Qualitative Research - Learning Aim C

Qualitative Research - Learning Aim C

Open a blank document ready for the lesson-

• Today’s lesson will include

  
  

  -Question and Answers

  -Tasks

  
  

  -Written Task to be completed in the second half of the lesson when not on teams

Lesson Aim

Apply appropriate research methods to a selected research problem in sport.

P5 State the appropriate research methods for a sport-based research problem.

P6 Demonstrate skills in appropriate research methods to address a selected research problem.

M3 Assess the research methods for a sport-based research problem.

D3 Justify the choice of research methods for a selected sport-based research problem.

Lesson objectives:

•C1 Research designs

•C2 Data collection methods

•C3 Quantitative data analysis methods

•C4 Qualitative research designs

•C5 Qualitative data collection methods

•C6 Qualitative data analysis methods

Qualitative Research Design

•There are four main types of qualitative research design:

•Case Studies

•Historical / Retrospective design

•Grounded Theories

•Ethnographic Design

Multiple Select

What are the four main types of qualitative research?

• laboratory

• case studies

• historical/ retrospective

• grounded theories

• ethnographic design

Case Study

•This research design is where you investigate a particular phenomenon (for example an individual or a team) over a long period of time.

•It takes into account the development of the area of investigation over time and the environment in which the research takes place.

•Multiple case studies can also be used, where two or more cases are examined at the same time.

•Example: a case Study would be suitable to investigate the psychological effects of injury at different stages of injury and recovery . You can use it to investigate one person over a period of time and at different times throughout the stages of injury. This means you can draw conclusions relating to that individual and suggest these conclusions as directions for future research on a larger scale.

Historical / Retrospective Research Design

•Historical or retrospective research is aimed at collecting and analysing data relating to past events to try and explain how or why those events happened.

•An example of this is Gledhill and Forsdyke in 2015 who conducted retrospective interviews with former female football players who had retired from the sport to investigate the role of injury and their decision to retire.

Grounded Theory

•The aim of grounded theory is to produce a theory from the data that you can collect and analyse

•You would usually show the theory you have produced as a diagram.

•For example you could interview former professional players and the people involved in their development and use the information you gathered to develop a theory about the factors that contributed successful career in football

Ethnographic Design

•Ethnographic design aims to study a group or culture by becoming immersed within that group to carry out observations.

•An example is Atkinson in 2007 who used an ethnographic design to study the use of supplements by gym goers who were trying to enhance their masculinity

Task – 15 Minutes

• Using Google – Can you find an example of ethnographic design being used in sport? (google scholar or google advanced search can be used)

• Understand this example and write it in your own words.

• What were the researchers trying to find out?

• What was found?

• How did they do it?

Who were the researchers?

Open Ended

Copy and Paste your example into this box so that I can see..

Qualitative Data Collection Techniques – Interviews

•Interviews can be separated into individual an groups group based interviews. There are three may type main types of individual interview.

-Structured interviews- a set interview plan that you follow without change regardless of the participant responses

-Unstructured interviews- this type of interview has a stark question and then the conversation goes from there. You must be skilled at focusing your conversation to get a lot out of this type of interview.

-Semi structured interviews- an interview that follows the original plan but allows scope for follow up probing questions. If a topic of interest is brought up. This is a good technique as it allows you to get deeper information from your participant through additional questioning as well as giving the participant opportunity to discuss things further .

Reminder – a probing question is a question used to explore a topic further when it appears as part of an interview. Examples of probing questions can include elaboration clarification and prompts to continue .

Focus Groups

•Focus groups are similar to individual interviews but involve more than one participant.

•They are usually between 6 and 12 participants and the researcher acts as a discussion facilitator rather than an interviewer.

•In this context your role as the researcher is to ensure that the focus group keeps to the topic and does not digress.

•Focus groups are more effective if everyone joins in with the discussion.

•They can provide a better quality of data because the discussion gets deeper as the ideas develop. They are good at finding opinions and ideas

Advantages and Disadvantages of interviews

•No one type of interview is perfect - it should be matched to the situation or participant

•interviews are used in qualitative research because they are useful wait for researchers to understand the beliefs, opinions and emotions of participants

•the researcher gets a view of what the participant thinks in their own words

this gives the researcher a greater understanding of the meaning that the participant attaches to their experiences

Open Ended

Task – can you identify 3 strengths of interviews? Can you identify 3 weaknesses of interviews? – be prepared to share with the group. (5 mins)

Conducting Effective Interviews

•Interviews are used in qualitative research as they help you get a lot of information about a topic quickly, but this only works if you developed good interview skills.

•In interviews you will only get answers to questions you ask, if you ask the wrong questions you will never find out what you want.

•To get the most out of an interview establish some form of relationship with your participant by setting the tone of the interview: having a friendly chat before starting or breaking the ice with more general questions at the start that do not need much thought to answer.

