1.6 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
1.6.2 Research methodology
1.6.2.1 Data generation
The research with regard to this study will be conducted as follows:
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A survey of relevant literature will first be undertaken. This study draws from three main areas of literature, namely, deafness, an ecosystemic perspective on the development of the deaf child in relation to parenting, and emotional well-being.
The qualitative method of data generation involved interviews. Semi-structured one- to-one interviews were conducted with hearing parents of deaf children attending, or who had attended, schools for the Deaf. Semi-structured interviews are used to gain a detailed understanding of participants’ perceptions, beliefs or accounts of a particular topic (Greeff, 2005: 296).
With the permission of the participants the interviews were tape-recorded. Tape recording allows for a much fuller record than notes taken during the interview (Smith, Harre & Van Langenhoven, 1995: 17). The tapes will subsequently be transcribed for close analysis. Sacks (in Denzin & Lincoln, 2003: 354) strongly recommends the use of the tape recorder to record interviews on the grounds that it is impossible to remember every detail such as “pauses, overlaps, and inbreaths”, and that by studying the tapes of conversations the researcher is able to focus on “actual details of actual events” of one aspect of social life.
In this study these interviews focussed on hearing parents’ experiences of raising deaf children. The main question will be: “What is it like being a parent of a deaf child?”
This will be followed, where necessary, by further probing as well as clarifying questions to gain in-depth insight into parental experiences of raising deaf children.
The purpose of the interviews would be to generate “thick descriptions” of deaf children’s parents’ subjective parenting experiences. Denzin (in Creswell, 2007: 194) describes the term “thick descriptions” as “going beyond mere facts and surface experiences”, taking into account details, emotionality, as well as networks of social relationships, and contextualising experience so that “the voices, feelings, actions and meanings of interacting individuals are heard”. Geertz (in Denzin & Lincoln, 2003:
25) and Van Manen (1990: 178) suggest the use of interpretive, open-ended approaches as a means of gathering “thick descriptions” of particular events, so as to make sense out of a local situation.
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The quantitative data generation method complements the qualitative data. An empirical survey comprising a structured questionnaire developed on the basis of discussions with relevant stakeholders, namely, psychologists, social workers, educators, and parents of deaf children was administered. The questionnaire was completed by hearing parents of children attending schools for the Deaf. A Likert-type scale with three response categories, viz. Agree, Disagree, Uncertain, was used. The three response categories allow the researcher to measure the direction and intensity of responses.
1.6.2.2 Sampling method
Qualitative research requires the data collected to be “rich in description of people and places” (De Vos, 2002: 91). The decision regarding the sampling method took into consideration the identification of sources rich in information. The overarching purpose of the use of relevant sampling techniques in qualitative research, according to Strydom and Delport (2002: 336), is “to collect the richest data”.
For the qualitative part of this study, non-probability sampling procedures, using a combination of purposive, criterion and snowball as well as convenience sampling techniques were used. Convenience sampling, also known as availability sampling, is a technique that the researcher uses to select those participants that can be easily accessed (Creswell, 2003: 157). Criterion sampling involves selecting participants who meet certain criteria and it is useful for quality assurance, while snowball or chain sampling involves identifying “cases of interest from people who know people who know what cases are information rich” (Creswell, 2007: 127). Semi-structured one-to- one interviews were conducted with 20 hearing parents raising deaf children in the three provinces mentioned. Only hearing parents whose deaf children were attending or have attended schools for the Deaf were purposively selected and interviewed. This ensured that the participants met the criterion of having experience of parenting deaf children, increasing the likelihood of collecting rich data needed to address the research questions.
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In non-probability sampling a researcher cannot be certain that the population is accurately represented, because it is not possible to determine whether each element of the population is included in the sample. However, this sampling procedure has the advantage of being cost effective and time-saving (Neuman, 2006: 222; Strydom, 2005: 202; Somekh & Lewin, 2005: 218; McIntyre, 2005: 105). Silverman (2000:
104) states that in purposive sampling, certain participants are selected because they illustrate some process or feature that is of interest for particular research, and that the purposive sampling technique narrows down the parameters of the population to suit the purpose of the study. Therefore, the purposive sampling technique will be used for the qualitative part of the study.
For the quantitative part of this study multiple probability techniques were used, incorporating a selection of three provinces in South Africa, and a random selection of schools through multiple cluster sampling. According to Teddlie and Yu (2007: 80), such sampling involves a first stage where clusters (schools) are randomly selected and a second stage where “units of interest” (participants) are sampled within the clusters. 250 questionnaires were sent to hearing parents whose deaf children were attending one of the randomly selected schools for the Deaf in Gauteng, Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.
1.6.2.3 Analysis of the data
Data analysis is the process whereby the researcher brings order, structure and meaning into the mass of data collected, and making sense of it so that an interpretation of the larger meaning of the data can be made (De Vos, 2005: 333;
Creswell, 2003; 190). Qualitative data analysis, “is a search for general statements about relationships among categories of data” (De Vos, 2005: 334). In this study, the qualitative analysis of data collected through semi-structured, one-to-one interviews were coded through a process of carefully examining the text data, organising it into chunks, and segmenting the sentences or paragraphs into units of meaning, so that concepts pertaining to the same phenomena can be named and categorised (Creswell, 2009: 186; 2003: 192; De Vos, 2002: 341; Rossman & Rallis, 1998: 171). Salient themes and subthemes were identified in order to make an interpretation of the data
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and identify lessons learnt (Creswell, 2009: 186; De Vos, 2005: 339; Creswell, 2003:
194). For the purpose of this study Tesch’s (1990: 142-145) guidelines for the coding process were followed.
