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Qualitative Methods

Chapter 5

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Learning Outcomes• At the end of this chapter you will be able to– demonstrate the importance of ethnographic work to

leisure and tourism research– define and carry out ethnographic research– make an informed choice on how to collect qualitative data– assess the strengths and weaknesses of ethnographic

research using qualitative methods– distinguish between different types of interviewing, including

focus groups– undertake life history research– assess the value of persona diaries as a method of data

collection– use a case study strategy to research

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Ethnography

• Phenomenological approaches used by ethnographers employing qualitative techniques differ fundamentally from positivist approaches.

• The emphasis from the phenomenological or interpretative point of view is on theory 'grounded' in data seeking generalisations from the particular, whereas a positivist is more likely to be testing hypotheses with data.

• Although this is normally the case, it must be made clear that ethnographers sometimes do test hypotheses.

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Ethnography

• An ethnographer is less likely to be narrow and restrictive in his/her approach to research.

• The method used by positivists is a rigid procedure, whereas the ethnographer will use a more flexible approach to the research process and focus.

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Ethnography

• For the ethnographer the perspectives and interpretations of those being researched become the key to understanding human behaviour.

• The ethnographer does not consider research to be an objective process because the main interest is the subjectivity of human behaviour.

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Ethnography

• The word 'ethnography' means a description of peoples‘ or their cultures.

• Social anthropologists have used it in social science research for a long period of time.

• It was originally used to study small, isolated tribes.

• From these early beginnings, the research strategy used by anthropologists was widened to study more contemporary cultures like communities, gangs, the police, factory workers etc., and in leisure and tourism…

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Ethnography

• Unlike the experimental style of research, ethnographic research studies people in their natural setting.

• Understanding the meanings and cultural practices of the people from within becomes the focus of study.

• Ethnographers interpret everyday events in which they become involved.

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Ethnography

• The values and structures of a society are seen as having an internal structure of their own.

• As an outsider, the researcher enters the group under study and is confronted with a strange and possibly incomprehensible world.

• The ethnographer enters this world and a process of learning takes place.

• The outsider becomes an insider and begins the process of understanding the culture of the group

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The case for qualitative methodsQualitative research can be used to study leisure behaviour as:

1. Leisure as experience - where leisure is viewed in subjective terms as a state of mind, experience or feeling, and not as a fixed measurement.

2. Leisure behaviour - as a formative process the form and meaning of leisure involvement changes over time as new situations

3. Leisure behaviour as a group phenomenon - the individual can be analysed in the context of a group as leisure involvement is embedded in social interaction.

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Characteristics of ethnographic research

The main characteristics of the ethnographic style of research are:1. The researcher usually spends a

considerable amount of time among the people in order to understand the culture of the people... As an ethnographer, the researcher will share the lives of the people and observe them from a position of detachment....

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Characteristics of ethnographic research

2. The ethnographer regards routine and normal aspect of life worthy of consideration. The ordinary parts of life are seen as just as important as major events or incidents out of the ordinary.

3. How the people being researched see their own world is more important to the researcher. What meanings those being researched attach to their reality and how they perceive the situation themselves are more important.

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Characteristics of ethnographic research

4. The ethnographer is also interested in all aspects of the culture being studied, and avoids isolating individual aspects of the culture..

5. Inevitably, the final research report will contain much description. But it is not just description. There will be an attempt to interpret the data to give the reader an understanding of what processes have shaped the culture.

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Methods of data collection

• For the researcher there is a simple method of classifying the various roles of the ethnographer.

• The researcher's role can be either a full participant or an observing spectator and is dependent on whether the subjects of the research are aware of the researcher's role (overt) or not (covert).

• Participant observation involves participating fully in the lives of those being studied to share their experiences.

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Methods of data collection

• lf the role is one only of observation, then the lack of interaction with the subjects can raise problems.

• As a researcher just observing events, there is the danger that interpretations of events will reflect the researcher's own value judgments and not that of the culture being studied.

• On the other hand, the full participant observer, by involving himself/herself in events, may unknowingly influence events in the field

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Methods of data collection

• Participant observation is a technique of ethnographic research that is probably best suited to projects which emphasise interpretations of events, interaction between 'actors' and the importance attached to language and meanings.

