Psychology Factsheets

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Qualitative Research
Examples of Qualitative Research

Number 75

This Factsheet considers the nature and analysis of qualitative data, its strengths and its weaknesses, including issues of subjectivity and objectivity.

What is qualitative data?

y It is data that is expressed in detailed descriptions, words or images and is concerned with the quality of behaviour of an experience; feelings and emotions. It often allows participants to give their response in their own words with no formal measure or quantification (see glossary) of behaviour. The researchers role is to question, describe and interpret experience. Qualitative data is more likely to be drawn from open questions/ case studies/real world settings.
Exam Hint: The terms qualitative and quantitative are very similar and it is easy to get them muddled up in an exam question so read the question carefully to make sure you are writing about the correct term. Remember qua l itative data is concerned with l etters/words while qua n titative data is concerned with numerical data.

There are many examples of qualitative research throughout psychology such as: y Case studies (e.g., those by Freud). y Research in life events. y Observation studies. There are many such studies of children (e.g., Ainsworth and Bell, 1970). y Many studies in abnormality since this area is more suited to qualitative research.
Exam Hint: You may be asked to give a method of how you could collect qualitative data. Give examples of the questions/ observations you would make but remember to make sure that these would produce qualitative data and not quantitative data. For example, if considering a study on depression the question How many times have you felt depressed in the last week? is a quantitative one, but How have you been feeling in the last week? will give a qualitative response.

Sampling Techniques
y y y Most sampling techniques used in quantitative research are the same as those used in qualitative research. Random selection techniques are not needed for pure qualitative research since it is not based on inferential statistics. Sample numbers tend to be smaller in qualitative research compared to quantitative research.

Methods
Qualitative data can be obtained using many different methods. For example; y Naturalistic observations where behaviour is watched and/or recorded but not manipulated. Observations may be overt or covert. y Questionnaire surveys. y Interviews which may be structured or unstructured (i.e., have set/no set questions) y Case study. This is an in-depth investigation of a single person, event or group, often used to study rare/unusual behaviour. y Diary method. This is where participants record their behaviour and/or feelings over a period of time. y Discourse analysis. This assesses the meaning of speech (written/verbal) in the social context where it occurs. y Experiments. Whilst experiments mainly produce quantitative data, qualitative data is often collected too (e.g., how participants behaved/felt during the testing). y Correlation studies. This is where the association between two variables is assessed. y Brain scanning. Remember: Most of the methods listed can produce both qualitative and/or quantitative data. What makes research one or the other depends on how the study is carried out and the type of data collected. For example, questionnaires may require responses to be on a set scale (quantitative data) or open-ended questions (qualitative data). y y y

Analysis of qualitative data

Look for trends, use descriptive statistics. Put data into categories. Content analysis. For example, for printed material, researchers would read the transcript several times to identify raw data words or phrases that appear to be important to the respondent. Once identified, the themes are ordered. This method is often used to analyses media messages (articles in newspapers, speeches by politicians, advertisements broadcast on radio and television). May convert into quantitative data to display in charts or graphs or for further analysis. For example, in the observational study of children in the Strange Situation by Ainsworth and Bell (1970), observations of children were used to assign children into three attachment categories (qualitative data). The categories were then used in quantitative analysis. Theoretical understanding emerges from the data and is not imposed by the researcher. For case studies, researchers often include direct quotations from the participant (e.g., Freud; Griffiths, 1993).
Exam Hint: If you are answering a question concerning how you might analyse qualitative research, suggest appropriate categories that could be selected by the researcher.

y y

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Psychology Factsheet

Strengths
y y y It is useful to describe information that is lost in quantitative analysis. It can generate ideas for further research. it can find out more in-depth material, such as information about attitudes and beliefs, which may provide an explanation for the motives behind behaviour. Sometimes it may be the only method available. For example, a case study of a rare case/ condition. Observations have high ecological validity and may be the only practical method when observing young children as children may not be able to understand questions. It allows participants to express their voice/ feelings. It can reduce complex forms of behaviour to a more manageable number of categories. It often involves studies of people in a social context and has been successful in highlighting the importance of the immediate social context (e.g., discourse analysis).

