7 Frequently Asked Questions
Ashley and Wil have developed this to group together frequently asked questions we've had about the qualitative project over the past few years. Please check this resource to see if your question has already been answered before posting on Teams.
This resource contains questions from different stages of the project, so not all will be relevant/make sense to you at the very start of the course.
7.1 General Qualitative project questions
1. Is diversity of participants important in qualitative studies? I am a bit confused because my intuition would say yes but then it's very hard to have diversity if you only use a few participants?
I would say that it's more important that your sample shares certain characteristics for qualitative, rather than it being diverse. We are looking for depth in qualitative rather than breadth, and if your group shares certain experiences, then you might be more likely to get a deep understanding of a particular phenomenon. It's sometimes the case that you might ask different groups about the same topic (e.g. clients, psychologists, relatives) as they will have different perspectives about the same thing. This could be one way of getting diversity in a qualitative study.
2. How will the qualitative study be different from our quantitative report that we did last semester?
There are a number of similarities in terms of structure (i.e. you will have an Abstract, Methods, Analysis (same as results) and Discussion) of the actual report itself. It will be mainly different in that you are collecting your own data by running a focus group, and you will conduct thematic analysis rather than statistical analysis on your data.You will also write the report after collecting the data, rather than as in a Registered Report format.
3. Will we be using R Studio for the study?
No, you do not use R Studio for qualitative analysis. We do use similar terms at points (e.g. coding), but coding in qualitative analysis is very different to quantitative. You will learn about the process of analysis in the lectures and the labs throughout the semester.
4. Are we allowed to use mixed methods for our study or does it have to be "pure" qualitative?
The study must be qualitative only, and must follow the guidelines that we present to you as part of the course. You will generally collect demographics, and these must be dealt with in a qualitative, rather than quantitative, way.
5. How much freedom do we have after submitting our proposal when it comes to data analysis?
The main aspects of the report that are fixed are the data collection and data analysis methods, so you are asked to do a focus group and then analyse it using thematic analysis. So, you can't use interviews, for example, or analyse it using IPA. However, you do have a fair bit of flexibility, in that you can choose which theme/s to present in the results section. You can present one larger theme, and look at a two different sub-themes or you can present two themes with no sub-themes. Also, if your focus group ended up talking less about your research question and perhaps went in a direction that's a little different to what you expected, you are allowed to tweak the RQ afterwards, and your analysis can be on what was covered in the focus group itself.
6. How should I manage my time on RM2? There are a few different ways to prioritise things
We have developed a suggested timeline for the project, which breaks down tasks for each week. This would serve as a good start for you to manage your time effectively, and you can alter it as required. We have placed this timeline at the top of the different sections within this book, so it is prominent.
7.2 Group Proposal
1. Do we have to consider ontology/epistemology in the group proposal?
No, although you can if you want. We do, however, ask you to consider this in your individual qualitative report.
2. Is there a suggested structure for the group proposal?
We have split the proposal into separate sections to guide you with the structure; see more information in the Group proposal section. In addition to presenting your research question, we ask you to cover the following three areas in your submission:
- Background to the topic
- Rationale for your study
- Ethical considerations
Remember that we use the ILOs to mark the assessment (you can find these in the Assessment Information Sheet), so you should use these as guidance.
3. Should we talk about our actual methodology eg. Teams, how many questions, use of camera etc in the rationale?
No, this information is more important for your method section in the full report. You should talk about why you are using qualitative methods, why you are studying this particular sample and why focus group is the appropriate methodology for your RQ.
4. Is there a rough word count for each section of the rationale?
You can see a suggested word count for each section on the Group Proposal template
5. Is the group proposal similar to the introduction part of the final report? As it covers literature search, the rationale and RQ?
The proposal is designed to help you write the full individual report; you can use parts of the proposal to build your introduction (we expect you to expand on this, but the literature search and argument construction you do for the proposal will help with the introduction). The ethics section will help you with methods.
6. Can we slightly change the topic to look at a particular aspect (e.g. look at belonging in international students from China) or do we have to stick very closely to the topic guide?
You can alter it s long as it is still broadly under the topic, but remember that this will have a knock-on impact on the questions you can use (e.g. you might have to add some to those available in the question bank). You are allocated another group in your lab rather than recruiting yourself, so you would need to make sure that the characteristics of the participants in your allocated group are relevant for the research question you have chosen.
7. For the literature review in the rationale, can I use articles that are older than 5 years? As sometimes I might open a recent article (e.g. 2021) but it references inside it a study done in (eg.2014) so can I still cite that?