• There are some general, practical points which need to be borne in mind (see Table 5.1).

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Table 5.1: Key issues in participant observation

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Methods of data collection

Six indices of 'subjective adequacy' to enhance the understanding of the researcher are:

1. Time: as process is the focus of research then the more time spent with a group the greater the understanding

2. Place: physical locations influence actions as they are the context for behavior

3. Social circumstances: relaying to the group in a variety of roles or activities

4. Language: the more familiar with language the greater the understanding

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Methods of data collection

5. Intimacy (frank): the greater the personal involvement the greater the understanding

6. Social consensus: how the meanings in the culture being researched are used and shared among the group

Table 5.2 illustrates the point that the degree of involvement varies across the four types based on the number of organisations that form part of the research

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Table 5.2:Typology of qualitative organisational research strategies

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Examples from leisure and tourism research

Ethnographic insights can help to understand and interpret planning issues and community attitudes.

The authors identify various ways ethnographic research. They include:

• tourists' perspectives• assess social and cultural impacts on host populations• full descriptions to help understand and interpret

current and past tourist phenomena• help interpret data from other sources like a survey.

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Interviewing (01.12.2014)

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Interviewing

We can identify 3 main types of interviews defined by their degree of structure:1. Structured interview: • This type of interview is associated with the

survey style of research where a standard interview schedule is designed to answer a series of specific questions on a face-to-face basis. This interview structure will produce quantitative data for analysis.

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Interviewing2. Semi-structured interview:

• Interviews of this nature will have specified questions but will allow more probing to seek clarification and elaboration(detail).

• They would have more latitude (freedom) than the structured interview.

3. Unstructured interview:• The name 'unstructured' is a misnomer (wrong) as no

interview can have a total lack of structure. • This type of interview has also been called a 'semi-

structured' interview , a 'depth' interview, a 'qualitative' interview or an 'exploratory' interview.

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Interviewing

• This type of interview is the one associated with ethnographic research where the aim is to understand the perspective of the interviewee and the meanings that the interviewee attaches to situations and contexts important to him or her.

The advantages and disadvantages of the three types of interviews are summarised in Table 5.3.

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Interviewing• To undertake a successful ethnographic

interview the researcher must establish a feeling of trust and rapport (harmony) with the interviewee.

• The interviewer should be understanding, non judgmental, sympathetic, able to empathize, knowledgeable of the situation and able to appreciate the interviewee's point of view.

• These are the personal attributes that make a good ethnographic interviewer.

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Life histories

• A life history or biography has been used extensively in ethnographic research.

• In essence life histories are collected through interviewing.

• Usually data are collected from a series of interviews in a largely unstructured fashion.

• Other forms of information like documents and photographs can supplement interviews.

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Life histories• Each individual story is unique and this may be

seen as a weakness to the method. • But a collection of individual stories can help

improve our understanding and knowledge of social and cultural processes in general.

• Representativeness is a key issue in this form of data collection.

• Care must be taken if generalisations to a wider population are being considered.

• Analysis of many life histories can identify themes and categories from individual lives.

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Life histories

The main points about life histories are:• the past, through remembered lives, helps

understand the present• rich intimate (sincere) detail from a close encounter

with the respondent• greater understanding of social relationships• exploration of social change• exploration of issues or problems where little is

known• complements other sources of data

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Focus groups

• The idea behind focus groups is that a small group of people interacts with one another and a group leader to explore a topic in a relatively unstructured way.

• Group dynamics are used to generate ideas and pursue a topic in greater detail.

• There are no definitive guidelines on the number in the focus group, although between 6 and 12 is the norm.

• The group leader will usually be the researcher who uses an unstructured topic list to stimulate discussion.

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Focus groups

• Focus groups are used to supplement other methods or used as triangulation in multi method research strategies.

• One of the main advantages of the method is that both the researcher and the participants gain insights and understanding of a particular social situation.

• Focus groups can test generalisations and theories developed by other methods.

