research methods in crime and justice chapter 12 qualitative research methods

Research Methods in Crime and Justice

Chapter 12Qualitative Research Methods

Qualitative Research Methods

• In the field of criminal justice, many questions can be answered quantitatively.

• But there are many questions that demand more in-depth and qualitative answers.

• Some of the earliest criminological studies were qualitative.

Qualitative Research Basics

• Qualitative research is a tradition in scientific inquiry that does not rely principally on numeric data and quantitative measures.

• Instead, it attempts to develop a deeper understanding of human behavior.

• It is more concerned about how and why humans behave as they do, and how and why they interpret the world as they do.

Types of Qualitative Methods

• Qualitative research methods include three popular methods in criminal justice research.– Case studies, – Ethnography, and – Grounded theory.


• A case study is a detailed analysis of a single event, group, or person for the purpose of understanding how a particular context gives rise to this event, group, or person.


• An ethnography is an in-depth study of a culture for the purpose of understanding that culture and its inner workings.


• In grounded theory research, a researcher uses the inductive reasoning process to develop a theory that explains observed behaviors or processes.

• Grounded theory is more of an approach to qualitative research than a specific method.

The Benefits of Qualitative Research Methods

• Qualitative methods are effective at;– Providing a nuanced and in-depth picture of a

particular phenomenon,– Understanding how perceptions and meanings

influence human behavior, and/or– Developing a theory for unexplained social

phenomena.

The Limitations of Qualitative Research Methods

• Qualitative research methods are not effective when;– The researcher wants to generalize the findings of

the research to a larger population, – The research is impractical, and/or– The research process could pose ethical

challenges.

The Qualitative Research Process

• A Case Study in Qualitative Research (A Study of Crime and Place)– Patricia L. and Paul J. Brantingham, wanted to

know whether the physical environment affected criminal behavior.

– Their study was based on case study and grounded theory research and helped establish a research agenda known as environmental criminology.


• A Case Study in Qualitative Research (A Study of Crime and Place) – cont’d– The Brantinghams made two very important

observations at the beginning of their research. – First, they noticed that most of the attention on

criminal behavior was devoted to explaining individual motivations to commit crime.

– Second, they observed that crime prevention strategies that focused on making changes to physical spaces had a very long tradition.


• Asking a Research Question in Qualitative Research– Generally speaking, research questions that get at

subjective meaning, individual perception, and cultural context are best suited for qualitative research.

– Brantingham and Brantingham set out to understand how crime is related to physical space.


• Conducting a Literature Review in Qualitative Research– The basic literature review in a qualitative study is

not much different than that required for a quantitative study.

– It is important in either case to review both qualitative and quantitative studies on the subject.

– Indeed, reviewing quantitative research from a qualitative perspective can uncover research opportunities.


• Conducting a Literature Review in Qualitative Research – cont’d

• The Brantinghams (1993, p. 5) drew on three areas of research in their literature review:– The complex causes or origins (“etiology”) of crime,– Individual crime patterns and how the physical

environment influences these patterns,– Aggregate crime patterns and how the physical

environment influences these patterns.


• Refining the Research Question in Qualitative Research– If the research is intended to produce exploratory

or descriptive information, traditional hypotheses that predict causal relationships are not required.

– Instead, you may want to simply explain what you anticipate finding in the research and/or outline a set of research questions.


• Refining the Research Question in Qualitative Research – cont’d– Because the Brantinghams’ approach was more

inductive, they did not formulate initial hypotheses. – Instead, they proposed that a relationship existed

between individual crime patterns, aggregate crime patterns, and the physical environment.

– Their objective was to create a theory that explained this relationship, which subsequent researchers could test through hypothesis-driven research.


• Defining Concepts and Creating Measures in Qualitative Research– Qualitative researchers attempt to define concepts

at a deeper and more subjective level. – Brantingham and Brantingham developed

conceptual definitions for;• Crime, • Individual crime patterns, and• Aggregate crime patterns.


• Designing a Method in Qualitative Research– Case studies require the researcher to do more

than merely report what is happening. We already know what is happening; we want to know why something is happening.


• Designing a Method in Qualitative Research – cont’d– Ethnographic research attempts to understand

social phenomena within the context or from the perspective of a particular culture or group.

– Ethnographic research is very similar to field research, which relies on observations of people and places in their natural setting.

– Ethnographic researchers move beyond covert observation to become a participant observer.


• Designing a Method in Qualitative Research – cont’d– Grounded theory research is a methodological

approach whereby the researcher uses qualitative data and inductive reasoning to develop a theory of some human or group behavior.

– It is an inductive technique.– Observations are evaluated, compared and

analyzed to achieve some theoretical explanation of human behavior.


• Designing a Method in Qualitative Research – cont’d– The Brantinghams’ research has elements of both

case study and grounded theory research. – They draw their data from the published literature

to explore;• why and how people commit crime, • where crime happens, and • whether or not physical spaces affect crime.


