This document provides an overview of qualitative research methods, including definitions of qualitative research, distinctions from quantitative research, philosophical foundations, different approaches, and when to use qualitative research. It discusses how qualitative research focuses on meanings, experiences, and interpretations. While there is no single definition, qualitative research generally uses naturalistic and interpretive approaches to understand peoples' social worlds from their perspectives.

1. • Qualitative Research Methods: An Overview
• Aspects to cover
• 1.Quality and quantity
• 2. Definitions of qualitative research
• 3. Distinction of qualitative research from quantitative research
• 4. Comparison of philosophical foundations of qualitative research with
those of quantitative research (interpretivism and positivism)
• 5. An overview of the variety of approaches in qualitative research
• 6. When to use qualitative research?
• 7. Some observations about the practice of qualitative research in
organizational science.

2. • Quality and quantity
• “Quality refers to the what, how, when and where of a thing, its essence and ambiance.”
(Berg, 2004: 2-3)
• Quantity refers to how much of a thing.
• “In an attempt to differentiate between quantitative and qualitative approaches, Dabbs
(1987, p. 32) indicates that
• the notion of quality is essential to the nature of things.
• On the other hand, quantity is elementally an amount of something.
• Quantities refer to how much of a concept’s magnitude and quality refers to
the meaning of the concept
• Qualitative research focuses on:
– The “quality” of phenomena
– Nature of people’s lived experiences in their social worlds (from their perspective in their
contexts)
– This focus requires the use of certain interpretive procedures
– Notes:
• The above aspects can be included in defining what qualitative research is
• However, the procedures of qualitative research are practiced in varied ways
and hence there are multiple approaches to doing qualitative research
• Thus, providing a single definition of qualitative research is a difficult task

3. • Definition of qualitative research
• Difficulty in specifying a single definition of qualitative research
– Lack of definite, established or consensus procedures; presence of multiple approaches
• Qualitative research methods included multiple orientations, approaches, techniques developed
in variety of disciplines
• “It is important to recognize that there is no single, accepted way of doing qualitative research.”
(R&L: 1)
• “It is important to appreciate that there is no one right and accepted way of doing qualitative
research and the methods we use reflect a particular mix of philosophy, research objectives,
participants, funders and audiences relevant to applied policy research.” (R&L: 2)
• : “The reader should not lose sight of the fact that qualitative research has few hard-and-fast
rules. Typically, only guidelines can be provided” (Lee: 64)
• “There are very few standard rules or common methodological conventions in qualitative
research communities…” (Kvale, 1996: 13, possibly in the context of interview research or
interview process)
• “As Patton notes (2002, p. 432), ‘qualitative analysis transforms data into findings. No formula
exists for that transformation. Guidance, yes. But no recipe…The final destination remains
unique for each inquirer, known only when –and if- arrived at.’” (Marahall and Rossman,
2006(?): 157 )
• “Denzin and Lincoln’s (1994) description of the qualitative researcher as bricoleur suggests that
qualitative researchers apply a variety of strategies and methods to collect and analyze a variety
of empirical materials” (Coffey and Atkinson, 1996: 4)
• Jorgensen (1999) notes similar aspects about participant observation methodology

4. • Definition of qualitative research
• “There is fairly wide consensus that qualitative research is a naturalistic,
interpretive approach concerned with understanding the meanings which
people attach to phenomenon (actions, decision, beliefs, values, etc.) within
their social worlds.” (Ritchie & Lewis, 2004: 3)
– Social worlds of people
– Meaning of social worlds of people
– Understanding the meaning of social worlds of people
– Interpretive approach to understanding the meanings of social worlds of people
– Naturalistic, interpretive approach to understanding the meanings of social worlds of
people

5. • Qualitative research
• Methodological features as defining characteristics of qualitative research
• “Key aspects include:
– The overall research perspective and the importance of the participants’ frame of reference
– The flexible nature of research design
– The volume and richness of qualitative data
– The distinctive approaches to design and interpretation
– And the kind of outputs that derive from qualitative research.” (R&L: 3)
• Other features
– Researchers’ extensive involvement in settings
– Dialogue with data (developing ideas, checking with data, revising ideas)
– Variations in data analysis approaches
– Distinct norms of goodness

6. • Distinction between qualitative research and qualitative
research (and philosophical foundations of qualitative research)
– “By the term ‘qualitative research’ we mean any type of research that produces findings
not arrived at by statistical procedures or other means of quantification (Strauss and
Corbin, 1998: 11).” (R&L: 3)
– “Creswell’s Five Differences” (Lee, 1999: 5-6)
Assumptions
Quantitative Research Qualitative Research
Ontological
(Reality)
There is a single objective world Coexistence of multiple
subjectively derived social
realities
Epistemological
(researcher role)
Researcher independence from
study variables
Researcher’s interaction with
study variables
Axiological
(researcher value)
Overtly value free Overtly value-laden approach of
researcher
Rhetorical (language
style)
“Impersonal, formal, rule-based
text”
“Personalized, informal, and
context-based language”
Methodological
(research process)
Application of “deduction, limited
cause-effect relationships, and
context-free methods”
Application of “induction,
multivariate and multiprocess
interactions, and context-specific
methods”

7. • The above distinctions, to some extent, may reflect distinctions between:
– Positivism and interpretivism
• In light of the distinctions, is qualitative research scientific?
• Depends on how “science” is defined?
– Quantitative?
– Empirical?
– Systematic and empirical?
– “A broad definition of science…Methodological production of new, systematic
knowledge” (Kvale, 1996: 60)
– Positivist science or a broad view of science?

