Using Qualitative Research Methods with Older and ... - KT-EQUAL

Marcus Ormerod The University of Salford

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Usually concerned with a deep understanding of “real world” issues Hypothesis generating Insider researcher approach compatible Techniques can be developed as research unfolds Emerged from Social Science research Still gaining credibility in some disciplines Criticised for its subjective nature

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Case Study Action Research Archival analysis Ethnographic research Feminist/Emancipatory research Grounded theory Surveys (can also be quantitative) ◦ Interviews ◦ Questionnaires ◦ Observations

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Cases can be anything you want to focus on Cases are studied in their context and comparison can be made between them

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Gives chance for in-depth study

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Can use a variety of techniques to collect data

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The timing of cases needs to fit with your study period

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Play to strengths, be open about weaknesses

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Work as a team

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Give everyone a chance

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Respect others views

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Work towards a common goal

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Communication should be inclusive

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Create comfortable working environments

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The researcher is involved in the situation and trying to resolve a problem, or implement a change More suitable to practitioners in the workplace Resolves practical problems Needs the organisation to commit to the project

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Reviews existing documents and records

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Assumes you can get access to the records

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Assumes the documents are accurate reflection of what happened

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Seeks to understand the life and customs of people in a particular culture

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Involves participant observation

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Needs careful ethical consideration

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A very flexible approach is needed

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Difficult for the novice researcher

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Usually applied with research involving groups that are marginalised by a society

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Researching with, rather than on, a group

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Tendency towards qualitative data collection

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Researcher immerses themselves in area to be studied in order to determine the research questions that emerge Usually not theory driven Requires careful coding and analysis of qualitative data

So what‟s with this ageing society thing?

„The interview is a kind of conversation – a conversation with a purpose‟ (Robson 2003) „The interview is initiated by the interviewer for the specific purpose of obtaining research relevant information and focussed by him on content specified by research objectives of systematic description, prediction or explanation‟ (Cohen and Manion 1989:307) „Interviewing is a powerful way of helping people to make explicit things that have hitherto been implicit – to articulate their tacit knowledge, feelings and understandings‟ (Arksey & Knight 1993:32)

Fully structured – predetermined set of questions are asked; responses are recorded on a standardised schedule; in effect similar to a questionnaire Semi-structured – set of questions worked out in advance, but these may change during the interview Unstructured – completely informal; there is a general issue to be discussed but the conversation develops as it goes along; also called “non directive”

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There is a need to attain highly personalised data

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There are opportunities for probing

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A good response rate is important

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Participants have difficulty with language

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Participants would struggle with alternative techniques such as a questionnaire

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Can test hypotheses, or identify variables and their relationships with each other Alternative method to postal survey low response rate Flexible and adaptable way of finding things out Interviewer can pick up on non verbal communication Interviewer can follow-up interesting responses and probe Potential for rich and highly illuminating data – participants personal knowledge, values, preferences and attitudes Complimentary other research techniques (triangulation) (Cohen and Manion 1997, Gray 2004, Robson 2003)

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Time consuming – (less than 30 minutes unlikely to get good data; more than one hour participant has had enough) Further time consuming – preparation, during the interview and post interview Some groups of people do not want to be interviewed Data can be affected by the characteristics of the respondents Participants may feel anonymity is compromised by interview process Participants may not accurately report their beliefs, attitudes, etc.

Please consider the following questions…. 1. Do you like the design of the paper? 2. Why? 3. Is it easy to open? 4. Did the taste / flavour of the sweet meet your expectations? 5. Did the texture of the sweet meet your expectations? 6. Anything else you would like to add ….