Overcoming weaknesses of qualitative research

y Provide an audit trail so that you can follow the claim of the researchers back to the original data. For example, in content analysis, researchers make their research transparent by having both a clear audit trail and by making transcripts of the data. Observational studies can use inter-observer reliability to assess the reliability of the findings.

y y y y y

Triangulation is used to give more credibility to qualitative research findings. It is when data is taken from a number of sources to confirm the findings. Denzin (1988) states four possible types: y Data triangulation y Investigator triangulation y Theory triangulation y Methodological triangulation. y Subjective opinion and participant consultation is regarded as a strength by some researchers (e.g., feminists).
Exam Hint: It is important that you know how qualitative research differs from quantitative research, the relative strengths and weaknesses of each approach, where one may be more appropriate than the other or where both approaches would be appropriate. You need to give full examples to show that you understand the difference between the two types of research. Remember that unlike qualitative research, quantitative research is easy to replicate, can identify cause/ effect and involves numbers and statistics.

Weaknesses
y The process of obtaining qualitative data is often interpretative. It is therefore subjective (rather than objective) with no one correct interpretation of the data. For example, in content analysis, it is up to the researchers to identify which phrases/ words they believe to be important. Similarly in categorising data, it is up to the researchers to decide on what the categories are. Words and descriptions are more subjective than numbers and are more open to bias and misinterpretation. Participants may not answer honestly or may give socially desirable answers (i.e., those that are believed to be more favourable, acceptable or look good). Open-ended questions are both difficult and time consuming to interpret. As small samples are often used it is difficult to generalise findings. This is especially true of a single case study. It is difficult to replicate findings and therefore such research may lack reliability. Reliability may be reduced in observational studies since it is difficult to control extraneous variables. Often studies producing such data rely on recall of past events so the data collected may not be reliable (e.g., interview, case study). There are ethical considerations for observation studies where participants may be observed without their knowledge (i.e., invasion of privacy, lack of consent). It is not possible to infer cause and effect due to the lack of manipulation of variables. It is more difficult to analyse than quantitative research and is not useful in all areas of psychology (e.g., memory). It is more prone to researcher bias as the researcher can select the information that best fits their hypothesis; a researchers expectations can be a self-fulfilling prophecy. For example, if researchers believe that depression leads to alcoholism, they may ask many questions about whether the person with the alcohol problem felt depressed, ignoring other possible causes. There are often no controls in such research.

Example exam question

a) Explain what is meant by qualitative data. b) Discuss one method that commonly produces qualitative data For part a) you need to explain that qualitative data is concerned with the quality of behaviour of an experience; feelings and emotions. It is also useful to give an example of qualitative data. Ideally this example should be from published psychological research you have covered in your studies. b) Discuss means that you need to first describe your selected method and then evaluate it in terms of its strengths and weaknesses. Any of the methods listed on this factsheet could be used. Make sure you select one method and apply the strengths and weaknesses of qualitative research to this particular method. You should only discuss other qualitative methods if you are able to relate them to the one method selected chosen, thereby assisting the valuation of the selected method. In your answer you can consider quantitative methods but again this must be in the context of the evaluation of your selected method.

y y y y y y y y y

Glossary
Audit trail: a full record of all the changes/updating that have been made on the original data. Covert: concealed, hidden, done in secret. Extraneous variables: variables that can affect the behaviour of participants such as age, personality, noise, temperature, etc. Inter-observer reliability: the extent to which two or more observers data are consistent. Overt: in the open, not concealed/ hidden. Quantification: expressing or stating the quantity (number). Quantitative: data gathered and stated in numerical form. Reliability: the extent to which a method of measurement or test produces consistent findings.
Acknowledgements: This Psychology Factsheet was researched and written by Louise Hope. The Curriculum Press, Bank House, 105 King Street, Wellington, Shropshire, TF1 1NU. ISSN 1351-5136

Exam Hints 1. Remember that qualitative data is not easy to analyse given the variety of information gathered. 2. You need to link strengths and weaknesses to specific types of study; some are only applicable to specific methods.

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Psychology Factsheet Worksheet: Qualitative Research

Name
1. Describe three methods which you could use to collect qualitative data. 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2. What areas of psychology have used qualitative research? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3. Outline three different ways in which you might analyse qualitative data. 1. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------4. Give four strengths and four weaknesses of qualitative research. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------5. How might you overcome the weaknesses given in question 4? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------