This document provides an overview of qualitative research methods that can be used to study oneself and one's own experiences. It discusses 5 potential methods: 1) collecting textual artifacts, 2) self-observation, 3) journaling and reflection, 4) interviews, and 5) artistic composition. Each method involves different activities to collect different types of data for interpretation and gaining new insights. The appropriate method depends on the goals and what type of data is most useful.

1. Researching Yourself:
An Overview of Research Methods
Justin Jory & Marlena Stanford
Salt Lake Community College

2. First, a note on qualitative research
Qualitative research is about
understanding the nature of human
experiences and practices.
It’s about understanding why and how
humans act in particular contexts.
It is carried out through numerous
research methods.

3. How do you research yourself?
Research methods help researchers collect data
that they reflect on and interpret to reach new
insights.
Different types of methods return different types
of data. Researchers must have goals about what
they want to learn and then choose methods that
will return useful data.
What are some research methods applicable to our
project? Read on . . .

4. Possible Research Methods
Method #1: Collecting textual
artifacts.
Activities: Locate and save written texts. This may
include searching through digital archives, such as
old email files, or physical archives, such as the
stack of papers from your high school career.

5. Possible Research Methods (cont.)
Method #2: Self observation.
Activities: Pay careful attention to yourself as you
engage in the writing activity you are studying.
You could video yourself, tape record yourself,
or make written observations of what you are
doing as you do it. Obviously, this method will
not be useful if you are studying a writing
context that you are not currently engaged in.

6. Possible Research Methods (cont.)
Method #3: Journaling and Reflection.
Activities: There are many ways you can use reflection as a
data collection method. For example, you could
chronicle activities/events/processes that took place
during the writing context you are studying and then
explain why you think they matter. You could re-read
your textual artifacts and reflect on their purpose,
audience, context, or features. Or, if you are
participating in the writing context currently, you could
write a journal reflection each day that examines your
attitudes, behaviors, etc.

7. Possible Research Methods (cont.)
Method #4: Interview.
Activities: You might be interested in interviewing
someone who understands your writing
situation or who is a part of your intended
audience. You might want to make a video of
the interview, or you might want to record it
and then transcribe it to analyze later.

8. Possible Research Methods (cont.)
Method #5: Artistic Composition.
Activities: Write a poem or song, create a
performance or painting, or use some other
artistic composition to explore your
experiences with the writing context or your
experiences with the intended audience. The
artistic composition could be useful to help
you bring to the surface your attitudes and
feelings associated with the writing situation.