• Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018).

Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods

Chapter 9 Qualitative Methods

Qualitative methods demonstrate a different approach to scholarly inquiry than methods of quantitative
research. Although the processes are similar, qualitative methods rely on text and image data, have unique
steps in data analysis, and draw on diverse designs. Writing a method section for a proposal or study for
qualitative research partly requires educating readers as to the intent of qualitative research, mentioning
specific designs, carefully reflecting on the role the researcher plays in the study, drawing from an ever-
expanding list of types of data sources, using specific protocols for recording data, analyzing the information
through multiple steps of analysis, and mentioning approaches for documenting the methodological integrity
or accuracy—or validity—of the data collected. This chapter addresses these important components of writing
a good qualitative method section into a proposal or study. Table 9.1 presents a checklist for reviewing the
qualitative methods section of your project to determine whether you have addressed important topics.

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The qualitative method section of a proposal requires attention to topics that are similar to a quantitative (or
mixed methods) project. These involve telling the reader about the design being used in the study and, in this

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case, the use of qualitative research and its basic intent. It also involves discussing the sample for the study and
the overall data collection and recording procedures. It further expands on the data analysis steps and the
methods used for presenting the data, interpreting it, validating it, and indicating the potential outcomes of
the study. In contrast to other designs, the qualitative approach includes comments by the researcher about
their role and their self-reflection (or reflexivity, it is called), and the specific type of qualitative strategy being
used. Further, because the writing structure of a qualitative project may vary considerably from study to study,
the method section should also include comments about the nature of the final written product.

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The Characteristics of Qualitative Research
For many years, qualitative writers had to discuss the characteristics of qualitative research and convince
faculty and audiences as to their legitimacy. Now these discussions are less frequently found in the literature
and there is some consensus as to what constitutes qualitative inquiry. Thus, our suggestions about the
method section of a project or proposal are as follows:

Review the needs of potential audiences for the proposal or study. Decide whether audience members
are knowledgeable enough about the characteristics of qualitative research that this section is not
necessary. For example, although qualitative research is typically accepted and well-known in the social
sciences, it has emerged in the health sciences only in the last couple of decades. Thus, for health science
audiences, a review of the basic characteristics will be important.
If there is some question about the audience’s knowledge, present the basic characteristics of qualitative
research and consider discussing a recent qualitative research journal article (or study) to use as an
example to illustrate the characteristics.
If you present the basic characteristics, what ones should you mention? A number of authors of
introductory texts convey these characteristics, such as Creswell (2016), Hatch (2002), and Marshall and
Rossman (2016).
Natural setting: Qualitative researchers tend to collect data in the field at the site where
participants experience the issue or problem under study. Researchers do not bring individuals into
a lab (a contrived situation), nor do they typically send out instruments for individuals to
complete. This up-close information gathered by actually talking directly to people and seeing
them behave and act within their context is a major characteristic of qualitative research. In the
natural setting, the researchers have face-to-face interaction, often extending over a prolonged
period of time.
Researcher as key instrument: Qualitative researchers collect data themselves through examining
documents, observing behavior, or interviewing participants. They may use a protocol—an
instrument for recording data—but the researchers are the ones who actually gather the
information and interpret it. They do not tend to use or rely on questionnaires or instruments
developed by other researchers.
Multiple sources of data: Qualitative researchers typically gather multiple forms of data, such as
interviews, observations, documents, and audiovisual information rather than rely on a single data
source. These are all open-ended forms of data in which the participants share their ideas freely,
not constrained by predetermined scales or instruments. Then the researchers review all of the
data, make sense of it, and organize it into codes and themes that cut across all of the data sources.
Inductive and deductive data analysis: Qualitative researchers typically work inductively, building
patterns, categories, and themes from the bottom up by organizing the data into increasingly more
abstract units of information. This inductive process illustrates working back and forth between
the themes and the database until the researchers have established a comprehensive set of themes.

