Social science researchers in the global South, and in South Africa particularly, utilise research methods in innovative ways in order to respond to contexts characterised by diversity, racial and political tensions, socioeconomic disparities and gender inequalities. These methods often remain undocumented – a gap that this book starts to address. Written by experts from various methodological fields, Transforming Research Methods in the Social Sciences is a comprehensive collation of original essays and cutting-edge research that demonstrates the variety of novel techniques and research methods available to researchers responding to these context-bound issues. It is particularly relevant for study and research in the fields of applied psychology, sociology, ethnography, biography and anthropology. In addition to their unique combination of conceptual and application issues, the chapters also include discussions on ethical considerations relevant to the method in similar global South contexts. Transforming Research Methods in the Social Sciences has much to offer to researchers, professionals and others involved in social science research both locally and internationally.
Author(s): Sumaya Laher, Angelo Fynn, Sherianne Kramer
Publisher: WITS University Press
Year: 2019
Language: English
Pages: 457
Tags: Research Methods, Cases Studies
Front Cover......Page 1
Title Page......Page 4
Copyright......Page 5
Contents......Page 6
Tables, figures and box......Page 9
Preface......Page 12
Acknowledgements......Page 14
Introduction......Page 16
Knowledge production and the political nature of research......Page 17
The postcolonial politics of ‘making’ knowledge......Page 18
Global inequalities in research practice and knowledge production......Page 19
Open educational resources and removing the barriers to research......Page 22
Publication bias......Page 23
Section One: Quantitative methods......Page 24
Section Two: Qualitative methods......Page 25
Section Three: Transparadigmatic methods......Page 26
Conclusion......Page 27
Section One: Quantitative methods......Page 32
Introduction......Page 34
Neighbourhood characteristics and homicide: Theory and empirical evidence......Page 35
Case study: Spatial distribution and social ecology of male homicide in Johannesburg neighbourhoods......Page 36
Dependent variable: Male homicide counts......Page 37
Explanatory variables: Neighbourhood characteristics......Page 38
Discussion and conclusion......Page 45
Acknowledgement......Page 47
Theory and purpose of longitudinal design......Page 51
Types of longitudinal design......Page 53
Attrition and non-responding......Page 55
Number and spacing of measurement points......Page 57
Threats to reliability and validity......Page 58
Longitudinal data analysis......Page 59
Qualitative longitudinal research......Page 61
Ethical issues in longitudinal research......Page 62
Conclusion......Page 63
Introduction......Page 67
Factor analysis as a validation method......Page 68
Determining sample size......Page 69
Choosing a data extraction method......Page 70
Evaluating factor loadings......Page 71
Data quality and normality......Page 72
Examining model fit......Page 74
Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis......Page 76
Conclusion and implications......Page 79
Introduction......Page 84
The meaning of a cognitive test score......Page 85
Population-based norms......Page 86
Within-group norms......Page 87
Collecting within-group norming data in the South African context......Page 88
Step 1: Reviewing the literature......Page 89
Sample......Page 90
Procedure......Page 91
Step 3: Interpreting the results and evaluating the research......Page 92
Concluding commentary......Page 93
Acknowledgements......Page 95
Introduction......Page 99
Conceptualisation......Page 100
Causality and validity......Page 102
Manipulation and control......Page 103
Reactivity......Page 104
Ethics......Page 105
Post-test only non-equivalent control group design......Page 106
Interrupted time series design......Page 107
Design considerations from a real-world example......Page 108
Concluding remarks......Page 110
Background......Page 112
Design of trials......Page 114
Practical issues......Page 121
Conclusion......Page 124
The repeated-measures factorial design......Page 129
Design strengths and limitations......Page 130
Working memory model......Page 131
Sample......Page 133
Song, foreign voice and gum......Page 135
Data collection procedure......Page 136
Results......Page 138
Methodological contribution......Page 141
Conclusion......Page 142
The philosophy and logic of Q......Page 145
Q studies in psychology......Page 147
Using Q methodology to explore students’ perceptions of academic misconduct......Page 148
Conducting a Q study......Page 149
Analysis of a Q study......Page 151
Step 2: Deciding on how many factors to keep......Page 152
Step 3: Rotation......Page 153
Step 4: Flagging Q-sorts for the factor estimates and running the analysis......Page 154
PQMethod output......Page 155
Step 5: Interpreting the factors......Page 156
Ethical issues in Q......Page 159
Acknowledgement......Page 160
Section Two: Qualitative methods......Page 164
The central place of case study research in psychology......Page 166
What is scientific knowledge? A clash of epistemological paradigms......Page 167
Assessment phase......Page 169
Case formulation, treatment planning and contracting phases......Page 170
Intervention phase......Page 171
Data condensation......Page 172
Ethical aspects of clinical case study research......Page 173
Drawing conclusions and enhancing trustworthiness......Page 174
Concluding remarks and suggestions......Page 176
Psychobiographical research: Description and definition......Page 183
Brief history......Page 184
Psychobiographical subject and sampling......Page 185
Data collection, processing and analysis......Page 186
Ethical considerations......Page 187
Occupational and organisational choice (1922–1952)......Page 188
