Short Articles about Qualitative Research

Et après le meltdown?, by Vaughan Flood
Vaughan Flood considers the impact on qual of markets in disarray and plunging house prices (November 2008)

Therapy or training?, by Stephanie McCann
AQR’s Moderating Skills Workshop goes from strength to strength. This time round we offer three very different perspectives on the course. This perspective is jointly written by Stephanie McCann and Becki Harrison of Acumen Fieldwork. (November 2008)

QMIP Conference debut, by Sheila Keegan
The first Qualitative Methods in Psychology (QMiP) conference was held at Leeds University at the beginning of September. It was quite a milestone. Psychology, even in my undergraduate days in the ’70s, was struggling to decide whether it was an art or a science. It is still struggling. (November 2008)

Getting up close to DEs, by Rina Igual
Rina Igual offers a very personal view of why ethnography is so useful when researching in the Philippines – and beyond (November 2008)

Therapy or training?, by Lorraine Jones
AQR’s Moderating Skills Workshop goes from strength to strength. This time round we offer three very different perspectives on the course, this one from Lorraine Jones of PHD North. (November 2008)

Better safe than sorry, by Gareth Roberts
Ah nostalgia! It seems only yesterday that one couldn’t move in a railway carriage or in a bar without tripping over a laptop containing state secrets or slipping on a discarded disc containing the name, address and banking details of every UK child benefit claimant. (November 2008)

Therapy or training?, by Becki Harrison
AQR’s Moderating Skills Workshop goes from strength to strength. This time round we offer three very different perspectives on the course. This perspective is jointly written by Stephanie McCann and Becki Harrison of Acumen Fieldwork. (November 2008)

Therapy or training?, by Andrew Murphy
AQR’s Moderating Skills Workshop goes from strength to strength. This time round we offer three very different perspectives on the course. This perspective comes from Andrew Murphy of Metro (Associated Newspapers). (November 2008)

Millefeuilles in the dark, by Ailean Mills
International work can seem so BlackBerry sophisticated, says Ailean Mills. But watch out, because appearances can be deceptive (November 2008)

Virtual washing line chats, by Vicki Kateley
The onset of parenthood shakes partners up physically, financially and mentally. Vicki Kateley describes why research is important at this stage (September 2008)

Seeing Florence Nightingale in a fresh light, by Susie Fisher
The new director of the Imperial War Museum is a bubbly blonde and the sweeping new head of the Museums and Galleries Commission is an admiral in the navy. Museums are changing. (September 2008)

Japan: a country with high standards, by Steven Stipes
In Brief's latest stop on its worldwide tour is Japan. Steven Sipes offers insights on the country, its people and culture (September 2008)

Give the people what they want, by Louella Miles
Does anyone remember American comedian Red Skelton? One of his most memorable quips occurred on the occasion of Columbia head Harry Cohen's death. When someone remarked on the large number of people who turned out for the hated studio head's funeral, Skelton returned, "Give the people what they want, and they'll come out for it." (September 2008)

Impact of "Le Crunch", by Louella Miles
As Olympic gold medals become a distant memory, it's the gloom merchants who appear in the ascendant (September 2008)

What can qual offer the Arts?, by Lisa Baxter
Arts venues have long used research to evaluate their programmes" success, but qual is now coming into its own ­ as the following three articles show ­ not just in terms of programming and curating but also in the context of shaping creative content and the way in which artists of all types are used (September 2008)

Land where NPD prospers, by Stella Okpala
Stella Okpala offers us a personal view of Nigeria in this latest report on the global qualitative research market (July 2008)

A gallimaufry of good ideas, by Roddy Glen
The city competed with the event – but this year's AQR/QRCA Conference was voted as the "best ever" by attendees. Roddy Glen enjoyed it (July 2008)

Ebb and flow of tourism, by Nicky Cronin
What do visitors look for from a trip to Britain? Well, as Nicky Cronin reveals, the arts is not our only selling point – our weather appeals, too (July 2008)

New slant on celebs, by Louella Miles
Would a Victor Kiam, if he appeared in 2008, make you more or less likely to buy a product or service? (July 2008)

All for an ordered life, by Andrew Therkelsen
Christopher Hahn's latest book, Doing Qualitative Research Using Your Computer, is comprehensive, says Andrew Therkelsen, but is it useful? (July 2008)

Tale of the Black Swan, by Tessa Stuart
Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s The Black Swan: the Impact of the Highly Improbable, is a very entertaining, highly opinionated essay by a former mathematical trader. (May 2008)

Trust breeds popularity, by Mariusz Adorjanyi
Hungarians are fiercely intelligent, nationalistic, and have precious few popular brands, says Mariusz Adorjanyi (May 2008)

Can politics be too pink?, by Louella Miles
Life has been very quiet without Silvio Berlusconi. So, what’s the first thing the Italian Prime Minister-elect utters now he’s back on the scene? He calls the new Spanish Cabinet, more than half of them women, "too pink". (May 2008)

Shift in power structure, by Helen Brown
What impact might networking sites have on qual? Well, it’s complicated says Helen Brown, not least because users might seek out researchers (May 2008)

Education under the spotlight, by Geoff Bayley
Ask most Quallies: How did you learn to do this job? and you would expect ‘learning by doing’ and the experience of ‘being thrown in at the deep end’ to feature fairly highly in their answers. (May 2008)

Tale of a bursary student, by Andy Connor
Andy Connor was a social science student – then he won AQR’s Bursary, went on the Foundation Course, and his world was turned upside down (May 2008)

