What is Qualitative Research Methodology
Denzin (2003: 4) defines Qualitative Research Methodology as a situated activity that locates the observer in the world. It consists of a set of interpretive, material practices that make the world visible and transform the world. They turn the world into a series of representations, field notes interviews, conversations, photographs, recordings and memos to the self. What this means is that researchers study things in their natural settings, attempting to make sense of, or to interpret phenomena in terms of the meanings people bring to them.
Data developed by qualitative methods originate when a researcher figuratively puts brackets around a temporal and spatial domain of the social world. These brackets define the territory about which descriptions are fashioned. These descriptions are essentially idiographic maps of territory, which must be read and interpreted by the investigator if any nomothetic statements are to result from a given study (Maanen, 1983: 9-10).
Qualitative research allows researchers to explore a wide array of dimensions of the social world, including the texture and weave of everyday life, the understandings, experiences and imaginings of our research participants, the way that social processes, institutions, discourses or relationships work, and the significance of the meanings that they generate (Mason, 2002: 1).
Qualitative research involves the studied use and collection of a variety of empirical materials, case studies; personal experience; introspection; life story, interview artefacts; cultural texts and production; observational, historical, interactional and visual texts –that describe routine and problematic moments and meanings in individual lives (Denzin, 2003: 5).
Based on methods of analysis, explanation and argument building which involve understandings of complexity, detail and context, Qualitative research aims to produce rounded and contextual understanding of the basis of rich, nuanced and detailed data (Mason, 2002: 1). He defines qualitative research as “Interpretive” in a sense that it is concerned with how the social world is interpreted, understood, experienced, produced or constituted. Through using interpretive practices, the researcher hopes to get a better understanding of the subject matter at hand. It is understood that each practice makes the world visible in a different way; hence there is frequently a commitment to using more than one interpretive practice in any study (Denzin, 2003: 2002).
What is the value basis of the study?
The purposes of the study were to explore the representations of smoking held by smokers who are habitually exposed to different levels of smoking restrictions (Louka, 2006: 442); to examine the ways in which smokers in the UK and Greece understand and account for their smoking, with reference to the ways in which participants both experienced and talked about the levels of disapproval that their smoking behaviour engendered (Louka, 2006: 443).
Snape (cited in Lewis, 2003: 2) argues that there is no single accepted way of doing qualitative research. But, how researchers carry it out depends upon a range of factors, such as, their beliefs about the nature of the social world and what can be done about it (Ontology), the nature of knowledge and how it can be acquired (epistemology), the purpose(s) of goals of the research, the funders of the research, and the position and environment of the researchers themselves.
Epistemology is a branch of philosophy that studies knowledge. It attempts to answer the basic question: what distinguishes the (adequate) knowledge from the false (inadequate) knowledge? These questions translate into issues of scientific methodology: how can one develop theories or models that are better than competing theories? It also forms one of the pillars of the new sciences of cognition, which developed from the information processing approach to psychology, and from artificial intelligence, as an attempt to develop computer programs that mimic a human’s capacity to use knowledge in an intelligent way (Heylighen: 1993).1
Ontology on the other hand, is used to describe and represent an area of knowledge. It is borrowed from philosophy, where Ontology is a systematic account of existence. Ontologies are used by people, databases, and applications that need specific subject area or area of knowledge, like medicine, tool manufacturing, real estate, automobile repair, financial management, definitions of basic concepts in the domain and the relationships among them. They encode knowledge in a domain and also knowledge that spans domains, so that detailed, accurate, sound and meaningful distinctions can be made among the classes.2
This research has adopted a multivarence approach. Data collection, processing and analysis was using multiple tools. The researchers collected data through conducting Focus groups and semi-structured interviews, with the assistance of tape recording.
