Qualitative Research Methods Social Sciences
Chapter 1 Introduction
Research as a function of science may conjure stereotypical ideas and images common for most people. My imagination produces a laboratory full of test tubes and bubbling beakers, microscopes, and smoky explosions. This type of research methodology is quantitative in nature used to produce statistical information by measuring data. Social scientists do not normally utilize this method due to the lack of information produced beyond that which can be measured. Social science is meant to produce data about people in society and the challenges that face them. Research sociologists attempting to solve social problems depend on qualitative research to answer the why, what, and where about topics they are studying (Lume and Berg 2017). Compared to quantitative procedures a researcher of qualitative methods has the additional challenge of vetting the data they collect which proves more complicated due to the difficult task of measuring human thoughts, experiences, and opinions to satisfy the requirements necessary of scientific discovery. Symbolic Interaction is a sociological theory that works to explain the meaning behind symbols and like qualitative research is about digging deeper to find root causes and meanings impacting the social world. My own research project will rely on respondents personal accounts and my own experience and observations about the Western practice of mindful meditation. Ideas are still forming in my brain about finding ways to operationalize acceptable measuring systems to support claims generated from my study. Proving my findings are valid is my true obstacle when asking the question, “Is Western adaptation of Buddhist mindful meditation effective?”. Qualitative methods of research are often often combined to validate each other in a technique introduced in this text as, triangulation (Lune and Berg 2017). According to the authors, Lune and Berg, each method has a different point of view or “line of sight” such that using multiple methods will expand your view ensuring it is closer to reality (2017). Interactionist theory will be the sociological perspective used in my project to understand if meditation is equally effective when using a condensed version of the ancient Eastern traditional meditation. To gather data the methods I use will focus on identifying patterns in accounts reported by respondents in the study group. I plan on getting information about how my participants life worlds have been effected once they started practicing meditation. Using qualitative research in social science is about investigating the life worlds of individuals which includes emotions, motivations, symbols and their meanings , empathy, and other subjective aspects associated with naturally evolving lives of individuals and groups (Lune and Berg 2017). This subjective way of researching society takes a look past statistics to understand why and how the statistic came to be. If I told you 75% of females who meditate have increased metabolisms the next thing you will wonder is why, and how, and qualitative research is the method to use when we want these answers
Howard Lune, Bruce L. Berg (2017) Qualitative Research Methods for the Social Sciences 9th Edition (QRMSS), Pearson Education.
Visual Research Methods:
Image, Society,& Representation
Chapter 2 Observing Culture and Social Life: Documentary Photography, Fieldwork and Social Research
Qualitative research has a bad reputation for not providing fact-based information. Pictures are one way social scientists can capture human interactions that provide factual record of information observed in data collection. As textbooks and instruction manuals provide supplemental pictures to support data photos can likewise validate qualitative research study results and provide optics for a frame of reference. In Chapter 2 of our Visual Research Methods book the author follows examples done by photographers who document information with a desire to explain and demonstrate an idea regarding the content giving them duality as a photographer in a sociologist role. The motivation may not be scientific but the detail of human experience recorded by these photographers is useful on a documentary level. Jon Wagner delivers detailed analysis that descriptively explains all the ways a picture can enhance social science research and support empirical inquiry by assisting in the collection and analysis of new data. Each step introduces choices photographers employ in every phase of capturing and developing an image (Stanczak 2007). "Even realist landscape photographers such as Ansel Adams have adjusted the tone, contrast, and framing, to better express their own strongly held ideas about how the places they photographed "should look"( Stanczak p.32, 2007). '
In our text Wagner uses three projects he refers to as exemplary that take on the theory of symbolic interactionism to illustrate with symbolic images the life worlds of their subject matter. The first example, Material World: A Global Family Portrait, is a look into social and economic inequality. Menzel, the photographer uses the families possessions or status symbols arranged outside of their home to demonstrate their economic status. Symbolic interactionist have connected material objects and consumerism to study many aspects of sociology. Menzel provides a visual of this ideology that is impactful. Girl Culture, a study by Lauren Greenfield, uses images of girls and women to express different concepts of what it means to be of this gender in our society. Symbolic interaction is key to Greenfields depiction of different objects, expressions, and ideas the women hold when asked to portray themselves as being part of this culture. The last example is The Great Central Valley: California's Heartland, by photographers Stephen Johnson and Robert Dawson, and essayist and novelist Gerald Haslam. This work was produced to show changes that occurred in this region of California with visuals, text, and personal accounts providing a rich detailed description. This was done using digital photography with aerials of landscapes and visually informative pieces that textual data could not successfully relate.
