Deck 6: Qualitative Research

Question 1

Qualitative research methods focus on which of the following kinds of data?

A) Numbers and "counting things."
B) Words and images.
C) Numbers and words.
D) All of the above.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Use of qualitative methods would be appropriate if a research question relates to:

A) Determining whether a relationship exists between two variables.
B) Inferring whether sample descriptors are characteristic of those in a larger population.
C) Rich descriptions of people's lived experience.
D) Comparing differences in outcome variables for different groups.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following represent reasons for using qualitative research methods?

A) When very little is known about a topic and initial exploration is needed to even begin to know what to study.
B) When there is interest in studying participants' reactions to a natural setting or process to determine their experience of it, the meaning they ascribe to it, or their interpretation of it.
C) When the goal is to develop new explanatory theory that is grounded in reality or the lived experience.
D) All of the above

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Strengths of the qualitative approach include which of the following?

A) Depth of understanding, flexibility, and lower expenses.
B) Flexibility, breadth of understanding, and lower expenses.
C) Breadth of understanding, subjectivity, and no statistical analysis.
D) Generalizability, depth of understanding, and high productivity.

Question 5

Limitations of the qualitative approach include which of the following?

A) Limited generalizability.
B) Subjectivity.
C) Inflexibility.
D) Both a and b.

Question 6

The term saturation refers to:

A) The rich descriptions qualitative methods produce.
B) When no new information emerges from data collection.
C) The inherent subjectivity of qualitative methods.
D) A data analysis method characteristic of qualitative research.

Question 7

Which of the following is not an interview method used in qualitative research?

A) Open or unstructured interviews.
B) Semi-structured interviews.
C) Informal conversations.
D) Interviews using a number of predefined responses.

Question 8

The focus group method of data collection may be indicated in which of the following situations?

A) When the research phenomenon of interest is highly personal and sensitive in nature.
B) When the research question is exploratory in nature.
C) When respondents have communication difficulties.
D) When the group facilitator is a beginning researcher with limited experience.

Question 9

Which of the following statements best captures the difference between pure observation and participant observation?

A) In pure observation, the researcher remains apart from the group, but in participant observation, the researcher becomes actively involved in the research setting.
B) In pure observation, the researcher is not subject to observer bias, but in participant observation, the researcher is influenced by observer bias.
C) In pure observation, the researcher observes only one individual, but in participant observation, the researcher observes multiple individuals simultaneously.
D) In pure observation, the researcher does not collect field notes, but merely observes behavior as it occurs; in participant observation, the researcher collects extensive field notes to record the behaviors observed.

Question 10

Which of the following represent strengths of the observational data collection method?

A) Eliminates the need to rely on respondents' self-report.
B) Avoids the problems of social desirability and recall.
C) Allows inclusion of nonverbal subjects in research.
D) All of the above.

Question 11

Limitations of the observational data collection method include which of the following:

A) Behavior that the researcher observes in a specified segment of time is not always an accurate representation of typical behavior.
B) It is difficult to observe all behaviors that occur because observers tend to become distracted by the environment.
C) Observer interference may result in meanings being assigned to behaviors that differ from the meanings those being observed would assign to the same behavior.
D) Both a and c.

Question 12

Purposive sampling methods are typically utilized in qualitative research to:

A) Maximize the time available for data analysis since purposive sampling is less time-consuming than other sampling strategies.
B) Minimize the costs associated with generating a representative sample.
C) Create samples that are likely to yield rich knowledge regarding the phenomenon of interest.
D) Create samples that will yield results that are generalizable to a larger population.

Question 13

Snowball sampling

A) Relies on the referral process to provide information to further the sampling process.
B) Is based on the idea that people often know others in situations similar to their own.
C) Is useful for locating hard-to-access populations.
D) All of the above.

Question 14

This method of sampling focuses on cases that do not fit the usual pattern and represent the extremes of a phenomenon of interest:

A) Deviant cases sampling.
B) Snowball sampling.
C) Purposive sampling.
D) Quota sampling.