What the research has tried to do is to show that there are a number of explanations as to why people smoke even though it is detrimental to their health. How they perceive smoking has influenced their need to want to quit smoking. The researchers tried to bring out the ontology discourse by dividing the findings into two categories, those whose stance on smoking was influenced by societal norms and those who smoked because they felt they needed it at that time and they will quit whenever they deem it important, for example, when they want to start a family.
Research design
The type of research methodology a researcher uses will influence the type of questions asked. The research design is also influenced by the research problem. Often in qualitative research a hypothesis is not necessary; a research proposal should have at least four or five research questions to be researched. Mason (2002: 25) argues that it is important for researchers to produce detailed research designs for their own use, whether or not they are required to write a research proposal for another audience. The point being that it will help facilitate the coherent and rigorous development of the researcher’s project by remaining explicit their current thinking about a number of key issues. Furthermore, these issues will be further contextualised as the research progresses.
Qualitative researchers are required to produce a research proposal. This is usually presented to the outside audience, such as, funders, supervisor, the peers, research gatekeepers or those whom they research. The purpose of producing a research design or proposal in this context may be to gain or retain funding, support or access, to convince others the value or intellectual capability of the research, to demonstrate some of form of external accountability, or simply to describe the scope and purpose of the research to those involved (Mason, 2002: 25).
Methodology
Research Questions
The research questions asked were reasonable. The questions explored participant’s representations of their own smoking, perceptions o society’s view smoking, experiences of disapproval and the effects of this. They were also asked to compare their experiences of smoking and disapproval in both countries, Greece & and the UK (Louka, 2006:443).
The researchers give a brief summation of theoretical orientation. They provide reasons why they chose semi-structured interviews and focus groups. They noted that they used these research tools because semi-structured interviews provide a consistent framework for addressing the questions pertaining to our study at the same as affording flexibility to pursue respondent’s viewpoints in depth. The focus groups were conducted in order to gain insight produced by the interaction between participants about their experiences of smoking. They noted that the advantage of using focus groups in their research was that it drew out participants’ experiences and reactions to smoking in ways that may not have been illuminated by or are complementary to other methods (Louka, 2006: 443).
Data Gathering
Data was gathered with the use of focus groups and semi-structured interviews. The interviews and focus groups took place in a location of the participant’s choice (the University & participant’s own homes). The type of research design a qualitative researcher chooses has to suite the research topic. It is important for a researcher to first make contact with the gatekeeper to get permission for conducting the study. The second then entails providing a brief summary of what the research will entail, which is what came out of this study. They provided the participants with detailed information of the study, including the ethical framework guiding the research. The participants were given the opportunity to choose their own names (Louka, 2006: 443).
The interviews were audio taped and verbatim transcripts produced in the language the language the interview was originally conducted (either English or Greek). According to Kvale (1996: 160) recording the interviews can help the interviewer concentrate on the topic and the dynamics of the interview. The words and their tone, pauses are recorded in a permanent form that can be returned to again for re listening. The audiotape gives a de-contextualized version of the interview.
Direct recording has a number of benefits, namely; that it allows the researcher to concentrate completely on the interview without having to worry about taking notes or remembering points to write up later. Recording the interview allows the researcher the opportunity to check the meaning of words and phrases that they may have missed during the interview (Desai, 2006: 149-150). Tape recording interviews are useful in content analysis as one can be able to listen several times in order to identify categories and it can also be useful in allowing the researcher to code, summarize and to note particular interest without having to write them down during the course of the interview (Bell, 2005: 164).
Sample Procedure & Size
The research team used convenience samples of 10 smokers recruited in the UK (London and surrounding area) and 11 smokers in Greece (Athens and surrounding area). These two groups were demographically similar to facilitate comparison between the samples from the two countries. The focus was on young smokers who were unlikely to have experienced any smoking-related illness. Participants were all relatively well educated and were either students or young professionals. Recruitment initially took place via university notice boards and there after snowballing. Lewis (2003:94) argues that it is a useful approach for dispersed or small populations, and where the key selection criteria are characteristics, which might not be widely disclosed by individuals.
