LC571 Qualitative Research Methods for Social Scientists Assignment Sample

• Type Assignment
• Downloads537
• Pages15
• Words3740

Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods For Social Scientists Assignment

Quantitative research is a methodological approach concerned with phenomena that involve the human experience, feelings, attitudes and behaviour within the social context (Pilcher and Cortazzi, 2023). It allows for a detailed examination of participants’ views and experiences and encompasses data collection techniques that include interviews, focus groups and observations derived from individuals’ perceptions. While the quantitative approach to research focuses on numbers, the qualitative approach examines the depth of human experiences to find patterns.

This work also seeks to explore the quality of life of older adults in the community singing group called RtR for seniors. With the support of Health Trust funding and an older person’s charity, the study investigates participants’ reasons for engaging in the group and the level of emotional, mental, and social benefits gained through the activity. The aim of this research report, developed with guidance from Assignment Help UK, is to provide a thematic analysis of the interview transcript focusing on two key themes: Companionship and Overcoming Loneliness and Personal Growth and Emotional Resilience (Pilcher and Cortazzi, 2023). The report is structured as follows: an analysis of epistemology and ethics, a presentation of research findings, an in-depth exploration of emerging themes, and a concluding section summarizing the major ideas of the study.

Epistemology and Ethics

Epistemological Considerations

Philosophy is the foundational theory of research methods, a branch of epistemology which deals with knowledge acquisition. Epistemology analyses what knowledge is where it comes from, and to what extent researchers explain the world (Annelies Pieterman-Bos et al., 2024). Epistemology in qualitative research may fit constructivist or interpretivist traditions where it is assumed that reality is socially constructed and-гases through interactions.

A result of the view adopted in this research which is the constructivist epistemology, focuses on the interpretation of the experience of the older persons involved in the “Raise the Roof”(RtR) singing group (Annelies Pieterman-Bos et al., 2024). It embraces the fact that the participants give their version of the incident based on their experiences, feelings, and the social environment.

In this context, knowledge is generated by the participants’ interactions in the focus group – this involves their general discussions being transcribed and analyzed by the researcher (Olsson, 2021). Another important element is the demand for reflexivity because the researcher is constantly aware of the prejudices that can affect the analysis of data.

LC571 Qualitative Research Methods for Social Scientists Assignment Sample

Liked This Sample? Hire Me Now

Christian Wise 7 Years | PhD

Ethical Considerations

Research ethics involves the overall practice of studies that are conducted on human beings. In handling participants in the study, the ethical consideration of participants’ rights and dignity of the participants needs to be protected (Lee, 2022).

Informed Consent

Informed consent safeguards the interest of the participants by requiring them to conform to the research project without forcing them to participate in the research (Dankar, Gergely and Dankar, 2019). In this study, participants were informed of the aims and purposes of the study as well as the procedures that would be followed during the focus group, and the participant’s rights to withdraw from the study at any time without explanation (Dankar, Gergely and Dankar, 2019). Their consent was sought in writing to capture our agreement in writing to respect their free will.

Privacy and Confidentiality

This has the effect of preserving the dignity of the participants by avoiding situations whereby the individuals stand to lose something if the information provided is made public (Xu et al., 2020). Within this research, participants were referred to by pseudonyms (e.g., Bill, Patsy, Jean). The name of the participant was also removed from the transcript and the information abreast was stored in line with the Data Protection Act (Xu et al., 2020).

Voluntary Participation

All the persons in the focus group were volunteers. The participants were made aware of their option to withdraw from the study at any one time without reason (Iseselo and Edith, 2024). They also make sure that people are not forced or persuaded to give their consent to gain everyone’s trust.

Emotional Well-being

Since the discussions of the study are rather sensitive, the researcher ensured that steps would be taken to prevent participants’ distress (Birk, 2024). For example, during the interview Patsy got overwhelmed and started crying; the researcher upheld ethics by having to stop the interview session to allow her to compose herself again (Birk, 2024). Information regarding support services in case participants went through distress after the session was also given.

Power Dynamics and Respect

Due to this, the researcher made sure that the focus group environment was friendly to the participants and they expressed their experiences as required (Joanna de Souza et al., 2024). To reduce the potential generation of power differentials the approaches were aimed at establishing an equal and conversational orientation of the participants.

Methodology and Methods

Qualitative Research Methodology:

Quantitative research is a systematic means of examining and developing people’s experiences and social situations in natural settings (Bauer et al., 2021). It tends toward samples with profound analysis instead of general results or tendencies and concentrates on qualitative rather than quantitative information (Bauer et al., 2021). When it comes to research questions, qualitative approaches are ideal for the inquiry of how and why people do what they do and feel as they feel.

