CORE CONCEPTS for UNDERSTANDING LEADERSHIP AND RESEARCH

Worldview and some examples Your worldviewsRelationship to Qualitative Research (more on Leadership later)

Some examples of paradigms or worldviews

positivism post-positivism modernism, post-modernism and

beyond advocacy/participatory the interpretive communities

positivism

Social and political context are present but peripheral

Facts are derivable and realObjectivity is possible and

desirableGold standard is the

randomized control trialQualitative evidence is

acknowledged, but considered to be at the

bottom of valid evidence

post-positivism

human knowledge is based not on unchallengeable, rock-solid foundations, but rather upon human conjecture

preserves the basic assumptions of positivism: the possibility and desirability of objective truth, and the use of experimental methodology

the absolute separability of knower and known is not possible

a single, shared reality is not possible

modernism and post-modernism (dovetailing to some extent with the timing of post-positivism)

modernism: the assessment of the past as different to the modern age, the recognition that the world was becoming more complex, and that the old "final authorities" (God, government, science, and reason) were subject to intense critical scrutiny.

post-modernism

Emphasizes the role of language, power relations

Social and political contexts are considered. Facts are based in their social and historical context

Objective truth is not possible: subjective experience is central. There are many realities.

These changes in thinking led to…

advocacy/participatory Emerged with the

recognition that post-positivism imposes structural laws and theories that do not reflect the experience of marginalzed and racialized peoples

Concerned with social change to address oppressive societal structures

Emancipatory: From ‘subjects’ to ‘participants’; includes an action agenda that may change the lives of participants and researchers

Emergence of the Interpretive Communities

feminism(s)

concerned with social inequality + patriarchy…taking women’s perspectives into account…(e.g Marilyn Waring and women’s global economic contribution)

Intersectionality (more on this later)

e.g. evolving feminisms such as Black Feminism (Sojourner Truth…), and their relationship to health concerns such as cardiac pathophysiology, primary health care…

Feminism has evolved to include concerns about all oppressed groups

“People call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that distinguish me

from a doormat” (Rebecca West, age 20, 1913)

anti-Racism and post colonialism concerned with the

historical structure and experience of racism, colonialism, and oppression (e.g. Indian Act, generational trauma transmission and mental health concerns from a research perspective)

Shares emancipatory goals of action research

Note: these interpretive approaches are NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE— there can be a fluid interplay among these approaches

critical theory

concerned with liberation from oppressive social (economic, political) circumstances (oppressions of racism, classism, sexism, heterosexism…)

Focuses on historical social problems of domination, alienation, social struggles, and a critique of society, envisioning new liberatory possibilities

critical race theory

Concerns itself with many of the same groundings as Critical Theory, with a focus on racism and intersectionality.

The goals of CRT include: generating first-voice accounts of racism and oppression; eradication of racial subjugation while recognizing that race is a social construct; addressing intersectionaity for social change

Queer Theory Concerned with

identity, sexuality, gender in a transformative manner— social change is often an aspect of queer theory

Moves beyond ‘…gay, lesbian, homosexual theory’

Works to challenge and undercut identity as singular and fixed, or ‘normal’

What now? post post-modernism!

“Postmodernism is dead and buried. In its place comes a new paradigm of authority and knowledge formed under the pressure of new technologies and contemporary social forces.” (Kirby, 2006)

Transglobal phenomena (e.g. economic globalization)

“digi-modernism”(Kirby): The impact/influences of digital technology

“I believe there is more to this shift than a simple change in cultural fashion. The terms by which authority, knowledge, selfhood, reality and time are conceived have been altered, suddenly and forever. There is now a gulf between most lecturers and their students akin to the one which appeared in the late 1960s, but not for the same kind of reason. ”

“Somewhere in the late 1990s or early 2000s, the emergence of new technologies re-structured, violently and forever, the nature of the author, the reader and the text, and the relationships between them” (Kirby, 2006)

Worldviews: Some practical applications

Homeless young people are on the street because they don’t like the rules at home.

Agree? Disagree?

If you can afford it, you should have the right to pay for private medical care in Canada.

Agree? Disagree?

