Qualitative Research in 2017
What approaches are qualitative researchers writing about?
What are the trends-- what methodologies are being used, what new approaches are emerging? In particular, what can we learn by examining the types of studies published in 2017? There are many ways to explore these questions. The approach I used centered on searches in the SAGE journals database, articles published in traditional and open-access journals. I looked for studies using qualitative case study, ethnography, phenomenology, action research, narratives, methods, and diary methods. I looked for articles published in 2017 with each of the selected methodologies named in the title. Naturally, it is possible that other articles were based on studies that use these methodologies, but did not name them in the title. In choosing exemplars for the selected methodologies, I selected the top articles first published in 2017. In other words, to be consistent across each category, I did not include articles that were first published online in 2016 in the most cited and most downloaded articles.A broad initial search for the term qualitative in the abstract yielded 3,590 entries in 2017; 1134 articles were listed with qualitative in the keywords.
The most cited article for both searches was: “Code saturation versus meaning saturation: How many interviews are enough?”(Hennink, Kaiser, & Marconi, 2017).
The most downloaded article with qualitative in the abstract was: “The five neglected skills all qualitative researchers need”(Clark & Sousa, 2017).
The most downloaded article with qualitative in the keywords was: “When two bodies are (not) a problem: gender and relationship status discrimination in academic hiring” (Rivera, 2017).
Of the methodologies I searched, case study was by far the most popular. In the collection of 218 articles with case study in the title, “Bridging language barriers, bonding against immigrants: A visual case study of transnational network publics created by far-right activists in Europe” was most cited (Doerr, 2017).
“Physicians’ voices: What skills and supports are needed for effective practice in an integrated delivery system? A case study of Kaiser Permanente” was most frequently downloaded (Chesluk et al., 2017).The next most popular methodology in this selection of studies was ethnography, with 191 articles.
“Knowledge of practice: A multi-sited event ethnography of border security fairs in Europe and North America” was most cited (Theodore, 2017) and “Algorithms as culture: Some tactics for the ethnography of algorithmic systems” was most downloaded (Seaver, 2017).
With 89 studies, phenomenology comes next. The most cited article using this methodology was “Patient experiences of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy: An interpretative phenomenological analysis” (Belser, et al., 2017). Two by van Manen were most downloaded: an editorial “But is it phenomenology?” (Manen, 2017a) and a research article “Phenomenology in its original sense” (Manen, 2017b).
Action research was the basis for 75 articles. Most cited was: “Untaming aid through action research: Seeking transformative reflective action” (Ortiz & Kent, 2017). Most downloaded was: “Facilitating empowerment and self-determination through participatory action research: findings from the National Empowerment Project” (Dudgeon, Scrine, Cox, & Walker, 2017).Researchers used narrative methods in 75 articles. Most cited was: “How narratives of fear shape girls’ participation in community life in two conflict-affected populations”(Sommer et al., 2017). The article most downloaded was: “Narrative inquiry with activity systems: A story about net neutrality”(Yamagata-Lynch et al., 2017).
Grounded theory methodologies underpinned 36 studies in this collection. “’Free butterflies will come out of these deep wounds’: A grounded theory of how endometriosis affects women’s psychological health” (Facchin, Saita, Barbara, Dridi, & Vercellini, 2017) was cited most frequently. “Continuities, contradictions, and critical inquiry in Grounded Theory” was the most popular download (Charmaz, 2017).
A quick review of this set of articles shows that many readers are looking for how- to advice about using qualitative methodologies. Sample size for qualitative studies is apparently a prominent concern. Topics addressed in the articles that emerged from this search are ones we frequently see in the news, such as net neutrality and immigration, healthcare and gender. Perhaps some readers are looking for evidence from empirical research in the social sciences, rather than relying on quick posts to develop an understanding of the issues.
What articles from 2017 did you find most influential? Did any of them change your mind—or your research practice? Use the comment area below to share citations for your favorites! Find more posts about the trends that emerged from the qualitative articles that were published in 2017 SAGE journals.
