J Grad Med Educ. 2016 May; 8(2): 263–264. Editor's Note: The online version of this article contains resources for further reading and a table of strengths and limitations of qualitative data collection methods. The ChallengeImagine that residents in your program have been less than complimentary about interprofessional rounds (IPRs). The program director asks you to determine what residents are learning about in collaboration with other health professionals during IPRs. If you construct a survey asking Likert-type questions such as “How much are you learning?” you likely will not gather the information you need to answer this question. You understand that qualitative data deal with words rather than numbers and could provide the needed answers. How do you collect “good” words? Should you use open-ended questions in a survey format? Should you conduct interviews, focus groups, or conduct direct observation? What should you consider when making these decisions? IntroductionQualitative research is often employed when there is a problem and no clear solutions exist, as in the case above that elicits the following questions: Why are residents complaining about rounds? How could we make rounds better? In this context, collecting “good” information or words (qualitative data) is intended to produce information that helps you to answer your research questions, capture the phenomenon of interest, and account for context and the rich texture of the human experience. You may also aim to challenge previous thinking and invite further inquiry. Coherence or alignment between all aspects of the research project is essential. In this Rip Out we focus on data collection, but in qualitative research, the entire project must be considered.1,2 Careful design of the data collection phase requires the following: deciding who will do what, where, when, and how at the different stages of the research process; acknowledging the role of the researcher as an instrument of data collection; and carefully considering the context studied and the participants and informants involved in the research. Types of Data Collection MethodsData collection methods are important, because how the information collected is used and what explanations it can generate are determined by the methodology and analytical approach applied by the researcher.1,2 Five key data collection methods are presented here, with their strengths and limitations described in the online supplemental material.
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Supplementary MaterialReferences1. Teherani A, Martimianakis T, Stenfors-Hayes T, Wadhwa A, Varpio L. Choosing a qualitative research approach. J Grad Med Educ. 2015; 7 4: 669– 670. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar] 2. Wright S, O'Brien BC, Nimmon L, Law M, Mylopoulos M. Research design considerations. J Grad Med Educ. 2016; 8 1: 97– 98. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar] 3. Stalmeijer RE, McNaughton N, Van Mook WN. Using focus groups in medical education research: AMEE Guide No. 91. Med Teach. 2014; 36 11: 923– 939. [PubMed] [Google Scholar] Articles from Journal of Graduate Medical Education are provided here courtesy of Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education What type of research design follows one group of people over time?Longitudinal study
So, once again, researchers do not interfere with their subjects. However, in a longitudinal study, researchers conduct several observations of the same subjects over a period of time, sometimes lasting many years.
What type of research design is being used when the same group is followed over several measurement times?A longitudinal study (or longitudinal survey, or panel study) is a research design that involves repeated observations of the same variables (e.g., people) over short or long periods of time (i.e., uses longitudinal data).
What type of research design follows a group of people usually the same age over many years repeatedly testing them?Longitudinal research involves studying a group of people who are the same age, and measuring them repeatedly over a period-of-time. This type of design allows researchers to study individual differences in development.
In what design the data is collected from the same sample on the same variables more than one times?Longitudinal studies and cross-sectional studies are two different types of research design. In a cross-sectional study you collect data from a population at a specific point in time; in a longitudinal study you repeatedly collect data from the same sample over an extended period of time.
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