Literature sources for qualitative research
Are you
still trying to find your feet in the research world? Let’s see if the below
books and articles can help. Happy reading.
1. “Qualitative
Reaching” by Jenifer Mason [book]
The author dissects
each method used in qualitative research and outlines qualities of good
researches. For each outlined method, there is an ethics section for it, for
example, if you wants to use interviewing to collect data, you have to consider
“what you ask”…do not get too curious and personal and make people uncomfortable,
you are not a cat- exam your curiosity (Mason 2002)! Researchers are encouraged
to ask themselves difficult questions throughout the research about their motives,
relevancy of the study, and ethics and morality (Mason 2002).
The language
used in the book is friendly and by writing in first person, Jenifer makes the
book and its contents relatable. The book is useful as it breaks down the
techniques and methods used in research and the ethical implications thereof as
well as cautions researchers to be critical of those very same ethics (Mason 2002:2).
Mason (2002:3)
understands that “media and cultural studies rely heavily” on qualitative
research and so wants to make sure those conducting the research are well
equipped to do so. As explorers, researchers should be concerned with key
issues and insight about relationships and the experiences of their
participants so that they can check their assumptions, create their hypothesis and
describe what they see (du Plooy 2009 & Mason 2002).
This book
can be trusted to provide better understanding of qualitative research designs
because the author is highly experienced in the field and writes from personal
experiences. Mason is Co-director of the Morgan Centre for the Study of
Relationships and Personal Life at the University of Manchester (Mason 2002).
The book is written
with a critical mind. The author looks at the existing practice norms and
procedures and provides insight into how best to implement them to get the best
results. The book also covers relevant topics and is not just a book about
techniques and methods but also covers skills and mental preparedness hence
illustrations such as figure 4.1 (Mason 2002:69) where she provides an example
of how to plan for qualitative interviews (step-by-step guideline- how cool!)
to gain meaningful information.
2. “Focus
Groups As Qualitative Research” by D. L. Morgan [book]
This book is
about group interviews but not really between the questions posed by the
researcher and the answers provided by the participants; the interaction
between group members is where the focus is and the researcher is merely a
moderator.
It lists the
uses of focus groups and provides advantages and disadvantages of focus groups.
Morgan (1997:22-30) shows how focus groups can be used with other methods such
as surveys and individual interviews.
The book
also helps with knowledge on how to analyse and report data as well as warns
them about “other possibilities” such as needing to change the composition.
The book
provides in-depth, holistic knowledge about the method and is also
user-friendly. The author has also kept topics and sub-topics short and this helps with the digestion of
the plate of information provided as it does not lead to information-overload
or even infobesity.
Morgan
(1997:vii) is also highly experienced, he has conducted over 100 focus groups
and over 20 research projects so fear not and use this book when conducting
focus groups.
The author also
quotes numerous professionals which gives the assurance that the author has
extensively read about as well as researched the topic to provide the reader
with comprehensive, meaningful information to use.
3. “Research
At Grassroots: For the social science and human service professionals” by
A. S. de Vos et al [book]
This book is
about proving step-by-step guidelines for new researchers and explains the
relationship between scientific theory and research in the professional sphere.
The book begins by exploring this relationship and then moves on to address the
commonalities between quantitative and qualitative research approaches and then
separates them by looking at the unique techniques for each. The book then ends
by looking at the different types of research one can engage in. The book also
covers ethics in chapter 4.
Are you a
beginner like me, then this book is for you! The content is very comprehensive
and there are tasks that will help you understand qualitative research better.
By writing about the two approaches, qualitative versus quantitative research
approaches, helps novice researcher to differentiate between the two and how to
best apply the principles of qualitative research.
The book is
rich with knowledge. The book also has self-evaluation sections that helps make
the information to sink in.
Now when it
comes to user-friendliness, I find this book to be a bit overwhelming. This is
especially since almost all chapters are relevant to either approach,
qualitative or quantitative so you have to read almost the entire book.
