New Ways of Seeing through Qualitative Research

Abstract

In this editorial, we describe different qualitative methods as genres—distinct approaches with their own internally coherent epistemology, historical roots, and assumptions. Similar to different works of literature, music, or film, a genre emphasizes variety across types of qualitative research, as well as alignment of logics within each type. Examples of qualitative genres include case study research, pro-cess studies, engaged scholarship, historical studies, discourse studies, paradox as a method, dialectical inquiry, and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis. Just as the label of qualitative research contains within it a variety of genres, these genres often contain within them gradations and subgenres, which may form their own genre. Indeed, we anticipate that the diversity of methodologies will only expand in scope as the qualitative field continues to mature, but only as long as we remain vigilant in ensuring that the field does not institutionalize around a few norms too quickly. In this editorial, we first outline the broad cate-gory of qualitative research and highlight its value for new ways of seeing. We then expand upon some exemplary genres of qualitative research, noting their internally aligned assumptions as well as their distinctions from other genres. We conclude this editorial by highlighting four core principles that can help both authors and reviewers alike adopt and assess the quality of research that aims to see in new ways.