I have read several books on how to do qualitative research and this is BY FAR the clearest explanation I’ve seen on how to structure the findings section. This is a true service to the field!
Thank you very helpful for me... It can be difficult to distinguish between discussing, analysing and just writing the findings... I struggled quite a bit and this is just a rescuer for me.
Excellent way to show the formula of writing qualitative findings but not compromising with the nuances and depth of interpretations of the findings. Thank you, Marcus.
Hi Marcus, when you were mentioning the C part I had doubts about whether talking in the Comment part will override the functions of the Discussion section. I went back to your Oatmeal article and found that you did not use a Discussion section in your paper. Does it mean that the SQC combines the Findings and the Discussion sections together into one? Thanks
That's a fantastic question. I think the Commentary parts can help a great deal in obviating the need for the traditional discussion section--you can weave the discussion throughout the findings. But using commentary doesn't have to remove the need for discussion. You can have both if you want or need. It really depends on how much analysis you are doing in the commentary: are you really digging into the larger meanings for the whole paper's argument or are you simply explaining the connections between the quote and one theme or subtheme? If you're doing the latter, it's a good idea to use a discussion section to wrap all the themes into a coherent narrative that answers your research question(s). There are tons of examples of doing it both ways (just findings or findings and discussion), and some disciplines are much more likely to demand the traditional organization that includes the discussion section. Still, even if you have a discussion, some comment should be present for each quotation, even if just to reinforce how it illustrates the paragraph's thesis statement, to point out any particular words or phrases of importance, or to make connections to other ideas. Thanks for the question.
@@marcusweaver-hightower8091 Marcus, thank you so much for this informative response. I am currently writing up my first paper ever to a journal, and I have learnt a lot from you. Thank you very much again for your time and effort.
Very helpful. I have completed my dissertation and used qualitative data. I didn't use any particular method for presenting the findings. I kind of made it up. But, i like this style.
Hi, thank you so much for this. I am currently writing my dissertation and have to divide sections into results and discussion. You refer to "findings" - thus is this the method you would use for a results section? or discussion?
More what people would refer to as a "results" chapter in the traditional 5-chapter dissertation. Of course, many write qualitative dissertations that don't have a separate discussion chapter; they just blend discussion and results together because that division isn't quite as natural for qualitative research.
Thanks very much. Watching this clip for the 2nd time. The SQC formula is wonderful and helpful but I feel its a bit heavy for the presentation of findings. I am thinking that the content for the S and C are a bit much? Thanks
Thanks for the comment. I get this question a lot, actually, so I'm glad to have a chance to explain a bit. Too often, I think, writers tend to think that a quotation should "speak for itself." They also get nervous about "imposing" their own interpretations on what a participant has said, as if that takes away their "voice." While it's understandable where this impulse comes from, it misses out on one of the basic understandings about readers that writers must remember: readers don't always think like you. They haven't been to the site, met the people, or pondered over the data for weeks and months, and they often read skeptically. If you don't frame a quotation in the way you think it fits in your argument and where the quote comes from (the S) and then explain what you think the quote means for your larger argument (the C), people will read the quote very differently than you will. The S and the C do slightly different things, and they are crucial to making your argument. Without them you're just throwing out seemingly random quotations and asking your reader to do all the work--but without anything to go on. And, to make you feel better about the imposition issue, the quote has to actually accomplish what you say it does. Because you are including raw data in the form of a quote, readers are still able to judge whether they think it says what you say it means. So the Q is a kind of check on the S and C's validity.
Hi Allexius. Thanks for watching. I think of this as a formula only in the loosest sense. It's really my sense of how most of the best researchers do qualitative writing. If you're interested in reading a bit more, it's also a major part of my book How to Write Qualitative Research. Not everyone does their paragraphing this way of course. I don't know of anyone else who has specifically talked about qualitative writing this way; that's why I wrote it! My best advice for "validating" this approach would be to look at what folks in the discipline of composition studies say about paragraphing.
What is your advise in cases where, there are 2 or three great quotes for a theme? do you weave them together or chose one an perhaps the others in the comment section of the paragraph?
In as much as this sounds interesting... I find it a bit much on just the chapter of findings. I have analysed and reviewed a lot of qualitative studies but non have mentioned this style of reporting findings. The reasons are that S & C in SQC are taking so much of what should be in the next chapter of discussion. Also, for researchers that has about 7-12 participants, how does just quoting one persons response in a paragraph give such a well balanced report of the theme underwhich the quotes are stated. Lastly, is there any article or studies by which this SQC are based on?
Thank you very much! Extremely helpful and informative. My query is: Would this SQC method also be applied for a Results section of a thesis? Traditionally, we were told to just report the results! The 'C' part needs to be included in a Discussion section. Can we then just do a SQ for Results? Thanks, again, for a great video!
I think it works for a results section of a thesis, but I do think the "commentary" part of the paragraph would be a bit different. In a journal article or discussion section, you put a lot of emphasis on making meanings and connections. In a results section, you want to mainly, as you say, report the findings without editorializing. (That's the benefit of all the space you get in a thesis!) The "C" part of the paragraph in the results, though, still needs to be there to point out any important phrases or ideas, show how it connects to the questions being asked, or in some cases to give context or summary. Even in the results you don't want to leave a paragraph on a quote because it asks a lot of readers to intuit what it all means.
One more query Marcus...What happens if your qualitative statements are less than 40 words? I'd assume you keep them in the normal body of the text? I've also seen some papers put them within quote marks and some italicize them. What do you recommend? Thanks,again!
Prasidh Ramson It depends on your citation style, but in APA, yes, less than 40 words of quotation should be integrated into the normal paragraph. For a manuscript in APA, no italics or any other special formatting (and keep it double spaced). Just normal text indented half an inch.
Brilliant stuff, I've just started with my results and analysis chapter and I found the lesson to be very informative. Thank you so much. How should we reference your material, would the following suffice? Weaver-Hightower, M. (2014, March 17). Writing Qualitative Findings Paragraphs [Video file]. Available from: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mmKuvwk8x84.html