The problem with this sample procedure is that it does not show what informed the sample number. Why were 10 smokers chosen in the UK and 11 in Greece?
Research Findings
Once the data was collected, the research team decided to interpret it. The next stage that followed was data processing whereby the research team coded their data into themes. Thematic analysis involves copying ones data and rearranging it into sections (or piles) dealing with the themes. Once this has been done, the researcher can read the data horizontally by theme (Harvey, 1993: 210). Each theme was coded and the codes reviewed, refined and entered on to ATLAS/ti where further indexing took place and analytical categories were created (Louka, 2006: 444). The researchers did not indicate any limitations to the study.
Contribution to knowledge
Research is conducted in order to change the discourse of the world by bringing about new aspects or issues up for debate. Some researchers embark on research for the purpose of educating the populace, influencing policy or questioning existing theories. It is empirical that before any research is conducted, that a researcher does a literature review. The review of the literature gives the researcher and audience a broader picture of the subject matter and guides the researcher as to which areas should his/her research address or challenge. The researcher should bear in mind that the stakeholders are at all times throughout the research and during analysis because the manner in which one writes up depends on whom is the research going to benefit?
Just to reiterate the aims of the research were to examine the ways in which smokers in the UK and Greece understand and account for their smoking; the ways in which moralised constructions of smoking informed these accounts and the ways in which participants both experienced and talked about the levels of disapproval that their smoking behaviour engendered. The reasons for conducting this research were influenced by the increase in countries introducing highly regulated health awareness mechanisms in place to regulate smoking.
The paper showed that even though there has been a decline in smoking associated with the introduction of anti-smoking measures, it is unclear is the mechanisms underlying this. The paper argues that the attitudes of the general public towards smoking must undergo some change before anti-smoking measures can be successfully implemented and accepted (Louka, 2006: 442).
The researchers have succeeded in what they had aimed at. The findings do give detailed accounts of their own smoking, their views on maintaining a healthy lifestyle, control of smoking, quitting and how society views smoking. It makes an interesting and enlightening comparison between the UK and Greece. What also came out of the research is that there is a need for empowerment of people on the consequences of smoking to the public in general. For example, some respondents did not know that non-smokers could be affected through passive smoking.
The challenge facing policy makers is balancing the implementation of anti-smoking mechanisms with the perceptions of smokers. However, the findings also suggest that exposure to social disapproval has an impact on the ways in which smokers feel about their smoking as well as their smoking behaviour. The findings show that smokers are highly sensitive to moralised constructions of smoking and health. The paper recommends that further research is needed to explore the relationship between social disapproval of smoking and actual smoking behaviour (Louka, 2006: 450).
Alternative methodology
The alternative research is a good attempt to show how even though smokers know and acknowledge that smoking is bad for their health are unable or refuse to quit. The struggle of smokers in the different countries differed. For, example, UK smokers were concerned that quitting would be extremely difficult and their talk of quitting drew heavily on discourses of addiction, while the Greek smokers presented quitting smoking as unproblematic (Louka, 2006: 449).
References
Denzin.N.K & Lincoln…Y.S. (2003) The Landscape of Qualitative Research: Theories and practices. London: SAGE Publications Inc.
Harvey.L & McDonald.M. (1993) Doing Sociology, Houndsmill: Macmillan.
Kvale, S. (1996) Interviews: An introduction to Qualitative Research Interviewing. London: SAGE Publications.
Moore. N. (2006) How to do research: A practical Guide to Designing and managing research projects. London: Facet Publishing.
Pinelopi Louka, Moira Maguire, Phil Evans & Marcia Worrell. “I think that it’s a pain in the ass that I have to stand outside in the cold and have a cigarette: Representations of smoking and experiences of disapproval in UK and Greek smokers.”J Health Psychol 2006: 11.
Taylor.J.S and Bogdan.R. (1998) Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods: A Guidebook and Resource. Canada: John Wiley & Sons Inc.