Qualitative research explores individuals' experiences and social interactions, emphasizing understanding 'how' and 'why' rather than numerical data. It employs various methods, including ethnography, narrative research, phenomenology, grounded theory, case studies, and historical analysis, with key techniques being in-depth interviews and focus groups that utilize open-ended questions. This research approach provides valuable insights into human behaviors and social dynamics, particularly in fields like healthcare, education, and community development.

1. QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
PRESENTED BY
PG Student
DEPT OF COMMUNITY MEDICINE

2. TABLE OF CONTENT
• What is a Qualitative Research?
• Difference Between Qualitative and Quantitative Research.
• Purpose Of Qualitative Methods
• Types Of Qualitative Research
• How to do a Qualitative Research?
• Method of Data Collection
• Analysis of Qualitative Data
• Types of Qualitative Research Techniques
• In Depth Interview
• Focus Group Discussion
• Ethical Issues In Qualitative Research
• Summary
• References

3. WHAT IS A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH?
• Any type of research that employs non-numeric information to explore
individual or group characteristics, producing findings not arrived by
statistical procedures or other quantitative means.
• Qualitative research explores people’s needs, values, perceptions and
their experiences of the world around them.
• This includes their health or illness, healthcare services and more
broadly, social systems and their policies and processes.
• It answers the how's and why’s instead of how many or how much.

4. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN QUALITATIVE AND
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

5. PURPOSE OF QUALITATIVE METHODS
• To emphasize on quality rather than quantity .
• To understand why do people do the things they do.
• To find out how behaviours, system and relationships are maintained or change.
• To understand how social organisations function.
• To stimulate action experience learning cycle of participants and community.

6. TYPES OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
• Ethnography Methods
• Narrative Methods
• Phenomenological Methods
• Grounded Theory
• Case Study
• Historical Methods

7. ETHNOGRAPHY METHOD
• Ethnography is a qualitative research method that involves the in-depth
study of a cultural or social group by the researcher directly participating
in or observing the group's activities over an extended period of time.
• The goal is to gain a deep, holistic understanding of the group's behaviors,
interactions, and meanings within their natural context.
• For example, A child psychologist observing the social dynamics of
toddlers in a play school (interactions with teachers and with one another).

8. NARRATIVE METHOD
• Narrative research is a qualitative approach that explores the stories
and personal experiences of individuals.
• The goal is to understand how people make sense of their lives and the
world around them through the stories they tell.
• Examples of narrative research include : stories, interviews, life
histories, journals and photographs.

9. PHENOMENOLOGICAL METHOD
• Phenomenological research is a qualitative approach that aims to
describe and understand the subjective, lived experiences of individuals.
• The goal is to uncover the essential structures and meanings of a
particular phenomenon as it is experienced by the participants.
• For example, How does a single-mother experiences while taking her
child to a doctor?

10. GROUNDED THEORY
• Grounded Theory is a systematic, inductive approach to qualitative research that
aims to generate or discover a new theory grounded in the observations and
experiences of research participants.
• The goal is to move beyond description to construct explanatory theories about
social processes and phenomena.
• The goal of grounded theory is to uncover the underlying structures and
mechanisms that drive human behavior.
• For example, What are the beliefs and values that drive people’s behavior?

11. CASE STUDY
Case study research is a qualitative approach that involves an in-depth
examination of a single case or multiple cases.
CAN BE USED IN -
• Organizational and management research
• Educational and policy studies
• Healthcare and medical research
• Social and community-based programs

12. HISTORICAL METHOD
• Historical research is a qualitative approach that involves the
systematic collection, evaluation, and interpretation of past events,
facts, and information to gain a deeper understanding of the past and
its relationship to the present.
• The goal is to reconstruct and analyze historical phenomena in order to
identify patterns, trends, and causal relationships.

13. HOW TO DO A QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH?
• Defining the Problem and Searching the Literature.
• Identifying the Research Design.
• Identifying Data Sources and Selecting Participants.
• Identifying or Constructing Data Collection Instruments and Methods.
• Analysing, Interpreting, Reporting and Using Results.