Images reinforce facts and my research images would probably illustrate an intense group scene of deep successful meditation or perhaps before and after photos documenting an improved state of being. Pictures summon a reaction in those being photographed typically posing or offering an unrealistic version from reality. Research requires a realistic account of the subject matter and this is why the photographer has such a creative spectrum of methods to present the most accurate account. Social Interaction theory provides the basis of how audiences will receive these images as sources of data primarily according to their own culture and experiences different meanings will be attached (Stanczak 2007).
As a form of observational data collection documentary photography has a arsenal of useful advantages that social researchers can access long after the fieldwork has been completed.
Gregory C. Stanczak (2007) Visual Research Methods: Image, Society, and Representation (VRMISR), Sage
Publications
QRMM
Chapter 2: Designing Qualitative Research
According to Berg and Lune, proper project design is critical for organization and preparation when conducting social research (2007). Designs help guide research ideas generated and formed by concepts which can be developed into scientific theory. Functionalism in theory is a good way to approach designing a research project. By taking the project and breaking it down ensuring each of the steps is designed to facilitate the researcher in a successful outcome the design is like a choreographed dance. The first step is to formulate a clear research question which usually gains clarity and becomes refined as the research evolves. My own research question has been three different ideas and still needs some fine tuning I assume the question will continue changing shape until the data analysis is finished. My research topic of meditation was limited to few peer reviewed articles with quite specific areas of study these were inspiration to create my own question. By searching for published articles related to your research question the initial step in research, a literary review, must be performed to obtain a foundational understanding of all ideas, conceptions, and theories previously presented on the topic. A literary review provides tools needed when framing a research question. Once immersed into the subject topic you can then find an angle to uncover and successfully contribute to its body of social science discoveries (Berg and Lune 2007). The authors explain how being creative when searching for content related to your question is a critical matter when conducting a literary review. Upon my own quest for peer reviewed articles on the benefits of group meditation my creativity did not aid in producing any useful results. Now beginning to question if research studies on group meditation assume a stigma I have not uncovered keeping it from being researched adjustments may be necessary. One option is apparent in the design phase foreshadowing lack of content provides clarity allowing me to rephrase my entire question in order to get more material for my literary review. Another challenge I will face and a key topic in chapter 2 is formation of operational definitions. For instance defining "meditation" and "effective" will present some difficulty for me (Lune and Berg 2017). As interaction theory illustrates each individual has a uniquely personal way of understanding the same terms which will vary in comparison. It is the researchers responsibility in designing a study to inform the audience and subjects uniform definitions of keywords for the purpose of the project. Formally dictating to the audience how to comprehend certain key words deserving an operational definition that will be appropriate for all seems overwhelming. I believe I am on the right track in visualizing and anticipating potential problems my project will present and by identifying elements like these you will avoid them. Data collection needs to be carefully planned for and the question of how your study will be conducted and what will the data be (Lune and Berg 2017). This is the operationalization of the project from your question you must decide and plan on what the methods will be in your study. In my study my data will be the personal accounts of people meditating for the first time and also long time practitioners; I have thought about issuing a stress test to both groups to help triangulate the interviews and need one more method of measurement. Organization of data is crucial when designing the experiment because you cannot collect data until you know how it should be organized to be properly analyzed (Lune and Berg 2017). Organizing your data entails coding and retrieval systems for use when analyzing and reducing data. Patterns will be identified during the analysis phase which the text refers to as data displays and conclusions and verifications wrap it all up. The fial step is to present the data findings from your in a professional and academic arena. The entire research design should be documented and conducted in a way that allows for replication by other researchers.
Howard Lune, Bruce L. Berg (2017) Qualitative Research Methods for the Social Sciences 9th Edition (QRMSS), Pearson Education.
