HealthPsyc4 Flashcards

1
Q

Qualitative & Quantitative comparisons

A
  • Binocular vision
  • Balancing strengths and weaknesses
  • Teamwork- utilising qual. and quant. in research
  • Value of mixed method approach- not one team or the other
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2
Q

Research paradigms: Qualitative

A
Interpretivism
• Researcher & social world
interact
• Characteristied by interpretivist
theory of knowledge
• Facts & values not distinct
• Affected by researcher values &
perspectives
• Not possible to do objective,
value-free research
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3
Q

Research paradigms: Quantitative

A

Positivism
• World unaffected by the researcher
• Facts and values distinct, possible to do objective, value free research that is generalisable
• Natural science method (hypothesis testing, causal
explanations appropriate to understand social phenomena)

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4
Q

Qualitative General framework/ objectives

A

Explore phenomena (describe, gain insight)

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5
Q

Quantitative General framework/ objectives

A

Confirm hypotheses about phenomena (quantify, predict)

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6
Q

Qualitative Data Format

A

Words, pictures, objects

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7
Q

Quantitative Data Format

A

Numerical data

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8
Q

Qualitative Question format

A

Open-ended

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9
Q

Quantitative Question format

A

Closed

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10
Q

Qualitative flexibility in design

A

Flexible, iterative

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11
Q

Quantitative flexibility in design

A

Fixed design from beginning

to end

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12
Q

Qualitative Sampling

A
Sampled to reflect diversity of
the population (purposive), to
access hidden groups (snowball)
or to test emergent hypotheses
(theoretical)
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13
Q

Quantitative Sampling

A

Probability sampling to be
statistically representative of
the population

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14
Q

Qualitative data collection & analysis

A

Dynamic process>
Interactive & responsive to
emergent topics

Analysis Content> analysis
Identify themes, relationships
between themes and underlying
explanations

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15
Q

Quantitative data collection & analysis

A

Static process>
Questions pre-formulated &
standardised

Statistical analysis>
Identify relationships
between variables and the
strength of relationships

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16
Q

When to use qualitative research

A

When there is not much to go on:
• Little known about the topic, limited theory to guide topic
• E.g. We don’t know much about family involvement in cancer consultations
• When you want a particular perspective on the topic:
• The perspective of a specific person/group, or a more holistic perspective
• E.g. More specifically, we need to know about how health professionals perceive family involvement
• When you want to explain quantitative results:
• E.g. Why do people prefer one intervention to another?
• E.g. Why does gender influence compliance?
• When you want to identify relevant questionnaire items
• E.g. Why did you decide to receive the HPV vaccine?

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17
Q

Common features of qualitative research

A
  • Uses INDUCTIVE reasoning
  • using observations to formulate an idea or theory
  • exploring new phenomena
  • Starting with observations&raquo_space;» theory
  • Doesn’t typically use DEDUCTIVE reasoning
  • using a known idea/theory and applying it to a different situation
  • usually begin with hypotheses and focus on causalities
  • Starting with theory&raquo_space;» confirmation

• Has high VALIDITY
• measuring what we are supposed to measure
• e.g. describe your perception of the experience of
chemotherapy in your own words
• Has low RELIABILITY
• inconsistent response given same conditions
• e.g. describing the same experience of chemotherapy in a different way on two separate occasions

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18
Q

Methods: Data collection

A
  • Interviews
  • Open ended questionnaires
  • Observation
  • Participant / non-participant
  • Overt / covert observation
  • Document analysis (written/audio/video)
  • Oral histories
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19
Q

Methods: Interview types

A

• Structured interview
• Set questions, set order, usually with a limited range of
responses
• Semi-structured interview
• Open-ended questions, with prompts to gain further insight
• In-depth interview
• One or two issues covered in detail
• Questions follow what the interviewee says
• Focus groups
• A form of group interview that capitalizes on communication between group participants

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20
Q

Methods: Sampling

A
  • Small samples

* Seeking to gain rich insights, not generalise findings

21
Q

Purposive Sampling

A
  • Participants recruited according to pre-selected criteria relevant to research question
  • Participants have the required experience or knowledge that researchers seek
22
Q