Focus Groups as a Data Collection Method:

On the other hand, Focus groups are a kind of naturalistic approach research technique designed to obtain data through group discussions (Adler, Salanterä and Zumstein-Shaha, 2019). As a result, the focus group method was considered suitable for investigating the participants’ well-being within the RtR program (Adler, Salanterä and Zumstein-Shaha, 2019). The small group discussion helps all members present to think about why they joined the singing group and how the group influenced a certain change in their lives.

The focus group setting also made participants build and endorse one another’s experiences or perceived experiences (Schuster et al., 2023). For instance, Jean and Bill understood the plight of Patsy to indicate that they were partners in reinforcing the experience of the company.

Thematic analysis is a technique of qualitative data analysis that categorizes and makes meaning out of patterns in structures (Schuster et al., 2023). Hoskins & Massey stated that it offers a structured scheme for analyzing and categorizing the qualitative data thereby making it ideal for the exploratory type of research.

In the analysis of the focus group transcript in this study, thematic analysis was used. The analysis followed Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phase framework:

• Familiarization with the data: The researcher read the transcript several times as a way of familiarizing with the participants’ accounts (Hemming et al., 2021).
• Generating initial codes: Defining key phrases and concepts, the material was divided into corresponding categories where necessary.
• Searching for themes: The related codes were then categorized into more general themes that noted meaningful trends in the data.
• Reviewing themes: Themes were purged to such a degree that would encompass the data to the letter (Hemming et al., 2021).
• Defining and naming themes: It was easy to see which theme is which because names were scribed on them, to sum up what they entail.
• Producing the report: The results and their implications were described systematically in the written report (Point and Baruch, 2023).

Findings

Discussion

Theme 1: Personal Growth and Well-being

The elements of human interest and self-actualization of individuals demonstrate the change related to participating in community activities like the singing group called “Raise the Roof” (RtR) (Manjeera, Gundu and Rao, 2024). Participating in such a format of group tasks may result in enhanced growth in the psychological and emotional states of presented individuals, especially those of older age (Manjeera, Gundu and Rao, 2024). Despite such positive changes as reported by the participants in this study, these results should be scrutinously examined to understand their overall benefits and drawbacks.

The entertainment in singing groups can help build self-esteem while the hobbies and genuine achievements help create a sense of accomplishment (Hendry, Lynam and Lafarge, 2022). The form of expression that music presents lets people be themselves and in a way come to terms with their feelings. These are in concordance with psychological theories postulating that meaningful activities lead to optimal levels of psychological functioning among people. However, caution was taken to scrutinize the effectiveness of the observed personal development among the participants in the context of when they are out of the structured environment of RtR (Hendry, Lynam and Lafarge, 2022). Some participants may develop over-dependency on group support, which can be terrible if the group breaks or when someone is incapable state to participating.

Group singing is known to provide therapeutic function associated with practical opposition to stress, amplified mood, and promoted resilience (Camlin, Daffern and Zeserson, 2020). Singing is in its essence a physiological and psychological process eliciting endorphin secretion and offering a working through of various feelings. However, as experienced through the participants’ accounts, a critical view of the postmodern raises concerns about its accessibility (Camlin, Daffern and Zeserson, 2020). For example, elderly persons who are crippled, or those with hearing problems, would hardly be in a position to attend such activities, thus reducing the extent of these programs’ reach.

Choir singing as one of the group practices has specific positive effects on health. That helps people to act out their feelings, to work through traumatic events, and to celebrate the successes of others and themselves (Damsgaard and Brinkmann, 2022). Some participants such as Bill and Jean said that through singing they acquire some form of individual voice and also help to gain control over emotions (Damsgaard and Brinkmann, 2022). Thus the subjects got to find new images of their selves while singing and the applause helped them to change their outlook towards life.

Based on the research, active participation through singing proves to constitute a major strategy that helps the participants. At the same time, positive or negative personalities, and other factors before or at the time of their employment can affect the level of these advantages (Ali, 2019). For instance, the introverted participants suggest that those with high extraversion would benefit much more from the group than those who are introverted or have social anxiety issues (Ali, 2019). This shows that it’s important for community programs to take into consideration the needs of all participants to allow each person to develop to their full potential.