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Have their roots in focus groups for market research

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Increasing popularity over the last 10 years

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Typically small group of 8-10 people

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Used to explore issues / preferences

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Follows the principles of one-to-one interviews

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Unlikely to be very structured

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Typically would not use a questionnaire in the group context

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Useful as an exploratory study

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Less time consuming than one-to-one interviews

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Used to gain consensus and agreement

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Allows for a variety of ideas to emerge

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Group members can contribute to the stimulation of new ideas

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Heavily reliant on recording of conversation

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Very difficult to record exactly who said what

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Needs a well organised facilitator

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Needs a good facilitator to manage group dynamics and over-enthusiastic participants

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Listen more than you speak Ask questions in a straightforward, clear and nonthreatening way Send the participant a copy of the questions in advance Avoid cues which lead the participant to respond in a particular way Record the interview in a number of formats Transcribe the interview and ask the participant to sign it off Maintain anonymity of the participant Ensure ethical guidelines are followed Consider personal safety

Interviews with 200 people to find out their likes and dislikes (preferences) for design features of the external environment and the reasons for their preferences, so we asked about footways, crossing the road, seating, toilets, public art, street greenery, signage for example

Consent Form for Research Project: Inclusive Design for Getting Outdoors (I‟DGO) I confirm that I have read and understand the information sheet for the above study and have had the opportunity to ask questions. I understand that my participation is voluntary and that I am free to withdraw at any time, without giving reason. I understand that my name will not be used in publications. I agree to take part in the interview for the above study. I agree to the interview being tape-recorded. Name of Participant Date Address and telephone number of participant Name of Researcher

Date

E8 Seating 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 traditional wooden, back and arm rests

modern wooden, back rest

stone bench metal, back rest

Participants keen to give you their life experiences Researcher from Croatia so participants wanted to talk about World War 2 Comprehensive and structured questionnaire format for the interview The questionnaire was far too long and participants became both bored and tired Participants gave long answers to the first sections of the questionnaire We asked the most important questions last We are still analysing some of the data (2 years later!)

We formed good relationships with some of the participants

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Observation of people ◦ Overt ◦ Covert

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Observation of objects ◦ Physical measures of erosion, or accretion ◦ Placement of objects within the space

There are 2 polar extremes (Saunders et al 2000) – Participant Observation – qualitative (text) approach, „the meanings people give to their actions‟ (Gray 2004)  The complete participant The marginal participant  The participant as observer  The observer as participant Structured Observation – quantitative (numbers) approach, „the frequency of actions‟ (Gray 2004)

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„Interview and questionnaire responses are notorious for discrepancies between what people say they have done, or will do, and what they did‟ (Oskamp 1977, Hanson 1980 cited in Robson 2003)

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Useful at the initial exploratory stage of research to help inform hypothesis development (typically the observation would be unstructured) Useful as a supportive or supplementary technique to complement other data collection methods Can provide a rich picture „an appropriate technique for getting at “real life” in the “real world”‟ (Robson 2003)

Robson defines Participant Observation as „The observer seeks to become some kind of member of the observed group. This involves not only a physical presence and a sharing of life experiences, but also entry into their social and symbolic world through learning their social conventions and habits, their use of language and non verbal communication etc‟ (Robson 2003) Quite immersive !

The observer conceals that they are an observer, acting as naturally as possible, and seeking to become a full member of the group An example cited in Robson (2003) is Festinger et al (1956) who infiltrated a sect who predicted the destruction of the world on a particular date

“Research from a covert or manipulative perspective is generally not acceptable” (Kirby and McKenna 1989)

The role as a participant is marginal (small) but the role is still covert but more acceptable, so examples would be as a passenger on a train observing the behaviour of fellow passengers Zeisel (1984:119) however suggests that just because you know what role you are taking, do not assume this is obvious to those being observed. He gives the example of a marginal observer taking the role of spectator watching a football game in the local park, but the footballers may think he is the local park attendant about to stop them playing on the grass

The role of the observer is made clear to the group The role is made clear. The observer then tries to establish close relationships with the group, so by participating in activities etc the observer has a dual role as both observer and participant. Because the role is made clear, gaining the trust of the group is very important

The observer is known to the group as an observer but takes no part in the activity (Gold 1958 cited in Robson 2003)

We are not counting, we are collecting data on the meanings people give to their actions

