data collection ( qualitative research )

Creswell Qualitative Inquiry 2e

4.1

Chapter 7

Data Collection


7.2

Key Questions

• What are the steps in the overall data collection process of qualitative research?

• What are typical access and rapport issues?

• How does one select people or places to study?

• What type of information is typically collected?


7.3

Key Questions

• How is information recorded?• What are common issues in collecting

data?• How is information typically stored?• How are the five approaches both similar

and different during data collection?

PurposefullySamplingPurposefullySampling

CollectingDataCollectingData

RecordingInformationRecordingInformation

ResolvingField IssuesResolvingField Issues

StoringDataStoringData

Locating a Siteor

Individual

Locating a Siteor

Individual

Data Collection ActivitiesData Collection Activities

Gaining Access

andRapport

Gaining Access

andRapport

7.4Creswell Qualitative Inquiry 2e


7.5

Locating a Site or Individual

• Narrative– An individual who is accessible and who is

willing to provide information on a phenomena– The individual might be distinctive for their

accomplishments– Narrative researchers focus on the stories that

emerge• First order narratives are from individuals who tell

stories about themselves and their experiences• Second order narratives are stories constructed by

the researchers about other people’s experiences or is a collective story that represents the lives of many individuals


7.6

Locating a Site or Individual

• Phenomenology– Participants might be located at a single site– They must be individuals who have all experienced

the phenomenon and can talk about their lived experiences

– The more diverse the characteristics of the individuals, the more difficult it will be to find common experiences

• Grounded theory– Individuals may not be located at a single site– Individuals located at different sites can provide

important contextual information– They need to be individuals who have all participated in the process being studied


7.7

Locating a Site or Individual• Ethnography

– A single site is important in which a long term culture-sharing group has developed shared values, beliefs, and assumptions

– The researchers need to identify a group, or representatives of a group to study, preferably strangers to the researcher, that he or she can gain access to

• Case study– The researcher needs to locate sites or

individuals that can be considered a “case”– This could be a single site or individual or

multiple individuals and sites


7.8

Studying Your Organization or Yourself

• Research in your own backyard refers to studying your own organization or people you know in which you have a vested interest

• Several issues surface– This could be politically dangerous because it

would jeopardize the researcher’s relationship with their organization or relationships with co-workers

– Several methods of validation should be used if a researcher chooses this strategy to ensure the account is accurate and insightful

• Autoethnography is a qualitative approach that provides a means for the researcher to study themselves and their own experiences


7.9

Gaining Access and Rapport• Human subjects review board

– Proposal must be submitted for approval before the project begins

– Part of the approval process includes obtaining a signed informed consent letter from the participants that includes the following topics

• The right to voluntarily withdraw at any time• The central purpose of the study and data collection

procedures• Comments about how confidentiality will be maintained• Known risks associated with the study• How the participants will benefit from the study• Researcher’s signature


7.10

Gaining Access and Rapport• Gaining permission from “gatekeepers” at the

research site– Gatekeepers: individuals at the site who provide

site access, help researchers locate people, and identify places to study

– The gatekeeper may require written permission about the project

– During this process rapport must be established with the gatekeeper


7.11

Gaining Access and Rapport• Information the gatekeeper may need

– Why their site was chosen– What time and resources are required– What will be accomplished at the site– What potential exists that your presence will be

disruptive– What individuals at the site will gain from the study– How you will use and report the results


7.12

Purposeful Sampling Strategy

• Purposeful sampling is the selection of individuals and sites for the study because they can purposefully inform an understanding of the research problem and the central phenomenon

• Decisions to be made– Who or what should be sampled– What form will the sampling take– How many people or sites need to be sampled– Will the sampling be consistent with one of the five

qualitative approaches

• Samples can consist of events, settings, individuals, groups, and artifacts


7.13

Types of Qualitative Sampling

• Maximum variation: Documents diverse variations and identifies important common patterns

• Homogeneous: Focuses, reduces, simplifies, and facilitates group interviewing

• Critical case: Permits logical generalization and maximum application of information to other cases

• Theory based: Find examples of a theoretical construct and thereby elaborate on and examine it


7.14


• Confirming and disconfirming cases: Elaborate on initial analysis, seek exceptions, looking for variation

• Snowball or chain: Identifies cases of interest from people who know people who know what cases are information rich

• Extreme or deviant case: Learn from highly unusual manifestations of the phenomenon of interest

• Typical case: Highlights what is normal or average


7.15


• Intensity: Information-rich cases that manifest the phenomenon intensely but not extremely

• Politically important: Attracts desired attention or avoids attracting undesired attention

• Random purposeful: Adds credibility to sample when potential purposeful sample is too large

• Stratified purposeful: Illustrates subgroups and facilitates comparisons


7.16


• Criterion: All cases that meet some criterion; useful for quality assurance

• Opportunistic: Follow new leads; taking advantage of the unexpected

• Combination or mixed: Triangulation, flexibility; meets multiple interests and needs

• Convenience: Saves time, money, and effort, but at the expense of information and credibility


7.17

Collecting Data

• Forms of Data– Observations– Interviews– Documents– Audiovisual materials

• Look for new and creative data collection methods, for example,– Living stories– Digital archives– Photo elicitation


7.18

Data Collection and the Five Approaches

• Sources of data for narrative studies– Recording spontaneous incidents of storytelling– Stories collected online– Journals– Researcher fields notes– Stories from families– Stories from interviews

• Sources of data for phenomenology studies– The primary sources are in-depth interviews and

self-reflection– Descriptions drawn from novelists, painters, and

choreographers


7.19

Data Collection and the Five Approaches• Sources of data for grounded theory studies

