Slices of life : qualitative research snapshots

187 Pages·2002·0.728 MB·English

by  Green, Pamela

INTRODUCTION
What this text provides can be seen as slices of life. This phrase arose
as we debated the title for this book. Selected depictions of people’s
lives are provided within this text and can be viewed as slices of their
lives. The term “slice” emphasises that, while the depictions of their
lives are only partial, they are not random or lacking coherence.
Further, what any slice looks like is affected not only by who is doing
the looking but also by how it is cut and who does the cutting. So the
depictions reflect not only the perspectives of the subjects of the
research but also the perspectives of the researchers and their particu-
lar interpretations of the research paradigm or methodology being
used. What is presented can also be seen as snapshots, that is, pictures
of research outcomes at a given time and place as selected by the
viewer.
This text was brought into being through the efforts of a group
of passionate researchers committed to the investigation of people’s
lives primarily through qualitative means. As such, the contributors to
the book share a thirst for the sociologically informed ‘dig’, albeit evi-
denced by representation via the case, through writings in historical
form, via storying within the narrative, or documented in the mem-
ory-work flowing from collaborative enterprises. What is evident
across the chapters is the need to describe and document, to ponder
and critique, as well as to construct and deconstruct meanings as seen
through the variation of life experiences and the ways in which these
are perceived by the research participants. The authors ponder their
own roles as researchers, their respective ways of working method-
ologically, and how these select ways relate to how they view the
world per se, the world of research in general, and the research focus
at hand.
The book provides an overview of five qualitative approaches to
research: namely, naturalistic inquiry, case study, narrative-based
approaches (including biography and autobiography), historical
research and collaborative research (including memory-work). The
two or three contributions provided for each of the five approaches
viii SLICES OF LIFE: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
depict the theoretical perspective of each author illustrated by an
instance of research upon which the author has thoughtfully and
frankly reflected. Differences in the interpretations of the five
approaches are evident. Rather than attempting to portray a watered-
down consensual view of each approach, contributors illustrate their
particular way of theorising and implementing that approach.
Consequently, readers will detect difference at times and perhaps even
discord. Such complexities are seen to be important insights for
researchers to consider. While many books on research methods con-
ceal these differences, this book aims to bring such discordance to the
fore in an attempt to reveal the complexities involved in choosing,
implementing and theorising a research approach in relation to a
selected topic or focus. These differences are viewed as a key feature of
the text as they serve to break down the myths attached to the ‘rules
of research’ within a given approach. Instead, what is yielded is a text
that celebrates the diversity of research experiences.
The impetus for this book originated from the series editor
Professor John Bowden. Several years ago, John organised a confer-
ence on qualitative research. A small gathering was anticipated.
However, the interest level was so high that the venue overflowed with
colleagues keen to discuss their approaches to research in an environ-
ment that had moved far beyond the need to justify, at length, such
ways of working. The debates and discussions that emerged that day
have continued for several years and have created a new community
of collegial support and extended networks. As a result, a number of
colleagues committed themselves to editing and/contributing to the
production of a series of monographs for research colleagues and in
particular research students. This text is testament to the enthusiasm
and thirst for debate that John Bowden recognised and to which he
gave life and form. Its chapters are described now in sequence.
Naturalistic inquiry
In the first chapter, Green urges the researcher to consider the ‘what’
of the research before contemplating the ‘how’. She presents questions
involved in choosing naturalistic inquiry (Lincoln & Guba, 1985),
and a tripartite model of theoretical perspective, methodology and
methods for framing research. While Green lists the key elements of
naturalistic inquiry, she discusses in full only those that were major
drawcards for her. These were context, qualitative methods, purposive
sampling, inductive data analysis and the case report. The chapter
shows the interchange of theory and practice throughout.
Introduction ix
Green uses her doctoral work on the literacy-related demands
involved in the transition from primary to secondary school to illus-
trate her view of naturalistic inquiry. The chapter reveals the flexibil-
ity the approach demands in the sense of emergent design, shifting
foci and nuances, and even the juxtapositioning of the qualitative
with the quantitative. Green argues for the flexibility of, and the
framework provided by naturalistic inquiry. The flexibility means that
the researcher is not bound to the letter to initial plans and that the
research can give rise to the unexpected, while the framework guides
the researcher in initiating various research processes. Green urges the
prospective researcher to consider the focus of the research (the
‘what’), their views of knowledge construction, as well as preferred
ways of researching prior to the selection of the research methodology
(the ‘how’).
