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How to … assess the quality of qualitative research
Author(s) -
Stenfors Terese,
Kajamaa Anu,
Bennett Deirdre
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the clinical teacher
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.354
H-Index - 26
eISSN - 1743-498X
pISSN - 1743-4971
DOI - 10.1111/tct.13242
Subject(s) - qualitative research , trustworthiness , quality (philosophy) , inclusion (mineral) , psychology , research design , medical education , engineering ethics , management science , medicine , sociology , epistemology , social psychology , social science , philosophy , engineering , economics
SUMMARY As a clinician interested in qualitative research, you are likely to have pondered whether a particular study is trustworthy. How do you know whether qualitative research findings are valid and can be applied in your setting? The quality standards you would look for in quantitative research do not apply. Furthermore, qualitative research is conducted within a number of paradigms, or ways of understanding the nature of reality and knowledge, each associated with different ways of defining, understanding and reporting quality. This ‘How to …’ article aims to support health care practitioners, educators and researchers to recognise some of the essential characteristics or ‘markers’ of high‐quality qualitative research. We hope that this article will support those reflecting on the quality of their own research, those justifying research design to funders and those reviewing qualitative research for journals or for inclusion in reviews.