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1 – 10 of over 101000
Article
Publication date: 1 September 2005

Clive Boddy

This paper seeks to highlight the current confusion in the terminology for group research, identify the geographic, historical and scientific sources of this confusion and suggest…

4766

Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to highlight the current confusion in the terminology for group research, identify the geographic, historical and scientific sources of this confusion and suggest a reduction in the number of terms used to two, thereby offering a definition on which researchers from different cultural backgrounds and scientific traditions may be able to agree.

Design/methodology/approach

A review of the academic and practitioner literature on qualitative group research in academic, social and market research indicates that various terms for groups are used interchangeably and are often assumed to have the same meaning. These terms include; Focus Group, Group Discussion, Group Interview, Group, Focus Group Interview, Focus Group Discussion, Qualitative Group Discussion and Nominal Group Interview.

Practical implications

The contribution of this paper is that it offers a resolution of this issue and so allows researchers from across geographic borders, different scientific traditions and from both academic and practitioner backgrounds to talk to one another in a common language.

Originality/value

This issue of differences in terminology for groups has largely been ignored by researchers and this paper hopes to bring some clarity and understanding of the key differences between focus group interviews and focus group discussions.

Details

Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, vol. 8 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1352-2752

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 September 2016

Elisabeth E. Bennett and Rochell R. McWhorter

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of qualitative research in causality, with particular emphasis on process causality. In one paper, it is not possible to discuss…

1193

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of qualitative research in causality, with particular emphasis on process causality. In one paper, it is not possible to discuss all the issues of causality, but the aim is to provide useful ways of thinking about causality and qualitative research. Specifically, a brief overview of the regularity theory of causation is provided, qualitative research characteristics and ontological and epistemological views that serve as a potential conceptual frame to resolve some tensions between quantitative and qualitative work are discussed and causal processes are explored. This paper offers a definition and a model of process causality and then presents findings from an exploratory study that advanced the discussion beyond the conceptual frame.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper first conceptually frames process causality within qualitative research and then discusses results from an exploratory study that involved reviewing literature and interviewing expert researchers. The exploratory study conducted involved analyzing multiple years of literature in two top human resource development (HRD) journals and also exploratory expert interviews. The study was guided by the research question: How might qualitative research inform causal inferences in HRD? This study used a basic qualitative approach that sought insight through inductive analysis within the focus of this study.

Findings

The exploratory study found that triangulation, context, thick description and process research questions are important elements of qualitative studies that can improve research that involves causal relationships. Specifically, qualitative studies provide both depth of data collection and descriptive write-up that provide clues to cause-and-effect relationships that support or refute theory.

Research limitations/implications

A major conclusion of this study is that qualitative research plays a critical role in causal inference, albeit an understated one, when one takes an enlarged philosophical view of causality. Equating causality solely with variance theory associated with quantitative research leaves causal processes locked in a metaphoric black box between cause and effect, whereas qualitative research opens up the processes and mechanisms contained within the box.

Originality/value

This paper reframed the discussion about causality to include both the logic of quantitative studies and qualitative studies to demonstrate a more holistic view of causality and to demonstrate the value of qualitative research for causal inference. Process causality in qualitative research is added to the mix of techniques and theories found in the larger discussion of causality in HRD.

Details

European Journal of Training and Development, vol. 40 no. 8/9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-9012

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 September 2020

Stephanie Anne Shelton and Maureen A. Flint

Transcription is an integral component to qualitative research, and as such, the ways that researchers discuss transcription in the literature matter. Scholarly discussions on the…

Abstract

Purpose

Transcription is an integral component to qualitative research, and as such, the ways that researchers discuss transcription in the literature matter. Scholarly discussions on the “how” and “why” of transcription not only shape discourse within interview data-based fields; they inform the ways that researchers understand the roles and ramifications of transcribing. This study aims to provide a comprehensive literature review of articles on transcription published in qualitative methods journals over the past 25 years, offering implications for research practice and pedagogy.

Design/methodology/approach

The literature review asked: How do qualitative researchers discuss transcription/transcribing? The authors first reviewed how transcription was discussed in the literature in qualitative studies in the social sciences broadly. Based on the findings, the authors then conducted a comprehensive literature review in 14 qualitative methods journals.

Findings

The authors found that overall, authors discussed transcription either as a technical tool or as a complex, researcher-constructed process. Specifically, utilitarian discussions of transcription emphasized transcription accuracy and efficiency, while theoretical discussions of transcription emphasized a continuously analytic and researcher-constructed process.

Originality/value

This study offers a comprehensive overview of the past 25 years of articles published on transcription. The authors conclude with a discussion of articles that bridge the theoretical and utilitarian discussions, as well as considerations for using transcription as a pedagogical tool for teaching qualitative research methods.

Article
Publication date: 8 January 2018

Leo Appleton

In the modern “student focused” university setting, quality assurance and continual service improvement have become more and more important in the delivery of academic library…

Abstract

Purpose

In the modern “student focused” university setting, quality assurance and continual service improvement have become more and more important in the delivery of academic library services. Working in partnership with their students, academic libraries can enable meaningful engagement, through qualitative methods which allow individual students to contribute to performance measurement activities and service development. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how qualitative methods can be used to engage students in the performance measurement activities of academic libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a review of relevant literature, discussion around the main themes and some case study examples, this paper illustrates how effective student engagement through qualitative methods can contribute to the quality assurance, performance measurement and ultimate service improvement of academic libraries.

