Abstract
As a clinician interested in qualitative research, you are likely to have pondered whether a particular study is trustworthy. How do you know whether qualitative research findings are valid and can be applied in your setting? The quality standards you would look for in quantitative research do not apply. Furthermore, qualitative research is conducted within a number of paradigms, or ways of understanding the nature of reality and knowledge, each associated with different ways of defining, understanding and reporting quality. This 'Howto…' article aims to support health care practitioners, educators and researchers to recognise some of the essential characteristics or 'markers' of high-quality qualitative research. We hope that this article will support those reflecting on the quality of their own research, those justifying research design to funders and those reviewing qualitative research for journals or for inclusion in reviews.
Highlights
Before you start conducting your own health professions education research you are likely to read many published studies
The authors move into presenting a comprehensive literature review, which should map the existing and up-to-date research knowledge and explicate the research problem that the study at hand will address, as well as its significance to the audience.[1]
A high-quality qualitative study, just like any other study, should have a clear and justified research question that implies that the study is timely, original, rigorous and relevant.[2]
Summary
Before you start conducting your own health professions education research you are likely to read many published studies. An abstract should clearly explicate the research problem and the aim of the study, and should skillfully condense the contents of the study, as well as indicate its novelty and contribution to research and practice in health professions education. This is typically elaborated upon further in the Introduction to the article, which should motivate and guide the reader to explore the article further. A further important marker for assessing the quality of a qualitative study is that the theoretical or conceptual framework is aligned with the research design, the research question(s) and the methodology used in the study, as well as with the reporting of the research findings. To elaborate on the many markers for assessing the quality of qualitative research, we move on to discussing these in relation to the research process
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