exams on time
Foundations
Page 10 / 28
Definitions
Qualitative research is a fuzzy enterprise; specific approach depends on:
researchers beliefs about nature of social world and what can be known about it
researchers beliefs about nature of knowledge and how it can be acquired
research goals
state of existing knowledge
characteristics of those being researched
funders, audiences, research environments . . .
Definitions
Googleing definition of qualitative research: about 8.000.000 hits
Key elements across definitions pertain to:
Important concepts
Paradigm
Ontology
Epistemology
Induction
Deduction
Historical developments
Key figures in empiricism/positivism
Historical developments
Key figures in interpretivism
Further developments
End 19th/20th century: qualitative research more widely adopted, especially in sociological
research
But simultaneously: (positivist) survey research
70s: challenges to scientific method, boost for qualitative methods
But: challenges to basic assumptions of qualitative research:
Postmodernist approaches
Critical theory
Ontological issues
Some examples of ontological questions:
What is the nature of the world, of social entities?
Does social reality exist independently of human conceptions and interpretations?
Is there a common, shared, social reality or just multiple context-specific realities?
Is social reality independent of human actors or is it constantly being constructed by them?
ontological positions: Realism, Materialism, Idealism etc. (Box 1.3)
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
Epistemological issues
Some examples of epistemological questions:
How is it possible to know about the world?
What constitutes valid knowledge about the world?
Is it okay to use the methods of the natural sciences for the study of human (social) behavior?
epistemological positions: positivism, interpretivism (Box 1.3)
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
Applications
Page 20 / 28
Types of research
Fundamental (social) research Theory-testing, theory-building research (R&L:theoretical, pure,
basic research)
Applied (social) research Practice-oriented research, evaluation research
Contextual
Explanatory
Evaluative
Generative
ad 1. Contextual
Describe relevant issues and phenomena as experienced by the study participants, detailed, in
participants own terms
Examples:
What dimensions are contained within the concepts of shame and guilt ?
How do shame and guilt manifest themselves among war veterans?
What does it mean to a veteran to feel ashamed or guilty?
Can we identify groups of veterans who deal with shame and guilt in qualitatively different
ways?
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ad 2. Explanatory
Why phenomena occur and the forces and influences that drive their occurrence
Examples:
Note: What people tell you what was according to them the cause for particular feelings, views,
behaviors, or events need not be the true cause; causality is very difficult to investigate!
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
ad 3. Evaluative
How well does something work? What processes and outcomes do occur?
Examples:
How do veterans respond to counseling in order to deal with feelings of shame and guilt?
What motivates veterans to take part in such a counseling program?
What are the requirements for counselors for the effective delivery of the counseling program?
Is the quality of a veterans family life affected by counseling?
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ad 4. Generative
Produce new ideas either as a contribution to the development of social theory or to the refinement or
stimulus of policy solutions
Examples:
Crucial issue: what are the research questions and what information is needed to answer those
questions?
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
12
Techniques for data analysis: documentary analysis, discourse analysis, conversation analysis
Qualitative Research Methods Lecture 1
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