3.5 Functions reflexive attitude serves in experiential qualitative psychology
Reflexivity as a measure to improve credibility and reliability
Credibility improves when researchers are reflexive; as this way they make their research methods which were used to produce data and the manner of analysis that influenced research findings, more transparent and attempt to make readers of their research aware of their own potential researcher bias. Thus, the researchers should declare and not hide their biases, values, beliefs furthermore, responses to the object of study for the sake of credibility. Credibility and reliability also improves as the researcher identifies the particular status position that s/he assumes towards the subjects being studied,
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The qualitative tradition assumes that researcher is not a mere creative knowledgeable subject who discovers social reality but likewise material body through whom the narrative structure unfolds. Thus, the researcher’s interests are forced in all phases of the examination process – from the inquiries they ask to those they disregard, from who they study to who they overlook, from issue definition to investigation, representation and composition. So, it is imperative that the researcher through personal accounting explicitly situate themselves within the research and become aware of the location of self within the power hierarchies so as to reframe the power imbalances between them and the …show more content…
Reflexivity mostly entails the researchers’ voice in the form of how they express themselves within ethnography. The researcher’s voice may not be evidently visible as in the third person ‘realist’ tales or it may directly be the subject of inquiry as in ‘experimental representations’; the author’s voice is also present as a noticeable narrator and co-member in the content. The respondent’s voce in qualitative inquiry is almost always filtered through the researcher’s account. It is the researcher who decides that whose stories have to be included and who’s needed to be ignored. Thus the choice to benefit some record over the other that is done by the researcher while developing theory out of the data collected also symbolizes a kind of voice and some reflexive action is required on the part of the researcher to acknowledge their partial
This approach, which combines aspects of ethnography and autobiography (Ellis et al., 2011), found legitimacy based in the postmodern critique of how the mediums of scientific research - its lexicon and paradigm – constrained the findings of a study (Krizek, 1998; Kuhn, 2012) or as Richardson (2000) puts it “form and content are inseparable” (p. 923). In that way scientific research’s goal of pure objectivity is challenged as unattainable.
Madison, D. Soyini. "Chapter 1: Introduction to Critical Ethnography: Theory and Method." Critical Ethnography: Method, Ethics, and Performance. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2005. N. pag. Print.
This discussion focuses on two issues: the relationship between evidence and hypotheses; and, the role of "contextual" values in inquiry. Longino contrasts contextual values with constitutive values. The latter, the "values generated from an understanding of the goals of scientific inquiry," "are the source of the rules determining what constitutes acceptable scientific practice or scientific method" (L1990, 4). That these values influence inquiry is not a problem. But the former, "personal, social, and cultural values," are thought to threaten the integrity of scientific inquiry (L1990, 4-5).
Qualitative research is an approach that attempts to situate an activity that locates the observer in the world by providing the study to occur in their natural setting and by attempting to make sense of, or interpret information (Denzin and Lincoln, 2005). A characteristic of qualitative research is to use a variety of empirical materials such as personal experience, interviews, and questionnaires. It is imperative to understand the task at hand and how to fully carry out the study when using a qualitative research approach in order to find out the information needed. One view of qualitative research is it involves examining individual’s experiences and documenting those experiences in detail (Jones, 2011). By documenting these observations the researcher is ensuring validity in his or her data and giving the correct creditability to those who participated in the study.
Participant observation is a method of collecting information and data about a culture and is carried out by the researcher immersing themselves in the culture they observing. The researcher becomes known in the community, getting to know and understand the culture in a more intimate and detailed way than would be possible from any other approach. This is done by observing and participating in the community’s daily activities. The method is so effective because the researcher is able to directly approach the people in the community in a natural context as opposed to taking the participant out of their environment. The aim of participant observation is to gain an understanding the subject’s life from their perspective, with the purpose of collecting more detailed information about a community’s habits, opinions, relationships and issues.