Based on field notes the observer would typically record: Key quotations and phrases  Observation of verbal behaviours  Observation of non verbal behaviours  Time of events and activities  Observers views and feelings at the time of observation (Berg 1995 cited in Gray 2004, Gray 2004) 

Limit the time in the field (Berg 1995 suggests 1 hour in the field = minimum 4 hours write-up, write up full notes immediately)

Structured observation tends to be detached “pure” observation as a way of quantifying behaviour The key feature is the development of a coding scheme – which can be a category system or checklist and its use by trained observers Category system = small number of items fairly general in nature Checklist = long series of items which can be recorded Coding schemes discussed further in Walker 1985 (cited in Robson 2003)

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Gives reliable data because working off a checklist Researcher can be objective (because working off a checklist) Can be used across different observational sites (so good replication) Data generated is easier to analyse than data from participant observation methods

Questionnaires - snapshot  Postal  Delivery and collection  face-to-face  telephone  electronic Interviews - snapshot  face-to-face (individual or group)  telephone  electronic Panel surveys - longitudinal

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Probability samples     

simple random systemic stratified cluster multi-stage

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quota dimensional convenience purposive snowball

Non-probability samples

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Data collection ◦ Quantitative: Emphasis on numeric data ◦ Qualitative: Emphasis on non-numeric data in the form of words and phrases

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Use of statistics ◦ Descriptive statistics: Data is presented in variety of ways, characteristics identified ◦ Inferential Statistics: To draw conclusions about the population

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Code quantitative data for entry into statistical package Identify markers for themes and trends in qualitative data

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Patterns, themes, trends, categories

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Explanation-building

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Rich pictures

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Environmental-behaviour analysis

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Triangulation with other methods

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Counting - categorising data and measuring frequency Patterning - noting recurring patterns or themes Clustering - grouping items with similar characteristics Factoring - grouping variables into hypothetical factors Relating variables - relationships Building causal networks

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Clarify the nature of the initial relationships ◦ is it causal?

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Account for unexpected findings

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Check for robustness of the initial findings relationships ◦ is the pattern likely to apply only to this sample, does it work for subgroups, does it persist with different indicators?

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Eliminate alternative explanations of the findings

Khan 2008

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Reliability    

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subject error subject bias observer error observer bias

Construct validity  face validity  predictive criterion validity

Having Fun!!!!

SURFACE Inclusive Design Research Centre The University of Salford SOBE 4th Floor Maxwell Building Salford, England, M5 4WT Tel +44 (0)161 295 5405 Fax +44 (0)161 295 5011 Website www.surface.salford.ac.uk

That‟s all for now folks! Thanks

Arksey, H & Knight P (1999) Interviewing for social scientists, London, Sage. Berg, BL (1985) Qualitative research methods for the social sciences, Needham Heights, MA, Allyn & Bacon Cohen, L & Manion, L (1989) Research methods in education, London, Routledge Crotty ,M (1998) The foundation of social science research: meaning and perspectives in the research process, London, Sage Festinger, I, Riecken, HW & Schachter, S (1956) When prophecy fails, New York, Harper and Row Gray DE (2004) Doing research in the real world, London, Sage Khan, C. 2008. Doing Qualitative Research Using Your Computer: A Practical Guide. London: Sage Kirby, S & McKenna, K (1989) Experience, research, social change: methods from the margins, Toronto, Garamond

Malinowski, B (1922) Argonauts of the western pacific, London, Routledge and Kegan Paul Malinowski, B (1935ª) Coral gardens and their magic volume 1, London, Routledge and Kegan Paul Malinowski, B (1935b) Coral gardens and their magic volume 2, London, Routledge and Kegan Paul Robson, C (2003) Real world research, Oxford, Blackwells Saunders, M, Lewis, P & Thornhill, A (2000) Research methods for business students, London, Prentice Hall Walker, R (1985) Doing research: a handbook for teachers, London, Methuen Zeisel, J (1984) Inquiry by design: tools for environment behaviour research, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press