Fehring also draws on her doctoral study. It uses a constructivist
paradigm to investigate influences on teachers’ judgements of stu-
dents’ literacy development in a Victorian context. She examines some
of the ethical issues that are involved in undertaking research based
on naturalistic inquiry and argues that involving oneself as a
researcher in the lives of others raises a number of ethical considera-
tions. These include access, power, privilege and confidentiality of
data. She discusses the fine line that researchers often tread between
participant observer and non-participant observer, between confidant
and objective data gatherer, and between collector of private informa-
tion and disseminator of knowledge. Drawing on research surround-
ing the experiences of three teachers in three metropolitan schools in
Melbourne, Victoria, and on the experience of using qualitative
research methods within naturalistic inquiry, the chapter discusses
informed consent, privacy of the individual versus knowledge of pub-
lic interest, ownership of data, confidentiality and anonymity of par-
ticipants, issues of disclosure, participant and researcher relationship
and the issue of vulnerability; and the trustworthiness and integrity of
data.
At the start of his chapter, Cartledge declares his contribution to
be ‘a biased, personal and singular world view, justified by a princi-
ple tenet of naturalistic inquiry —trustworthiness’. While this might
indeed be a fitting descriptor, the chapter provides a clear stance on
the research approach and its relationship to his research topic. It
draws on doctoral work that began with a focus on the affective
nature of organisational change within the Australian Defence Force
from an insider viewpoint. The research methodology is framed by
using Lincoln and Guba’s (1985) five axioms of the naturalistic
x SLICES OF LIFE: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
paradigm: namely, the nature of reality, the relationship of knower to
known, the possibility of generalisation, the possibility of causal
linkages, and the role of values in inquiry. Cartledge weaves his own
research experiences from the world of the military musician into the
discussion of the axioms, and highlights the challenges for himself as
researcher but also the rewards of the methodological choice. His
chapter refers to the rites of passage involved in conducting doctoral
work, but in particular those associated with the move to a ‘new’
methodology. Such rites of passage are described in terms of engage-
ment but also peril. In this case the engagement in the research and
the contribution felt overwhelmed any feelings of danger perceived
along the way.
Case study
Bryce portrays case study work as a powerful means of investigation,
less a research approach or method than a way of bounding various
approaches to provide a detailed picture of a site for a particular pur-
pose. Using her current work on lifelong learning in secondary
schools, Bryce raises a number of key issues. These include the setting
of boundaries for the study at hand and the selection of an appropri-
ate research site for the topic. She discusses three main challenges
associated with case study work. These pertain to questions of engage-
ment at the research site, the kind of persona that the researcher pre-
sents to the participants, and the practical need to keep the subject of
the research within some pre-specified parameters while also allowing
for the unexpected. Bryce portrays case study as a way of creating
meaning, even an art, and reminds us of Stake’s (1995) view of case
study as commiseration, celebration, but also intellectualisation.
Bryce depicts case study as a way of portraying a slice of life from the
viewpoint of the research participants within a richly complex context
in which the researcher has engaged in ways both anticipated and
unexpected.
The processes involved in the identification of research themes
through progressive analysis constitute the focus of Liddell’s chapter.
She draws on her doctoral work that examines the impact of the
Children and Young Persons Act 1989on young women (aged twelve to
seventeen) within the child protection system in Victoria, Australia.
Liddell uses feminist theory to frame her research in order to consider
the issue of gender discrimination. This chapter outlines case study
work using Yin’s (1989) approach, and emphasises the need for flex-
ibility. Liddell provides an analysis of issues related to research design,
Introduction xi
such as the use of a multiple method approach in which both quali-
tative and quantitative data are collected, interviewing, and the use of
case files. Thematic analysis, in which patterns are identified and con-
nections between data elements are made, is explained, and Liddell
reflects upon the findings. Despite the time-consuming nature of
repeated data collection and analysis, Liddell notes the advantages of
additional data to check and reframe emergent themes, and cites the
additional variables that might otherwise have escaped analysis. The
chapter provides an example in which a case study approach has been
a challenging but invaluable tool for feminist research in human ser-
vice fields.
Hough reflects on researching through a single case study using
a study of a child protection team. The rationale behind the develop-
ment of the research strategy is provided prior to the presentation of
some of the material yielded from the study of the organisational and
practice world of child protection workers. Immersing himself in the
research site, Hough sought to find an indepth understanding of com-
plex organisational phenomena. The chapter discusses the research
strategy and inherent choices surrounding design, the position of the
researcher, and methods. Hough points out the pros and cons of such
fine-grained research thereby encouraging the reader to weigh up
methodological choices. He highlights the strengths of case study
work for the way it elicits understandings of shared and varied pat-
terns of meaning, and the building and rebuilding of theory through
a constant comparative method. Problems are framed with respect to
issues of objectivity and generalisability. Extracts from participant
observation are provided in order to illustrate the need to constantly
reappraise perceptions of the research site and research design. The
author concludes with a series of reflections on the evolutionary
nature of research and the documentation of such. This chapter pro-
vides an example of case study work but also of how demanding and
problematic research can be pursued through a commitment to an
evolutionary approach to research.