Yes, this is fine - try to generally use up to date references where you can, but having a mix of older and more recent studies is fine :). You are not banned from using older studies completely!
7.3 Data collection
7.3.1 Focus group questions
1. Is our report written in a specific style, e.g. IPA, thematic analysis etc? And, if so, should this inform the questions that we need to ask our Focus Group?
You must use thematic analysis to analyse your data from the focus group. We are covering this in detail in the lectures, and we will also cover data analysis in the labs. This analytic approach does not need to specifically inform the questions you ask in the focus group - the main thing is to ask questions that are open, appropriate and will help you to answer the research question that you have chosen.
7.3.2 Setting up/running the focus group
1. Where do we get our participants from for the focus group? Do we advertise on social media?
No, you will not recruit any participants yourself for the project. As part of the course, each group will a) run a focus group and b) participate in a focus group. This means that your participants for the focus group will be another group within the same lab as you. The course leads allocate each group, and you can find the breakdown of which group will be your participants in the group allocation sheet that is released at the start of Week 2.
2. Can we prep the focus group with a small questionnaire before/after – (to either provide a clear focus prior to, or garner benefits of the discussion afterwards?
This is an interesting idea. Could you get in touch with us to discuss in a bit more detail? We're unable to say definitively either way at the moment and would need to know a little more about what you are intending. However, if you mean to gather demographic information, then yes, this is fine (see the next question!).
3. Should we collect demographics?
Yes, generally it is helpful to collect demographic information. We'd advise you to use Microsoft Forms to collect these, as then the information will be kept safe, and it'll be easy to send the link out to the people participating in your focus group before you meet. It's up to you to decide what demographics you want to include - the purpose should be to help the reader know more about the characteristics of your sample, especially those characteristics that might be relevant for your focus group. An example might be collecting data on whether your participants have children or not; this would be relevant if your focus group was on the topic of responsibilities of postgraduate students whereas it would be less relevant if it was about belonging to the university as a second-language speaker of English. We will talk more about how this should be presented later - remember you don't do descriptive statistics in qualitative research, so the information would likely be presented in the Methods section only.
4. How can we stress the importance of confidentiality?
We have a number of different processes in place to ensure confidentiality, and it's important that everyone adheres to these. Firstly, the consent form contains the statement "I understand that I have a responsibility to ensure that I keep any details that arise during the discussion confidential". However, those running the focus group also have a responsibility to keep things confidential, and this is vital. Participants should therefore be aware of the importance of confidentiality, but it is a good idea to set out any 'ground rules' (for both those running and participating in the group) at the start. Secondly, we require that transcripts are anonymised, and we will spend some time discussing this in the labs.
5. How is the FG is going to be operationalised? Are we supposed to host a meeting with the other group as a full team, and assign one person asking questions while the rest of us doing note-taking?
You can find out more information about this in the Data Collection section. In a nutshell, you will host a meeting on Teams with the other group, and record this. Two people from your group at a minimum have to attend the group (the facilitator and note-taker). However, if the rest of your team would like to come along and watch (or take notes, if they wish), then this is fine as long as the group being interviewed agree (please ask them in advance). From the group running the focus group, Only the facilitator should speak (other than introductions) - anyone who is just watching must not engage in the focus group at any point.
6. In terms of piloting the focus group schedule, who should this be with? Does it need to be within our lab or this course?
There are very few restrictions on this - the key thing is that you get people to look through the questions and comment on them (this can even be done via email, for example). It's not necessary that you have to run a pretend focus group, or that you have to ask only those in the same lab as you (although you can if you want to!). The only thing that we ask is that you don't pilot the questions on the same group that you run the focus group on.
7. On the 30-45 minute timeline for the focus group, does that include the time we should allow for introductions at the start?
No, it is for the discussion portion. It is find to add another 10-15 mins on for introductions and wrapping the group up.
8. Should we set up our focus group now to choose a time to suit all participants, or are there specified slots when we will be doing this (e.g. in lab)?
Please set up a time yourself for your focus group - we won't be doing this during lab time.
9. Do we circulate information sheet, consent form and questions at the same time as meeting set up so participants have time to reply?
Yes, this sounds like a good idea. You can send things separately though if it is better. For the questions, we ask that they are sent a mimumum of 24 hours before the focus group. Consent forms should be returned before the focus group starts.
10. We've picked two people to run the focus group (facilitator and note-taker) but the rest of us would like to attend. Would this be okay?
