Strengths and Weaknesses of a Qualitative Study

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Table of Contents

Strengths of a Qualitative Study
Weaknesses of a Qualitative Study
Works Cited

Strengths of a Qualitative Study

In-depth analysis of a research problem

One of the greatest strengths of a qualitative study is the deep analysis of a research problem. A qualitative study aims to gain a deeper understanding of the problem at hand. Applying this concept to the selected article, “A systematic review of specialized palliative care for terminal patients: which model is better?” the authors, Garcia-Perez, Linertova, Martin-Olivera, Serrano-Aguilar, and Benitez-Rosario’s objective was to evaluate and integrate the existing literature that focuses on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of specialized palliative care for critically ill patients and to make a comparison between the diverse organizational frameworks used in providing specialized palliative care (17). Based on this objective, the authors then selected the appropriate studies and analyzed them deeply, and then made a comparison between them. In-depth research facilitated through qualitative studies enables the authors and readers to have a deeper understanding of the research question. In this case, readers gain a deeper understanding of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of different organizational models used in specialized palliative care.

Congruence of the study’s discussion with the study’s objective

The discussion of a qualitative study corresponds to the study’s objective (Leedy and Ormrod 170). Using the selected article by Garcia-Perez et al. (20-21), the discussion has been carried out following the initially-stated objective. To achieve this, the researchers have discussed in detail each of the studies used in the systematic review including the study design, population, and the nature of programs analyzed in each of the studies. The effectiveness of each of the programs studied was then discussed as well as their cost-effectiveness. The detailed report of each of the reviewed studies makes it easy for readers to understand and make comparisons between the reviewed studies.

Weaknesses of a Qualitative Study

Minimal literature review

One of the major limitations of a qualitative study is the lack of a detailed literature review on the topic at hand (Leedy and Ormrod 169). In qualitative studies, the literature review is only used to explain and give support to the theory that will be generated from the study. It does not facilitate data collection. The disadvantage of a minimal literature review is that readers fail to gain a deeper insight into the research problem: for instance, which researchers have done what, which research designs have been used to study the research problem and the nature of the literature gap that exists concerning the research problem. Likewise, the minimal literature review constrains readers from making a comparison between the current study and past studies.

Non-probabilistic sampling techniques

Qualitative studies use samples that have been selected using non-probabilistic sampling techniques such as purposive sampling (Leedy and Ormrod 169). The logic behind this lies in the main objective of the study and therefore participants are selected to answer the research question. The disadvantage of using non-probabilistic sampling techniques is that the results from the study cannot be generalized to the entire population. In the research study conducted by Garcia-Perez et al. (18), the studies used in the review were selected using some criteria such as language (English and Spanish). It is, therefore, possible that similar studies were done in other languages (non-English and non-Spanish) were excluded from the review yet they could provide useful information for the study. Readers should therefore be cautious when reading a qualitative study to ensure that they do not generalize the findings to the entire population because such generalizations could create false inferences.

Works Cited

Garcia-Perez, L., R. Linertova, R. Martin-Olivera, P. Serrano-Aguilar, and M. Benitez-Rosario. “A systematic review of specialized palliative care for terminal patients: which model is better?” Palliative Medicine 23 (2009): 17-22.

Leedy, Paul, and Jean Ellis Ormrod. Survey of research methodology for human services learners. 8th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Custom, 2004.

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