Field research

Field Research

It is possible to think of field research as a qualitative methodology for gathering the data required for studies. It tries to interact with people in their natural environment while gathering and comprehending the data gathered. Researchers in this field frequently watch, speak with, and examine objects or papers produced by the population they are studying. This study methodology has the advantage of providing contextual data, but the drawback is that atypical conduct may skew the expected data that may be gathered. Given the interactions in the nature of research, ethical issues like the relationship between the researcher and the participant may arise and skew the findings. When it comes to validity, qualitative field research is reliable since it involves direct observation and participation by the researcher creating a great understanding of the subject area. However, in reliability, qualitative field research is subjective creating a gap whereby researchers in the same area might disagree. To collect data, formal groups are more efficient since they use the dynamics to come up with the qualitative data (Bailey, 2006).

Content Analysis

Content analysis is an inexpensive research method that does not require contact with people. It is a purely a descriptive method which is based on pre-recorded communication between individuals. The research approach based on analysis of existing statistics is also less involving and relies on statistics used by different research works. On the other hand, historical analysis involves a comparative examination of a society over time. The major advantage their strengths and weaknesses, reliability and validity to each. The main advantage of unobtrusive research is that they are more convenient and inexpensive. However, they have a limitation of validity and reliability. Once the material information is used to make conclusions is misleading, the entire research becomes misleading thus invalid and unreliable. These research methods avoid most ethical problems but issues such as violation of privacy as well as dishonest observations, analysis and final reporting crop-up (Unobtrusive Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches).

References

Bailey, C. A. (2006). A Guide to Qualitative Field Research. Thousand Oaks, United States: Sage Publications.

Unobtrusive Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/sociological-inquiry-principles-qualitative-and quantitative methods/s14-unobtrusive-research-qualitati.html