– Primary source is in-depth interviewing– Researcher reflection (memoing)– Participant observation– Documents

• Sources of data for ethnographic studies– The primary sources are observations, in-depth

interviews, artificial facts about the cultural group, and context

– Ethnographers also advocate the use of qualitative surveys and tests and measures

– Other methods include: elicitation methods– Spatial mapping and network analysis


7.20

Data Collection and the Five Approaches

• Sources of data for case studies– Interviews– Observations– Documents– Archival records– Physical artifacts– Audiovisual materials

• Strive for as many sources as possible• Include a table or matrix listing your data

sources in your study


7.21

Collecting Data: Interviewing• Identify interviewees based on your purposeful

sampling approach• Determine what type of interview will be the most

useful– Personal one-on-one interview– Telephone interview– Focus group– Email

• Use good recording procedures– Use a lapel mic for both you and the participant– Make sure the interview is done in a quiet room– Use AC power when possible but bring extra batteries as

well– Make a test recording before beginning the actual interview


7.22

Collecting Data: Interviewing• Design and use an interview protocol that

includes the interview questions and possible probes you want to use

• Pilot test the interview• Determine the best quiet place for conducting

the interview• During the interview

– Stay with the interview questions and probes– Stay within the stated time limit– Listen carefully and use a conversational tone of

voice– Take notes

• Thank the participant following the interview


7.23

Recording Procedures:Designing Interview Protocols

• The header– Contains essential information about the

project including the purpose– Includes essential information about the

interview including the participant’s name and the date, time, and location of the interview

• Write out an introduction to share at the beginning of the interview

• Place spaces for notes between the questions and probes


7.24

Recording Procedures:Designing Interview Protocols

• Memorize the questions in their order so that you can maintain eye contact with the participant

• Write out the closing comments that include thanking the individual for the interview and requesting follow-up information if needed


7.25

Collecting Data: Observations

• Select a site to be observed• Identify a gatekeeper who can give you

access to the site• Identify who will be observed and for how

long• Determine your role as an observer

– Complete participant (going native)– Participant observer– Complete observer– You can vary roles (e.g., be an outsider at the

beginning and become an insider over time)


7.26

Collecting Data: Observations• Design an observational protocol• Record aspects such as portraits of the informant, the

physical setting, particular events and activities• During the observation have someone introduce you

as an outsider• Summarize what you have observed shortly after

each observation or at the end of each day• Develop a log of activities• After observing slowly, draw away from the site

– Thank the participants– Tell them how the data will be used and how to access the

study


7.27

Recording ProceduresDesigning Observation Protocols

• The header– Contains essential information about the

project including the purpose– Includes essential information about the

interview including the participant’s name and the date, time, and location of the interview

• Leave space at the top to include a visual sketch of the setting

• Divide the protocol into two columns of descriptive notes and reflective notes


7.28

Field Issues• Access to the organization

– Building trust and credibility with the people in the organization

– Being too close to the organization can make coding and editing difficult

– Finding that the members of the organization may not be willing to hear the researcher’s interpretation of the situation

• Observations– Assuming an observational role – Being overwhelmed with information from the site– Reducing information from a narrow picture to a

broad picture– Maintaining relationships at the site


7.29

Field Issues• Interviews

– Creating good broad questions– Dealing with sensitive issues– Transcribing interviews– Controlling the researcher’s verbal and non-

verbal responses to the participant’s response to a question

– Recording equipment and the acoustical issues– Maintaining a conversational tone– Asking leading questions– Active listening– Asking good follow-up questions– Projecting the interviewer’s agenda, race, status,

culture, and gender into the interview


7.30

Field Issues: Documents and Audiovisual Materials

• Locating the materials• Obtaining permission to use materials• Advising participants to journal

– What instructions should be given prior to writing

– Are participants comfortable with journalism– Is it age appropriate– Difficulty in reading handwriting


7.31

Field Issues: Documents and Audiovisual Materials

• Using video equipment– Noise in the room– Deciding on the best location for the camera

to avoid being a distraction, yet to be able to shoot close-ups

– Comfort of the participants with being recorded


7.32

Ethical Issues in the Field

• Types of issues that may arise– Protecting anonymity of participant (e.g.,

aliases, composite case studies)– Conveying the purpose of the study;

disclosure, not deception– Handling information “off the record”– Researcher sharing personal information

about herself or himself with participants


7.33

Storing Data

• Always develop back-ups of computer files• Use high quality audio tapes• Develop a master list of types of data

gathered• Protect the anonymity of the participants by

masking their names in the data• Develop a data collection matrix as a visual

means of locating and identifying data


7.34

Similarities Among the Five Approaches

• All qualitative studies sponsored by public institutions need human subjects board approval

• The use of interviews and observations is central to many approaches

• Protocols for recording interviews and observation can be similar in structure (specific questions and probes are different)

• Regardless of the approach, researchers need to develop a storage system for their data


7.35

Differences Among the Five Approaches

• Some approaches are more directed toward specific types of data collection– Phenomenology and grounded theory

researchers rely primarily on interview data– Narrative and case study researchers allow for

multiple types of data

• The unit of analysis for the data collection varies– Narrative, phenomenology, and grounded theory

studies focus on individuals– Case studies examine groups of individuals

participating in an event, activity, or organization– Ethnographers focus on entire cultural systems


4.36

Chapter 7

Data Collection

data collection ( qualitative research )

Education

creswell qualitative

single site individuals

qualitative approach

multiple individuals

data recording information

individual narrative

individual ethnography

rapport issues