8. • Scientific value of qualitative research
• The merit of qualitative research lies in its utility to study subjective world of
humans (not in its nominal data)
• There may be disadvantages to adopting quantitative approach to the study
of human beings

9. • Various approaches to or strategies of qualitative research: Tree structure (based on Miles and
Huberman, 1994: 6, basic source: Wolcott, 1992)
• Evolution of qualitative research approaches
Non-participant
Observation studies
Interview-based
studies
Participant
observation
studies
Field studies
Experiencing Inquiring Examining
Life
Every day
Nonarchive
(unobtrusive
research) Archival strategies
Content analysis
Oral history
History
Biography
Investigative
journalism
Ethnomethodology
Post-structuralism
Phenomenology
Conversation
analysis
Ethnography
Anthropological life
history

10. • Creswell’s (2007) five approaches to qualitative research
include the following
– Grounded theory
– Case study
– Ethnography
– Phenomenology
– (Biographical methods)

11. • When to use qualitative research methods
• 1. “Miles and Huberman’s (1994) considerations
– Local grounding
– Richness and holism
– Sustained period and causality
– Lived meanings” (Lee, 1999: 38)
• 2. “Marshall and Rossman’s Recommendations” (Lee: 41)
• “Qualitative designs are the best choice when researcher answers yes to one or more of the
following six questions”
• Need to :
– Understand in-depth proceeses?
– Study ill-structured linkages?
– Study partly understood phenomena?
– Study “new or thus far unspecified variables”?
– Study differences between “stated organizational policies and their actual
implementation”?
– Study variables that do not lend themselves to experiments?

12. • When to use qualitative research methods
• My note: These views seem to suggest the following features of phenomenon,
research outcomes, and practical outcomes where qualitative research is likely to be
suitable
– Phenomenon features : Ill-structure, complex, poorly understood, new variables,
not amenable to experimental procedures
– Research outcomes: Description (rich, holistic), interpretation of underlying
meanings, explanations (causal processed, underlying as opposed to espoused
processes) rather than calibration or generalization
– Practical outcomes: Believability, credibility, comprehensibility of findings,
potential for implementation and practice improvement, participant cooperation
facilitation from these potential practical outcomes
– Note: This seems to fit in with the process of qualitative research as:
– Local grounding
– Context-focused
– Holistic, in-depth, rich
– Sustained field involvement
– Actual meanings assigned by the individuals who experience the life situations

13. • Some observations about qualitative research methods use in organizational science
(Based on Lee, 1999: 15, other pages)
• Review of qualitative research in management journals done by Larsson and Lowendahl (1996)
• Period covered: 1984-94, qualitative research articles in top-ranked management journals
(ASQ, AMJ, Organizational Science, Strategic Management Journal)
• Number of articles using qualitative research: 12
• Observations
– Narrow range of qualitative research designs used
• Three most often cited works
– “Glaser and Strauss (1967) now classic book on grounded theory was the most
common methodological citation”
– “Eisenhardt’s (1989) case study research design on the speed of strategic
decision making was the reference cited next most often”
– “Finally, Yin’s (1984) case study research was the methodological reference
cited third most often”
• Note: Glaser and Strauss’s (1967) grounded theory methods book and Yin’s (1991) book would
be extensively covered in the class during the discussion of grounded theory and case study
research approaches
• In addition, Eisenhardt’s (1989) work on building theory from case studies will be covered in
detail (this is not the Eisenhardt’s paper cited above)

14. • Some observations about qualitative research methods use in organizational science
(Based on Lee, 1999: 15, other pages)
• 11 out of 12 articles “sought to generate theory”
• 6 studies had single case design, 2 had 2 cases, and 4 had more than 3 cases (use of case study
research)
• “Virtually all these studies were longitudinal and averaged 12 months for data collection, with
range of 1 to 23 months”
• “Most studies gathered information through personal interviews” *(Lee: 16)
– “As few as 16 and as many as 219, and most interviews lasted about 2 hours in duration”
(Lee: 16)
• “Although widely cited, the three common methodological citations –with particular reference
to Glaser and Strauss- were more often made for purposes of scholarly citation than for
substantive guidance on what should actually be done” ** (Lee: 15-16)
• Notes:
• *Personal interview as a data collection technique will be covered in considerable details in the
course