Relationships with Qualitative research

What does worldview have to do with Research?

…With Qualitative Research?

Qualitative Research: Some Interconnected Underpinnings

‘making meaning’ of the world around us

questioning the possibility of objectivity; asserting the primacy of subjectivity

visiting and re-visiting the qualitative–quantitative divide

the central importance of paradigm or worldview: “a basic set of beliefs that guide action” (Creswell, p. 19). What is the researcher’s political compass?

positivism, post-positivism, advocacy/participatory, pragmatism

emergence of the interpretive communities: critical theory, (feminism(s), anti-racism, postcolonialism, queer theory…

Introduction to the qualitative research process

thinking about the world around us— what do we see and what does it actually mean to us? What are the qualitative dimensions?

developing research questions about what we ‘see’

deciding on an approach to answer the research question

thinking about ethical considerations related to our approach (e.g. OCAP— ownership, control, access, possession)

deciding on the specific methods we will use for data collection (e.g. interviews, focus groups, textual analysis, photos, performance art…)

deciding about our approach to validity

deciding how we will analyze our data

findings, ‘re-findings’, and knowledge exchange

Research questions in the real world

SEXY INC ©

Research Questions…

Developing Qualitative Research Questions based in Sexy Inc ©: An Overview

Answering the main research question Who are your participants? Starting with your main Research Question… Crafting in-depth interview questions: how many, of

what nature…

The issue of ‘leading the witness’ in the types of questions you choose

Note: The framing of your research questions is tied to your research approach (grounded theory, phenomenology…more on this later)

Research Questions Continued

Some of the differences between quantitative and qualitative research questions Quantitative: numerical relationships

(correlations, comparisons, ratios, percentages, descriptive stats…)

Ecological footprint map(Worldmapper ©)

Qualitative: Meanings; understandings; insights,;first-voice accounts; social, political, and cultural contexts…

The Experiences of Fathers with a Premature Baby

Elders’ Experiences with Caregiving in the Hospital Setting

Modern Dance and Disability: Challenging Stereotypes Through Performance Art

The Mental Health Experiences of Hurricane Katrina Survivors

The Lived Experience of growing up in a ’Smoking’ Home

Art as Political Movement (Banksy)

Refugees in the New Millennium: Global Homelessness

Some key ideas to consider Regarding the QUAL-QUAN ‘divide’: Although

quantitative research has underpinnings in positivism, it can be very much grounded in theoretical perspectives such as feminism, critical theory, and post-colonialism

Some examples: Grace-Edward Galabuzi’s ‘Economic Apartheid’(2006) (Canada, secondary analysis)

Shaw & Dorling’s germinal work (1996) ‘The widening gap: Health inequalities in Britain in the new millennium’ (UK, secondary analysis& geographic information science)

Key ideas (cont’d)

Although qualitative research has its underpinnings in lived experience, it can also be ‘positivist’ depending on the research question and the approach to inquiry (e.g some studies in heart health, poverty)

In other words, the quantitative/qualitative dichotomy requires deeper scrutiny

The MAIN point is that worldview and theoretical perspectives drive the research process regardless of the research approach

Key ideas (cont’d)

Reality is complex, constructed andultimately subjective Research is an interpretative

processes Knowledge is best achieved by

conducting research in the natural setting

‘Seeing’ Worldview: Some Practical Applications

H1N1 (Swine Flu) preparedness1. From a positivist perspective2. From a critical perspective: Feminism3. From a critical perspective: Anti-racism

Evidence-Based Medicine/Nursing1. From a positivist perspective2. From a critical perspective: Feminism3. From a critical perspective: Anti-racism

QUAL Research and Philosophical Assumptions

Qualitative research is grounded in age-old philosophical concerns (also see p. 17, Creswell text)

Ontological: What is the nature of reality (is it fixed? Is it objective or subjective…)

Epistemological: What is the relationship between the researcher and that being researched?

Axilological: What is the role of values?

Rhetorical: What is the language (rhetoric) of research?

Methodological: What is the research process?