QRMMS
Chapter 3: Ethical Issues
Social research is a delicate task which depends on voluntary consent from subjects who rely on the researcher to represent them and conduct the study in an ethical way. As a Sociology student with an optimistic personality hoping to help solve social problems it is unnatural for me to even imagine doing harm to human beings participating in research studies. As our textbook explains through many examples across history unethical research studies have been conducted to such extremes the only solution was to install protections by enforcing an ethical code. By using this code potential risks pertaining to confidentiality, anonymity, and potential harm concerning human research subjects is now consciously detected and avoided (Berg and Lune 2017). Unfortunately these ethical standards were not available to prevent the horrific treatment of 400 African American men from the horrendous violations they endured while participating in the U.S. Public Health study known as the Tuskegee Syphilis Study (Lune and Berg 2017). Conflict theory would suggest the men conducting the experiment were exercising their white male dominance, including abusing their prestige and power as scientists, to lie and physically harm these participants to observe what happened to their bodies during the course of syphilis. After a cure was discovered efforts were made to keep it from the men who were led to believe they were getting treatment while the research team waited to autopsy their dead bodies. After the participants deaths they regained access by offering the families "free burials", omitting the fact that it was to facilitate an autopsy. The project was discovered and terminated in 1971 for having been "ethically unjustified", standing out as one of the worst examples of violation in ethics concerning human subjects (Lune and Berg 2017, p.35). This botched project exposed a complete disregard for participant consent and the intentional elimination of autonomy. The combination of other unethical incidents around the same time by Nazi scientists led to raised awareness and construction of the Nuremberg Code of 1949. This German policy was the first official legislation passed regulating research on human subjects and
introduced the rule of voluntary consent (Lune and Berg 2017)). After a long dileberation process the US Surgeon General produced the first PHS guidelines in 1966 (Lune and Berg 2017). Deciding on a single code for the entire biomedical field of research was a challenge and in the end a PHS committee was charged with the judgement and responsibility of enforcing the scientific ethical standards of doing no harm and providing informed consent to human participants.
After ethical standards for conducting scientific research using humans were established additional
To obtain funding, proposals for research are dissected by a institutional review board (IRB).
and many do not agree with this process seeing IRB's as barriers to academic research. This IRB will consist of staff at a university with a job to review and assess potential ethical violations or risk of harm to subjects of qualitative research evaluating the risk versus the scientific reward when deciding to approve or reject research proposals (Lune and Berg 2017). The criteria for evaluating risk in qualitative research have been criticized by many sociologists. When the data collected is informing some major phenomena or provides data that is beneficial to the greater good, broken ethical codes are considered permissible. My own research study on meditation lacks any potential harm for participants as long I follow the ethical standards outlined in this chapter. If I go along with these guidelines I can assure no damage to respondents will occur. For the course research project, myself and the professor, will hold the responsibility of identifying any ethical violations in my proposal.For my meditation study I can't foresee any potential harm as far as the methods i will be using to collect data my only concern is to provide confidentiality in order to protect volunteers who cooperate with me.
Howard Lune, Bruce L. Berg (2017) Qualitative Research Methods for the Social Sciences 9th Edition (QRMSS), Pearson Education.
Visual Research Methods
Chapter 3: All Photos Lie: Images as Data
When a photographers role is documenting qualitative research data for recording and analysis the impact of a true account comes into question. 150 years into a historical debate that first started to question and analyze side effects introduced by a photographer's manipulation to aspects of reality within their control. More specifically questions of how levels of integrity along with their intention impacts the message often distorted and baked into the viewers perception (Staczak 2007). The author offers some clarity to this great debate by claiming all data incurs some level of error, therefore in our perception we should be aware of this fact and be able to identify the sources to decide if errors are diminishing the idea that is being presented as reality. Anyone who uses social media is aware of how powerful tools of transformation are available when editing photographic images. Pictures can be altered on multiple levels in editing and subject manipulation creating a distortion far removed the essence of the realistic subject matter. Stacznak strongly states his stance claiming, “All photos lie”, an opinion given by a photography expert who understands why a picture is incapable of replicating reality. Intention of the person who is photographing research subject matter can influence the images in various ways by the choices made to convey a message to the editing tools used that are misleading to the audience (Staczak 2007). Specifically, when an image is received the viewer response is constructed from the content, perception, intention, and context created by the photographer’s creative subconscious and delivered to them as a recorded moment representing reality. The implicit level of fraud committed by documentary photographers is more likely unintentional. I can see the temptation to intentionally manipulate photographs to reinforce a concept that is difficult to describe by other methods of measurement. For my specific study one purpose images as data could be applied is explaining the operational definitions. If group meditations can be viewed and properly conceptualized from visual data record the result will bring the concepts purpose and premise to life. Visual aids provide alternate data analysis by backing concepts that are confusing, provide recorded personal accounts connecting research to respondents. and results to reality. Images will be used in my project as supporting data providing a medium to deliver supplemental descriptions for concepts and providing images of the operational definitions clearing up any possible doubt of subject matter.
Gregory C. Stanczak (2007) Visual Research Methods: Image, Society, and Representation (VRMISR), Sage Publications