Convenience Sampling

A
  • Participation invited because individuals are conveniently (opportunistically) available- access, location, time and willingness
  • Relatively fast and easy
23
Q

Theoretical Sampling

A

• Used in grounded theory studies
• Research starts from homogenous (small) and moves to a more
heterogeneous (larger) sample
• Occurs sequentially and alongside data analysis
• Previously analysed data guides what data needs to be collected next

24
Q

Snowballing Sampling

A

• Recruiting one or a few people and then relying on these people
to put the researcher in touch with others.
• Useful where the sample are marginalised/stigmatised individuals and to find and recruit ‘hidden populations’

25
Methods: Data Analysis
• Data usually presented in written form (observations, transcribed audio-taped interviews) • Data is transcribed, coded, categorised • Code and categorise • Present themes/patterns from data • Concept of ‘saturation’ of data • Phase of analysis in which the researcher has continued sampling and analysing data until no new data/themes appear
26
Problems with qualitative research
• Ensuring rigour • Use appropriate methods to maximise validity and reliability • Results may be influenced by personal bias & idiosyncrasies • Generalising beyond the sample • Aims to capture the range of views, not representative views • Time consuming • Smaller samples based on theoretical saturation are achievable
27
Rigorous sampling
* Purposive sampling to maximise likelihood of capturing all views * Recruit a range of participants for key variables likely to influence views * e.g. range of ages, gender, socio-economic status * Practical considerations also important (e.g. snowball sampling for ‘hidden’ populations) * New variables may emerge in analyses and prompt additional sampling of different groups * Sampling continues until no new themes are identified in three consecutive interviews- ‘saturation’
28
Rigorous data collection
* Interview / focus groups: * Audio or video-taped * Transcribed in full * Participant confidentiality assured * Interviewer: * Suitably trained in qualitative methods * Accepted by participants as trustworthy * Familiar with the context
29
Managing personal bias & idiosyncrasies
Investigators own personal bias and idiosyncrasies can influence the qualitative research process>> need to be reflexive • Reflexivity - awareness of the way own beliefs/attitudes affect the research process and outcomes • One technique--- use of a journal throughout research process which reflects researcher’s thoughts, feelings, questions, frustrations. • Researcher may become aware of biases/assumptions >> may alter the way they collect data or approach analysis
30
Rigorous coding
• Development and application of coding frame (with themes/concepts) can improve rigour • Immersion in the data (e.g. read transcripts multiple times) • Multiple researchers should code some of the same transcripts and compare results to improve the coding frame • Apply final coding frame systematically to all the data by annotating the transcripts with codes
31
Rigorous analysis
Agreement between the researchers on the categorisation of data can be calculated • Map the relationships between themes to explain findings • Make sure the themes/concepts are supported by the data rather than based on your assumptions • There are qualitative data programs that can help! • Nvivo (www.qsrinternational.com) • Excel- Framework analysis
32
Rigorous validity checking: Triangulation
• Compare same issue from different sources, methods, points (e.g. researcher notes, interview transcripts, audio-tapes)
33
Rigorous validity checking: Provide evidence for themes/concepts
• Use participants’ own language to demonstrate the source of the theme or concept (e.g. illustrative quotes)
34
Rigorous validity checking: Participant feedback/validation/verification
* Member checking | * Ask participants to review your interpretation of their data
35
Choosing a qualitative approach
Many different qualitative approaches- differ in theoretical underpinnings and practical considerations • Share many similarities- often more than one approach that could reasonably be employed to explore a topic • Depends on many factors: • Research topic area • Research aims/question • Researcher experience/training • Intended audience • Practical considerations (e.g. number of participants, time, budget)
36
Common qualitative approaches: Grounded Theory
• Strong tradition grounded theory in health research Aims • to collect and analyse qualitative data to • describe components of a phenomenon • the relationships between them • generate a theory of the phenomena that is ‘grounded’ in the data Methods • Complex iterative process, no distinct end point • Coding: identifying/describing codes, relating codes to one another • Memoing: Recording thoughts/ideas as they evolve • Diagrams: Make sense of the data with respect to the emerging theory
37
Common qualitative approaches: Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA)
