Abstract

A key task in conducting research integration studies is determining what features to account for in the research reports eligible for inclusion. In the course of a methodological project, the authors found a remarkable uniformity in the way findings were produced and presented, no matter what the stated or implied frame of reference or method. They describe a typology of findings, which they developed to bypass the discrepancy between method claims and the actual use of methods, and efforts to ascertain its utility and reliability. The authors propose that the findings in journal reports of qualitative studies in the health domain can be classified on a continuum of data transformation as no finding, topical survey, thematic survey, conceptual/thematic description, or interpretive explanation.

Keywords

TypologyQualitative researchThematic analysisPsychologyQualitative propertyDomain (mathematical analysis)Thematic mapTask (project management)Computer scienceData scienceApplied psychologySociologyMathematicsEngineeringSocial science

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Publication Info

Year
2003
Type
article
Volume
13
Issue
7
Pages
905-923
Citations
839
Access
Closed

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Margarete Sandelowski, Julie Barroso (2003). Classifying the Findings in Qualitative Studies. Qualitative Health Research , 13 (7) , 905-923. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732303253488

Identifiers

DOI
10.1177/1049732303253488