Qualitative Research Critique

Qualitative Research Critique

Introduction

The purpose of the current analysis is to critique a qualitative study by assessing the appropriateness of research methods, the research questions and findings, critical issues related to the study, and a discussion of the study’s strengths, weaknesses, and limitations. The analysis also recommends methods and research questions that can be employed for follow-up studies. The article under review is a qualitative study on perfectionism and narratives by Julia Farmer, Sean Mackinnon, and Megan Cowie (2017). Two research questions guided the study: 1) examining the definition of perfectionism for people with adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism, and 2) identifying the emergent themes related to autobiographical narratives for people with high perfectionism. Perfectionism entails striving for high-level performance and being critical in evaluating behaviours. The authors point out that several studies have established a positive relationship between perfectionism and psychopathological factors such as depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. Research studies have also revealed that perfectionism is a multidimensional construct with different conceptualizations from various researchers. Notably, there is no apparent bias in the selection of studies in the literature review since the study incorporates qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods studies conducted on the topic.

Summary of Methods

The research study employed grounded theory research design as the suitable qualitative research approach. According to Levitt (2016), grounded theory research design entails using multiple data collection methods such as interviews, observation, and focus groups, among others. A sample of 20 perfectionistic university students was selected based on cutoff points on the Almost Perfect Scale-Revised. The sample was made up of 6 adaptive and 14 maladaptive students. All participants were recruited from Dalhousie University through online advertisements and flyers. The participants were mainly young students with a mean age of 20 years. Data was collected from participants through qualitative interviews. The researchers employed bracketing to set aside assumptions in thematic analysis. Reflexivity was also considered a crucial aspect in the composition of the research team and the roles assigned to each researcher in the study. Data analysis methods in grounded theory methods may entail at least three types: open coding, axial coding, and selective coding. Under open coding, codes, categories, and themes can be used. The study by Farmer, Mackinnon, and Cowie (2017) employs open coding through a thematic analysis of five themes on how participants conceptualize perfectionism. To enhance credibility and validity, the study employed triangulation of themes to support perfectionism dimensions. The APS-R, which uses a 7-point scale method of organizing items for respondents, also has high reliability.

Summary of Findings

Five themes were generated from the study based on the responses from the participants. The two most common themes had similarities under Discrepancy Subscales and APS-R. Under the “high personal standards and goals” theme, participants described perfectionism as striving to maintain high standards of flawless, best, and high-performance levels. Under the “performance is never good enough” theme, perfectionism was viewed as the though the efforts are never adequate when they do not meet their unrealistically high-performance standards. Three themes were uncommon in the study. Under the theme of “being neat and organized,” perfectionism was defined as a preference and attention to physical appearance and orderly environments. Under the theme of “feels superior to others,” participants defined perfectionism as the feeling of competence and superiority in response to praise or criticism from other people. Under the theme of “get caught up in the details,” participants defined perfectionism as the tendency to be caught in the details where people focus on the fine details in the tasks and forget other aspects of their lives. Notably, the researchers present sufficient evidence to support their findings by referencing other studies that established similar or closely related findings. Therefore, the evidence in the study is mainly reliant on empirical studies, as Miller and Fredericks (2003) suggest.

Ethical Aspects

As a preliminary step to ensure that the study is conducted in accordance with ethical guidelines, the study received ethical approval from the Dalhousie University’s research and ethics board. The interviews were conducted in a closed room with only the participant and the researcher to protect the participants’ privacy. A consent form was presented to the participants to sign before participating in the study and consent to anonymous quotations, as Newman (2016) recommends. The participants were also informed that the interviews could be audio-recorded before starting. The researchers allowed participants to ask questions about the study before it started. Data that could lead to the identification of the participants was removed, such as names, places, and dates. Additionally, to ensure compliance with ethical obligations, data obtained from the participants was not placed in an open-access database since the data was identifiable and sensitive; raw data available in the form of transcripts and data files could only be obtained from one of the researchers, who was the custodian of the data. Subsequently, there were no ethically questionable practices; therefore, the study satisfactorily complied with research ethics.

Evaluation of Study

The strengths of the current study include using an appropriate research method and reliable and valid data collection instruments. Particularly, using APS-R on a 7-point scale enhanced the study’s specificity, sensitivity, and reliability. The authors acknowledged some of the study limitations, such as the problem of generalizability of the study to the larger population, which resulted from a young and small sample of university students. The cutoff scores used could have produced more classification errors in a Canadian context. The authors suggest that future studies should employ double-blinding to limit participants’ pre-knowledge to avoid bias. They also suggest deeper grounded theory or discourse analysis of findings for future studies.

Conclusion

The study significantly contributes to understanding how various perfectionists conceptualize perfectionism and how different perfectionists may approach different life events. From the study, it is evident that the participants regard perfectionism as a double-edged sword that has both positive and negative implications in their lives and other people’s lives. The authors suggest that the study will be significant for clinicians to identify perfectionism in clinical practice. Although the qualitative study was rigorous, it is difficult to establish cause-effect relationships. Future researchers can employ a mixed-method approach that can facilitate the identification of the various factors related to perfectionism in a particular psychopathological area to determine the significance of such factors as determiners of perfectionism. A related research question that would be investigated using a mixed-method approach is; “What is the extent to which perfectionists portray perfectionism in social interactions and relationships with other people? ”

References

Farmer, J. R., Mackinnon, S. P., & Cowie, M. (2017). Perfectionism and Life Narratives: A Qualitative Study. pp. 1–14. DOI: 10.1177/2158244017721733

Levitt, H. M. (2016). Chapter 12: Qualitative methods In Norcross, J. C., VandenBos, G. R., Freedheim, D. K., & Olatunji, B. O. (Eds.). APA Handbook of Clinical Psychology: Vol. 2 Theory and Research. American Psychological Association. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/14773-012

Miller, S., & Fredericks, M. (2003). The nature of “evidence” in qualitative research methods. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 2(1). Article 4. Retrieved from http://www.ualberta.ca/~ijqm

Newman, M. (2016). Research methods in psychology. (2nd ed.). Bridgepoint Education.

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Qualitative Research Critique

Summarize the assigned qualitative study’s research question, methods, and findings.
Evaluate the appropriateness of the research methods and analytical approaches used in the study. Support the position with evidence cited from the textbook and at least one other scholarly source about the research design or method.
Analyze ethical issues pertaining to how the study was carried out.
Critique the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the study.
Recommend a research question and methods for a follow-up study on the topic.
Utilize the provided template with section headings.