Teaching Qualitative Inquiry in Undergraduate Psychology Programs:
Enhancing Students’ Methodological Literacy
Linda M. McMullen
University of Saskatchewan
www.usask.ca
Context: U Saskatchewan Undergraduate Psychology Curriculum
• research-intensive
• history of teaching qualitative research in the department
• location of this course in the curriculum
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introductory course
second-year courses in statistics and research design/methods
third-year research courses for majors
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first-term courses
second-term courses
fourth-year Honours thesis
www.usask.ca
Objectives
• to provide students with an understanding of how to situate qualitative methodologies vis-à-vis
quantitative methodologies in psychology
• to introduce students to the wide range of topics and research questions that can be pursued via
qualitative inquiry in psychology
• to familiarize students with the range of qualitative methodologies and methods of generating
and analysing data
• to provide a basic, hands-on experience with analysing discourse
• to begin to prepare students to conduct qualitative research in the future
www.usask.ca
Outline of Course
• situating qualitative inquiry in psychology
• overview of ontology, epistemology, methodology, method
• covering the components of a research proposal
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rationale for a qualitative study; the importance of the research question
how to think (differently) about the role of the literature
methods of data generation
methodologies
data analysis
ethics
criteria for assessing quality
www.usask.ca
Arguments against the Model of the Stand-Alone Course
•Reinforces the methodology/methods-driven focus of our discipline
•Separates the learning of methodologies and methods from substantive content
•Reinforces the quantitative – qualitative binary which is seen as a false dichotomy
www.usask.ca
Arguments for the Model of the Stand-Alone Course
• Increases the visibility, status, and depth of coverage of qualitative inquiry in our discipline
• Reinforces the methodological diversity that characterizes our discipline
• Provides the time necessary for a sustained immersion in a new language of research
• Enables proficiency in one language of research to be further enhanced through repetition and
comparison when learning comparable concepts in the new language, e.g., epistemology;
sampling; generalization
www.usask.ca
Comparisons
• Epistemology  objectivism, constructionism, critical realism
• Hypotheses vs. research questions
• Sample (random; stratified; vs. purposive or exemplary; theoretical)
• Generalization (sample to population; vs. abductive; case-to-case; communicative)
• Quality control (criteria linked to epistemological stance)
www.usask.ca
Outline of a Restructured Undergraduate Psychology Curriculum
• Introductory course – inclusion of qualitative research via textbooks or selected readings, coupled
with a curriculum-based research experience in both quantitative and qualitative approaches
• Mandatory, stand-alone, second-year courses in both quantitative and qualitative approaches
• Focus on how qualitative inquiry has shaped substantive areas of our discipline
• Optional, senior-level courses that focus on in-depth coverage of a particular qualitative
methodology
• Capacity to complete an Honours thesis project based in qualitative inquiry
www.usask.ca
Aspirational Outcomes
•learning the languages of research: setting a foundation for bilingualism (quantitative and
qualitative research) (Collini, 1993)
•awareness of unstated assumptions in both quantitative and qualitative research
•research must be intellectual, not technical, in nature; develop “a metaunderstanding of the
character of research work” (Alvesson & Skӧldberg, 2000)
www.usask.ca