Applying philosophical thinking to the research process (see table, next slide)

Social concern (including nursing concern) to be researched:

1. Childhood obesity2. Gambling addiction3…4…

PhilosophicalAssumption

Positivist Research eg

Participatory/EmancipatoryResearch eg

Ontological

Epistemological

Axiological

Rhetorical

Methodological

The Qualitative Research Proposal

Bottorff, 2008; Creswell, 2007; Denzin & Lincoln, 2008; Morse, 1998, 2007

Purpose of a Research Proposal(Bottroff, 2008)

Communicates research plan to others (e.g., funding agencies)**Write for a multi-disciplinary audience

Serves as a detailed plan for action

Serves as a contract between investigator and funding bodies when proposal is approved

Qualitative designs are “emergent” rather than fixed.

The results of qualitative research are unpredictable (Morse, 1994)

Questions a proposal must answer

Why should anyone be interested in my research?

Is the research design credible, achievable, and carefully explained?

Is my research ethical?

Is/are the researcher(s) capable of doing the research?

Sections of Typical QualitativeProposal

Introduction Introduce topic and significance (the “why bother?”) Statement of purpose, research questions/objectives

Review of Literature Related literature and theoretical traditions

Design and Methods Overall approach and rationale Sampling, data gathering methods, data analysis Trustworthiness (Soundness of the research) Ethical considerations and consent forms

Knowledge Translation and Mobilization Plan (Timeline) (Budget) (Appendices)

Introducing the Study – 1st paragraph (Bottroff, 2008)

Goal: capture interest in the study Focus on importance of study (Why

bother with the question?) Clear and concise (details will follow

later) Synopsis of the primary aim of the

study Persuasive logic backed up with factual

evidence

The Problem/Research Question

Selective and persuasive – building a case for what is known or believed, what’s missing, and how the study fits in.

Literature is used to demonstrate openness to complexity of phenomenon, rather than funneling toward an a priori conceptualization.

Methods – challenges here

Quantitative designs are more familiar to reviewers

Qualitative researchers have a different language---it takes more ‘space’ (the need to teach qual ideas to the reviewers, in addition to outlining your proposed research)

Methods (cont’d)

Orientation to the Method:

Description of the particular method that will be used and its creators/interpreters

Rationale for qualitative research generally and for the specific method to be used.

Rationale: Qualitative Studies are Valuable for Research…

delves in-depth into complexities and processes on little-known phenomena or innovative systems

focuses on informal and unstructured processes in organizations

seeks to explore where and why policy and local knowledge and practice are at odds

focuses on real, as opposed to stated, organizational goals

is research that cannot be done experimentally for practical or ethical reasons

Marshall & Rossman, 1999

Sample

Purposive or theoretical sampling The purpose of the sampling Characteristics of potential types of

persons, events or processes to be sampled How decisions about sampling will be made.

Sample size Estimates provided based on previous

experience, pilot work, etc.

Access and recruitment

Data Collection and Analysis (Bottroff, 2008)

Types: Individual interviews, participant observation, focus groups, personal and public documents, internet-based data, videos, etc. (all vary with different traditions)

Analysis methods vary depending on qualitative approach

Add DETAILS and MORE DETAILS about how data will be gathered and processed (procedures should be made public, not magical)

Data Management & Analysis

How will data be keep organized and retrievable?

How will data be “broken up” to see something new?

How will the researchers engage in reflexivity (e.g., be self-analytical)?

Convinces the reader that the researcher(s) is sufficiently knowledgeable about qualitative analysis and has necessary skills.

Trustworthiness, Interpretive validity… (Soundness of theresearch)

Reflected throughout the proposal, And address this specifically, using relevant criteria for the qualitative approach used

Examples of strategies used: Triangulation Prolonged contact with informants, including

continuous validation of data Continuous checking for representativeness of data

and fit between coding categories and data Use of expert consultants

More on interpretive validity later…

Additional aspects of a proposal(More on these aspects later…)

Ethical considerations (more in our class on Ethics)

Consent forms Sensitive issues, vulnerable, ‘under threat’ people(s);

ownership, control, access, possession… Links to professional codes of ethics (e.g CNA)

Dissemination: ‘Knowledge translation and exchange; Knowledge mobilization’

(Timeline) (Budget)