Related posts explore top articles:
References
Aragón, A. O., & Glenzer, K. (2017). Untaming aid through action research: Seeking transformative reflective action. Action Research, 15(1), 3-14. doi:10.1177/1476750317700253Belser, A. B., Agin-Liebes, G., Swift, T. C., Terrana, S., Devenot, N., Friedman, H. L., Bossis, A., Ross, S. (2017). Patient experiences of psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy: An interpretative phenomenological analysis. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 57(4), 354-388. doi:10.1177/0022167817706884Charmaz, K. (2017). Special invited paper: Continuities, contradictions, and critical inquiry in Grounded Theory. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1609406917719350. doi:10.1177/1609406917719350Chesluk, B., Tollen, L., Lewis, J., DuPont, S., & Klau, M. H. (2017). Physicians’ voices: What skills and supports are needed for effective practice in an integrated delivery system? A case study of Kaiser Permanente. INQUIRY: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing, 54, 0046958017711760. doi:10.1177/0046958017711760Clark, A. M., & Sousa, B. J. (2017). The five neglected skills all qualitative researchers need. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1609406917713418. doi:10.1177/1609406917713418Doerr, N. (2017). Bridging language barriers, bonding against immigrants: A visual case study of transnational network publics created by far-right activists in Europe. Discourse & Society, 28(1), 3-23. doi:10.1177/0957926516676689Dudgeon, P., Scrine, C., Cox, A., & Walker, R. (2017). Facilitating empowerment and self-determination through participatory action research: Findings From the National Empowerment Project. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1609406917699515. doi:10.1177/1609406917699515Facchin, F., Saita, E., Barbara, G., Dridi, D., & Vercellini, P. (2017). “Free butterflies will come out of these deep wounds”: A grounded theory of how endometriosis affects women’s psychological health. Journal of Health Psychology, 1359105316688952. doi:10.1177/1359105316688952Hennink, M. M., Kaiser, B. N., & Marconi, V. C. (2016). Code saturation versus meaning saturation: How many interviews are enough? Qualitative Health Research, 27(4), 591-608. doi:10.1177/1049732316665344Manen, M. v. (2017a). But is it phenomenology? Qualitative Health Research, 27(6), 775-779. doi:10.1177/1049732317699570Manen, M. v. (2017b). Phenomenology in its original sense. Qualitative Health Research, 27(6), 810-825. doi:10.1177/1049732317699381Marni, S., Miguel, M.-L., Emily Wilkinson, S., Johanna, A., Kathryn, L. F., Nadine, R., & Lindsay, S. (2017). How narratives of fear shape girls’ participation in community life in two conflict-affected populations. Violence Against Women, 1077801217710000. doi:10.1177/1077801217710000Rivera, L. A. (2017). When two bodies are (not) a problem: gender and relationship status discrimination in academic hiring. American Sociological Review, 82(6), 1111-1138. doi:10.1177/0003122417739294Seaver, N. (2017). Algorithms as culture: Some tactics for the ethnography of algorithmic systems. Big Data & Society, 4(2), 2053951717738104. doi:10.1177/2053951717738104Sommer, M., Munoz-Laboy, M., Emily Wilkinson, S., Arp, J., Falb, K. L., Rudahindwa, N., & Stark, L. (2017). How narratives of fear shape girls’ participation in community life in two conflict-affected populations. Violence Against Women, 1077801217710000. doi:10.1177/1077801217710000Theodore, B. (2017). Knowledge of practice: A multi-sited event ethnography of border security fairs in Europe and North America. Security Dialogue, 48(3), 187-205. doi:10.1177/0967010617691656Yamagata-Lynch, L. C., Do, J., Deshpande, D., Skutnik, A. L., Murphy, B. K., & Garty, E. (2017). Narrative inquiry with activity systems: A story about net neutrality International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1609406917704352. doi:10.1177/1609406917704352