Findings

The paper focuses specifically on focus group and reflective methods and also details some elements of user experience (UX) which brings together different qualitative techniques available for academic libraries. The paper concludes with a feature case study which discusses how meaningful student engagement was achieved through a large-scale UX project at the University of the Arts, London.

Originality/value

The paper brings together many different discussions around qualitative methods in performance measurement and is original in its discussions around such activity as student engagement initiatives.

Details

Information and Learning Science, vol. 119 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-5348

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 February 2021

Kiara S. Summerville, Erica T. Campbell, Krystal Flantroy, Ashley Nicole Prowell and Stephanie Anne Shelton

Qualitative research consistently centers Eurocentrism through courses' integrations of ontological, epistemological and axiological perspectives. This literal whitewashing was a…

Abstract

Purpose

Qualitative research consistently centers Eurocentrism through courses' integrations of ontological, epistemological and axiological perspectives. This literal whitewashing was a source of great frustration and confusion for the authors, four Black women, who found their identities omitted and disregarded in qualitative inquiry. Using Collins' outsider-within concept and collective narratives to center their experiences, the authors seek through their writing to actively repurpose and re-engage with qualitative scholarship that generally seeks to exclude Black women.

Design/methodology/approach

Theoretically informed by Collins' outsider-within concept, the authors use Deleuze and Parnet's collective biography to tell the stories of four Black doctoral students negotiating race, gender, class and intellectual identity, while critiquing Eurocentric theory, through coursework. The collaborative writing process provided shared space for the engagement of individual thoughts and experiences with(in) others' narratives.

Findings

Black women can interpret qualitative inquiry outside of the Eurocentric norm, and qualitative courses can provide spaces for them to do so by repositioning Black women philosophers as central to understanding qualitative inquiry.

Originality/value

Through collective biography (Deleuze and Parnet, 2007), this paper centers the voices of four Black women scholars who use a creative writing approach to think with/through theory as Black women (Jackson and Mazzei, 2012). The paper offers new discussions of and ways in which qualitative researchers might decolonize Eurocentric ways of knowing in qualitative inquiry and qualitative pedagogy from students' perspectives.

Details

Qualitative Research Journal, vol. 21 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1443-9883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2013

Sylvain K. Cibangu

The purpose of this paper is to advocate for a clearer and less fragmentary use of qualitative research in the increasingly interdisciplinary research setting of information…

2804

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to advocate for a clearer and less fragmentary use of qualitative research in the increasingly interdisciplinary research setting of information science.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper performs a textual analysis of more than 500 peer‐reviewed articles to assess information science's involvement with qualitative research. The paper undertakes historical criticism to trace qualitative research in the reviews of information science for the last three decades.

Findings

Authors are unclear and lax in their uses of basic research terms. Authors do not account for qualitative research's characteristics, methods, and contributions to information science's bodies of knowledge. Only 4.3 percent of published articles mention their contributions to information science's literature whereas 5.6 percent mention qualitative method(s) in their abstracts. Publications do not show (intra‐)collaboration between areas of information science. Information science's contributions to the theoretical discussions of the wider scientific community are lacking.

Originality/value

The paper discusses afresh information science's qualitative research. The paper suggests a tighter and long‐term investment of information science in qualitative research and the formation of the information science's own theorists and theory‐illumined practitioners. The paper puts forth some practical recommendations.

Details

Journal of Documentation, vol. 69 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0022-0418

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 December 2020

V.G. Sridharan

This research paper seeks to advance the techniques of “within-paradigm” triangulation and theoretical generalization adopted in qualitative field studies for new theory…

1202

Abstract

Purpose

This research paper seeks to advance the techniques of “within-paradigm” triangulation and theoretical generalization adopted in qualitative field studies for new theory development in management control.

Design/methodology/approach

Using the evidence gleaned from three positivist case studies along with some published interpretivist studies, this paper identifies three triangulation approaches and links them with three forms of theoretical generalization in qualitative field studies.

Findings

While the “literal” approach to triangulation has its place in the extant literature, this study finds that two other approaches, labeled “convergent” and “normative” triangulation, which are relevant in many circumstances to link multiple pieces of evidence in order to build credible explanations. In theory development, while the extant forms of theoretical generalization (constructive and contextual) are useful for identifying new solutions for both practical and theoretical concerns, this paper finds that a third form, namely “transposed” logic, is relevant in identifying new control problems that can benefit by adopting the observed unusual solutions.

