Hello,
I am writing a quantitative paper with some colleagues based on cluster analysis. The questionnaire had two open-ended questions and some of the quotes left by participants capture really well the "spirit" of each cluster.
However, I am not sure how to write about this in the methodology section, because it's not as if we've done a thematic or content analysis of all the quotes (well, we could do that, though our focus in the paper really is the quantitative part). Any ideas of we should frame this use of quotes in the methodology section? Should we just write that we included some quotes to better illustrate each cluster? Or would that not be acceptable in a top-tier tourism journal? Thank you in advance!
Dear Ines Carvalho
Quotes are used to back up researcher claims, to demonstrate concepts, to highlight experience, to elicit emotion, and to elicit a response. Quoting requires scholars to engage in acts of selection that are under the purview of aesthetics and ethics.
Words and phrases from study participants are frequently used in qualitative research reports. Quotes are used to back up researcher assertions, explain concepts, enlighten experience, elicit emotion, and elicit a reaction.
Best Regards
Dr. Fatemeh Khozaei
I agree with Dr. Fatemeh Khozaei, and believe that quotes can be an appropriate supplement to quantitative research. In particular, they can help confirm the face validity of the quantitative work.
Quotes can also serve an excellent way to emphasize or bring out your conclusions. As you think about "findings" or "results" sections of a paper, these are the quantitative expressions of the research you have conducted, "information." Whereas the "conclusions" section is your explication or interpretation of the findings to provide insights into the area of research interest. Comments made by participants may well add to the interpretation of the information you have gathered, and it can be appropriate to use an illustrative quote or two to show how they support your interpretation.
You need to clearly set up in the methods how you will use these questions and report on them including ethical matters, that is did you get permission to use these?
Ines Carvalho, I think you don't have a problem on hand. In the method section of your article, I suspect you simply need to indicate that there were two open-ended items in your questionnaire - and not make any more mention of those items in the method section. You've already alerted your readers to their existence.
All the best with your research - and stop worrying! :-)
I have been teaching metodology of social research (univ. of Torino); I suggest to create a set of structured answers, as if you should use a close ended questionnaire: you could apply this set to coding the quotes, and so reducing the qualitative responses into a short network of items (5-8?); at the same time you could collocate some quotes into the text, as specific samples of answers to the open questions used in the interviews.
Best regards, prof. Chito Guala
Quoted words and phrases from research participants are a common feature of qualitative research reports. ... Quotes are used to support researcher claims, illustrate ideas, illuminate experience, evoke emotion, and pro- voke response.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com › ...PDF
The Use of Quotes in Qualitative Research - Wiley Online Library
Great question Prof. Ines Carvalho ,
It would be easy to just have the paper as qualitative research throughout. This way, it will give other researchers particularly future scholars room to investigate further on the same issue/topic you are doing.
Best regards
Kezia
Quotations From Research Participants
Present a quotation of fewer than 40 words in quotation marks within the text.
Present a quotation of 40 words or more in a block quotation indented below the text.
https://apastyle.apa.org › citations
Quotations from research participants - APA Style
Quotes fewer than 40 words should be incorporated into the text of the paragraph. Quotes comprised of 40 or more words, need to be formatted in block quotes.
https://alliant.libguides.com › c.php
Dissertation & Doctoral Project Formatting & Clearance: Citing In ...
I would like to highlight once again that the paper is quantitative, not qualitative in nature. Thank you so much for your suggestions and advice!
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