Innovate or Die, by Andre Furstenberg
When the going gets tough, it’s time to state the case for using qualitative research even more forcefully than before (May 2008)

Fingers on buttons, now, by Ailean Mills
This year’s MRS Conference went interactive, but did the medium distract from the content, asks Ailean Mills? (May 2008)

Is it time to tear up the discussion guide?, by Geoff Bayley
"How do I know what I think until I hear what I say" Is it time to tear up the discussion guide? (May 2008)

Values, Valuables, Value, by Stewart Dobson
As both client and moderator, Stewart Dobson drew a number of valuable lessons from AQR¹s latest workshop (March 2008)

A timeless masterclass, by Mike Imms
The qualitative industry owes a great debt to Stephen King ­ a debt that is both intellectual and financial. You can think of this book (A Master Class in Brand Planning ­ The Timeless Works of Stephen King) as a bank statement which gives you a massive credit balance. But unlike a bank statement it is hugely readable and inspiring. (March 2008)

Take me to your leader, by Louella Miles
It¹s a strange world when a web site created four years ago by a student in his room at Harvard is now valued at around $15bn yet there is speculation that Facebook could tempt Microsoft to expand its tiny stake in the company into a full blown acquisition offer, such is the popularity of social networking. (March 2008)

No longer the poor relation, by Kirsty Boyce
It¹s time for homework to be seen in a new light, argues Kirsty Boyce. Such tasks can deliver hugely rich insights (March 2008)

Playing on emotions, by James Morris
The selection of the American Democratic candidate may go to the wire, but what are the lessons for polling in the UK? (March 2008)

Treading a careful path, by Alison Drury
There is uproar when high profile data disks go missing, yet social network sites are booming. So where does qual stand on personal data? (March 2008)

Party of the People, by Rosie Campbell
The coming year will see AQR striving to promote ‘Excellence’ in all its various activities: from training to partying, says new Chair Rosie Campbell (February 2008)

Cure for abandonment, by Louella Miles
A quarter of online shoppers don’t complete their purchases, says Louella Miles. But should e-retailers be looking beyond their technological failings? (February 2008)

Bye bye, Mr Average, by Liz Sykes
If the rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer, how will researchers provide clients with the respondents they need in the future, asks Liz Sykes? (February 2008)

Complexities of Web 2.0, by Justin Gibbons
Justin Gibbons discusses why Web 2.0 will mean qualitative researchers will have to shift from being extractors – to editors – of information (February 2008)

Research in Poland (education and communication), by Joanna Chrzanowska
The market research scene is buzzing in Poland, so the Directory invited two members – Joanna Chrzanowska and Fiona Jack – to give a personal view of the market, its history, and its current workings. This snapshot by Joanna focuses on education and communication. (February 2008)

Research in Poland (methodologies and markets), by Fiona Jack
The market research scene is buzzing in Poland, so the Directory invited two members – Joanna Chrzanowska and Fiona Jack – to give a personal view of the market, its history, and its current workings. This snapshot by Fiona focuses on methodologies and markets. (February 2008)

To observe - or not, by Dan O'Donoghue
The Prosper Riley-Smith Effectiveness Awards were designed to show how qualitative research could impact on business. They’ve succeeded, says Dan O’Donoghue, so where do they go from here? (February 2008)

Sensing the future, by Charles Spence
There is a tendency for qualitative researchers to address senses in isolation but the challenge, says Charles Spence, is to look at how they impact on products and packaging when viewed in a more holistic way (February 2008)

Complexities of trust, by Caroline Hayter Whitehill
Brands can inspire trust by virtue of their core values, says Caroline Hayter Whitehill, but researchers will also have to be open and honest with consumers in order to achieve quality results (February 2008)

Where’s The Sausage?... Live!, by Simon Gore
Developing branding based on substance not spin – Simon Gore reviews a Marketing Society event focused on ‘sizzle’ (January 2008)

Fears below the surface, by Nitasha Kapoor
Acacia Avenue’s Caroline Hayter Whitehill and Nitasha Kapoor won this year’s Prosper Riley-Smith Effectiveness Award. This article outlines their research. (January 2008)

Passing on password, by Louella Miles
We’re never going to abandon online shopping or banking but are we becoming more cautious about it? (January 2008)

How Green is our valley?, by Katherine Almond
The Republic of Ireland bit the bullet last March – so when’s the UK going to follow suit? We’re talking plastic bags here, a topic that even our Prime Minister has woken up to. (January 2008)

Dangers of the Bedford Triangle, by Joanna Chrzanowska
How would the questions about qual research issues and practices of twenty years ago have differed from the way we see them today? (January 2008)

Hey! It’s not as easy as I make it look!, by Geoff Bayley
Is running a group as easy as it looks? Geoff Bayley focuses on an upcoming workshop on this subject. (January 2008)

Forum for big thinking, by Debbie Carne
AQR speakers reprised their papers from the last two QRCA annual conferences in a setting that made for healthy debate (January 2008)

Fears below the surface, by Caroline Hayter Whitehill
Acacia Avenue’s Caroline Hayter Whitehill and Nitasha Kapoor won this year’s Prosper Riley-Smith Effectiveness Award. This article outlines their research. (January 2008)

Creative Elevation, by Ben Scales
Researchers need creative techniques to distil the truth from what consumers say and what they really mean, says Ben Scales (January 2008)

Developing the individual, by Andrew Therkelsen
AQR is seeking CPD certification of its activities in a move that can only benefit members (January 2008)