There are debates on why qualitative and quantitative can be combined because the two approaches share the goal of understanding the world in which we live Haase & Myers (1980). However, Reichath &Rallis (1994) argued that the two paradigms are incompatible if the qualitative paradigm assumes that there are no external referents for understanding reality. Howe (1988) suggests that researchers should forge ahead with what works. Quantitative research makes no attempt to have personal relationship with the people being studied and to account of their view. The accounts include feelings, beliefs these being concept of feminist work. Feminism holds on to qualitative method because are interested in how ordinary people observe and describe their Silverman (1993).
Reflexivity emphasizes the point of theoretical and practical questioning, changing the ethnographers view of themselves and their work. There is an increased awareness of the collection of data and the limitation of methodological systems. This idea becomes inherent in the postmodernists study of the culture of the anthropologist/ethnographer. In much of his essay, Marcus shows that reflexivity is an immense area of comment and interest by questioning: Is reflexivity a license or a method? Furthermore, he writes that reflexivity opens up “the possibility for the so-called polyphonic text or the completely collaborative project, but more often than not, it merely reinforces the perspective and voice of the lone, introspective fieldworker without challenging the paradigm of ethnographic research at all (Marcus 193).
Smith, J., Flowers, P. and Larkin M. (2009). Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. London: Sage. (chapters 1, 2, & 12).
Using the author’s field research I felt that many of them tried to enter their situation as an outsider looking in as most researchers do. Given time most of them were able to some what be accepted into their social surroundings. No matter what role or relationship the researchers developed along the way they still had to make choices to would affect their data in different ways. They just had to pick the correct approach and apply it. Finally all stories proclaimed different discussions of social science by using different forms of "objectivity" and "subjectivity."
...es of the other participants, nor did it jeopardized the validity of the data collected and conclusions reached. This field experience certainly allowed the observer to begin to draw preliminary connections to her personal research interest based on what was learned about covert observation, note taking, ethnography study, and qualitative research.
Research philosophy, refers to the development of knowledge adopted by the researchers in their research (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2009). In other words, it is the theory that used to direct the researcher for conducting the procedure of research design, research strategy, questionnaire design and sampling (Malhotra, 2009). It is very important to have a clear understanding of the research philosophy so that we could examine the assumptions about the way we view the world, which are contained in the research philosophy we choose, knowing that whether they are appropriate or not (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2009). According to Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill (2009), three major ways of thinking about research philosophy are examined: ontology, epistemology and axiology. Each of them carries significant differences which will have an impact on the way we consider the research procedures. Ontology, “is concerned with nature of reality”, while epistemology “concerns what constitutes acceptable knowledge in a field of study and axiology “studies judgements about value” (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2009, p110, p112, p116). This study is intent on creating some “facts” from objective evaluations which are made by the subjects. Therefore, epistemology will be chosen for this study as the way of thinking about the research philosophy.
Qualitative research was designed as a way to be directly connected with the subjects researched. Participant researchers may choose to merely observe and collect data or to be an active participant. Covert participation has the advantage of reducing the “reactive effects” of the social setting or group (Bachman & Schutt, 2012). Most researchers who use the participation method of research will often strike a balance between participation and observation. Through participation, an observer may gain the trust of the research subjects which can provide more fruitful results. Some research may however be unethical or a violation of law. A good researcher should use prudence beforehand when crafting their research design.
The anthropological approach makes a huge difference because of its credibility, validity, reliability and relevancy.
Stejskal, S.M. (2010) Quatiative and Qualitative Research Methods are not and should not be Mutually Exclusive, Grinn Verlag.
Another characteristic of qualitative research is that it is personal and contains very little scientific terminology. For example, the researchers seek to understand human issues and problems or why humans behave in a certain manner. This type of empathetic approach in a quantitative research is a very unique in characteristic. Also, in a qualitative research, researches interact with the participants or sample, this is very important because they need to observe their behavior. As a result, it causes the research to be more up close and personal. This type of approach is what makes a qualitative research unique or different from quantitative research. (Smith &...