ÐÒÔË´óתÅÌ

Qualitative research methods are useful for the study of human experience and people’s way of understanding and reasoning. They also create understanding of social contexts, relations and practice/actions, i.e. the experience of patients, their relations to health professionals, the role of the health system and the practices of both patients and professionals. This course will provide in-depth knowledge on what qualitative methods are and how to use them, how methodologies guide research and what are the important steps in developing a qualitative study. The course is a specialised and advanced course relevant for PhD-students within medicine, health sciences and social sciences.

In the course, we first go in-depth with some of the most commonly used methods in health research (observation, interviews, focus group discussions, narrative inquiry, document analysis, visual methods). We discuss each method and their prerequisites, adequacy, challenges and possibilities with special emphasis on the premises and assumptions for each method. Specific issues for each method are critically discussed.

Second, all methods are compared and discussed in terms of their sustainability and adequacy for a given project design, and their differences. We focus on how different methodologies apply these methods and produce knowledge through a distinct ‘logic of inquiry’.

Third, the course emphasizes and demonstrates how all choices of methodologies and methods require consistency between theory of science, research question and design. Further, we address how any research project is embedded in research communities informed by contemporary values, policies and economics.

Participants must be enrolled in a PhD program or a Student Research Program at ÐÒÔË´óתÅÌ or another Norwegian/Nordic university. PhD students from other universities may also apply.

All participants must have either a qualitative design or a mixed methods/multiple methods design in their PhD research projects.

Participants must have competence and knowledge of theory of science, research ethics, and research design at PhD level, through HEL-8040 or a similar course. Participants are also assumed to have basic skills in qualitative research.

The course will be held only with a minimum of 6 participants. The maximum number of participants is 16 students.

If there are more applicants than available seats in the course, students will be given priority from category 1 to 4:

• PhD students, research fellows and students participating in a Student Research Programme at ÐÒÔË´óתÅÌ The Arctic University of Norway
• Participants qualifying for Associate Professor positions
• PhD students and students at a Student Research Programme at other universities
• Applicants who have minimum a master’s degree or equivalent, but have not been admitted to a PhD program.

Knowledge:

By the end of this course, the candidate has knowledge that enables them to:

• Discuss and evaluate prerequisites for the use of common qualitative methods and methodologies
• Assess challenges pertaining to different methods and methodologies
• Master the use of common qualitative research methods and reflect on their impact on knowledge production
• Contribute to the development of methodological strategies for the production of solid qualitative knowledge

Skills

By the end of this course, the candidate has skills that enable him/her to

• Select and carry out the application of different methods and methodologies in a consistent research design
• Critically judge and integrate common challenges of qualitative methods in a research process
• Challenge and judge the scientific consistency of a given research design

General competence

By the end of this course, the candidate is expected to be able to

• Manage the complex use of common qualitative methods and research methodologies, including how to create consistency between research problem, methodology and methods.
• Determine the relevance of qualitative research designs and reflect on their methodological challenges
• Participate critically in academic debates on qualitative research findings and conditions
• Participate in research communities engaged in qualitative research methods.

The course consists of 3x2 full day seminars during one academic year. Preparation in terms of reading the curriculum for the course is expected.

Each seminar day is a combination of teacher-led and student-led activities. The educational approach is based on lectures and student involvement through interactive teaching, group work, and peer learning. Seminars are led by two teachers co-teaching and consist of:

• A long introductory lecture on a specific method and methodology, emphasizing a chosen challenge/topic. The lecture contains short exercises, using student-activating tools to promote discussions on methodological choices

Following lectures, the teachers present prepared specific tasks to be worked with, supervised by teachers and in collaboration with the participants during:

• Discussion of challenges of the methodology and method of the day
• Group work that encourages the students to engage with their own research projects in light of the lecture
• Exercises in groups on project designs and research questions
• Discussions of students’ onepage drafts about methodological choices or challenges in their projects, with feedback from discussants, group members and teachers
• Student presentation of a qualitative research article relevant for the day’s topic, group discussion and feedback.