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This bestseller explores the principles of each of five qualitative inquiry traditions: narrative research, phenomenology, grounded theory, ethnography and case study. The Fourth Edition features more visual representations of the five approaches.

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In the Fourth Edition of this bestselling book, John W Creswell and new co-author Cheryl N Poth explore the philosophical underpinnings, history and key elements of each of five qualitative inquiry traditions: narrative research, phenomenology, grounded theory, ethnography and case study - putting them side by side, so that we can see the differences. The authors relate research designs to each of the traditions of enquiry. They compare theoretical frameworks and ways to employ standards of quality, as well as strategies for writing introductions to studies, collecting data, analyzing data, writing a narrative and verifying results.

New in this edition:

Updated materials on each tradition
More on interpretive frameworks and ethics
More visual depictions of the five approaches
Two new topical articles in Chapter 5, reproduced in full in the appendices.

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Introduction
Philosophical Assumptions and Interpretive Frameworks
Designing a Qualitative Study
Five Qualitative Approaches to Inquiry
Five Different Qualitative Studies
Introducing and Focusing the Study
Data Collection
Data Analysis and Representation
Writing a Qualitative Study
Standards of Validation and Evaluation
"Turning the Story" and Conclusion

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