This document discusses the use of recordings in qualitative research. It explains that recordings provide benefits over note-taking such as allowing the researcher to fully concentrate on the interview and the ability to review the full interview later. The document outlines ethical considerations for using recordings and stresses obtaining informed consent from participants regarding how the recordings will be used, stored, and destroyed. It concludes by stating the author plans to use mixed methods, including recordings, for a study on the impacts of virtual labs in chemistry learning.

1. 18/10/2016 Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) Tel:0894776342
Written and Submitted by: Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) ID No: 5906969
Using Recordings in Qualitative Research
Researchers can take notes during their interviews, make observations, or take a recording. In
this writing I discuss the necessity of recordings in research and the type of research to which
they are applied. I conclude by suggesting whether I will be including them in my research or
not.
The rise of technology gave researchers an imposing opportunity to enhance their data
collecting techniques. Early researchers relied on note taking while interviewing their
subjects. Today, with proper ethical enforcements, researchers are allowed to further record
their interviews using a string of devices. These may be audio, video or digital recordings.
We can compare the significance of a tape recorder in qualitative researchers to the
usefulness of a hammer to carpenters (Patton 2002).
To do research means finding answers to a question(s). This is not a job one can simply do
individually regardless of the research method you choose. In qualitative research,
researchers collect and analyze data to understand the meaning people have constructed
(Merriam 1999). Denzin and Lincoln (1994) suggest that qualitative research involves
collecting information about personal experiences, introspection, life story, interviews,
observations, historical, interactions and visual text which are significant moments and
meaningful in peoples’ lives. These techniques of gathering evidence like recordings,
interviews, observations, diaries, pictures, correspondences like emails, memo and letters
among others require a continuous interaction with the participants you choose. Without them
it’s not just difficult but impossible to successfully find the answers you seek for your
underlying research question. Today, many qualitative researchers use recordings to
interview their subjects. There are several benefits if a researcher chooses to use recordings
during interviews;
(1) The researcher can concentrate and listen and respond better.
(2) The discussion flows better when there are no distractions.
(3) The entire interview is recorded, which gives a better, more holistic picture of what is
going on.
(4) The participants may feel less observed if the tape recorder is used in a discreet way.
(5) There are less risks of the researcher being subjective.
(6) During analysis, the researcher has an opportunity to go back over the material.
Protecting Participants
Using recordings to interview participants means exercising a great deal of ethics for
researchers. Audio, video and digital recordings include videos and/or voices of research
participants. It’s the researcher’s primary obligation therefore to use the standard ethical
procedures to protect the participants involved in his or her research. There are policies and
procedures set by relevant professional organizations in different countries to protect research
participants and all researchers must comply with them. For example in The Ethical
Guidelines for Research on Human Subjects in Thailand (2007), the Forum for Ethical
Review Committee in Thailand (FERCIT) urges researchers to ensure that the dignity,

2. 18/10/2016 Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) Tel:0894776342
Written and Submitted by: Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) ID No: 5906969
rights, safety and well-being of the subjects participating in research are protected, and the
results of the research are credible.
Prior to any research, the researchers must convince the relevant committee on how they
intend to maintain the confidentiality of the participants. For example the researcher must
submit a document(s) to prove the person(s) who will have access to the recording, how they
are intending to store the recording and how long it will be retained for.
It is important for researchers to know how they will be using the recordings and mention all
the details in the consent form. This helps the participants to decide whether they are willing
to take part in the research or not. Researchers should NOT under any circumstances bribe,
pay-off, persuade or give gifts of any kind to participants intending to lure them into taking
part in their research.
It is crucial for researchers to inform the participants:
(1) They will be making recordings of them (participants) clearly specifying the kind of
recording to be used. (video, audio, or digital)
(2) How they (researchers) will use the data.
(3) Who will have access to the data.
(4) How they (researchers) will protect their (participants) identity.
(5) Where the recordings will be stored.
(6) How long will they (recording) be retained.
(7) When and how they (recordings) will be destroyed.
The consent form sample below may be applied to video recordings.
In case recordings will be optional in your study, then the suggested approach is to include
checkboxes similar to those indicated below:
In case the recordings will be transcribed, the participants should know who will be
transcribing. Also if the recordings are to be used in presentations and education, this
information must be included in the consent form and the participants should well be aware
of it.
This study involves the use of audio and/or video recordings for the purpose of
_______________________________. Only __________________________ will have access to this
data. Your name shall not be associated with the audio and/or video recordings. This data will be kept
secure by _______________________ and will be destroyed by ____________________________.
 I DO NOT agree to be recorded on video or audio.
 I agree to be recorded on video or audio.

3. 18/10/2016 Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) Tel:0894776342
Written and Submitted by: Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) ID No: 5906969
Conclusion
Recordings and transcription of interviews became fundamental in qualitative research since
the 1970s. Before this change qualitative research was conducted largely with handwritten
field notes by on-site researchers who were observing and talking to those being studied
(Gibbs, Friese, and Mangaberia, 2002). “The creative and judicious use of technology (could)
greatly increase the quality of field observations and the utility of the observational records to
others.” (Patton 2002) The ultimate significance of recording and transcribing interviews to
researchers was highlighted by Rapley (2007), he wrote,
“The actual process of making detailed transcripts enables you to become familiar with what
you are observing. You have to listen/watch the recording again and again. .. Through this
process you begin to notice the interesting and often subtle ways that people interact. These
are the taken-for-granted features of people’s talk and interactions that without recordings
you would routinely fail to notice, fail to remember, or be unable to record in sufficient detail
by taking hand-written notes as it happened.” (P.50)
Despite the advantages of recordings, there are many challenges to this technique of data
collection. These may include; accuracy in transcribing, ethical issues, trustworthiness,
reporting among others.
In my tentative research, I plan to include the use of recordings (qualitative) and integrating
experiments (quantitative). So for now I’m leaning towards using the mixed methods
research. My tentative research topic is “The Impacts of Virtual Labs on Secondary School
Chemistry Learning in a Bilingual School Context.”

4. 18/10/2016 Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) Tel:0894776342
Written and Submitted by: Nouredine Ssekamaanya (Dean) ID No: 5906969
References
Patton, Michael 2002 Qualitative Research and Evaluative Methods. Third Edition.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Guba, E.G., Lincoln, Y. S. (1994). Competing paradigms in qualitative research. In. K.
Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.) Handbook of Qualitative Research (pp. 105-117). Thousand
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Merriam, S. (1998). Qualitative research and case study: Application in education. San
Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
Gibbs, Graham R.; Friese, Susanne & Mangaberia, Wilma C. (2002). The use of new
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Rapley, Tim (2007). Doing conversation, discourse and document analysis. London: Sage.
Forum for Ethical Review Committee in Thailand (FERCIT). (2007) The Ethical Guidelines
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