Blog 2- Clayton Yantis

Creswell offers numerous options that help researchers achieve their goals while being as objective as possible. This blog focuses exclusively on qualitative procedures and strategies recommended by Creswell. Qualitative procedures includes various characteristics, strategies of inquiry, researcher’s roles, data collection/ recording procedures, data analysis and interpretation, and the reliability, validity, and generalizability of data.

The first procedure involves characteristics, which include the “how’s and why’s” of the experiment. Creswell includes a list of questions on page 174 which helps the researcher better define procedures. Another way of looking at this is how Creswell defines the parameters of the experiment. I will focus on the researcher as a key instrument who observes behaviors. Behaviorists focus on the subjects external behaviors (obviously) and form conclusions about what is displayed. The behaviorist’s goal is to understand non-verbal cues that subjects project.

The second procedure involves the strategies of inquiry. Creswell states that this strategy “focus[es] on data collection, analysis, and writing.” For example, a behaviorist will collect data by observing the subject(s) around them. They will then take the observations and then attempt to analyze them (as objectively as possible) and write about them.

The third procedure is defining the researchers role in the experiment. This can be accomplished in different ways, but my role tonight will be facilitator of the game called Werewolf. This game is a lot of fun and it will be easy to “break the ice” with everyone. I have used this game at parties and it has been a huge hit among my extroverted friends.

The next procedure involves data collection, which can use different approaches. Creswell lists four types of data collection: observations, interviews, documents, and audio-visual methods. Observations enable researchers to have flexibility in their roles and they can move around the situation “fluidly.” The observer can be a complete participant (conceals role), observer as participant (role is known), participant as observer (observation role secondary to participant role), and complete observer (researcher observes without participating). The game will enable me to “rotate” the roles of observer and create a unique situation based on the subjects’ interaction. I prefer this method because it is flexible and easy to use.

Interviews can occur in a number of ways. They range from being face-to-face, one on one encounters (common in counseling sessions).

Documents can be useful but I prefer the interaction style between subjects. Documents can provide researchers language and words of participants. The problem here is that the data can be manipulated to “save face.”

Audio-visual materials can help bridge the gap, but the behavior can be modified and/or manipulated for desired outcomes. These materials suffer from the similar problems that occur in documents.

        The final phase will discuss how data recording procedures can enhance research. The researcher can establish different protocols (which is a fancy word for procedures). The researcher can use observations, interviews, documents, and/or visual materials. Observations and interviews typically rely on notes (Creswell) that the researcher annotates and records information. Documents and materials use various entities to include journals and videos.

        Qualitative research uses different strategies that can be used to promote open-ended research. The aforementioned procedures help accomplish the various goals that researchers set out to discover and prove. I enjoy qualitative research for using the different possibilities and enjoying the flexibility that it provides. Behaviors and interviews are (in my humble opinion) the best resources for my proposal. Thank you for your time!