•you can then progress to more specific questions likely to lead to more detailed responses

•guide the conversation around your research problem you can then gently probe the participant further to provide you with examples of things they have experienced rather than hypothetical examples.

when interviewing in research a three stage technique is often used

•stage one- the researcher asked the main question for example what motivates you to...? This gets the conversation started.

•Stage two- the researcher asks probing questions for example can you give me a specific example of...? This clarifies or deepens understanding or knowledge.

•Stage three- the researcher asks a follow up question for example so my correct in saying that...?. This gives the researcher the opportunity to cheque they have understood what the participant are said and that is taken in the correct context

remember that listening part of the interview is as important as the speaking part. A good interviewer knows when to keep quiet and listen and went to speak. Do not interrupt the participant when they're speaking as this can prevent them from wanting to answer further questions.

Qualitative Data Collection Techniques – Observations

•Observations are qualitative data collection methods that take place in a natural setting

•they allow you to observe behaviours a participant may not know they display or would not like to disclose during an interview. as such, observations can add a different dimension to research.

•Data is often recorded in field notes, which can be handwritten or typed / recorded on a smartphone. Field notes should describe the activity or setting you are observing. And be as detailed as possible without spending more time writing than observing. You should reflect on your own thoughts and feelings as the researcher during your observations.

Open Ended

•Task- can you think of two advantages of observations and two disadvantages of observations?

Participant and Non Participant Observation

•Participant Observation –

•Participant observation involves you being actively involved in the topic your researching. an example is if you were studying team cohesion in football you could join a football team to observe from the inside and gain your own experiences of cohesion as a player. Data would then be recorded from the field notes with you recording your own thoughts feelings opinions emotions and experiences. This method is useful when trying to discover the more nuanced aspects of group behaviour that are not easy to see from the outside.

•nuance is a very slight , hardly noticeable difference in manner or meaning.

•Non – Participant Observation –

•Non participant observation involves you observing from the outside. There is no interaction with the individuals all the activity that is being observed. For example if you wanted to look at injuries during a basketball match you would watch how many injuries happened and what type of injuries they were, and record the numbers on a data recording sheet.

Case Study – Netball

• •If I wanted to investigate team cohesion and netball using observations. I would need to prepare a proposal for the approval panel. There would be different types of observation that I could use.

  
  

  •I could join a netball team and take part in participant observation I will be able to then record filled notes surrounding my own thoughts feelings and opinions and emotions and experiences that surround team cohesion within the netball team. This would be a positive because I would be able to understand what it would feel like to be a participant in the team. However I would not understand will be able to potentially get the correct type of data because I might misunderstand what I'm seeing or how I'm feeling because I'm too focused on my own performance.

  
  

  •I could also take part in non participant observation of the netball team and go and watch the netball teams training sessions and social events as a non participant observer. This should be positive because I would see participants in the natural settings rather than in a research setting and I'll be able to identify behaviours that may not be apparent to the person had I just asked him questions surrounding team cohesion. It may be a negative to take part in non participant observation because I may be misunderstanding what I'm seeing and therefore it may not be a true reflection on the team as a whole. Participants of the team may also know that I am there observing and not act naturally within their environment this would mean that they are tainting the data that I'm collectin

Break

We have looked at so far -

Qualitative Research Designs and Qualitative Data Collection Techniques

Qualitative Data Analysis Methods

Selecting an appropriate method of analysis for your qualitative data is an important aspect of the research process. Three common qualitative data analysis methods are content analysis, coding and thematic analysis.

Content Analysis

• Qualitative content analysis is an umbrella term used to describe methods of analysing qualitative communications- such as interviews or focus groups- with a specific focus on the context in which the communication took place and the content of the communication.

• Involves you looking at the content of the interview and grouping different data together under themes, which are then refined and developed in your final data analysis.

• the key differences between this and other methods is that content analysis does not aim to develop a specific theory in the same way as other methods do . Is more flexible in its use than thematic analysis

Coding

•coding involves organising raw data [sentences, phrases or words from your questionnaires or interviews] into categories. Each category must have a valid heading and a rule for inclusion which helps to decide on which category to place each piece of data.

•Rule for inclusion means a statement used to define which data is included in a category.

•an example of this is if you were researching the factors affecting talent development in football you could have a category called the importance of parental support. A rule for inclusion could be a statement made refers to concrete support given to players from parent for example the purchase of playing kit or transport to matches being either a positive or negative influence on the players development.

•before starting coding you should read and reread your transcribed data to gain an in depth understanding of that data. The process starts with open coding.

Coding cont.

•Open coding is data that is broken down and examined. Your aim is to identify all the key statements in the interviews relating to the aims of your research and your research problem. After identifying the key statement you can start to put the key points into categories but each category must be given a suitable heading. When you start to organise your data into categories you have started the coding process.

•axial coding - the next stage is to put the data back together part of this process means re reading the data you've collected so that you can give precise explanations about your area of interest. To do this you need to refine the categories that you started to create during open coding. During this stage you may develop new categories.

