This article describes some of the key issues in the use of qualitative research methods. Starting with a description of what qualitative research is and outlining some of the distinguishing features between quantitative and qualitative research, examples of the type of setting where qualitative research can be applied are provided. Methods of collecting information through in-depth interviews ...

There is more to guidelines for qualitative research reports than that proposed in Smith-Sebasto (2000). Our response to the article illustrates a range of alternativesto the positionand criteria outlined by Smith-Sebasto.We draw on examples from across the wider literature to explore themes and issues regarding the purpose(s) of guidelines, their content and how they are structured. Our core a...

Weak external validity of qualitative data has been a subject of debate outside and within the field of qualitative health research. Though some narratives have the power to reveal universal existential issues and inform theoretical development, each story remains unique and cannot be generalized. If the goal of qualitative researchers is to have narrative knowledge effect social change, we are...

This paper explains the significance of the interpretive approach in the regime of qualitative research which underscores the search of the meanings in human cultures and subjectivities in the human behavior. Its overall emphasis has been on the processes, stages, and goals of conventional ethnographic research, qualitative data analysis and their presentation in the academic and professional r...

The growth of qualitative research holds the potential for vastly enriching our understanding of phenomena in the health sciences. However, the potential of this trend is hampered by a widespread inability of quantitative and qualitative researchers to talk to each other. The authors' concern in this area grows out of our experience reviewing small grant applications for the National Institute ...

The aim of this article is to illustrate in detail important issues that research beginners may have to deal with during the design of a qualitative research proposal in nursing and health care. Cristina Vivar has developed a 17-step process to describe the development of a qualitative research project. This process can serve as an easy way to start research and to ensure a comprehensive and th...

In this article attention is focused on access to data; a process that tends to be taken for granted and which in practice takes time and energy from the person who investigates. Access implies a process of contacting key people in institutions; negotiating with them, being invited to obtain data, achieving formal permission, and--finally--constructing relationships with the participants. Acces...

This article examines the many ethical challenges that are specific to qualitative research. These challenges concern the issues of informed consent procedures, the researcher-participant relationship, risk-benefit ratio, confidentiality and the dual role of the nurse-researcher. Each challenge will be examined and practical examples of how it was dealt with, using examples from a multiple case...

BACKGROUND Participation in the Paralympic Games has grown substantially, yet the same growth and development has not occurred with empirical literature for coaching in disability sport. OBJECTIVE The purpose of the current study was to explore Paralympic coaches' perceptions of their learning and educational experiences, including their formal and informal mentoring opportunities. METHODS ...