Interpreting Qualitative Data

by David Silverman

• ISBN13: 9780857024213
• ISBN10: 0857024213
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-11-09
• Publisher: SAGE Publications Ltd

Summary

This is the perfect book for any student new to qualitative research. In this exciting and major updating of his bestselling, benchmark text, David Silverman walks the reader through the basics of gathering and analysing qualitative data. David Silverman offers beginners unrivalled hands-on guidance necessary to get the best out of a research methods course or an undergraduate research project. New to the fourth edition: o A new chapter on data analysis dealing with grounded theory, discourse analysis and narrative analysis o Further worked-through examples of different kinds of data and how to interpret them o A separate section on focus groups and interpreting focus group data o An expanded ethics chapter o More coverage of digital media and photographs as data o A companion website with additional case studies and examples, links to SAGE journals online, and links to useful websites, podcasts and Youtube videos. This fourth edition is also accompanied with its own group page on www.methodspace.com [insert full url] where users can give feedback and discuss research issues.

Table of Contents

Theory and Method in Qualitative Research

What Is Qualitative Research?

In Search of a Working Definition

Loaded Evaluations of Research Methods

Methods Should Fit Your Research Question

The Good Sense of Quantitative Research

The Nonsense of Quantitative Research

The Good Sense of Qualitative Research

The Nonsense of Qualitative Research

Varieties of Qualitative Research

Designing a Research Project

Selecting a Topic

Formulating a Researchable Question

Fitting your Research Question into an Appropriate Theory

Choosing an Effective Research Design

An Effective Literature Review

Basic Terms in Research Design7

Data Analysis

Some Rules for Data Analysis

Content Analysis

Grounded theory

Narrative Analysis7

Research Ethics

Ethical Pitfalls

Ethical Safeguards

Some Ethical Complications

Methods

Ethnography and Observation

The Ethnographic Focus

Methodological Issues

The Theoretical Character of Ethnographic Observations7

Interviews

What is an 'Open-Ended' Interview?

Why Interview?

Implications: Three Versions of Interview Data

Positivism

Emotionalism

Constructionism

Adolescent Cultures: Combining 'What' and 'How' Questions

Moral Tales of Parenthood

The Three Models: a Summary

Summary: Basic Issues

Three Practical Questions - and Answers7

Focus Groups

What are Focus Groups?

Analysing Focus Group Data in Social Science

Form or Substance?

Concluding Comments

Texts

Structure of this Chapter

Comparative Keyword Analysis (Cka)

Ethnography

Ethnomethodology: Membership Categorisation Analysis7

Naturally-Occurring Talk

Why Work with Tapes?

Transcribing Audiotapes

Why Talk Matters

Conversation Analysis

Discourse Analysis

Conversation Analysis and Discourse Analysis Compared7

Visual Images

Kinds of Visual Data

Research Strategies

Content Analysis

Semiotics

Workplace Studies7

Research Practice

Credible Qualitative Research

Does Credibility Matter?

Reliability

Validity

Generalisability7

Writing Your Report

Beginnings

Your Literature Review

Your Methodology Section

Writing Up Your Data

Your Final Section

a Short Note on Plagiarism

Self-Expression or Argument?

Implications

The Relevance of Qualitative Research

Three Roles for the Social Scientist

The Audiences for Qualitative Research

The Contribution of Qualitative Social Science

Summary7

The Potential of Qualitative Research: Eight Reminders

Take Advantage of Naturally Occurring Data

Avoid Treating the Actor's Point of View as an Explanation

Study the Interrelationships Between Elements

Attempt Theoretically Fertile Research

Address Wider Audiences

Begin With 'How' Questions; Then Ask 'Why?'

Study 'Hyphenated' Phenomena

Treat Qualitative Research as Different from Journalism

Concluding Remarks

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