Part 8 - So how do you know if a piece of qualitative health research is good? In the seven blogposts that have preceded this, I’ve set out a personal critique of some of the problems I see all too often in qualitative research. I read and review dozens of qualitative health research articles each year, and my broader interest in the sociology and philosophy of health means I also get to read a lot of really good stuff too. So I’m claiming that as my mandate to offer some critical comments. So what makes for a good qualitative health research study, and how can you tell if you’ve found a diamond or just a bit of cheap plastic costume jewellery? Well I would say that the first thing … [Read more...] about Qualitative Health Research – A guide for the perplexed
Qualitative Health Research: A guide for the perplexed – Power
Part 4 So far in this weekly series on qualitative health research, I’ve talked about where QHR came from, and the important parts played by criticality and the ‘insider’ or emic perspective. This week I want to look at power. Perhaps one of the most important methodological decisions a qualitative health researcher will make in undertaking a piece of research is exactly how much theydesign, and how much is done with the people they are researching. Perhaps not surprisingly then, attacking the traditional power of the quantitative researcher and the institutions they represent has led to some of the most radical technical developments in QHR and healthcare … [Read more...] about Qualitative Health Research: A guide for the perplexed – Power
Qualitative health research 101
Part 2 - Criticality Last week I offered an all too brief potted history of qualitative health research (QHR), in the hope that what follows makes more sense.There are a lot of misconceptions about QHR. Hopefully these blogposts will help clarify some core principles, and inspire people to see how incredibly powerful and useful good quality QHR can be. Now you could say the first principle I want to tackle today’s is so important that it almost defines the difference between what is true qualitative health research and what is a pale imitation. And that is criticality. More than any other principle, good QHR has always been critical. It has challenged convention; held a mirror held … [Read more...] about Qualitative health research 101
To Think is To Experiment: Postgraduate Research Conference at the Centre for Narrative Research
To Think is To Experiment: Postgraduate Research Conference at the Centre for Narrative Research 2nd May 2019, 10 am – 4 pm, University of East London, University Square, Stratford The Centre for Narrative Research (CNR) will organise To Think is to Experiment, the annual Postgraduate Research Conference on the 2nd May 2019. The event has been a space of in-depth conversations on various aspects of narrative-based research and postgraduate research experiences since 2003. This year, we invite papers focusing on the analysis of narratives, discussing and reflecting on the analytical decisions and experiences of researchers, including the ethical ones. We are interested in both broader … [Read more...] about To Think is To Experiment: Postgraduate Research Conference at the Centre for Narrative Research
Innovation
We're coming to the end of a long academic year in New Zealand, so that means lots of examination and assessment of nervous students. This time last year I took over a postgraduate paper called Health Professional Practice with a view to 'reshaping' it. For years it had been delivered in a standard fashion: block study, lots of lectures and tutorials - mostly directed at students rather than engaging them, boring assessments. I decided to shake things up a bit. The paper needed to be much more about what made the students 'tick' as health professionals; their experiences, ideas and issues. But it also needed to get them to critically examine their professions in ways they hadn't … [Read more...] about Innovation
Critical Physiotherapy Course – 1st dress rehearsal *tomorrow*
Only 12 hours to go until the first ever free Critical Physiotherapy Course (1st dress rehearsal) featuring A/Prof Tobba Sudmann talking about 'Being moved: On foot or on horseback'. There is no registration, just log into this link at the times below, and be part of the revolution. Location Local Time Time Zone UTC Offset Auckland (New Zealand - Auckland) Thursday, 18 October 2018 at 6:00:00 a.m. NZDT UTC+13 hours New York (USA - New York) Wednesday, 17 October 2018 at 1:00:00 p.m. EDT UTC-4 hours Los Angeles (USA - California) Wednesday, 17 October 2018 at 10:00:00 a.m. PDT UTC-7 hours Sydney (Australia - New South Wales) Thursday, 18 October … [Read more...] about Critical Physiotherapy Course – 1st dress rehearsal *tomorrow*
Physiotherapy’s biopsycho (but not so much) social approach to future healthcare
One of the interesting aspects of the recent physiotherapy discussions on social media about the benefits of the biopsychosocial model is the almost complete lack of the 'social'. Those who advocate for the model seem comfortable with the idea that physiotherapy might be ready to embrace its psychological dimensions - although, often, the 'psychological' is lazily referred to as a singular entity - but little is said about the social dimensions of physiotherapy. Perhaps physiotherapists are not aware of the full scale of the social dimensions of practice? Many practitioners, for instance, still ignore the fact that the social determinants of health (poverty, education level, access to … [Read more...] about Physiotherapy’s biopsycho (but not so much) social approach to future healthcare