Reflexivity in Qualitative Research

Description:

This live online course explores becoming aware of and learning how to deal with emotions and reflexivity in the process of qualitative research.  It runs over two mornings and uses Zoom software 

Introduction/Overview

The aim of this training session is to explore the role of the researcher and more specifically, the researcher's emotions within the process of qualitative research. Emotions are a fundamental part of how we live in and experience the world around us, and both, researchers and participants have emotions and feel emotional responses throughout the research process, even if they are sometimes difficult to acknowledge, express, capture and process (that is recognise, name, accept and then potentially act on).

This training event draws on embodied and creative techniques to focus on the presence of emotions in research and to present practical strategies for practising reflexivity - how we can attend to and become aware of them in ourselves as researchers and in our participants, how we can hold emotional space for ourselves and our participants to express emotions safely, how we can capture the emotional resonance created in research, again in ourselves and in our participants, and how we can process the emotions we feel directly, and as a result of our participants’ experiences.

The session will be delivered as a combination of group discussions, creative tasks using materials participants will have available at home and short presentations from the course leader.

 
Learning outcomes
 

By the end of the workshop, participants will:

• Have knowledge and critical awareness of what reflexivity in qualitative research is and means
• Have practical knowledge and personal experience of practical methods and strategies to acknowledge and capture emotions and experiences
• Be equipped to capture emotions and be mindful of their impact on research
• Have a working understanding of dealing with emotions in self and others
• Feel permitted to "experiment" and "try" in qualitative research

 
Topics
 

• Emotions and reflexivity in research, particularly in relation to data collection and analysis
• Theoretical underpinning to reflexivity
• Practical strategies and methods for developing and maintaining reflexivity
• Consideration of what to do with "reflexivity", "reflexive data" and "emotions" in the research process
• The role of the researcher's emotions in data collection and analysis

 
Who will benefit
 

This course is suitable for anyone who would like to experience and learn more about reflexivity and the role of the researcher's positionality within qualitative research. It is expected that participants will have prior experience of and with qualitative research. Participants at the early, middle and final stages of a qualitative research project will benefit, but if possible, as it is best to consider emotions and reflexivity at all stages of the research.

 
Course tutor
 

Dr Nicole Brown is Lecturer in Education and Academic Head of Learning and Teaching at the UCL Institute of Education. Underpinned by her interpretation of human communication relying on the embodied, metaphorical understanding of the world, she regularly uses participatory and creative approaches to data collection and analysis to capture what is difficult to express in traditional interviews. Nicole has taught research methods for over ten years, including at the University of Kent, De Montfort University Leicester, the Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE), the National Centre for Research Methods (NCRM) and the British Medical Association (BMA).

 

Cost:

£220.00 SRA members pay £165.00

Website and registration:

Register for this course

Region:

International

Keywords:

Qualitative Data Handling and Data Analysis, Reflexivity , Emotions

Related publications and presentations from our eprints archive:

Qualitative Data Handling and Data Analysis

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