Principles of conceptualizing a qualitative project

Abstract

When preparing a qualitative research proposal, researchers often find themselves in a paradoxical situation. Researchers have deliberately selected a qualitative method because little is known about the area — yet how can they write about, for instance how they are going to analyse data when the nature of these data are not known? How can a qualitative researcher convince a funding agency that a study is worthwhile when so much is unknown? Whereas quantitative research proposals are generally highly structured and serve to guide the research process, it is not possible to develop a rigid protocol for a qualitative research proposal while still remaining true to the principles of qualitative inquiry. While the quantitative proposal may serve as an indicator that the student is ready to collect data, has identified a theoretical framework and has a sound protocol for data analysis, the qualitative proposal serves only to convince the committee that the topic is worth studying. Despite the fact that the qualitative researcher may not know very much about the research topic or what will be found out, she or he must entice the committee in order to be allowed to proceed. This lack of development may be a handicap if the qualitative proposal is to be submitted to a funding agency, and the onus is on the researcher to convince the granting agency that funding the research is ‘a good risk.’