Narrative inquiry
Posing the question as to whether or not autobiography constitutes a
valid way of conducting research, Usher uses autobiography to reflect
on the changing identity of the academic in the contemporary uni-
versity. This chapter exemplifies autobiography through both the style
in which it is written as well as the content presented. Usher’s exercise
in autobiography points to the issue of validity raised by the question:
xii SLICES OF LIFE: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
‘for whom?’ Validity for the public eye is not the measure of autobio-
graphical research. Instead validity rests with self. Usher confronts
positivist standards of objectivity, notions of validity that rely on ver-
ification, and criticisms based on the selective nature of autobiogra-
phy. Usher describes his move from ‘academic’ to ‘academic-as-man-
ager’. This excursion into autobiography exposes some of the tensions
within the contemporary university where research is viewed in terms
of knowledge and economic systems. Usher exposes the shift from a
research economy located in traditional academic paradigms to a per-
formative economy within a culture of performance. The metaphor of
‘all change’, derived from childhood train journeys, is applied to
reveal the impact of such a shift on academics. While some have heard
the cry to change trains and moved to alternative platforms and con-
sequently embarked on new journeys, some have moved to the wrong
platforms, and others still have not heard the call at all. Usher
acknowledges that there is a personal trajectory illuminated by the
metaphor of ‘all change’, and uses this to move to consideration of the
intersection of the ‘I’ and the ‘me’, or, in other words, the matter ‘of
simultaneously being a subject and an object that is revealed through
autobiography’. It is this intersection, according to Usher, that frames
autobiography and enables the conscious telling of the story.
Flood argues that memory plays a crucial role in reconstructing
the life journey through narrative. She suggests that stories and
biographies are constructed narratives in which both authors and
readers come to form a cohesive meaning of self. Flood describes her
own interest in narrative and the reasons why she has chosen to
engage in narrative research. She presents a journey through photo-
graphic glimpses of her family in order to show the power of such
records and the narratives they invoke. Flood reflects on the effect of
self as researcher, and cites Schacter (1996) on the structure of mem-
ory and the place of episodic memory in recalling personal incidents
upon which stories are based. The chapter then shows how this inter-
est in narrative as research has been transformed into action by pre-
senting the process involved in gaining access to, interviewing, and
documenting some of the stories of author and relative, Dorothy
Hewett. Here, Flood interweaves theory and practice to show the place
of biography as narrative, while giving the reader glimpses of Hewett’s
life. Flood depicts life stories as landscapes rather than as chronolog-
ically narrated events. The chapter closes with a note about the unfin-
ished nature of stories, the seductive quality of storytelling, the blur-
ring of fact and fiction, as well as the role of the researcher in the
reconstruction of narrative.
Introduction xiii
Martin’s chapter portrays life history method as a research
methodology that gives opportunity for the critique and development
of ‘existing theories about individuals, groups, organisations and soci-
ety’. It outlines the main features of life history method, drawing on
Martin’s doctoral work on the life history of a seventy-year-old
Australian of Chinese Malaysian background. Martin researched with
Joseph in order to gain knowledge about his experiences as a migrant
from China to Sarawak, and then from Sarawak to Australia. Martin
takes the reader through the development of the idea for her research
and tells how, as Joseph’s stories unfolded, she found herself consid-
ering the ways in which the telling of his experiences might shed light
on those of others in similar positions. Locating the approach within
an interpretive interactionism theory, Martin focuses on the individ-
ual’s view and everyday experiences of the world and shows how the
researcher then becomes more aware of the biases and issues in the
research design. She takes us through Denzin’s (1998) nine steps in
the ‘classic’ approach to life history, using Joseph’s life to illustrate
how the research proceeded. The main methods of data collection
were interviewing and the study of historical documents, while the
analysis relied on the progressive-regressive method that enabled
Martin to frame Joseph’s story within its historical context. The trig-
gers that memories spark mean that the researcher embarks on an
intense relationship with the research participant. Reliability, validity
and ethics meant excluding some interesting aspects of Joseph’s story
at his request. This chapter reveals the impact and beauty of life his-
tory in its potential for unravelling the hopes and expectations of
ordinary men and women.
Historical research
In his chapter on historical method for education and community
work, Maunders contemplates three central questions surrounding
historical research: (i) Why should it be done?, (ii) What should be
the focus?, and (iii) How should data be collected and analysed?
