The document discusses qualitative research design and methods. It introduces five common qualitative designs: narrative, ethnography, grounded theory, phenomenological, and case study. For each design, it provides a brief definition and example of a research study that uses that design. It also covers other important aspects of qualitative research like the researcher's role, data collection and coding processes. The overall document serves as an introduction and overview to help researchers master qualitative research design.

1. Presenters
Jennifer Butcher, Ph.D.
Diane Mason, Ph.D.
Donna Fong, Ed.D.
Donda Slaydon, Ed.D.
How to Master Qualitative Design
Leadership-U
May 3, 2013

2. Research Design Selection
• Gain familiarity with core designs.
– Narrative, Ethnography, Grounded Theory, Case
Study, Phenomenological
• Examine research studies.
• Align research question with design.
• Become an expert.

3. Narrative
• Narrative text used with a specific focus on the stories lived
and told by individuals, and chronologically connected.
– Analysis of narrative
– Narrative analysis
• Example
– Factors that Influence Hispanic Students to Take Advanced
Level Courses - Susan M. Caffery, Ed.D.

4. Ethnography
• Observation and recording of shared learned
behaviors of a cultural group.
• Example
– An Ethnographic Case Study of the Professional
Development Model in a Successful Elementary
School Within a Suburban Southeast
Texas School District
– – Valerie Petrzelka, Ed.D.

5. Grounded Theory
• Generate or discover a theory (Creswell, 1968)
• Examples
– Used primarily in Human Research Development.
– Studies of workplace are development.
– Responses to organizational change.
– Conflict management.
– Exploration of leadership values in
teamwork.
– Developing Long-Term Physical Activity
Participation: A Grounded Theory Study With
African American Women (Creswell, 2013)

6. Phenomenological
• Describes the meaning for several individuals, their
lived experiences of a concept, or phenomenon.
• Example
– A Study of High School Veteran Teachers Who Have
Changed Instructional Paradigms to Embrace
Digital Tools: Framed Within Adult
Learning Theory – Donna Fong, Ed.D.

7. Case Study
• Issue explored through one or more cases within a
bounded system with detailed, in-depth data
collection (observations, interview, documents,
etc.)
• Example
– Case Study of Implementation of
Flexible Grouping in One School
Framed Within the Change Based
Adoption Model – Donda Slaydon, Ed.D.

8. Researcher Role
• Reduce bias
– Use specificity with terms.
– Set aside personal experiences.
– Examine with a fresh perspective.
• Epoche
– Common in qualitative research.
– Usually a page or so in length.

9. Data Collection Process
• Yourself, someone else, or team?
• Data Types
– Interviews
• Individual, pairs, or focus group?
– Open-ended survey items
– Artifacts
– Social Media

10. Coding and Identifying Themes
• Coding is the process of examining the raw
qualitative data.
• Results in assigning codes, labels, or themes to
words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs.
• Themes are often referred to as
categories. Generally, no more that 5-7.
• Themes are similar codes aggregated
together to form a major idea.

11. Coding Group Activity
• Coding Qualitative Data
– Examine code list and decide which code sums up
the text discussion.
– Read a passage and provide a code for what is
happening in each line of the text.
• Questions & Answers

12. Contact Information
Diane Mason, Ph.D.
diane.mason@lamar.edu
Jennifer Butcher, Ph.D.
jbutcher@lamar.edu
Donna Fong, Ed.D.
dfong@lcmcisd.org
Donda Slaydon, Ed.D.
dondaslaydon@sbcglobal.net