By having
more than one author, the book provides a holistic view and knowledge most
useful to beginners. Another reason for you to trust this source or book is
that it puts emphasis where it should be. de Vos et al (2005:345) have included
a section on “soundness” which the previous mentioned books barely cover.
4. “Sampling
for Qualitative Reseach” by M. N. Marshall
[article]
This article
tackles a very important aspect in qualitative research which is sampling. As
everybody knows, no-one can research an entire population using each and every
member so sampling is important as a none representative sample can provide the
wrong information about people or phenomenon in societies. The article
clarifies sampling methods for qualitative research. The book comments on
sampling size and the selection of the sample. Marshall (1996:522-524) looks at
the best methods to use and give you the reasons behind the selected methods.
This article
is very helpful when it comes to sampling in one’s research. Marshall (1996:524)
provides examples that are clear and relevant to what is being discussed and
used illustrations to summarise information.
The article
gives researchers important guidelines and is short and straight to the point,
covering relevant topics.
This article
is a credible source as it can be found on credible sights such as Google
Scholar and is printed by the Oxford University. Another reason you can rely on
this article is because the author is highly knowledgeable when it comes to
research as he also contributed immensely to the scientific or research world
as noted by Research Gate (2018).
5. “Qualitative
Research in Healthcare: Analysing qualitative data” by C. Pope, S. Ziebland
& N. Mays [article]
The authors
have focused on the role of the researcher as well as tools he/she can use when
collecting or storing the data. Pope, Ziebland & Mays (2000:115) make notes
of advances in technology that can assist researchers with data analysis but
advise researchers to use them with caution. The authors then goes on to list 5
steps you can take when analysing qualitative data, namely familiarisation,
putting together themes, indexing and charting as well as interpretation (Pope,
Ziebland & Mays 2000:116).
By having a
summary box on the first page very convenient as the reader get the gist of the
article right from the beginning so one only reads for details.
I like the
inclusion of technology in the article because we are living in a tech-driven
world after all and as researchers, we need to get on with the programme and
find ways to meaningfully integrate technology in our research projects. The
authors also included a “further reading” box at the end which is helpful as it
gives you more sources of information so that you do not stress about where
next to look.
Credibility
for this source is fund in the institutions that hold it. This article is also
from the trusted search engine Google Scholar and is also approved by the PMC
Journal.
The authors
are also highly experienced and they have a senior research fellow amongst
them, Sue Ziebland, so you can safely rely on it being reliable and credible
because they also have reputations to uphold (Pope, Ziebland & Mays
2000:114).
I hope you
will find the sources to be of great help in understanding qualitative
research. Let me know what you think.
SOURCES CONSULTED
de Vos, A. S., Strydom, H., Fouche, C. B. & Delport, C.
S. L. 2005. Research at grassroots: For
the social science and human service professionals. 3rd edition.
Pretoria: Van Schaik Publishers
Du Plooy, G.M. 2009. Communication
research: techniques, methods and applications. 2nd edition. Cape
Town : Juta & Co
Mason, J. 2002.
Qualitative researching. 2nd
edition. London: SAGE [Pongola Library DDC no.: 300. 72 MASO]
Morgan, D.
L. 1997. Focus groups as qualitative
research. 2nd edition. California: SAGE [Pongola Library DDC
no.: 302. 072 MORG 402]
Research Gate.
2010. Martin Marshall's research while affiliated with University
College London and other places. https://www.researchgate.net/scientific-contributions/2006082537_Martin_Marshall
Sampling for qualitative research / Marshall, MN. Oxford University
Press. Vol. 13, no. 6 (1996), p. 522-525 http://ow.ly/fpEm30k8Jpl
Qualitative research in healthcare:
Analysing qualitative data / Pope, C., Ziebland, S & Mays, N. PMC Journals. Vol. 320. 2nd
edition (2000), p. 114-116. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1117368/pdf/114.pdf
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