Qualitative research: methodological background - The origins of qualitative research

9 important questions on Qualitative research: methodological background - The origins of qualitative research

To what refers qualitative research?

To interpretative research, because it concerns the way people construct their reality.

What is the main difference between social scientific research and scientific research?

Social scientists study the first-order constructs that people use to make their world understandable.

What is an important concept in phenomenology?

Intentionality - It relates to the meaning people have with their action.
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On which two paradigms is qualitative research build up on?

On Phenemenology and constructivism

What are the differences between phenomenology and constructivism?

Phenomenology is about the interpretation of facts. You can only know the truth when you know what people think about it. Focus on how people understand and interpret. It concerns more the ontology and epistemological part of research.

However, the constructivists say that everything what people do is constructed by their own reality, based on their own stock of knowledge. In other words: depending on the situation in which I find myself, the interest and relevance of certain things will vary. This is formulated by previous experiences. Power and language play an important role in this.

What is, acoording to constructivist Schutz, the clear difference between natural science and social science?

Social science is trying to understand the attributes of meaning and natural science study the meaning and how it works.

What makes an action a social action?

When people are concerned with the behaviours of others in their meaningful actions, taking other people into account.

What do we need to do to understand the meaning behind things according to Weber (Verstehen)?

We need to understand and interpret in two ways:
1. Immediate understanding --> rational understanding and emotional understanding
2. Erklären --> explanatory understanding, understand the underlying motivation.

What is sociology according to Weber?

A science concerning itself with the interpretive understanding of social actions and thereby with a causal explanation of its course and consequences.

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