Designing qualitative research with the Total Quality Framework
Research design is the focus for the first quarter of 2023. Find the unfolding series here.
How is quality evaluated in qualitative research designs?
If you are planning a qualitative study, chances are there will be a review process for your proposal. Needless to say, it is in your best interest to develop a proposal that will require few revisions. Preventing obstacles is preferable to negotiating them!
How will others judge the merit of the research, and the viability of the approach you intend to take? While your institution or grant administrator might have their own criteria, you want to make sure the study will be valued by the field at large, including fellow scholars and stakeholders with an interest in the results. Margaret Roller’s and Paul Lavrakas' Total Quality Framework is a straightforward tool for thinking about qualitative research designs. Margaret describes it as “a way for qualitative researchers to develop critical thinking skills to apply in designing, conducting, and interpreting their research so that the studies are more likely to (a) gather high-quality data, (b) lead to more robust and valid interpretations of the data, and (c) ultimately generate highly useful outcomes.”
The Total Quality Framework (Roller & Lavrakas, 2015, pp.15-17).
Learn more about each TQF component:
Credibility: From a TQF perspective, credible qualitative research is the result of effectively managing data collection, paying particular attention to the two specific areas of Scope and Data Gathering.
Analyzability: Analyzability is concerned with the “completeness and accuracy of the analysis and interpretations” of the qualitative data derived in data collection and consists of two key parts – Processing and Verification.
Transparency: When the data has been collected and thoroughly processed and verified, the qualitative researcher is left with the job of effectively communicating what went on in the research study and how the researcher drew interpretations from the analysis.
Usefulness: Usefulness refers to the ability to do something of value with the outcomes.
Learn how to use the TQF when developing a qualitative research proposal
Download compilations that include articles and blog posts by Margaret Roller:
"TQF Research Proposal: 11 Articles on the Total Quality Framework Qualitative Research Proposal" includes a compilation of articles on using the TQF when developing a proposal. Begin by taking a look at “Research Questions & Hypotheses” on page 11 for discussion about framing a research question or problem.
“Is It Good Research? Quality Design in Qualitative Research: Quality Approaches That Embrace Diversity & Inclusion” is a compilation of five articles. These articles are a reminder that rigorous research strategies pertaining to sampling, data collection, and analysis transcend the paradigm, positivist-non-positivist debates. They prioritize inclusion and fairness while exploring the complexity of human realities.
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