Question 15

Employing a quota sampling strategy would be appropriate in the following circumstances:

A) Limited funds are available to support the research project and the number of subjects recruited must be tightly controlled.
B) When the researcher wants to build trusting relationships with the population of interest.
C) The research question focuses on a population that has distinct categories of membership or participation.
D) When a homogenous population is the focus of the research question.

Question 16

The role of gatekeepers in qualitative research sampling is:

A) To help the researchers achieve access to the participants.
B) To enable researches to build trusting relationships with the population of interest.
C) To protect the confidentiality of potential research participants.
D) Both a and b.

Question 17

This qualitative research method yields a rich, detailed, and in-depth description and analysis of a single unit or small number of units:

A) Mixed method design.
B) Ethnography.
C) Case study.
D) Grounded theory.

Question 18

This qualitative research method aims to understand an entire culture, subculture, or social group through extensive participant observation:

A) Ethnography.
B) Phenomenology.
C) Mixed method design.
D) Case study.

Question 19

This qualitative research method seeks to generate theory that arises from the data itself rather than being generated a priori based on the researcher's knowledge and experience:

A) Phenomenology.
B) Case study.
C) Mixed method design.
D) Grounded theory.

Question 20

This qualitative research method aims to capture the essence or meaning of the lived experience, or the individual's perception of his or her being in the world:

A) Grounded theory.
B) Case study.
C) Phenomenology.
D) Ethnography.

Question 21

The purpose of this method within the qualitative tradition is to generate a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon of interest by expanding the scope of the research:

A) Case study
B) Ethnography.
C) Phenomenology.
D) Mixed method design.

Question 22

Preparing qualitative data for analysis often involves which of the following:

A) Reviewing and editing for errors.
B) Transcribing the data to a word processing program or other textual analysis tool.
C) Labeling different types of information.
D) All of the above.

Question 23

An advantage of using a computer-assisted qualitative data analysis software program is:

A) Such programs perform data analysis for the researcher.
B) Such programs are available at no cost to the researcher.
C) Such programs aid the analysis of text by making the process less manual.
D) Such programs take very little time to learn even for individuals who have limited proficiency in using computers.

Question 24

A key difference between qualitative and quantitative research methods in terms of data analysis is that:

A) In qualitative research, data collection and data analysis occur simultaneously, whereas in quantitative research data analysis occurs after data collection in complete.
B) In qualitative research, researchers often specifically look for outliers, whereas in quantitative research, outliers are typically excluded.
C) In qualitative research, data analysis does not follow a systematic process, whereas in quantitative, data analysis is very systematic and rigorous.
D) Both a and b.

Question 25

The four major steps of the qualitative data analysis process occur in the following order:

A) Developing the story, organizing the data into concepts, reporting the findings, and maximizing rigor by validating conclusions.
B) Organizing the data into concepts, developing the story, maximizing rigor by validating conclusions, and reporting the findings.
C) Organizing the data into concepts, maximizing rigor by validating conclusions, developing the story, and reporting findings.
D) Maximizing rigor by validating conclusions, developing the story, organizing the data into concepts, and reporting the findings.

Question 26

Maximizing the rigor of qualitative data analysis by validating the conclusions includes all but one of the following:

A) Triangulation.
B) Respondent validation.
C) Attention to negative cases.
D) Maximizing statistical power.

Question 27

Describe one of the characteristics of a research question when qualitative methods would be indicated.

Question 28

List the three primary strengths of qualitative research methods.

Question 29

List the two primary criticisms or weaknesses of qualitative research methods.

Question 30

What is the aim of qualitative research?

Question 31

What makes a good qualitative research sample?

Question 32

For what types of research situation would a focus group be appropriate?

Question 33

What is the difference between the research aims of ethnography compared to phenomenology?

Question 34

When would a mixed method research design be indicated?

Question 35

In coding qualitative data during analysis, the researcher must attend to both the etic and the emic perspectives. What is the difference between these two approaches?

Question 36

How does theoretical coding differ from open coding?