This highly readable text demystifies the qualitative research process--and helps readers conceptualize their own studies--by organizing the different research paradigms and traditions into coherent clusters. Real-world examples and firsthand perspectives illustrate the research process; instructive exercises and activities build on each other so…

The reflexive turn in qualitative research has transformed the process of doing life history research. No longer are research subjects examined through the lens of the all-knowing but supposedly invisible researcher. According to this book, an introduction to conducting life history research, the process is now one of mutuality, empathy,…

This new version explores the philosophical underpinnings, history, and key elements of each of five qualitative inquiry approaches: narrative research, phenomenology, grounded theory, ethnography, and case study. Using an accessible and engaging writing style, the author compares theoretical frameworks, ways to employ standards of quality, and…

Already a standard technique in anthropology, the life history method is widely used in the development of oral and local history, and within educational and social science research the method is growing in popularity. This is in large part due to the growing respectability of qualitative research in general. Part I of this paper explains the life…

This collection examines many influences of biographical inquiry in education and discusses methodological issues from the perspectives of veteran and novice biographers. The section on qualitative research and educational biography contains the following chapters: "Musings on Life Writing: Biography and Case Studies in Teacher Education" (Robert…