For this, the implications of this theme are very significant for the well-being strategies’ development. RtR-type programmes are valuable interventions that enable if not empower older adults to talk through emotions, find pleasure, and develop thriving within a creative art programme (Grainne Crealey et al., 2023). The results of this study imply we should focus on, and promote initiatives that have statistically significant influences on individuals’ psychological well-being and perceived life satisfaction. In the aspect of emotional aspects, singing, especially for the role emerges as a significant way to help one recover from a certain type of emotionally disturbing encounter, or trauma, transform feelings affirm self-worth, and gain a sense of achievement (Grainne Crealey et al., 2023).

Theme 2: Companionship and Connection

In this paper, the theme of companionship and connection shows how the members of the ' Raise the Roof’ (RtR) singing group benefitted from singing by breaking the loneliness wall (Daffern, Balmer and Brereton, 2021). This paper focuses on the importance of social networking in the welfare and quality of life improvement of elderly people who rarely socialize or are living alone. The group offered a secure platform and people with cancer had a chance to come together, retell their stories and foster each other (Daffern, Balmer and Brereton, 2021). This theme followed by Patsy’s experience adds depth to the narrative. Although she suffered from depression and anxiety for years, she had a problem with social interaction. I have been honest with the people in RtR so am not stating anything they do not already understand. This means that the group accepted her and gave her a positive image which made her feel more worthy of the societal acceptance.

Bill shared how the group enabled him to get his social life back after losing his wife. RtR was useful to expand his social contacts and thus, after participating in RtR, he joined a walking group and continued to experience positive progression in social activity engagement (Galanes, 2024). This shows how another well-structured group activity such as RtR works as a platform through which participants learn how to connect to other people hence engaging society at large.

It also helps explain the feelings of loneliness that Jean goes through after the death of her husband (Galanes, 2024). To her, RtR provided companionship but it also created opportunities to bring back a particular kind of happiness that people share in groups or to make new happy memories. The feelings of togetherness and working as one group were helpful to her emotionally so singing with others was very important for her. This feeling has always been characteristic of group jenis, where people become united through a common activity (Prabowo and Suhernita, 2018). As one of such social practices, singing offers a particularly noteworthy potential for unity. This makes it develop a common ground that fosters communication as people help one another. Due to singing in harmony, great internationally recognized positive thinking increases hence enabling the people to develop good relationships in the group (Prabowo and Suhernita, 2018). This dynamic could be seen as reflected in participants’ construction of relationships within RtR as friendly and welcoming.

These findings are particularly relevant from a wider perspective on the significance of promoting social relatedness for elderly people, as it enhances positive mental health and decreases the likelihood of loneliness and isolation (R Indrasti et al., 2021). Services like RtR offer a routine pattern of engaging and communication is essential for users; clients probably have limited ways to socialise (R Indrasti et al., 2021). There is also the aspect of the schedule established whereby the participants develop a normal pattern of having a network to keep interacting with.

Conclusion

The thematic analysis of the Right to Roar (RtR) focus group interview shows that structured communal activities have a significantly positive effect on the resident’s quality of life. Two key themes emerged: Companionship and Connection and Personal Growth and Well-being. These themes point to the transformative possibilities that resulted from the members’ commitment to singing in a group.

The theme of Personal Growth and Well-being shows how RtR helped people to find happy again and develop protective factors. Singing brings improvement in people’s well-being and provides satisfaction, people can regain themselves and be able to face problems in life such as grief, mental illness and many others. The particular type of activity that emerged as the most liberating was singing. The theme of Companionship and Connection focuses on the power of social connections to provide mental support and prevent loneliness. RtR helped the participants feel like they belonged to the group and that they could potentially make genuine friendships with the other individuals. These interactions also included informal contacts outside the group sessions and enhanced the social lives of the participants resulting in improvement of their quality of life.

