Practise applying reflexivity and triangulation to qualitative studies, showing how researchers strengthen credibility and trustworthiness in HL questions.
The stimulus material below is based on a qualitative study that investigates adolescents’ experiences of a school-based mental health programme. Supporting positive mental health development in adolescents is a major public health focus worldwide. Preventing adolescent depression is important because it is associated with a diminished quality of life. The need for early prevention of depression in adolescence is the background for the development of a specific school-based programme targeting 13 to 15 year olds. The aim of this study was to explore adolescents’ subjective opinions of this specific school-based mental health programme. Two researchers recruited participants from eight schools offering the programme. The researchers used a purposive sample of sixty-four adolescents aged 13 to 15 years old (25 % males) who had completed the programme. The study was approved by an ethics committee. The participants and their parents were fully informed about the study and signed consent forms. They were also told that their data would be kept confidential. The researchers decided to meet with adolescents in the groups that had completed the programme together. Males and females were in separate groups of eight on average. The group interviews took place in the school and lasted between 30 to 50 minutes. One researcher facilitated the discussions. Each session was recorded and the other researcher made a verbatim transcription. Both researchers analysed, coded and interpreted transcripts and notes. A third researcher checked the results. The analysis of the transcripts revealed the following themes related to perceived benefits of the programme:
• learning to identify negative thoughts and turning them into positive thoughts
• realizing that thoughts, emotions and behaviour can be linked together and help change behaviour and reduce stress.
• discovering that others also have negative thoughts and doubts about themselves makes it easier to manage negative thoughts. The findings of this study suggested that participation in the school-based mental health programme was generally perceived as beneficial. However, participants did not like that the programme focused more on problems than opportunities. This was perceived as negative expectations. The researchers concluded that this programme would be more widely accepted by adolescents if it focused less on problems and more on promoting positive mental health. – 2 – 8823 – 5705
Discuss how a researcher in this study could ensure that the results of the study are credible.
Refer to the paper 3 markbands when awarding marks.
Marks should be awarded according to the descriptors in the markbands.
The command term "discuss" requires candidates to offer a considered review of how the researcher in this study could ensure that the results of the study in the stimulus material are credible.
Candidates may refer to measures that were taken in the study or suggest measures that could have been taken, or a combination of the two. Each of these approaches are equally acceptable.
Credibility refers to the degree to which the research gives a true picture of what is being investigated and that the results represent the perceptions and opinions of the research participants. Credibility is a factor in establishing trustworthiness in qualitative research. (A definition of credibility is not necessary to reach the top markband.)
Discussions related to how the researchers in this study could ensure that the results of the study are credible could include, but are not limited to:
- Collecting rich data: Qualitative research uses an idiographic approach where the focus is on subjective data representing participants' own opinions and experiences with the phenomenon under study. In qualitative research, rich data can encompass the complexity of adolescents' perceptions of the mental health programme they have completed. Rich data and thick description can help in establishing the meaning that these adolescents' place on action and words as they see it themselves.
- Using triangulation: If similar results can be arrived at and validated using multiple sources of data, multiple methods or different researchers, then the result of the study will have greater credibility. There were two researchers in this study and both of them participated in the research process as one conducted the focus group interviews, and the other made the transcriptions from the recordings. Both of them took part in coding of the transcripts, and interpretation of the data, which could help to protect against researcher bias. The researchers in this study also invited a third researcher to check their findings. This measure could increase credibility as an external review could illuminate blind spots and overall make the findings more robust and well-documented.
- Having reflexivity: the researcher should use critical self-awareness with regard to personal interests (personal reflexivity) as well as methodological choices (epistemological reflexivity).
- Using a "decision trail" (or audit trail). For example, the researchers could develop a reflective journal where they make regular entries, with regard to methodological decisions and reasons for them, and/or how the researchers' own values, beliefs, and interests may have come into play during the research process. It would also be appropriate to walk through every step of the research process to determine if there are examples of researcher bias.
- Participant verification / member checking: This means asking participants in a study to check the results and the statements chosen to support the conclusions. Have the participants themselves judge whether or not the findings actually represent their experiences and opinions. This was not done in this study, but had it been implemented, the findings would increase in credibility.
- Examination of previous research findings on the same topic: Assessing the degree to which the findings of this qualitative research are congruent with previous studies.