Qualitative Research Methods for the Social Sciences, 9th Edition

Effective research practices and interview skills

• NEW! More attention to mixed methods, spatial analysis, and visual data.
• NEW! A greater focus on research design and preparation.
• NEW! More contemporary research cited in examples to help relate the techniques to students’ experiences.
• NEW! Expanded discussions on ethical challenges and lapses in research.
• Software and internet-based tools integrated for research design, data collection, coding, and analysis throughout the entire text.
• A review of research ethics to better reflect the role of institutional review and the unique ethical concerns of cyber research and electronic media in research – as well as to add practical advice on researcher safety.
• Descriptions of the literature review process to incorporate electronic access to primary and secondary sources.
• Practical guidance for evaluating the reliability and applicability of different sources of information and different means of acquiring it.
• Inclusion of social-historical research as a methodology.
• A discussion of interview guidelines for non-standardized and semi-standardized interview formats.
• A section on organizing one’s research from design to completion.
• An innovative strategy for conducting in-depth interviews using a dramaturgical orientation.
• Presentation of and discussion about examples of research from across the social sciences – including sociology, criminology, community-oriented nursing, education, and business.
• Detailed descriptions of the stages of content analysis and coding, both as a research strategy in its own right and as the underlying logic for most qualitative data analysis.
• Focus-group interviewing – one of the fastest growing styles of data collection – described in detail, as well as enhanced discussion of using the Internet to undertake focus-group interviews.
• The importance of researcher reflexivity and voice, discussed in detail throughout.
• Resources for further study, in the extensive references after each chapter, to encourage independent learning.
• A step-by-step discussion on how to write qualitative research proposals and findings, as well as a series of specific writing hints.

Challenging exercises and activities

• NEW! More challenging exercises or questions for discussion.

• Class exercises at natural break-points within the longer chapters, to better assist instructors in the pacing of the materials and/or to enable instructors to pair this text with a reader or other secondary text.

• An assortment of hands-on activities, such as "Trying It Out" exercises in each chapter, giving students an opportunity to experience qualitative research first-hand.
• Numerous, concrete examples from contemporary and classic cases to ensure that students understand the various procedures and concepts.

Current, accessible coverage

• NEW! New sections on when and why the tools and techniques work, and when they do not.
• NEW! Continued attention to remaining current with information technologies.
• NEW! Reorganization of materials that had given students difficulties in past editions.
• NEW! Continued emphasis on engaging and challenging readers.
• A highly accessible “essay” style of presentation.