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Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of qualitative research. It discusses the characteristics, and philosophical underpinnings of qualitative research and its characteristics, comparing it, where necessary, with quantitative research. Five critical approaches to qualitative research are explained with the help of suitable examples: grounded theory, case study, phenomenology, narrative, and ethnography. Research paradigm and various perspectives (symbolic, ethnomethodological, and psychoanalytic) of qualitative research perspectives, thick and thin description facilitate researchers in determining the direction of their research. Approaches to qualitative research, meaning of exploration and steps in qualitative data analysis have been explained.

Not everything that counts can be counted; not everything that can be counted counts

(Albert Einstein)

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Correspondence to Ajay Gupta .

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Gupta, A. (2023). Introduction. In: Qualitative Methods and Data Analysis Using ATLAS.ti. Springer Texts in Social Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49650-9_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49650-9_1

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