Maunders tells a little of his own history in order to answer these
questions. While he laments, to some extent, the challenges that
economic rationalism presents to historical research, this chapter
weaves history with theory in ways that convince the reader of the pull
of historical research. Maunders cites Davison’s (2000) four key
ideas—namely, identity, cultural sensitivity, social change and citizen-
ship—as persuasive arguments for the use of history. He then moves
to the postmodernist critique and notes the temptation to ‘ignore
xiv SLICES OF LIFE: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
inconvenient facts and to focus on individual perception’. Instead,
Maunders argues for the need to understand why and how our social
institutions have developed. He suggests four major categories or
fields of research open to the educational and social practitioner: his-
tories of policy and /or legislation, histories of institutions, histories
of practice, and participants’ experiences and outcomes. He discusses
each, interspersing this with many instances of historical research that
illuminate the fields, and also provides a methodological framework
for the prospective historical researcher. The chapter shows how using
the past as a focus on contemporary practice can lead to improved
practice in the future.
Forrest’s chapter focuses on biographical research as a compo-
nent of historical research in education. Drawing on the life and work
of Russian composer and educator Dmitri Borisovich Kabalevsky
(1904–1987), Forrest shows how perceptions can be enriched and our
own practices can be reconstructed through considering the individ-
ual and their interpretation of their work. He uses the analogy of the
artist to shed light on the role of the researcher in biographical
method. He describes the writers Alison Lurie and Gertrude Stein as
major influences on his biographical work. He also cites Heller and
Wilson’s (1992) work to consider the meanings attached to history
and the value of historical research in music education. A key aim is
to locate the individual within an historical period within a given con-
text. Forrest reflects on three levels of questioning: what the subject
did and when, how and why this occurred, and the effect of such
action on others, arguing that this final level is crucial in assessing the
individual’s place in past, present and future contexts. He tantalises us
with excerpts from his study of Kabalevsky, and shows the rewards of
biographical research for the researcher and for education. He
describes the process of piecing together an overlapping jigsaw or
mosaic, and how he mapped Kabalevsky’s life in a framework of
major national and international events to produce a collage of the
life of the composer and educator. Forrest suggests that this method
does more than document a life within a given context; biography
also contributes to our understandings of our own current practices
and thought.
Collaborative research
In her chapter on how Australian women socially construct leadership
in organisations, Boucher demonstrates the use of memory work. Her
research drew on Haug’s (1987) approach to memory work. The
Introduction xv
chapter, which has been reprinted with permission, was previously
published in Gender, Work and Organisation (1997; vol. 4, no. 3, pp.
149–58). It discusses the researcher’s use of a radical humanist
research paradigm. The study, which stemmed from the author’s own
curiosities, aimed to develop a complex, multifaceted picture of the
social construction of leadership by women by exploring their early
memories of leadership. Boucher demonstrates that memory work is
a powerful tool for research and for considering how social structures
influence the ways in which leadership is constructed. She outlines
three phases of the memory work—the collection of written memo-
ries, collective analysis of the memories, and theorising from the
memories. Boucher gives the reader an inside view of the research
process. She ends with an exploration of leadership in terms of cur-
rent theory and makes suggestions for the further investigation of
issues relating to research by, with and for women.
Pease considers a range of methodological issues pertaining to
the implementation of participatory research with pro-feminist men.
Using his doctoral work, in which he sought to clarify what a pro-fem-
inist position means from his own viewpoint, Pease presents a ‘cut’ of
a participatory approach ‘informed by feminist critiques of main-
stream masculinist research’. Pease illustrates his theoretical stance
and use of participatory research drawing on three traditions: partici-
patory research in the third world, collaborative inquiry and emanci-
patory action research. The chapter tells of the processes involved in
the research, and reflects deeply on those processes. Pease uses three
complementary methods: consciousness-raising as a method of analy-
sis, and as a move towards change, and, in order to build upon and
extend consciousness-raising, memory work based on Haug’s (1987,
1992) methods. Pease argues the riches of such work take us to new
ways of understanding of the past, and enable us to challenge domi-
nant social relations. Pease also draws on Touraine’s (1977) ideas of
sociological intervention which aim to create a research situation that
represents, in some way, the nature of the struggle in which partici-
pants are involved. Pease completes his chapter by reflecting on the
various roles in which he engaged during the research, the evolving
theoretical frame of the research, and the challenge in making sense
of dialogical data. This chapter is clearly an instance of praxis: critical
reflection and action that elicits change using a series of collabora-
tively-based research methods to unravel the complexities of pro-
feminism.
xvi SLICES OF LIFE: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SNAPSHOTS
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