•Selective coding- involves finalising your categories so that you can group them together when you group them together you'll produce different diagrams to show how your contact categories linked together . When you group them together you will produce different diagrams to show how your categories linked together. The key part of this is to select a main category that will form the focal point of your diagram. You also need to look for data that contradicts previous research rather than data that supports it. This helps you make better arguments and draw more conclusions based on your data.

Multiple Select

what are the three types of coding?

• Axial

• Open

• Selective

• Responsive

• Reactive

Thematic Analysis

• Thematic analysis is a common qualitative data analysis technique originally put forward by Braun and Clarke in 2006.

  •It is different to other methods of qualitative data analysis as it has six stages or steps that you progressed through to reach your final analysis.

  •This process is useful for some novice qualitative researchers as it provides a framework for analysis that you can follow while still offering you flexibility of qualitative analysis

Thematic Analysis - Info on each stage in next slide.

Step by step explained-

1.Immersion- become familiar with your data by, for example, reading interview transcripts repeatedly so that you gain a deep understanding.

2.Generate initial codes- create codes across the full data set and produce a list of all of them . You can ensure that you have included all the relevant data under each code.

3.Search for an identify themes- think more broadly beyond codes and progress to more general themes. Identify codes that are relevant to each other , group them together into a theme, and then give them at work in title. At this stage, you would usually produce a thematic map - a form of my map - that shows how different codes linked together to form a particular theme.

4.Refined themes- think critically about the themes that you produced in Step 3, looking at, for example, any potential overlap or repetition so that you can produce themes that more succinctly represent the data. while doing this, consider any data that did not fall into any of the codes at step one and see if you can fit them into your themes.

5.Define a name themes- white short definition about the content of the theme and give the theme and name that accurately represents the content. This is another opportunity to ensure that your themes are not too broad as by writing your description of the theme you will be further reflecting on the content of each theme.

6.Write the report- write your report of the thematic analysis you should use quotes or extracts from the data that clearly demonstrate the themes in your study. Even at this stage you should reflect on your analysis so far to ensure that it fairly represents the data you collected.

Task - What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of using thematic analysis?

Write these on your word document and then be prepared to copy over. You have 10 minutes to do this. You can do extra research to help.

Open Ended

What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of using thematic analysis?

Stages of Qualitative Data Analysis

•Data reduction –

This is the process of taking all the data that you have for example field notes from observations and interview transcripts and organising this data into more manageable chunks. This is done in different ways and can involve any of the methods of qualitative data analysis explored in the previous few slides (content analysis, coding or thematic analysis).

when going through the stage you might be tempted to permanently discard some of your data. However you should avoid doing this until your project is finished and you are certain that you no longer need it.

•Displaying data-

there are many different ways to display your data. The way you display it will affect the argument or point that you're trying to make. For instance event diagram is used to show interactions between aspects of the data whereas a cycle diagram shows it as a process. diagramming is a technique that you can use throughout your data analysis to help you understand the relationships between different aspects of your data as well as at the end of your data analysis to represent these relationships.

•Venn Diagrams

Consist of two or more overlapping circles. They show how different topics relate to each other. 

Radial Diagram / Spider Diagram

•illustrates a relationship where each item is linked to a central item. This diagram could be thought of as simple organisation chart that starts from the centre rather than the top.

Network diagram -

•shows the hierarchy between different ideas.

Circle Diagram -

shows at the stages in a process as a continuous cycle . The process is shown as a cycle with a break at each stage and an Arrowhead to show the direction of the process.

Drawing Conclusions and Verifying Data

Your data analysis should allow you to draw meaningful conclusions about your data then verify these conclusions. Doing this can help you to ensure the validity and reliability of your research. Two common techniques used to do this are triangulation an member checking.

•Triangulation – Can refer to using different data collection methods in the same study to cheque that similar data is produced. For example you could use interviews and questionnaires so you could use the same interviews with different types of participants such as athletes and coaches. Alternatively it can refer to asking different researchers to collect data and independently draw conclusions before checking their findings with each other.

•Member checking - you complete your data analysis and draw conclusions relating to the aims of the study. You can then show the analysis to the participants who took part in the research so they can check that you have understood and communicated everything correctly if they agree with your analysis you can say the data is valid.

Multiple Select

Tick the 4 types of diagrams that can be used to present data

• Radial

• Venn

• Network

• Circle

• Reach

Poll

How did you find todays lesson? Was it interactive?

• Yes

• No

• Unsure

Open Ended

What did you like about the lesson? What could be improved?

Well Done

Now please go to google classroom and look for Unit 9- Learning Aim C - Qualitative.

On here you have - A question and answer sheet, and today's presentation.

Please complete the question and answer sheet using your own examples. You cannot use the ones I have put on the slides. Use references throughout. If you are defining something where have you found that definition? Don't copy the slide!!!