valuative Criteria
Overview
There is a great deal of debate about what makes for 'rigorous' qualitative research. There are a few issues to keep in mind:
One's epistemological standpoint or research paradigm (e.g. positivist, interpretivist) shapes how criteria for 'good' research are viewed.
There are a broad range of criteria precisely because standards of excellence are tied to a particular qualitative tradition, and there are a wide range of qualitative traditions. For example, May's and Pope's criteria for good research emerge from Grounded Theory and these criteria do not apply broadly to other traditions, such as phenomenology and discourse analysis.
When preparing a grant or manuscript, knowing one's audience is crucial:
Standards or quality of research are negotiated by a community of researchers. A researcher needs to know and understand these common or operational values.
Criteria for 'good' research vary across research traditions and methodologies. In many cases, readers or reviewers may be unfamiliar with an approach and need to be educated about appropriate evaluative criteria and the rationale for them.