Originality/value

Within triangulation, while the extant literature endorses the role of literal triangulation in obtaining consistent evidence, including how verifying inconsistent responses helps improve the validity of the obtained evidence, this paper advances two new triangulation approaches that can enrich the extant literature. Within theoretical generalization, while the extant literature deems constructive and contextual forms as “rhetoric”, this paper (1) expands their status to “logic” by clarifying their theoretical purpose and (2) introduces one new form, namely “transposed” logic that helps identify a generalizable range of management control problems that can adopt the observed unusual solution.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 34 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 November 2012

Simon Bishop and Justin Waring

The aim of this paper is to examine the benefits of undertaking mixed methods social network analysis (SNA) to investigate patterns of interpersonal relationships in healthcare…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to examine the benefits of undertaking mixed methods social network analysis (SNA) to investigate patterns of interpersonal relationships in healthcare delivery. Although SNA has roots in anthropological and ethnographic research, recent emphasis has been on the mathematical properties of social networks utilising graph theory and statistical analysis. While such studies may present interesting data on the structure of ties, this paper argues that they sidestep other important elements of patterns of social relationships; their meaning and their implications for network members. The paper identifies how SNA survey can be employed alongside ethnographic data within a qualitative framework.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper reports on a study that investigated how knowledge sharing in social networks can contribute to patient safety in surgical care involving a social network survey, qualitative interviews and ethnographic observations.

Findings

Results describe how each research method illuminated different elements of professional practice networks. These focus on the additional elements of networks identified through qualitative methods. The discussion examines how qualitative and quantitative findings relate to each other and could be combined within an overall qualitative methodology.

Originality/value

The paper answers the call for a greater utilisation of network methods in healthcare studies; demonstrates the benefits of qualitative research on social networks; and presents data on the contribution of health professionals’ interpersonal relationships in the production of safe patient care.

Details

Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal, vol. 7 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5648

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 September 2021

Salman Tariq, Mohamed Hussein, Roy Dong Wang and Tarek Zayed

This study aims to thoroughly examine the trends and developments of crane layout planning (CLP) in the construction field and reveal future research directions for modular…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to thoroughly examine the trends and developments of crane layout planning (CLP) in the construction field and reveal future research directions for modular integrated construction (MiC).

Design/methodology/approach

Through a rigorous systematic mixed-review methodology that integrates bibliometric, scientometric and qualitative analysis, this study explored the crane layout research trend; the scientometric analysis of journal sources and keywords occurrence network; the research contributions and links between influential countries; the classification of research articles based on the type of problems and solution approaches; the qualitative analysis of existing findings and research gaps; and the future research direction for CLP in MiC.

Findings

This study found five categories under the CLP domain, namely, crane selection, crane location, integrated crane selection and location, integrated crane location and allocation of supply points and hybrid problems. The major research approaches used to solve CLP is optimization (43%), visualization (23%), decision support systems (16%), simulation (11%) and qualitative techniques (7%). The possible future research directions include artificial intelligence-based models, multi-crane locations, CLP for MiC re-use, dynamic models representing real-life scenarios and building information modeling-based virtual reality models.

Originality/value

Through a mixed-review methodology, this study provides a comprehensive analysis of problem settings and solution methods of CLP while mitigating the subjectivity of traditional review methods. Also, it presents a repertoire on CLP and illuminates future directions for seasoned researchers in the context of MiC.

Article
Publication date: 2 February 2024

Zhaofeng Ye, Maxwell Fordjour Antwi-Afari, Algan Tezel and Patrick Manu

The impact of building information modeling (BIM) on various aspects of project management has attracted much attention in the past decade. However, previous studies have focused…

Abstract

Purpose

The impact of building information modeling (BIM) on various aspects of project management has attracted much attention in the past decade. However, previous studies have focused on a particular facet of project management (e.g., safety, quality, facility management) and within identified target journals. Despite numerous existing studies, there is limited research on the mainstream research topics, gaps and future research directions on BIM in project management. This study aims to conduct a bibliometric and science mapping review of published articles on BIM in project management and to identify mainstream research topics, research gaps and future research directions in this domain.

Design/methodology/approach

A science mapping approach consisting of bibliometric search, scientometric analysis and qualitative discussion was used to analyze 521 journal articles that were retrieved from the Scopus database and related to BIM in project management. In the scientometric analysis, keyword co-occurrence analysis and document analysis were performed. This was followed by a qualitative discussion that seeks to propose a framework summarizing the interconnection between the mainstream research topics, research gaps and future research directions.

Findings

Six mainstream research topics were found including (1) BIM-enabled advanced digital technologies, (2) BIM-based reinforcement and enhancement, (3) BIM and project composition, (4) BIM project elements and attributes, (5) BIM-based collaboration and communication and (6) BIM-based information and data. Moreover, this study discussed six research gaps, namely, (1) integration of BIM and other digital technologies, (2) future maturity of BIM applications in project management, (3) application of BIM in project components and processes, (4) role of BIM application in project elements and attributes, (5) impact of collaboration and communication in BIM application and (6) stability of information and data interaction. Furthermore, future research directions were discussed.

Originality/value

The findings and proposed framework contribute to providing a deeper understanding to researchers, policymakers and practitioners in the development of related research and practice in the domain of BIM in project management, thus, promoting digital transformation in project management. Overall, it adds to the global knowledge domain in BIM and promotes the need for digital and data integration, BIM maturity and BIM collaboration.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

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