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Then deductively, the researchers look back at their data from the themes to determine if more
evidence can support each theme or whether they need to gather additional information. Thus,
while the process begins inductively, deductive thinking also plays an important role as the analysis
moves forward.
Participants’ meanings: In the entire qualitative research process, the researchers keep a focus on
learning the meaning that the participants hold about the problem or issue, not the meaning that
the researchers bring to the research or that writers express in the literature.
Emergent design: The research process for qualitative researchers is emergent. This means that the
initial plan for research cannot be tightly prescribed, and some or all phases of the process may
change or shift after the researcher enters the field and begins to collect data. For example, the
questions may change, the forms of data collection may shift, and the individuals studied and the
sites visited may be modified. These shifts signal that the researchers are delving deeper and
deeper into the topic or the phenomenon under study. The key idea behind qualitative research is
to learn about the problem or issue from participants and to address the research to obtain that
information.
Reflexivity: In qualitative research, inquirers reflect about how their role in the study and their
personal background, culture, and experiences hold potential for shaping their interpretations,
such as the themes they advance and the meaning they ascribe to the data. This aspect of the
methods is more than merely advancing biases and values in the study, but how the background of
the researchers actually may shape the direction of the study.
Holistic account: Qualitative researchers try to develop a complex picture of the problem or issue
under study. This involves reporting multiple perspectives, identifying the many factors involved
in a situation, and generally sketching the larger picture that emerges. This larger picture is not
necessarily a linear model of cause and effect but rather a model of multiple factors interacting in
different ways. This picture, qualitative researchers would say, mirrors real life and the ways that
events operate in the real world. A visual model of many facets of a process or a central
phenomenon aids in establishing this holistic picture (see, for example, Creswell & Brown, 1992).

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Qualitative Designs
Beyond these general characteristics are more specific approaches (i.e., strategies of inquiry, designs, or
procedures) in conducting qualitative research (Creswell & Poth, 2018). These approaches have emerged in
the field of qualitative research since it has matured in the social sciences since the early 1990s. They include
procedures for data collection, analysis, and writing, but they originated out of disciplines in the social
sciences. Many approaches exist, such as the 28 identified by Tesch (1990), the 22 types in Wolcott’s (2009)
tree, and the five approaches to qualitative inquiry by Creswell and Poth (2018), and Creswell (2016).
Marshall and Rossman (2016) discussed five types common across five different authors. As mentioned in
Chapter 1, we recommend that qualitative researchers choose from among the possibilities, such as narrative,
phenomenology, ethnography, case study, and grounded theory. We selected these five because they are
popular across the social and health sciences today. Others exist that have been addressed adequately in
qualitative books, such as participatory action research (Kemmis & Wilkinson, 1998), discourse analysis
(Cheek, 2004), or participatory action research (Ivankova, 2015). In these approaches, researchers study
individuals (narrative, phenomenology); explore processes, activities, and events (case study, grounded theory);
or learn about broad culture-sharing behavior of individuals or groups (ethnography).

In writing a procedure for a qualitative proposal, consider the following research tips:

Identify the specific approach that you will be using and provide references to the literature that
discusses the approach.
Provide some background information about the approach, such as its discipline origin, the applications
of it (preferably to your field), and a brief definition of it (see Chapter 1 for the five approaches or
designs).
Discuss why it is an appropriate strategy to use in the proposed study.
Identify how the use of the approach will shape many aspects of the design process, such as the title, the
problem, the research questions, the data collection and analysis, and the report write-up.

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The Researcher’s Role and Reflexivity
As mentioned in the list of characteristics, qualitative research is interpretative research; the inquirer is
typically involved in a sustained and intensive experience with participants. This introduces a range of
strategic, ethical, and personal issues into the qualitative research process (Locke, Spirduso, & Silverman,
2013). With these concerns in mind, inquirers explicitly identify reflexively their biases, values, and personal
background, such as gender, history, culture, and socioeconomic status (SES) that shape their interpretations
formed during a study. In addition, gaining entry to a research site and the ethical issues that might arise are
also elements of the researcher’s role.

Reflexivity requires commenting on two important points:

Past experiences. Include statements about past experiences with the research problem or with the
participants or setting that help the reader understand the connection between the researchers and the
study. These experiences may involve participation in the setting, past educational or work experiences,
or culture, ethnicity, race, SES, or other demographics that tie the researchers directly to the study.
How past experiences shape interpretations. Be explicit, then, about how these experiences may potentially
shape the interpretations the researchers make during the study. For example, the experiences may cause
researchers to lean toward certain themes, to actively look for evidence to support their positions, and to
create favorable or unfavorable conclusions about the sites or participants.

