SAGE journal articles and other additional readings have been carefully selected by the author to accompany each chapter. Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.

Article 5.1

Broussard, L. (2006). Understanding qualitative research: A school nurse perspective. Journal of School Nursing, 22, 212-218.

Abstract:
More school nurses are engaging in the generation of research, and their studies increasingly are using qualitative methods to describe various areas of practice. This article provides an overview of 4 major qualitative methods: ethnography, phenomenology, grounded theory, and historical research. Examples of school nursing research studies that have used these methods are included. Descriptions of other qualitative designs, ethical considerations, and issues of scientific rigor are also discussed.

Article 5.2

Fossey, E., Harvey, C., McDermott, F., & Davidson, L. (2002). Understanding and evaluating qualitative research. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 36, 717-732.

Abstract:
Qualitative research aims to address questions concerned with developing an understanding of the meaning and experience dimensions of humans’ lives and social worlds. Central to good qualitative research is whether the research participants’ subjective meanings, actions, and social contexts, as understood by them, are illuminated. This paper aims to provide beginning researchers, and those unfamiliar with qualitative research, with an orientation to the principles that inform the evaluation of the design, conduct, findings and interpretation of qualitative research. It orients the reader to two philosophical perspectives, the interpretive and critical research paradigms, which underpin both the qualitative research methodologies most often used in mental health research, and how qualitative research is evaluated. Criteria for evaluating quality are interconnected with standards for ethics in qualitative research. They include principles for good practice in the conduct of qualitative research, and for trustworthiness in the interpretation of qualitative data. The paper reviews these criteria, and discusses how they may be used to evaluate qualitative research presented in research reports. These principles also offer some guidance about the conduct of sound qualitative research for the beginner qualitative researcher.

Article 5.3

Haverkamp, B., & Young, R. (2007). Paradigms, purpose, and the role of the literature: Formulating a rationale for qualitative investigations. Counseling Psychologist, 35, 265-294.

Abstract:
The authors have identified three areas that are central to the rationale for conducting a qualitative research project, yet which produce confusion and uncertainty for some psychologists trained in traditional research methods. In this article, they consider how philosophy of science paradigms relates to the foundational rationale for qualitative inquiry and present suggestions for how researchers can formulate a statement of purpose and research questions that are congruent with an identified paradigm. They examine the role of scholarly literature in two areas: those of developing a rationale and in enhancing the impact of qualitative research. Examples from contemporary counseling psychology research are used to illustrate core concepts.