• Designing a Method in Qualitative Research – cont’d– This approach is consistent with grounded theory

in that it all but ignores what we already know about a topic

– It develops theory from the observations. – This approach is a legitimate research method in

situations where researchers do not want to be overly influenced by the previous research on a topic.


• Collecting and Analyzing Data in Qualitative Research– Qualitative data collection requires;• keen observational and interviewing skills, • a great deal of persistence, and • refined notetaking and recording techniques.


• Collecting and Analyzing Data in Qualitative Research – cont’d– In most cases, qualitative researchers analyze

written information rather than numeric data. – Two popular analytic techniques in this regard are • coding, in which the researcher identifies major

themes, and • memoing, in which the researcher reflects on what the

data mean.


• Collecting and Analyzing Data in Qualitative Research – cont’d– Using crime data, the Brantinghams looked to see

if certain areas were more or less susceptible to certain types of crime.

– These data were organized onto crime maps that illustrated community crime patterns.

– These visual representations enabled the researchers to analyze where crime happens and what types of crimes happen where.


• Collecting and Analyzing Data in Qualitative Research – cont’d– Though the researchers do not provide a great

deal of insight into their particular analytical strategies, it is clear that they are using a type of spatial analysis to understand how and where crime takes place.


• Interpreting the Results in Qualitative Research– The interpretation of qualitative information

represents the researcher’s informed opinion about what the data mean.

– Another researcher may interpret the same information quite differently.

– The interpretation has to be reasonable and it has to be supported by the data.


• Interpreting the Results in Qualitative Research – cont’d– After evaluating the crime maps that they

constructed in the course of their study, the Brantinghams arrived at several conclusions. • An individual’s knowledge of physical spaces influences

their decision on where to commit crimes. • Offenders seem to agree on the best places to commit

crime. • Thus, crime tends to happen in the same place.


• Communicating the Results of Qualitative Research– Rather than rely on charts and graphs to describe

social phenomena, qualitative researchers rely on written narratives and/or storytelling techniques.

– In terms of communicating their major findings, the Brantinghams provide a figure that illustrates the relationship between nodes, pathways and edges to describe where and how crime patterns emerge.

Getting to the Point

• Qualitative research refers to a broad category of research methods that attempt to produce a more detailed understanding of human behavior, including its meaning and its motivation.


• Some of the more popular qualitative research methods include;– case study research, – ethnographic research, and – grounded theory research.


• A case study is a detailed analysis of a single event, group, or person.

• An ethnography is an in-depth study of a culture.

• Grounded theory is a methodological approach that uses inductive reasoning to develop a theory to explain observed behaviors or processes.


• Qualitative research methods are effective when a researcher wants to develop a deeper or more nuanced understanding of a particular phenomenon.

• These methods are effective at determining how perceptions and meanings influence human behavior and for developing theories for previously unexplained social phenomena.


• Qualitative research methods are not effective when a researcher wants to generalize findings of the research to a larger or similar population.

• Some qualitative research may not be feasible because of ethical challenges.


• Research questions that require the researcher to probe deeply into social phenomena or to develop new theories for explaining human behavior are best answered using a qualitative research method.


• During the literature review process, qualitative researchers should examine both quantitative and qualitative studies.

• Existing quantitative research could be enhanced by a qualitative look at the phenomenon; existing qualitative research could be enhanced by looking at the phenomenon in a different context.


• Grounded theory is distinguishable from other forms of research because the importance of the literature review is somewhat diminished.


• If the qualitative research is intended to produce exploratory or descriptive information, traditional hypotheses that predict causal relationships between variables are not required.


• The process by which qualitative researchers define concepts is much the same as it is for quantitative researchers, except that qualitative researchers attempt to define concepts at a deeper and more subjective level.

• In terms of measurement, qualitative researchers do not rely on numbers, focusing instead on subjective meanings and experiences.


• Typical case studies focus on cases that are typical or usual.

• Extreme case studies focus on atypical or unusual cases.


• Ethnographic research is very similar to field research, which relies on observations of people and places in their natural setting.

• A major difference is that ethnographic researchers actually live and socialize within the culture they are studying.


• In terms of the actual methods used, grounded theory research is not that different from case study and ethnographic research.

• It involves archival analysis, observations and qualitative interviews.


• Qualitative data collection requires;– keen observational and interviewing skills, – a great deal of persistence, and – refined notetaking and recording techniques.


• In most cases, qualitative researchers analyze written information rather than numeric data.

• Two popular analytic techniques in this regard are;– coding, in which the researcher identifies major

themes, and – memoing, in which the researcher reflects on

what the data mean.


• Qualitative researchers can make any number of valid interpretations of their data, so long as the interpretation is reasonable and supported by the evidence.

• But qualitative researchers should be careful not to overreach their findings.


• One of the key advantages of qualitative research is its ability to describe and interpret social phenomena at a level of detail that numeric measures cannot achieve.

• As such, qualitative reports are often longer and more narrative than their quantitative counterparts.

• They tend to ‘tell a story’ about the data.

Research Methods in Crime and Justice

Chapter 12Qualitative Research Methods

research methods in crime and justice chapter 12 qualitative research methods

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