Innovative Data Collection Strategies in Qualitative Research

Introduction In many disciplines and fields representing the social and behavioral sciences, the quantitative research paradigm, which has its roots in (logical) positivism, marked the first methodological wave (circa the 19th century), inasmuch as it was characterized by a comprehensive and formal set of assumptions and principles surrounding epistemology (e.g., independence of knower and known, objectivism, real causes determining outcomes reliably and validly, time- and context-free generalizations), ontology (e.g., single reality), axiology (e.g., value-free), methodology (e.g., deductive logic, testing or confirming hypotheses/theory), and rhetoric (e.g., rhetorical neutrality, formal writing style, impersonal passive voice, technical terminology). The years 1900 to 1950 marked what could be termed as the second methodological wave, in which many researchers who rejected (logical) positivism embraced the qualitative research paradigm (1). Denzin and Lincoln (2005a) refer to this era as the first historical moment or The Traditional Period for qualitative research. Vidich and Lyman (2000) describe earlier forms of ethnography that took place prior to the 17th century. However, Denzin and Lincoln's (2005a) The Traditional Period represents the first organized qualitative research movement. Although this moment was characterized by qualitative researchers attempting to write reliable, valid, and objective accounts of their field experiences (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005a), it paved the way for the eight subsequent qualitative moments (see Table 1) that have incorporated paradigms that are extremely far removed from positivism. For example, in stark contrast to positivism, constructivism has been characterized by a different set of epistemological (e.g., subjectivist, knower and known are inseparable), ontological (e.g., relativism), axiological (e.g., value-bound), methodological (e.g., dialectical, hermeneutical), and rhetorical (e.g., informal writing style using personal voice and limited definitions) assumptions. From Table 1, it can be seen that Denzin and Lincoln (2005a) predict that in the seventh and eighth moments, "methodological contestation will continue within and among the many disciplinary communities of qualitative research--business, marketing, nursing, psychology, communications studies, cultural studies, education, sociology, anthropology, medical clinical practice and epidemiology, and others" (p. 1117). As noted on Table 1, Denzin and Lincoln (2005a) elaborate further upon the dichotomous nature of research by predicting that in the ninth moment, methodologists form two opposing camps (i.e., "gold standard" of scientific research vs. socially, culturally, ethnically, and racially responsive, communitarian, justice-oriented research). However, in this article, we discuss the various ways that qualitative researchers might transcend this methodological contestation and methodological divide by taking advantage of the innovative approaches to reflexivity (i.e., "the process of critical self-reflection on one's biases, theoretical predispositions, preferences, and so forth" [Schwandt, 2007, p. 260]; "inspection of potential sources of bias and their control [and] critically inspecting the entire research process" [Schwandt, p. 260]); and the latest technology and computermediated communication. As such, we call for a 10th moment, which we label as the period of Methodological Innovation, in which qualitative researchers go beyond the traditional ways of collecting primary and reflexive data. With this in mind, in this article, we provide an innovative meta-framework comprising strategies designed to guide qualitative data collection in the 21st century. We call our framework a meta-framework because it incorporates several new and existing frameworks. We begin by presenting various frameworks for collecting data in qualitative research. Specifically, we present strategies for collecting data from interviews, focus groups, observations, and documents/material culture--which represent four major sources of data in qualitative research (cf. …