14. Methods of data collection
• Questionnaires with open ended questions
• Individual interviews
• Discussions
• Testimonials, logs, journals, diaries
• Participatory observations
• Documents, reports, news articles

15. Analysis of Qualitative data
Consists of three parts:
Noticing
• Breaking up, separating, or disassembling of research materials into pieces, parts,
elements, or units.
Collecting
• With facts broken down into manageable pieces, the researcher sorts them.
Thinking
• Searching for types, classes, sequences, processes, patterns, or wholes.
• The aim of this process is to assemble or reconstruct the data in meaningful or
comprehensible fashion.

16. Type of Qualitative Research Techniques

17. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
PROCEDURES
DIRECT
NON-DISGUISED
INDIRECT
DISGUISED
FOCUS GROUP
DISCUSSION
IN DEPTH
INTERVIEWS
PROJECTIVE
TECHNIQUES
ASSOCIATION
TECHNIQUES
COMPLETION
TECHNIQUES
CONSTRUCTION
TECHNIQUES
EXPRESSIVE
TECHNIQUES

18. OBSERVATIONAL TECHNIQUES
• DIRECT (NON-DISGUISED) –
OBSERVING BEHAVIOUR AS IT OCCURS
For example observer is physically present to monitor.
• INDIRECT (DISGUISED) –
OBSERVING THE EFFECT OR RESULT OF BEHAVIOUR
INSTEAD OF BEHAVIOUR ITSELF
For example done by mechanical electronic devices.

19. IN DEPTH INTERVIEW
• Interview one individual at a time.
• Open ended discovery oriented questions
• 3 elements are there
asking questions (Personal and leading questions eg How are you feeling today?)
Systematic recording
Documenting of responses
• Intense probing for deeper meaning and understanding of the responses.
• Often require repeated interviews.

20. FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION
• Focus group discussion is a group discussion among approximately 6-12
number of persons guided by a facilitator during which group members
talk freely and spontaneously about a certain topic.
• It is designed to obtain perceptions of a defined area of interest in a
permissive and non threatening environment.
• An interview is conducted by a trained moderator who have good
observational interpersonal and communication skills in a non structured
and natural manner with a small group of respondents.

21. GUIDELINES FOR FGD
• Purpose of the FGD (participants interest and also of concern)
• Composition - Participants, one moderator, one facilitator and may be one
rapporteur.
• Location: Private so that participants may speak without being overheard or seen
by others not in the group.
• Size: Preferably odd number of participants.
• Seating arrangement preferably in a circle to encourage participation and
interaction

22. CONTINUED…
• Duration: 40-45 minutes
• Participation should be allowed maximum
• Questions should be “open-ended”
• Questions should be clearly stated
• Respect comments of all participants
• ‘What is said here; stays here’.....

23. STEPS IN CONDUCTING A FOCUS
GROUP DISCUSSION

24. USES OF FGD
• To develop research hypotheses by exploring depth of the problem to be
investigated and its possible causes.
• To formulate appropriate questions for more structured and larger scale surveys.
• To understand and solve unexpected problems in interventions.
• To develop appropriate messages for health education programs.
• To explore controversial topics.

25. Ethical issues in qualitative research
• Researchers should consider treating informed consent as a process.
• Ensure that information and support for participants are available
when necessary
• Care required to ensure the anonymity of participants in published
work
• Risk of misrepresentation can be minimized by ensuring that
researchers are adequately trained and supervised
• Researchers, funding bodies and reviewers should fully understand the
scientific basis and methodology of qualitative research

26. SUMMARY
• Qualitative research explores individuals' experiences, perceptions, and social
interactions, focusing on understanding "how" and "why" rather than quantitative
metrics.
• It involves various methods such as ethnography, which studies cultural groups,
narrative research, phenomenology for subjective experiences, grounded theory to
develop theories from data, case studies for in-depth single-case analysis, and
historical research.
• Key techniques include in-depth interviews and focus groups, which use open-
ended questions to uncover insights in a natural setting.
• Overall, qualitative research provides deep insights into human behaviors and
social dynamics, valuable for fields like healthcare, education, and community
development.

27. REFERENCES
• GOYAL RC. Research methodology for health professionals. New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers
(P) Ltd; 2013.
• Im D, Pyo J, Lee H, Jung H, Ock M. Qualitative Research in Healthcare: Data Analysis. Journal of Preventive
Medicine and Public Health [Internet]. 2023 Mar 31;56(2):100–10. Available from:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10111102/
• Kuller LH. A dictionary of epidemiology. Annals of Epidemiology. 1996 Mar;6(2):168.