How can reflexive thinking be incorporated into your qualitative study (Creswell, 2016)? You can write notes
about your personal experiences during the study. These notes might include observations about the process of
data collection, hunches about what you are learning, and concerns about reactions of participants to the
research process. These ideas can be written as memos—notes written during the research process that reflect
on the process or that help shape the development of codes and themes. In writing these reflective notes, how
do you know whether you are being sufficiently reflexive for a qualitative study? Sufficient reflexivity occurs
when researchers record notes during the process of research, reflect on their own personal experiences, and
consider how their personal experiences may shape their interpretation of results. Also, qualitative researchers
need to limit their discussions about personal experiences so that they do not override the importance of the
content or methods in a study.

Another aspect of reflecting on the role of the researcher is to be aware of connections between the researcher
and the participants or the research sites that may unduly influence the researcher’s interpretations. “Backyard”
research (Glesne & Peshkin, 1992) involves studying the researcher’s own organization, or friends, or
immediate work setting. This often leads to compromises in the researcher’s ability to disclose information
and raises issues of an imbalance of power between the inquirer and the participants. When researchers collect
data at their own workplaces (or when they are in a superior role to participants), the information may be
convenient and easy to collect, but it may not be accurate information and it may jeopardize the roles of the
researchers and the participants. If studying the backyard is essential, then the researcher is responsible for

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showing how the data will not be compromised and how such information will not place the participants (or
the researchers) at risk. In addition, multiple strategies for validation (see approaches to validation later in this
chapter) are necessary to demonstrate the accuracy of the information.

Further, indicate steps taken to obtain permission from the institutional review board (IRB) (see Chapter 4)
to protect the rights of human participants. Attach, as an appendix, the approval letter from the IRB and
discuss the process involved in securing permissions. Discuss steps taken to gain entry to the setting and to
secure permissions to study the participants or situation (Marshall & Rossman, 2016). It is important to gain
access to research or archival sites by seeking the approval of gatekeepers, individuals at the site who provide
access to the site and allow or permit the research to be done. A brief proposal might need to be developed
and submitted for review to gatekeepers. Bogdan and Biklen (1992) advanced topics that could be addressed
in such a proposal:

Why was the site chosen for study?

Comment about sensitive ethical issues that may arise (see Chapter 4). For each issue raised, discuss how the
research study will address it. For example, when studying a sensitive topic, it is necessary to mask names of
people, places, and activities. In this situation, the process for masking information requires discussion in the
proposal.

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Data Collection Procedures
Comments about the role of the researcher set the stage for discussion of issues involved in collecting data.
The data collection steps include setting the boundaries for the study through sampling and recruitment;
collecting information through unstructured or semi-structured observations and interviews, documents, and
visual materials; as well as establishing the protocol for recording information.

Identify the purposefully selected sites or individuals for the proposed study. The idea behind qualitative
research is to purposefully select participants or sites (or documents or visual material) that will best help
the researcher understand the problem and the research question. This does not necessarily suggest
random sampling or selection of a large number of participants and sites, as is typically found in
quantitative research. A discussion of participants and the site might include four aspects identified by
Miles and Huberman (1994): (a) the setting (i.e., where the research will take place), (b) the actors (i.e.,
who will be observed or interviewed), (c) the events (i.e., what the actors will be observed or interviewed
doing), and (d) the process (i.e., the evolving nature of events undertaken by the actors within the
setting).
Discuss the strategies being used to recruit individual (or cases) to the study. This is a challenging aspect
of research. Indicate ways of informing appropriate participants about the study, and cite the actual
recruitment messages sent to them. Discuss ways to provide incentives for individuals to participate, and
reflect on approaches that will be used if one method of recruitment is not successful.
Comment on the number of participants and sites involved in the research. Aside from the small
number that characterizes qualitative research, how many sites and participants should you have? First of
all, there is no specific answer to this question; the literature contains a variety of perspectives (e.g., see
Creswell & Poth, 2018). Sample size depends on the qualitative design being used (e.g., ethnography,
case study). From a review of many qualitative research studies, we have some rough estimates to
advance. Narrative includes one or two individuals; phenomenology involves a range of 3–10; grounded
theory, 20–30; ethnography examines one single culture-sharing group with numerous artifacts,
interviews, and observations; and case studies include about four to five cases. This is certainly one
approach to the sample size issue. Another approach is equally viable. The idea of saturation comes
from grounded theory. Charmaz (2006) said that one stops collecting data when the categories (or
themes) are saturated: when gathering fresh data no longer sparks new insights or reveals new
properties. This is when you have an adequate sample.
Indicate the type or types of data to be collected. In many qualitative studies, inquirers collect multiple
forms of data and spend a considerable time in the natural setting gathering information. The collection
procedures in qualitative research involve four basic types and their strengths and limitations, as shown
in Table 9.2.
A qualitative observation is when the researcher takes field notes on the behavior and activities of
individuals at the research site. In these field notes, the researcher records, in an unstructured or
semi-structured way (using some prior questions that the inquirer wants to know), activities at the