References

• Adler, K., Salanterä, S. and Zumstein-Shaha, M. (2019). Focus group interviews in child, youth, and parent research: an integrative literature review. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, [online] 18(18), p.160940691988727. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406919887274.
• Ali, I. (2019). Personality traits, Individual Innovativeness and Satisfaction with Life. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, [online] 4(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jik.2017.11.002.
• Annelies Pieterman-Bos, Reincke, C.M., van and Marc (2024). Understanding epistemological notions underlying scientific language use: a multifaceted analysis framework. Frontiers in Education, 9. doi:https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1452111.
• Bauer, G.R., Churchill, S.M., Mahendran, M., Walwyn, C., Lizotte, D. and Villa-Rueda, A.A. (2021). Intersectionality in quantitative research: A systematic review of its emergence and applications of theory and methods. SSM - Population Health, 14(1), pp.100–798. doi:https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352827321000732.
• Birk, M. (2024). The enemy is inside: Feminists of color navigate the nonprofit industrial complex. Gender, Work & Organization. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.13205.
• Camlin, D.A., Daffern, H. and Zeserson, K. (2020). Group singing as a resource for the development of a healthy public: a study of adult group singing. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 7(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-00549-0.
• Daffern, H., Balmer, K. and Brereton, J. (2021). Singing Together, Yet Apart: The Experience of UK Choir Members and Facilitators During the Covid-19 Pandemic. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. doi:https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.624474.
• Damsgaard, J.B. and Brinkmann, S. (2022). Me and us: Cultivating presence and mental health through choir singing. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/scs.13078.
• Dankar, F.K., Gergely, M. and Dankar, S.K. (2019). Informed Consent in Biomedical Research. Computational and Structural Biotechnology Journal, 17(1), pp.463–474. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csbj.2019.03.010.
• Galanes, P. (2024). An Enemy Has Infiltrated My Walking Group. Help! [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/17/style/walking-group-friend.html [Accessed 21 Nov. 2024].
• Grainne Crealey, McQuade, L., O’Sullivan, R. and Ciaran O’Neill (2023). Arts and creativity interventions for improving health and wellbeing in older adults: a systematic literature review of economic evaluation studies. BMC Public Health, 23(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-17369-x.
• Hemming, L., Pratt, D., Bhatti, P., Shaw, J. and Haddock, G. (2021). Involving an individual with lived‐experience in a co‐analysis of qualitative data. Health Expectations, 24(3), pp.766–775. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/hex.13188.
• Hendry, N., Lynam, D.S. and Lafarge, C. (2022). Singing for Wellbeing: Formulating a Model for Community Group Singing Interventions. Qualitative Health Research, 32(8-9), p.104973232211047. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/10497323221104718.
• Iseselo, M.K. and Edith (2024). Comprehension of informed consent and voluntary participation in registration cohorts for phase IIb HIV vaccine trial in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania: a qualitative descriptive study. BMC Medical Ethics, 25(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12910-024-01033-z.
• Joanna de Souza, Gillett, K., Yakubu Salifu and Walshe, C. (2024). Changes in Participant Interactions. Using Focus Group Analysis Methodology to Explore the Impact on Participant Interactions of Face-to-Face Versus Online Video Data Collection Methods. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 23. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069241241151.
• Lee, H.S. (2022). Ethical issues in clinical research and publication. Kosin Medical Journal, 37(4), pp.278–282. doi:https://doi.org/10.7180/kmj.22.132.
• Manjeera, C., Gundu, S.R. and Rao, C.M. (2024). THE ROLE OF CREATIVITY IN SELF DEVELOPMENT. Galaxy International Interdisciplinary Research Journal, [online] 12(2), pp.369–373. doi:https://www.giirj.com/index.php/giirj/article/view/6392.
• Olsson, E.J. (2021). Explicationist Epistemology and the Explanatory Role of Knowledge. Journal for General Philosophy of Science. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10838-020-09520-8.
• Pilcher, N. and Cortazzi, M. (2023). ‘Qualitative’ and ‘Quantitative’ Methods and Approaches Across Subject Fields: Implications for Research Values, Assumptions, and Practices. Quality & Quantity, [online] 58(1), pp.2357–2387. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-023-01734-4.
• Point, S. and Baruch, Y. (2023). (Re)thinking transcription strategies: Current challenges and future research directions. Scandinavian Journal of Management, [online] 39(2), p.101272. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scaman.2023.101272.
• Prabowo, H.Y. and Suhernita, S. (2018). Be like water: developing a fluid corruption prevention strategy. Journal of Financial Crime, 25(4), pp.997–1023. doi:https://doi.org/10.1108/jfc-04-2017-0031.
• R Indrasti, J B M Rawung, Sudolar, N.R., S Handoko and None Nurjanani (2021). Institutional Characteristics of Supporting Potato Farming in South Sulawesi. IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science, 883(1), pp.012080–012080. doi:https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/883/1/012080.
• Schuster, R.C., Brewis, A., Wutich, A., Safi, C., Vanrespaille, T.E., Bowen, G., SturtzSreetharan, C., McDaniel, A. and Ochandarena, P. (2023). Individual interviews versus focus groups for evaluations of international development programs: Systematic testing of method performance to elicit sensitive information in a justice study in Haiti. Evaluation and Program Planning, 97, p.102208. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2022.102208.
• Xu, A., Baysari, M.T., Stocker, S.L., Leow, L.J., Day, R.O. and Carland, J.E. (2020). Researchers’ views on, and experiences with, the requirement to obtain informed consent in research involving human participants: A qualitative study. BMC Medical Ethics, 21(1), pp.1–11. doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12910-020-00538-7.