1st Edition

Qualitative Research in Practice Shadowing, Focus Groups and Qualitative Interviews as Tools for Inquiry

By Serena Quarta Copyright 2026
158 Pages
by Routledge

158 Pages
by Routledge

158 Pages
by Routledge

Qualitative Research in Practice is a hands-on guide to three of the most essential qualitative research tools—shadowing, focus groups and qualitative interviews. Offering a clear and practical framework, this book equips researchers with the methodological understanding needed to design, conduct and analyse qualitative research effectively. The book begins with a chapter discussing the... Read more

Introduction

Ch 1.  A glance at qualitative research as a dialogue between subjectivities

Ch 2. Shadowing: A technique for studying life worlds ‘from the inside’

Ch 3. The qualitative interview as a useful tool for analysing biographical paths

Ch 4. The focus group as a tool to make the diversity of viewpoints a dialogue

Biography

Serena Quarta is Associate Professor at the Department of Political and Social Studies at the University of Salerno, where she teaches social research methodology and techniques and social science methodology. She is also Head of the Applied Social Research Methodology Laboratory (ME.R.S.A) at the University of Salerno. Her research interests concern social inclusion processes and the phenomenon of poverty, with particular reference to younger generations. Her latest publications include The Role of Emotions in Ethnographic Research: Comparing Subjectivities (2024) and For an Empirical Study of Social Love (2022) (with M. Palmieri and G. Pellegrini).