Qualitative Methods

I think I mentioned sometime at the beginning of the month about the qualitative methods course I'm taking this semester. It's a class that I'm actually really excited about taking. There was some back and forth in the beginning because I talked to another student who had taken the course previously and had mentioned that it was one of his most difficult courses, but I decided to ignore his advice and take the class anyway.

I guess I'm so excited about it because I feel like this helps me develop a skill-set that I think I might like to use more extensively in my professional career, whatever that turns out to be. As it relates to writing, I think it will be especially handy to have this in my arsenal. Let me give you a brief definition:

Qualitative research begins with assumptions, a worldview, the possible use of a theoretical lens, and the study of research problems inquiring into the meaning individuals or groups ascribe to a social or human problem. To study this problem, qualitative researchers use an emerging qualitative approach to inquiry, the collection of data in a natural setting sensitive to people and places under study, and data analysis that is inductive and establishes patterns or themes. The final written report or presentation includes the voices of participants, the reflexivity of the researcher, and a complex description and interpretation of the problem, and it extends literature or calls for action.

The meaning part of this research method is the important part. It avoids the rigidity that quantitative research adheres to, and allows for a lot of exploration. What I'm most excited about is the topic that I've chosen - how people use athletics as a coping mechanism for dealing with grief.

At first I was a little hesitant in pursuing that question because I wasn't sure how seriously it would be taken. There are only eight of us in the class so today we just went around the room and talked about our ideas, and when we got to mine, it turned out that I had the only question that seemed ready for qualitative study without any kind of alteration, but more importantly, it was something that he was personally interested in. He then went on to explain how he coaches a traveling youth hockey team and just a few of the stories that he had with them.

One of the boys, 13 years old, is dealing with his parents' divorce because of his dad leading a double life. The man had been a model member of the church, but was selling methamphetamines on the side, and then started experimenting with his own product. The boy used to idolize his father, but now his mother hates her ex-husband, and the kid is struggling with understanding what happened to his family. The boy said that if it weren't for his hockey team, he would probably commit suicide.

All the Behind the Glory shows that Fox Sports used to do, the Outside the Lines stories that ESPN does, all those behind the scenes stories interest me more than anything. This might be a little ambitious, but I'm hoping that I can get some members of the football team or other sports teams. Working in my favor is that I happen to personally know the head coach of the volleyball team, one of the student-coaches on the football team, and one of my friends is dating the sister of the captain of the men's soccer team. I think I can actually get a pretty good sample of people. I even know a guy that works for one of the minor league affiliates of the Angels. I think this could really turn into something.

This type of project is actually something that I hope to turn into a book someday. I'd like to look at broader national events and how sports helped people to soldier on. I still remember President Bush throwing out the first pitch at Shea Stadium just a few days after 9/11. I remember Joe Saunders donning his Virginia Tech baseball cap while pitching for the Angels after the massacre and throwing the game of his life. There are some great stories there that I think a lot of people can relate to. Anyway, I'm just really excited about it.