Task
Your task in this first course unit is to design and conduct a qualitative research study and then write about your findings. Qualitative research methods involve gathering information “directly from the people involved in a particular event, situation, or issues” (Rhetoric of Inquiry, p. 232), and so you’ll be interviewing people to gather the data that you’ll analyze.
Research Question
As with all research projects, your qualitative study will be driven by a research question, and your research question for this qualitative project should identify:
the food or food practice you will focus on,
the specific population you want to study, and
the specific issue you want to investigate.
In this project, you will also select the specific population (group of people you will interview) and specific issue (what you’ll ask your interview participants about) that you’d like to study, bearing in mind that you’ll need access to people you can interview who have direct experience with your topic.
Research Interviews
The research you conduct for this project will be different than research projects you may have done before. Rather than reading sources or searching through archives, you will conduct at least 3 interviews with “ordinary people… whose experiences, beliefs, and attitudes pertain to the research question you’re asking” (Rhetoric of Inquiry, p. 233). These interviews should be approximately 15 minutes long (30 minutes max!), and you’ll then transcribe and analyze your interviews to extrapolate the results for your study.
Our classwork and the weekly modules during this unit will guide you through the process of recruiting interview participants, developing an interview protocol, conducting interviews, and then transcribing and analyzing your interview data.
Audience
Your audience for your qualitative research paper is me and other English instructors like me who participate in academic conversations that take place through published scholarship and are interested in your topic but who may not be overly familiar with the particular groups or issues you are investigating.
Genre
The qualitative research paper is a very specific academic genre that is most often used in the social sciences, education, and writing studies but is seen in all disciplines when the goal is to report on research you have personally conducted. Qualitative research papers follow what is known as an “IMRaD” format, which is an acronym that stands for Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. I’ve created an IMRaD template Download IMRaD template(it’s a Word doc) for this assignment that you should use to write your paper.
Requirements
Research: As stated above, you must conduct at least 3 interviews for this project.
Structure: Follow the IMRaD template I’ve created for this assignment for our class. Download the template Download Download the template(it’s a Word doc), save it to your drive, and start plugging in your own work. You’ll notice the template contains 8 sections, which are the sections you will use in your own paper: Abstract, Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Future Work, References, and Appendices.
Length: Your final paper should be 1700-2000 words total (not including the Abstract, References, or Appendices). You can use this breakdown as a general guideline for each section, but feel free to adjust to suit your specific needs.
Introduction 300-500 words
Methods 200-400 words
Results 500-700 words
Discussion 400-600 words
Future Work 100-200 words
Reflection Essay 150-200 words
Formatting (fonts, margins, etc.) should not deviate from the template Download the template.
Use proper APA documentation for your citations and References page.
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Below is what needs to be fixed about my paper, and these are the notes from my teacher after I turned it in, these need to be fixed for my to have a good grade:
Luke, your study investigates what sounds like a common phenomenon on campus. While your project demonstrates growth as a researcher, your project does not follow all of the assignment directions or mastery of the concepts of qualitative research.
Please consider revising your project to meet the assignment requirements. When doing so, please address the following:
* Part of the assignment was to download and use the IMRaD template so that your project meets formatting standards for qualitative research reporting.
* Revise the Introduction to focus on the specific issue that your study examines. The first half of the paragraph indicates your study is going to be on fast food and health, which are only peripherally linked to your actual research question on food choices while drinking alcohol.
* Revise your research question to make it more specific to your interview pool, especially since the article in the Literature Review seems to already provide a clear-cut answer to the research question in its present form. Something along the lines of “How does being intoxicated [or alcohol consumption — do they have to be drunk?] affect college students’ food choices?”
* Cite all information from outside research using APA in-text citations.
* Results section is missing data from the interviews in the discussion of codes. Your report sounds more like a secondary source research paper than a qualitative study. Keep in mind that your answer to the research question can only be developed from what the interview participants tell you.
* The Discussion section makes claims that are not reasonable based on the interview data reported in Results. Your answer to the research question can only be developed from what the interview participants tell you, not from your own understanding or outside research about the issue of food choices while intoxicated.
* The paper contains a great deal of slang, banned words, and vague words, and all of these create a conversational tone that is too informal for academic writing. (See my feedback notes on your paper draft.) Aim for clear, specific, and direct language so that your ideas are clear and logically presented.
– I also have already completed all of the things that need to be completed after the essay, like the transcripts and codes. So, you do not have to worry about that stuff.