Extending the Conversation: Qualitative Research as Dialogic Collaborative Process

TLDR

Collaborative research is usually framed as interaction between researchers and participants, yet few studies examine collaboration among researchers themselves, and prevailing assumptions about qualitative research processes remain widespread. The authors aim to challenge and transform these assumptions by examining how their collaborative research diverges from conventional views and the impact of that divergence on their own practice. Their experience with three collaborative empirical studies revealed that planning, analysis, and reporting are more emergent, collaborative, and conversational than traditionally taught as linear, individual, and product‑oriented.

Abstract

Collaborative research often refers to collaboration among the researcher and the participants. Few studies investigate the collaborative process among researchers themselves. Assumptions about the qualitative research process, particularly ways to establish rigor and transparency, are pervasive. Our experience con ducting three collaborative empirical research studies challenged and transformed our assumptions about qualitative research: (a) research planning taught as concrete and linear rather than as emergent and iterative, (b) data analysis conceptualized as individual discovery rather than collaboratively-constructed meaning, and (c) findings represented as individual product rather than as part of an ongoing conversation. We address each assumption, including how our collaborative research diverged from the assumption and how this divergence has impacted our own practice.