The pursuit of quality in grounded theory

Abstract

This article introduces grounded theory and places this method in its historical context when 1960s quantitative researchers wielded harsh criticisms of qualitative research. The originators of grounded theory, sociologists Glaser and Strauss, sought to defend the quality of qualitative research and argued that grounded theory increased its quality by providing a method of theory construction. Our major foci include: (1) introducing the logic of grounded theory, with emphasis on how researchers can use it to construct theory, (2) detailing criteria for quality in the major forms of grounded theory advocated by Glaser and Strauss and augmented by Glaser, Strauss and Corbin and refined by Corbin, and Charmaz and (3) providing an analysis of how constructivist grounded theorists Thornberg, Halldin, Bolmsjö and Petersson attended to the interviewing process, coding, and developing their theoretical concept of double victimizing. Students and researchers new to the method can use our concluding guidelines as a checklist to assess the quality of their constructivist grounded theory research.

Can I use TA? Should I use TA? Should Inotuse TA? Comparing reflexive thematic analysis and other pattern‐based qualitative analytic approaches

“…GT was originally developed by US sociologists Glaser and Strauss in the 1960s—at a time when qualitative research was not the established concept with a vast range of methods it has become (Charmaz & Thornberg, 2020). GT concepts and practices have gone on to influence many ideas across qualitative inquiry, often implicitly (and sometimes without good justification—such as in the pervasive concept of saturation; Braun & Clarke, 2019b).…”

“…GT concepts and practices have gone on to influence many ideas across qualitative inquiry, often implicitly (and sometimes without good justification—such as in the pervasive concept of saturation; Braun & Clarke, 2019b). Glaser and Strauss (1965, 1967) aimed to establish an approach to research that grounded sociological theories in empirical evidence (Charmaz & Thornberg, 2020). Early grounded theories were broad in scope, involving what would now be regarded as large samples for qualitative research, and concurrent processes of data collection and analysis.…”

Work-Related Psychosocial Demands and Resources in General Practice Teams in Germany. A Team-Based Ethnography

“…Furthermore, it facilitated the recruitment process (as we had access to a local GP network) and mitigated challenges of the ethnographic approach (e.g., disruption of daily routines through the researchers) through comprehensive familiarization with the setting ahead of the participant observations. Credibility, transferability, and resonance as quality measures [ 55 ] were achieved by the interdisciplinary team during the several stages of analysis and confirmed by an independent research support group [ 48 ].…”

“…The grounded theory approach was chosen to connect the different data formats to each other and to unveil content and topics as well as procedures and practices. It is a process of continuous abstraction of the data, which is led by established quality criteria [ 55 ]. Open coding helped getting a first and creative access to the data.…”

“…The analysis was conducted by the researchers carrying out the fieldwork (E.T., S.H., and E.R.) and student assistants independently and then in weekly team sessions to ensure credibility [ 55 ] by cross-checking the interpretations. An interdisciplinary team of researchers of the IMPROVE job -Consortium with expertise in general (B.W.…”