Myths and Misconceptions about Using Qualitative Methods in Assessment

Autor/inn/en	Harper, Shaun R.; Kuh, George D.
Titel	Myths and Misconceptions about Using Qualitative Methods in Assessment
Quelle	In: New Directions for Institutional Research, (2007) 136, S.5-14 (10 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0271-0579
DOI	10.1002/ir.227
Schlagwörter	Research Methodology; Qualitative Research; Institutional Research; Methods; Researchers; Misconceptions; Evaluation Methods; Statistical Analysis; Generalization; Educational Policy; Data Collection; Interviews; Inquiry; Higher Education + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Research method; Forschungsmethode; Qualitative Forschung; Institutionelle Forschung; Method; Methode; Researcher; Forscher; Missverständnis; Statistische Analyse; Politics of education; Bildungspolitik; Data capture; Datensammlung; Interviewing; Interviewtechnik; Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen
Abstract	The value of qualitative assessment approaches has been underestimated primarily because they are often juxtaposed against long-standing quantitative traditions and the widely accepted premise that the best research produces generalizable and statistically significant findings. Institutional researchers avoid qualitative methods for at least three reasons. First, they are more comfortable with the quantitative paradigm, the kinds of questions it addresses, the tools to answer these questions, and statistical forms of sense making. Second, they are at the same time unfamiliar with qualitative methods, its assumptions, and standards of rigor and trustworthiness. Third, they have been socialized to accept the supposed superiority of qualitative methods. In this article, the authors endorse the use of qualitative approaches because they can help answer some of the complex, vexing questions that concern various stakeholders in higher education. Yet despite growing recognition of the power and utility of qualitative assessment methods, concerns remain about employing these approaches in institutional research. Thus, the authors dispel ten common misconceptions about using qualitative methods in assessment, while acknowledging the relative strengths and limitations of these approaches. (ERIC).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10