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Focus groups

Essentially the main characteristics of focused group discussions are:• discussion is a social event with a range of

personalities and a skilled moderator sustaining participation

• exchange of opinions and experiences, with different and sometimes contradictory perspectives

• enjoyable and learning experience for all

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Focus groups

• collective productions of ethnographic knowledge

• goal is not to produce a single meaning, but to share experiences from which multiple meanings can be made

• collaborative inquiry between researchers and participants (empowerment to participants).

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Focus groupsFive criteria for successful focused group discussions are:1. participants must be screened as to their relevance

to the topic2. potentially biased people should be excluded3. moderator/researcher should be director and

facilitator4. participants should be experiencing no physical

discomfort5. analysis and interpretation of the sessions depends

on the purpose of the study.

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Personal diaries

Personal diaries as a qualitative methodology informed by a phenomenological framework. The advantages of using this method of data collection listed as:• monitoring processes and change• understanding human emotions• information is gained from multiple situations and

perspectives• information is revealed from a developmental,

longitudinal perspective• participant perspective

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Personal diaries• Diaries do appear to offer much more information

on tourist behaviour, formal and informal, than other methods such as a questionnaire.

• Diaries have been used for a wide variety of purposes they do not comprise a uniform field of study.

• Therefore, there is considerable variation in underlying methodologies, and important methodological and technical issues have not yet been settled satisfactorily.

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Personal diariesIssues around the use of diaries include:• Degree of structure: Should the day be structured

into time zones or completely unstructured?• Response rate: How to improve response rates for

a time-consuming activity?• Consistent data quality: Varies according to

respondent enthusiasm and educational level?• Behaviour modification: Undertake activities to

give a favorable impression?

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Personal diaries

• The diary illustrates how a method of data collection can be used in either quantitative or qualitative research.

• It is a form of data collection employed by phenomenologists and positivists.

• Despite its versatility, it is an underused method of data collection in leisure and tourism research.

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Personal diaries

• Published diaries as documentary evidence are another source of valuable data.

• This is particularly true if the research project aims to examine the tourist experience of the past.

• Much can be of old postcards, posters, biographies, novels, legal and administrative documents, but personal diary gives an edited version of reality as experienced at that time.

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Case studies

• This form of research consists of a detailed investigation of one or more organizations or groups within organizations .

• The aim is to provide an analysis of the context and processes of whatever is being researched.

• The context is deliberately part of the design, and, due to the complexity and number of variables involved, other research designs like the survey are not appropriate.

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Case studies

• Thus, the case study is not distinguishable from its context.

• A project or programme in an evaluation study would be suitable for case study research.

• For example, this could be the setting up of a new leisure centre, or the introduction of community participation in a sustainable tourism project.

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Case studies

The richness of the context means that the research cannot rely on a single data collection method. The case study is a method that usually combines quantitative and qualitative data:• participant observation/observation• interviews• questionnaires/interviews/observations.

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Case studies

• The use of a combination of methods will be used because of the complexity of phenomena and to triangulate to improve validity.

• From a theoretical point of view the emphasis is on understanding processes alongside their contexts.

• Interviews carried out in a case study approach aim to explore in depth the particular circumstances of an organisation and to analyse organisational behaviour in a specific context.

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Case studiesThe strengths of the case study approach are:

• capacity to explore social processes as they unfold in organizations

• understand social processes in their organizational context

• exploring processes or behavior that is little understood• explore atypical processes• exploring behavior which is informal, secret or even

illicit (illegal)• essential in cross-national research to understand the

meanings attached to particular behaviors.

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Summary

• Ethnographic research using qualitative methods is growing in stature (importance).

• Researchers in leisure and tourism are beginning to apply qualitative methods in the social sciences with increasing effectiveness in their own fields of study.

• This is more than just a reaction to quantitative methods and statistical analysis, it is a genuine concern to see issues and problems from a different perspective.

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Summary

• Ethnographers are challenging many of the assumptions implicit in a more positivist approach, unfor tunately, such an approach has not infiltrated undergraduate research, and many student dissertations or independent research projects employ the questionnaire survey and the structured interview.

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End of Chapter Slides