1) Qualitative research is based on the idea that reality is not predetermined, but is created by the participants as the research progresses, i.e. the participants make their own reality (Vishnevsky and Beanlands 2004, p.235). It explores phenomena by looking at how the individuals experience them, and assumes that it is possible to get the best understanding of phenomena by having a small interpersonal distance between the researcher and the subjects. Qualitative research does not involve carrying out experiments, and has no dependent or independent variables. The basis of qualitative research is to understand phenomena in their entirety. Qualitative research is done among the participants in their natural setting and involves ongoing data collection and analysis. The data collection and the methodology of qualitative research are flexible, and so they allow for changes to be made throughout the data collection period, and the subjective data combines thoughts and perceptions of the participants and the researchers.
Qualitative research does not select a sample that is representative of the population being studied, but chooses subjects who have the most experience with the phenomena being studied, and the sample size is usually determined as the study progresses because researchers include as many participants as they feel are necessary to give them a good understanding of the phenomena (Vishnevsky and Beanlands, 2004, p.235). The researcher and the participants work as partners in the research project. The most frequently used qualitative research methods are ethnography, phenomenology, and grounded theory. Ethnographic research comes from anthropologist who examine cultural knowledge; phenomenology looks at an individual's specific experiences. "Because professional nursing practice is enmeshed in people's life experiences, phenomenology as a research approach is well-suited to the investigation of phenomena importa...