The Dictionary of Human Geography

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of resistance to masculinist community

norms. Her research thus generated a practice

ofresistancethat could not be made public,

at least at the research site. Pratt (2004,

p. 193) has urged that we consider the re-

search process itself as an important research

outcome: ‘We might think of it as a space ...

from which to speak and perform the unspeak-

able ... The written traces, for example [aca-

demic] text, are but one outcome of a process

that far exceeds them.’ Writing and other

forms of representation (such as video or pho-

tography) can be a significant part of the ac-

tual research process in qualitative research;

representation is a means of doing the re-

search, of making creative connections and

developing interpretations. Different ways of

understanding can be communicated through

differentmedia(Berg and Mansvelt, 2000).

Despite the widespread use of qualitative

data, some scepticism remains about the cred-

ibility of qualitative data. Baxter and Eyles

(1997) are concerned that qualitative geog-

raphers often have not been sufficiently trans-

parent about their methodology. There is a

danger of ‘mining’ qualitative interviews for

enticing quotes that selectively advance the

researcher’s interpretation, and of presenting

de-contextualized snippets of conversation.

There is also a risk of stereotyping respondents

by reading across interview transcripts to iden-

tify common themes rather than studying the

contradictions and complexity within individ-

ual interviews. There are many different strat-

egies for analysing qualitative data (there are

43, according to Crang, 2005). Crang (2005)

distinguishes three broad approaches: devel-

oping grounded theory, analysing the formal

structure of the text or transcript or image, or

reading qualitative data as narrative. McDo-

well (1998) describes a process of repeatedly

reading her transcript data, first for plot and

then for representations of ‘self’ (also, for a

strategy for analysing narrative genres, see

Chari, 2003). One characteristic of the best

qualitative research is the immense volume of

data collected, and although there is no sub-

stitute for examining the data closely and

repeatedly, a number of computer software

packages are available to systematize tran-

script data and to assist in coding it (Peace,

2000).

Although qualitative methods have often

been conceived as opposite or even opposed

to quantitative methods, this is an unproduct-

ive way of conceiving the distinction. Critical

realismwas one important moment for think-

ing of the two approaches as compatible:

extensive methods (often quantitative) were

seen to be especially useful for describing pat-

terns, and intensive methods (typically quali-

tative ones) more effective for studying causal

processes (cf.extensive research;intensive

research). More recently, the call of mixed

methods has been tied to the concept of tri-

angulation, which involves exploring processes

from different angles using different methods,

in order to assess the validity of each data

source and method, and more fully under-

stand the process. Nightingale (2003) links

the utility of mixed methods to the concept

of situated knowledge: she suggests that a

mix of qualitative and quantitative methods

allows the researcher to better understand

the limits of knowledge acquired through

any one methodological approach. Different

approaches resonate with different audiences

• for instance, state funding bodies and policy-
  makers are typically more convinced of the
  ‘scientific merit’ of quantitative techniques,
  which they sometimes designate as ‘evidence-
  based’ research (Mountz, Miyares, Wright
  and Bailey, 2003). Blending qualitative and
  quantitative methods may allow a researcher
  to reach different audiences in more authori-
  tative ways. gp

Suggested reading

Hay (2000); Limb and Dwyer (2001).

quality of life A concept linked to that of

social well-being, which is based on the ar-

gument that the human condition should be

evaluated on a wider range of indicators than

just income – whether at the individual level or

through national aggregates (such asgross

national product and gross domestic

product). Work on the quality of life was

introduced to geographers in the 1970s in

studies of territorial social indicators (Smith,

1973; Knox, 1975), which focused on separ-

ate dimensions of collective well-being, such

as income, wealth and employment, the built

environment, physical and mental health, edu-

cation, social disorganization, social belong-

ing, and recreation and leisure.mapsof these

indicators, at a variety of spatialscalesfrom

the international to the inter-urban, provided

evidence on geographical variations in well-

being, with which researchers could address

the question of ‘who gets what, where?’

(Smith, 1977).

Other concepts, such as freedom (cf.

human rights) and happiness, are frequently

related to measures of the quality of life that

individuals and societies experience, although

Gregory / The Dictionary of Human Geography 9781405132879_4_Q Final Proof page 606 31.3.2009 7:14pm Compositor Name: ARaju

QUALITY OF LIFE