As long as your focus group participants agree to this, then it's fine. However, it would be best to ensure the mics and screens are turned off for the 'extra' observers during the discussion of the focus group - this way the participants can focus on the facilitator and the questions being asked.
11. Can we share the role of moderator/swap half-way with the note-taker?
If you want to do this, that's okay. However, please let your participants know at the start of the group, and specify the role of each person.
12. How do we use Microsoft Forms for gathering demographics or sharing information sheet and consent forms?
You should use Microsoft Forms for gathering demographics - guidance is given in the Data Collection section.
14. If the participants are not answering a question, can I, as the researcher, talk about my own experiences to start the discussion?
A very interesting question! I would err on the side of not to share your own experiences in the actual focus group, because this could then affect what particpants end up sharing. A couple of suggestions would be to follow up with prompts, or to leave that question and move on to the next one and then come back to it later on. It might just be that it's a little too early on in the discussion and would be better to wait until people are a bit more relaxed and warmed up :).
7.4 Qualitative report
1. What edition of APA do we use for the references?
APA 7. You can find guidance on this in the following places: OWL Purdue or APA Style
2. Will there be detailed guidance about each section of the qual report? I.e. word counts, things to cover
You can find guidance on this in the qualitative report section
3. Is our report written in a specific style, e.g. IPA, thematic analysis etc?
You must use thematic analysis to analyse your data from the focus group. We are covering this in detail in the lectures and labs.
4. Will we be able to reuse the information from our group proposal in our qualitative report?
You can use the same sources, but must not copy and paste information from your group proposal into your qualitative report. This could be considered as plagiarism, and therefore you must rewrite any information you had in your group proposal that you plan to use for your qualitative report.
5. Do we need to make/outline study objectives in the introduction? And can they be different to the whole group or can this be decided alone?
It would be good to broadly state the aim of the study in your introduction. As long as it's relevant to the data you collected, there is some flexibility in the individual part of the project.
6. Do we have to write about the ethical considerations in the methods section of our qualitative project?
Yes, although you do not have the space to go into lots and lots of detail. So, you could mention anonymity and confidentiality, for example, and how you dealt with this in your group. You could also mention the steps you took to make participants feel comfortable.
7. Will the qualitative report guide include estimate word counts for each section of the report?
We have suggested word counts for each section in the Qualitative report section. Please note that these are not set in stone, but give an indication of how you might want to break down the report.
8. I take it that we are meant to indicate if we are using a constructionist or realist/experientialist framework for the analysis. Are we free to choose this or are there any recommendations? I would assume that focusing on semantic themes is more doable given the limited word count? Also, where would we state this? In the methods section or at the start of the analysis?
Yes, you should mention the theoretical perspective you have taken with your analysis in your Methods section. This should not be extensive (a sentence or two would suffice). Try to tell us why you have chosen the particular approach that you have.
It's important to take the word limit into account, so it could well be the case that focusing at a semantic level will be more doable - the key thing in your analysis is that you try to go beyond description, and develop a narrative.
9. According to Braun and Clarke (2013) a good analysis section will link back to relevant research previously done on the topic (i.e citations to link it to the wider literature) however, i would presume that this will be better suited to the discussion section of our project given the word count? Or should we cite previous research to link our themes within the analysis section?
Qual reports are written in one of two ways: 1) where the analysis and discussion are in separate sections - in the analysis, you report your findings, in the discussion, you link your findings to the literature, identify limitations etc. 2) you have a joint analysis and discussion section, where you both present your results and link them to the research. Braun & Clarke are talking about the second, whereas we're doing the first option. Although there are excellent reasons to do the second, this is an introductory course and we want to keep things as simple as possible to help build you up towards your dissertation. Therefore, your report should follow the usual report structure, meaning you should focus on presenting your themes in the analysis section - like with the quant report, you will then have a separate Discussion section where you link to the literature.
11. In the thematic analysis, what should we do if two participants give opposite answers for the same questions. how do we deal with that conflict?
This can make for a really interesting analysis and discussion section! You should explain the theme for the reader, and provide context for the different views presented by the participants. You can find more information in the Braun & Clarke (2013) book
12. Can you increase the word count for the report? I don't think 3000 words is high enough for qualitative.
No, it is not possible to increase the word count for the report. It is a tight word count, yes, but is an excellent opportunity for you to develop your ability to write succinctly and concisely. This will serve you well as you proceed to your dissertation, as I still have students tell me that they are struggling to cut lots of words despite the much larger word count!