1. Qualitative Data Collection

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About this Lecture

Lecture

In this lecture, we think about qualitative data collection, focusing in particular on: (i) defining qualitative data as word-based data, which can include feelings, views, and attitudes; (ii) collection methods, which include interviews and focus groups; (iii) other collection methods, including emails, natural observation and case studies; (iv) content and thematic analyses as methods of making sense of an individual’s communications; (v) some key advantages of qualitative data, including that it is more in-depth, flexible with regard to the type of questions which can be asked, and externally valid; (vi) some key disadvantages of qualitative data, which include difficulties with replication and analysis, as well as its vulnerability to bias.

Course

In this course, Dr Eduardo Vasquez (University of Kent) explores data collection and review in psychological research. In the first lecture, we think about qualitative data collection methods, including interviews and focus groups. In the second lecture, we think about quantitative data collection methods, including experiments and surveys. In the third lecture, we think about the advantages and disadvantages of primary data. Next, we think about the advantages and disadvantages of secondary data. In the fifth and final lecture, we think about systematic reviews of data, specifically focusing on meta-analyses.

Lecturer

Dr Eduardo Vasquez is a senior lecturer in the School of Psychology at the University of Kent. His research interests include aggression, inter-group relations/conflict, and the influence of alcohol on social behaviours. Some of Dr Vasquez’s recent publications include 'Are you insulting me? Exposure to alcohol primes increases aggression following ambiguous provocation' (2014), 'Any of them will do: In-group identification, out-group entitativity, and gang membership as predictors of group based retribution' (2015), and 'The sexual objectification of girls and aggression towards them in gang and non-gang affiliated youth' (2017).