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 research site. Qualitative observers may also engage in roles varying from a nonparticipant to a
complete participant. Typically these observations are open-ended in that the researchers ask
general questions of the participants allowing the participants to freely provide their views.
In qualitative interviews, the researcher conducts face-to-face interviews with participants,
telephone interviews, or engages in focus group interviews with six to eight interviewees in each
group. These interviews involve unstructured and generally open-ended questions that are few in
number and intended to elicit views and opinions from the participants.
During the process of research, the investigator may collect qualitative documents. These may be
public documents (e.g., newspapers, minutes of meetings, official reports) or private documents
(e.g., personal journals and diaries, letters, e-mails).
A final category of qualitative data consists of qualitative audiovisual and digital materials
(including social media materials). This data may take the form of photographs, art objects,
videotapes, website main pages, e-mails, text messages, social media text, or any forms of sound.
Include creative data collection procedures that fall under the category of visual ethnography
(Pink, 2001) and which might include living stories, metaphorical visual narratives, and digital
archives (Clandinin, 2007).
In a discussion about data collection forms, be specific about the types and include arguments
concerning the strengths and weaknesses of each type, as discussed in Table 9.2. Typically, in
good qualitative research the researchers draw on multiple sources of qualitative data to make
interpretations about a research problem.
Include data collection types that go beyond typical observations and interviews. These unusual forms
create reader interest in a proposal and can capture useful information that observations and interviews
may miss. For example, examine the compendium of types of data in Table 9.3 that can be used, to
stretch the imagination about possibilities, such as gathering sounds or tastes, or using cherished items
to elicit comments during an interview. Such stretching will be viewed positively by graduate committee
members and by editors of journals.

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Note: This table includes material adapted from Bogdan & Biklen (1992), Creswell & Poth (2018), and Merriam (1998).

Source: Adapted from Creswell & Poth (2018).

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Data Recording Procedures
Before entering the field, qualitative researchers plan their approach to data recording. The qualitative
proposal or project should identify the procedures the researcher will use for recording data.

Observation protocol. Plan to develop and use a protocol for recording observations in a qualitative study.
Researchers often engage in multiple observations during the course of a qualitative study and use an
observational protocol for recording information while observing. This may be a single page with a
dividing line down the middle to separate descriptive notes (portraits of the participants, a
reconstruction of dialogue, a description of the physical setting, accounts of particular events, or
activities) from reflexive notes (the researcher’s personal thoughts, such as “speculation, feelings,
problems, ideas, hunches, impressions, and prejudices”; Bogdan & Biklen, 1992, p. 121). Also written
on this form might be demographic information about the time, place, and date of the field setting
where the observation takes place.
Interview protocol. Plan to develop and use an interview protocol for asking questions and recording
answers during a qualitative interview. Researchers record information from interviews by making
handwritten notes, by audiotaping, or by videotaping. Even if an interview is taped, we recommend that
researchers take notes in the event that recording equipment fails. If audiotaping is used, researchers
need to plan in advance for the transcription of the tape.

The interview protocol should be about two pages in length. There should be some spaces between the
questions for the interviewer to write short notes and quotes in case the audio-recording device does not work.
The total number of questions should be somewhere between 5 and 10, although no precise number can be
given. It should be prepared in advance of the interview, and used consistently in all of the interviews. It is
helpful for the interviewer to memorize the questions so that he or she does not appear to be simply reading
the interview protocol. The interview protocol consists of several important components. These are basic
information about the interview, an introduction, the interview content questions with probes, and closing
instructions (see also Creswell, 2016). See Figure 9.1.

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