Early career (1953–1962)......Page 189
Late career (1977–2001)......Page 190
Value of psychobiographical research......Page 191
Limitations of psychobiographical research......Page 192
Conclusion......Page 193
Growing interest in qualitative approaches to career counselling......Page 201
Increased acceptance and implementation of a narrative approach to career counselling......Page 202
Ensuring the quality of the research......Page 203
Ethical considerations......Page 204
How can I be useful to you as you construct your career?......Page 206
Magazines/television shows/websites......Page 207
Vulnerable children lose their way because of unkind treatment......Page 208
Analysis of Precious’s three early recollections......Page 209
Account of a television series......Page 211
Sequel......Page 212
Discussion......Page 213
Conclusion......Page 214
Being a pre-grounded theorist......Page 218
Origins and purpose of grounded theory......Page 219
Straussian grounded theory approach......Page 220
Open coding......Page 221
Axial coding......Page 223
Selective coding......Page 225
Formal analysis: Theoretical sampling......Page 227
Constant comparison method......Page 228
Integration of categories......Page 229
What does a final Straussian grounded theory look like?......Page 230
Some ethical considerations for grounded theorists......Page 231
Final suggestion......Page 232
Conclusion......Page 233
What constitutes feminist research?......Page 235
Is gender research always feminist?......Page 238
General principles of feminist research......Page 240
Levels of analysis in feminist research......Page 243
Conclusion......Page 247
Introduction......Page 251
Victims of female-perpetrated sex abuse: An apt object of analysis......Page 253
Method......Page 255
South African Fsa victim discourses......Page 257
An example: Gender constructions that sustain the impossible crime......Page 258
The Madonna/whore complex versus the male aggressor......Page 259
Male sexual violence as normative......Page 261
Conclusion......Page 262
Introduction......Page 266
An ethnomethodological perspective......Page 267
Analytic approach: Conversation analysis......Page 268
The data set: Radio talk......Page 269
Ethical considerations......Page 271
Generalising practices......Page 272
Particularising practices......Page 274
Conclusions......Page 276
Acknowledgement......Page 277
Introduction......Page 280
Philosophies of autoethnography......Page 281
Praxis of autoethnography......Page 284
Ethical considerations......Page 286
Critiques and limitations of autoethnography......Page 288
Relevance of autoethnography in South Africa......Page 289
Conclusion......Page 290
Introduction......Page 295
Genealogical terrain......Page 296
Search for reversals......Page 298
Focus on discontinuities......Page 299
Exteriority......Page 300
Descent......Page 301
Locating materials......Page 302
The mineworker of our present......Page 303
Miners as tribal workers......Page 304
Mineworkers as psychological subjects......Page 310
Material conditions of possibility for new measures of mining work......Page 311
Conclusion......Page 312
Section Three: Transparadigmatic methods......Page 316
Introduction......Page 318
Mixed methods and the transformative paradigm......Page 319
Critiques of transformative mixed methods......Page 321
Context......Page 324
Study design......Page 325
Research quality......Page 327
Concluding remarks......Page 328
Introduction......Page 332
Research that has an impact?......Page 333
Building on action research......Page 334
Phases......Page 335
Evaluative criteria......Page 336
Evaluator roles......Page 337
Putting it all together......Page 338
A note on rigour......Page 339
Ethics in the field......Page 342
Why educational Design Research for this study?......Page 343
Outcomes......Page 344
Conclusion......Page 349
Introduction......Page 352
Background to AI as a research framework......Page 353
Discovery I......Page 354
Design......Page 355
Reflexivity......Page 356
Practical application of AI......Page 357
Case study 1: AI used transformatively to implement and evaluate a wellness programme......Page 359
Case study 2: AI used transformatively in social science research......Page 363
Ethics and reflexivity in AI......Page 365
Conclusion......Page 366
Background......Page 369
Participation, empowerment, critical consciousness and social capital......Page 370
Photovoice as par......Page 371
How does this process challenge power and promote social justice?......Page 372
Case 1: Experiences of black students at UCT......Page 373
Case 2: Young black women representing their identities......Page 375
Case 3: Through the lens of marginalised women......Page 377
Representation and affect......Page 380
Case 4: Learners’ representations of their community......Page 381
Safety......Page 385
Power and representation......Page 386
Conclusion......Page 387
Acknowledgements......Page 388
Introduction......Page 390
Collaboration......Page 391
Transformation......Page 392
Conscientisation, activism and power......Page 393
Ethics and ethical considerations......Page 395
Phase 1: Preliminary research......Page 396
Defining indicators: Two separate workshops......Page 398
Observing and scoring local realities: Second joint workshop and site visits......Page 399
Evaluating the process: Final separate workshops......Page 401
Recommendations for implementing a community scorecard or PAR/CBR process......Page 402
Conclusion......Page 404
Introduction......Page 408
Rigour in research......Page 409
Tools to establish rigour......Page 410
Ethics in research......Page 411
Indigenisation of methods......Page 412
Indigenisation and the need for reflexivity......Page 414
Community-based approaches......Page 415
Technology and data collection and analysis......Page 416
Technology and research collaboration......Page 417
Big data......Page 418
Digital storytelling......Page 419
Systematic reviews......Page 420
Conclusion......Page 422
Contributors......Page 428
Index......Page 434
