Division of Social and Community Psychiatry
Neuropsychiatric Institute
UCLA
Qualitative Tools for Multimethod Research is a resource developed by members of the
Division of Social Psychiatry at UCLA's Neuropsychiatric Institute (NPI). As
psychiatrists, psychologists, and sociologists, many researchers in the Division were
trained mainly in the positivist tradition, and in the use of quantifiable social
measures. Yet a fruitful cooperation has always existed between them and other researchers
within the Division trained in qualitative methods. Some have desired to incorporate
qualitative methods in their epidemiological or child development research and been
experimenting with proposals that combine both quantitative and qualitative methods, as
well as newer rigorous methods such as cluster analysis, multidimensional scaling, and
content analysis.
In order to have more resources available to help in this integration process, certain members of the Division decided to begin the process of putting together a guide to literature on both qualitative methods and on the process of combining qualitative and quantitative methods.
In its current state the result of this effort is essentially an annotated bibliography. The bibliography is presented in two different forms. First it is presented topically so that published resources on particular methods and issues can be found quickly. Second, all the references are presented, with annotations, in alphabetical order. Preceding the bibliographies is a substantial introduction to some issues that confront quantitative researchers as they contemplate using qualitative methods. Each section of the topical bibliography is also preceded by a short introduction. The document presented here is also available in hardcopy format upon request. It closely follows the format presented here.
This
page will be updated as our vision for this document changes and grows. Please check
occasionally to see what we have done with it!
INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Project Staff & How to Contact Us
Including links to other relevant UCLA pages.
Introduction
A short introduction to the purpose of the guide, and how to use it.
The State of the Art
A discussion of some issues that may concern investigators desiring to integrate
qualitative methods into their work.
TOPICAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
Comprehensive Texts
A list of texts that treat, in a broad or comprehensive way, qualitative research methods
or the integration qualitative and quantitative methods together in a larger research
project.
Definition and Epistemology
Literature that questions or elaborates on the distinctions between qualitative and
quantitative methods, and other literature that describes in a broad way the strategy
behind qualitative research.
Choosing and Mixing Methods
This section covers literature that discusses general strategies for mixing
qualitative and quantitative methods, as well as specific synergies between methods.
Sampling
Sampling issues regarding qualitative and mixed methods.
Qualitative Interviewing
Literature covering the kinds of interviewing done in qualitative research.
Focus Groups
Focus group literature for qualitative research.
Observation
Literature on the uses of participant and nonparticipant observation.
Case Studies
Literature about the uses of case studies in qualitative and mixed research
strategies.
Life Histories
The uses of life histories.
Ethnography
Literature on ethnography most pertinant to projects mixing methods.
Systematic Data Collection
This section has articles on the rigorous collection of qualitative information that
are manipulated in ways that help construct a model of the way informants' mental or
cultural understandings are organized.
Data Management
Issues surrounding the use and maintenance of data.
Validity and Generalizability
Literature discussing how qualitative and quantitative research compares regarding
these issues.
Grounded Theory
How to use grounded theory.
Text Analysis
The use of text analysis, including computer applications that allow content analysis
and other methods.
Text Interpretation and Schema Analysis
Literature on the qualitative interpretation of text and the modeling of
mental/cultural schemas.
Data Presentation
Literature regarding the presentation of qualitative and mixed method data.
Ethics
Literature confronting the complex ethical issues that arise during qualitative
research.
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
Complete Annotated Bibliography
This is a complete recapitulation of the all the references in the database, with
annotations.
Other Literature Cited in the Text
From time to time in the texts above other literature has been cited.
OTHER
Related Web Links
Other web sites that might be of interest to readers of this page.
Please email us your comments at: Multimethod Taskforce
Page last updated: October 4, 1998