Qualitative Research: Grounded Theorising, Analytic Induction, or What

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Qualitative Research Grounded Theorising,
Analytic Induction, or What?

• Martyn Hammersley
• Kurt Andersen
• The Open University
• NCRM Research Methods Festival 2008

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What is the Goal and Logic of Qualitative
Research?

• Description versus explanation/theory-building.
• Rigour versus creativity?

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Grounded Theorising

• There are different interpretations of GT
  Glaser, Strauss, Schatzman, Charmaz, Clarke, and
  others.
• The Discovery of Grounded Theory as a reaction
  against armchair theorising and
  hypothesis-testing research.
• But also against descriptive qualitative studies
  using implicit and unsystematic comparisons.

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The Guiding Orientation

• Task of sociological research producing
  empirically applicable theories.
• This can only be achieved by systematically
  developing theoretical ideas from empirical data.
• At the start, theoretical preconceptions should
  be minimised.

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An iterative relationship between data collection
and analysis.

• Initially, open-ended data collection and open
  coding of the data, generating as many
  theoretical ideas as possible.
• Emergent theory should guide subsequent data
  collection through theoretical sampling
• Analytic coding of data should progressively
  become more selective, focusing on the
  development of a dense, integrated theory.

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Theoretical Sampling and Theory Development

• A classic example from Glaser and Strauss
  awareness contexts and death in the hospital.

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• Sampling Across Awareness Contexts
• Situation where there was little patient
  awareness premature baby ward and neurosurgical
  ward where patients were frequently comatose.
• Situation where staffs and often patients
  expectations of death were high and dying was
  quick an intensive care unit
• Situation where dying was slow and staff
  expectations about patients dying were high, but
  patients own expectations might not be cancer
  service.
• Situation where death was unexpected and rapid
  emergency service.

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Typology of Awareness Contexts
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Criticisms

• Inductivist neglect of the guiding role of
  theory? Later distortion of the true spirit of
  Grounded Theorising?
• What about theory testing?
• A false realism and underdeveloped
  constructionism?
• Are grounded theories really theories?
• Theoretical saturation as an arbitrary stopping
  point.
• Lack of interpretative depth?

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Analytic Induction

• Different interpretations of AI.
• A history Aristotle, Bacon and Mill.
• The reaction against quantitative method within
  US sociology, during the first half of the 20th
  century Znaniecki and Lindesmith.

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• The Process of Analytic Induction

START
Define/Redefine Phenomenon
Yes
Need to Redefine Phenomenon?
Study cases of phenomenon
Formulate/Reformulate Hypotheses
No
Study more cases
STOP
Do all the cases fit the hypothesis?
No
Yes
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A Classic Example Cressey on Embezzlement

• From embezzlement to financial trust violation
  (FTV).
• The final theory FTV occurs when people in
  positions of financial trust have a financial
  problem that is non-shareable, believe that this
  can be resolved by secret FTV, and can
  rationalise this, eg as borrowing.

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Features of Analytic Induction

• Aimed at producing explanatory theory.
• Concerned with how component variables relate to
  one another, not with relative contributions of
  variables.
• Recognises that it may be necessary to redefine
  what is being explained.
• Identifies causal relations within semi-closed
  systems.

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Criticisms of Analytic Induction

• Neglects the importance of theoretical
  implication.
• Fails to investigate situations where identified
  conditions hold.
• Focuses on deterministic relations, but are
  causal relations in the social world
  probabilistic?
• Requires large number of cases to be investigated
  in detail.

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Or What?