Building on New Foundations: Core Principles and New Directions for Qualitative Research

Abstract

The authors review and comment on 24 qualitative research articles published in the JER from 1992 to 2001, which represent a wide range of qualitative approaches. The key finding was that patterns shifted from an average of 1 article per year for the 1st 7 years to an average of 1 article per issue for the final 3 years. The authors discussed the following criteria and then used it to evaluate these qualitative articles: investigative depth, interpretive adequacy, illuminative fertility, and participatory accountability. In addition, 4 unnecessary assumptions are illustrated by examples taken from the set of articles that concern false needs for consistency, rigor, coding completeness, and thematic reduction. Three practical suggestions for qualitative researchers in education are offered as a consequence of this review and commentary.

Keywords:

• core principles
• new directions
• practical suggestions
• qualitative research published in The Journal of Educational Research; years 1992 to 2001