Aims • To gain a detailed examination of the participant’s lifeworld, personal experience/perceptions of an event • To gain understanding of the lived experience through its meaning to individuals • Methods • Data collection: open questions, look for meaning of the experience for that person, check interpretation with the person • Data analysis: Goal is to describe phenomena and improve understanding; Might not have obvious ‘conclusions’
38
Common qualitative approaches: Ethnography
• Aims • Seeks to understand human behaviour and individuals’ experiences within a group culture • What is the experience of a breast cancer support group participant? • Methods • Most common approach is participant observation (e.g. field research) • Ethnographer becomes immersed in the culture and records extensive field notes
39
Thematic analysis
* Useful approach for doing applied qualitative research in health * Method for identifying, analysing, and reporting patterns (themes) within data. * Highly flexible- not bound to a particular theoretical approach * Progresses from description of data >>> interpretation of the significance of patterns and their broader meanings and implications * Authors provide step-by-step guide to thematic analysis
40
Framework method
• Ritchie and Spencer (2002) • Analytic approach which sits within the broad family of thematic analysis • Tool for supporting thematic analysis because it provides a systematic model for managing and mapping data • 7 key steps
41
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 1: Transcription
* Good quality audio recording * Verbatim transcription of the interview * Process of transcription is a good opportunity to become immersed in the data - strongly encouraged for new researchers.
42
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 2: Familiarisation with the interview
* Becoming familiar with interview using audio recording/transcript and any reflective notes is a vital stage of interpretation * Helpful to re-listen to audio recording * Can make contextual notes on the transcript
43
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 3: Coding
• Researcher carefully reads the transcript line-by-line applying a label (code) that describes what they have interpreted as important • Codes can refer to: • Substantive things (behaviours, incidents) • Values (beliefs, attitudes) • Emotions (fear, frustration, admiration) • Coding aims to classify the data so it can be compared systematically with other parts of the dataset • Independent coding of multiple team members important
44
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 4: Developing a working analytical framework
* After coding a few transcripts, team members should meet to compare codes and agree on a set of codes to apply to all transcripts * Codes can be grouped together into categories/subthemes/themes (tree) * Forms a “working analytical framework”- likely to undergo several iterations
45
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 5: Applying the analytical framework
* Working analytical framework then applied by indexing transcripts using themes/categories/codes * Can use specialist software, tracked changes (comments) in Microsoft word, or pencil/paper
46
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 6: Charting data into the framework matrix
• Qualitative data are voluminous • Being able to manage/summarise data is a vital aspect of analysis • Spreadsheet used to generate a matrix and data are charted • Rows (cases), columns (codes) and ‘cells’ of summarised data • Provide a structure into which the researcher can systematically reduce the data, in order to analyse it by case and by code • Should include illustrative quotations
47
Framework method- Key steps: Stage 7: Interpreting the data
Analysis of the framework within and across themes and participants to identify overarching themes and relationships • Characteristics of and differences between the data are identified • Typologies • Theoretical concepts • Mapping connections between categories
48
Framework method- Strategies ensuring rigour
Specific strategies to ensure methodological rigour • Immersion: Steps 1 and 2 focus on researcher immersion with the data • Team-based coding: Advocates for several researchers to engage in coding and for all team members to read summaries to offer perspectives during analysis • Close attention to participant experiences: Through chartingresearchers pay close attention to describing the data using participant’s own expressions, before moving onto interpretation * Systematic, thorough analysis: Systematic procedures makes analysis easy to follow * Inclusion of contextual data: Flexible enough that non-interview data (e.g. field notes taken during interview or reflexive considerations) can be included in matrix * Audit-trail: Framework method ensures there is a clear audit trail from original raw data to final themes, including illustrative quotes.
49
Framework method- Pitfalls
* Temptation to quantify: Systematic approach, matrix format, spreadsheet-look>>> can be appealing to those trained quantitatively- increases temptation to quantify the qualitative data (e.g. “13/20 participants said …”) * Resource intensive: Framework method is time consuming and resource-intensive * High training needs: High training component to successfully use Framework Method