Qualitative Research in Human Services
Assignment 2: A Brief Literature Review
A strong literature review plays a foundational role in setting up a research proposal or a dissertation. Therefore, for any research, it is important to understand how to structure the literature review and include all the key pieces of information on which the research proposal will be built.
In your literature review, you should do the following:
- Integrate and evaluate the literature by examining the patterns existing among the articles.
- Discuss which studies were stronger.
- Identify the weaknesses or gaps found in the literature.
- Discuss the academic and practical significance of prior research.
- Reiterate the need for your study by showing how your proposed study will fill a gap in the current body of knowledge.
When writing a literature review, it is important that you do not simply summarize each article. You have to synthesize the information you have gathered from all the articles that you reviewed. Integrating the information will allow you to come to a better understanding of the topic and identify areas in the field where there is a lack of research.
In this assignment, you will practice writing a literature review. In addition, as you review the three given articles for your literature review, you will get the opportunity to take a closer look at the use of qualitative research in the human services field.
Tasks:
Read the following articles from the Argosy University online library resources:
- Evaluation of evaluation studies using qualitative research methods in the social work literature (1990–2003): Evidence that constitutes a wake-up call
- Utility of qualitative research findings in evidence-based public health practice
- What is good qualitative research? A first step towards a comprehensive approach to judging rigour/quality
As you read these articles, practice your note-taking skills. Based on the information you gather, create a 2- to 3-page literature review addressing the following issues:
- Benefits and weaknesses of using qualitative research in the area of human services research
- Strategies for judging the quality of a qualitative research study to decide which articles should be included in a literature review and which should not be included
Submission Details:
- Save your literature review in a Microsoft Word document with the name M2_A2_Lastname_Firstname.doc and by Wednesday, May 4, 2016, upload it to the M2 Assignment 2 Dropbox.
| Assignment 2 Grading Criteria | Maximum Points |
| Submitted a 2- to 3-page literature review of the three given articles. | 40 |
| Discussed the benefits and weaknesses of using qualitative research in the area of human services research. | 32 |
| Shared strategies for identifying quality articles that should be included in a literature review. | 16 |
| Wrote in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrated ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; displayed accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Gave all citations in APA format. | 12 |
| Total: | 100 |
Literature Review
Qualitative research has increasingly been embraced as an independent source of evidence that can be applied in enhancing evidence-based practice within human service professionals. According to Jack (2006), qualitative research provides epidemiological data obtained from quantitative research is not sufficient to facilitate proper making of informed decisions within the health care environment. The author clear emphasizes on the importance of information of the experiences of individuals on facilitating the health care process. Nevertheless, as much as the author provides an in-depth analysis of the benefits of qualitative research in informing health care processes, she fails to acknowledge the fact that qualitative data in the health sector is complimented by quantitative data in terms of trends and probability, and cannot stand on its own (Jack, 2006).
It is important to note that in as much as qualitative research has shown some value in informing the decision making process in the health sector, the quality of the researches may compromise their value. Shek, Tang, and Han (2005) conducted a study that involved a review of qualitative and evaluative studies between 1990 and 2003 in which they determined that the quality of the qualitative studies published within the social work field was low. This was due to lack of sensitivity of the studies to various issues including auditability, truth-value, bias, critical data interpretation, consistency and philosophy base (Shek, Tang, & Han, 2005). It is hence clear that qualitative researchers fail to put in much effort towards refining such studies to ensure that they are of high quality enough to be generalized to larger populations.
Proper identification of the right quality of
qualitative data that can be applied in practice is an aspect of great
importance. The credibility of research it determined by the quality of the
data presented and its practicability in an actual situation. In this view,
Meyrick (2006) argues that many users of qualitative research do not know how
to determine the quality of such research. The author maintained that the major
principles of research that users of qualitative research ought to consider
when determining quality are systematicity and transparency (Meyrick,
2006).
Nevertheless, the author fails to determine the measures and extend of transparency
and systematicity that may be rank a research as of high or low quality.
References
Jack, S. M. (2006). Utility of Qualitative Research Findings in Evidence-Based Public Health Practice. Public Health Nursing, 23(3), 277–283.
Meyrick, J. (2006). What is good qualitative research? A first step towards a comprehensive approach to judging rigour/quality. Jounal of Health Psychology, 11(5), 799-808.
Shek, D., Tang, V., & Han, X. (2005). Evaluation of evaluation studies using qualitative research methods in the social work literature (1990-2003): evidence that constitutes a wake-up call. Research on Social Work Practice, 15(3), 180-194.