Rigor Makes a Comeback: In Praise ofLa rigeur du qualitatifBy Jean-Pierre Olivier De Sardan

Abstract

La rigueur du qualitatif, a collection of essays spanning many years of research and writing, signals that the question of rigor in qualitative research may very well be making a come-back. Olivier de Sardan's book is not a nostalgic return to the foundations of rational thought and scientific validity, nor is it just another critique of post-modernism. Indeed, the critical epistemological approach he takes enables us to go beyond the now very tired distinction between objectivity and subjectivity. It presents a number of theoretical questions from an original point of view (interpretation, validity, observation, populism) and it bridges the sometimes impossible gap between francophone and anglophone thinking and literatures. In this volume, Olivier de Sardan shows clearly and coherently how qualitative research constitutes a system for producing knowledge and how, if we are attentive to these questions, we might make it more rigorous but also more socially responsible.