The quantitative data generated through the questionnaires completed by hearing parents, whose deaf children were attending schools for the Deaf in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and Western Cape, were analysed and descriptive statistics were generated.
The analyses of data gathered from the questionnaires were presented as graphs which were interpreted descriptively.
1.6.2.4 Validation procedures
Researchers who adopt a quantitative approach place great value on reliability and validity as an indication of the accuracy and conclusivity of their findings. On the other hand, researchers who espouse the qualitative approach do not assume that they are investigating an unchanging and stable reality. Instead, they believe that participants in the research will behave differently and express different views in changing contexts. For this reason, they do not expect to find the same results if the research is repeated. They therefore propose, in place of reliability, the criterion of dependability, which refers to the extent to which the reader can be convinced that the researcher’s findings did indeed occur. “Dependability is achieved through rich and detailed descriptions that show how certain actions and opinions are rooted in and develop out of contextual interaction” (Terre Blanche & Durrheim, 1999: 64). In this study, the criterion of dependability is also applicable.
Validity is seen as the strength of quantitative research, and it is used to determine whether the findings are accurate from the point of view of the researcher, participant or the reader of the account. Content validity relating to the representativeness of the content of an instrument, such as items of a questionnaire, and is regarded as a means of establishing the validity of an instrument (Delport, 2005: 160-161).
Qualitative research draws on terms such as “trustworthiness”, “authenticity” and
“credibility” to refer to validity (Creswell, 2003; 195-196). Validity, or credibility,
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according to Terre Blanche and Durrheim (1999: 61-62), refers to the extent to which the research conclusions are sound. Guba (in Krefting, 1991: 215) proposed a model for assessing the trustworthiness of data collected through qualitative research designs.
This model is based on four criteria of trustworthiness, namely, truth value, acceptability, consistency and neutrality. The model defines different strategies enabling researchers to design ways of increasing the trustworthiness of their qualitative study.
In mixed methods research, validity refers to the ability of the researcher to draw accurate and meaningful inferences from all the data in the study, while the term
“inference quality” is used to refer to the accuracy of conclusions derived from mixed methods research, and “triangulation validity’ refers to mixed methods research that is guided by the pragmatic paradigm (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2007: 146-147).
In this study, every effort was made to ensure that both the quantitative and qualitative data are validated and are accurate representations of the findings, and that appropriate conclusions are drawn from the data. The triangulation of both qualitative and quantitative data generation and analysis contributed to the validity of the research.
1.6.2.5 Ethical guidelines
Ethical concerns traditionally focussed on three topics, namely, informed consent (i.e.
receiving the participants’ consent after carefully and truthfully informing them about the purpose of the research), right to privacy (i.e. protecting the identity of the participants), and protection from harm (i.e. emotional, physical or any other type of harm) (Denzin & Lincoln, 2003: 89-90). However, there are other ethical issues to be considered, such as surreptitious use of tape-recording devices, manipulating the participants while interviewing them, and breaching confidentiality, which are deemed unethical.
To prevent such unwanted outcomes, Terre Blanche and Durrheim (1999: 66) suggest three ethical principles, viz. autonomy, nonmaleficence and beneficence that should guide all research. The principle of autonomy requires the researcher to respect the
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autonomy of the participants in the study. It requires the researcher to obtain voluntary and informed consent from the participants, allowing them the freedom to withdraw from the research at any time, while at the same time ensuring the participants’ right to autonomy in any publication that may emanate from the research. The principle of nonmaleficence ensures that the participants will not be harmed in any way. The researcher is required to consider potential risks, whether physical, emotional, social or any other form of harm that may be inflicted upon those who participate in the study. Consideration of this principle may lead to changes being made in the research design of the study. The principle of beneficence requires that the researcher design research that will be of benefit to other researchers and to society at large, even if the participants do not benefit directly from the research.
Cohen, Manion and Morrison (2007: 49-52) state that research should be conducted in a manner that can be ethically defended, and that researchers should strike a balance between demands placed on them as researchers in search of truth, and their participants’ rights and values that may be threatened by the research. Punch (in Denzin & Lincoln, 2003: 90) suggests that researchers doing fieldwork need to exercise common sense and a responsibility firstly to the participants, secondly to the text, and thirdly to themselves. The essential purpose of ethical concerns in research is the protection of the welfare and rights of the participants.
In this study every effort was made to conform to the requirements of the ethical guidelines outlined above. Participants were made aware of the purpose of the research before informed consent was obtained. They were informed that no harm would be inflicted on them, and that their identity would not be revealed. They were assured that their responses would be treated in a confidential manner. Participants were also informed that they could withdraw from the investigation at any time without fear of recrimination.
Permission was sought from principals and governing bodies of schools for the Deaf to conduct research and interview hearing parents of deaf learners at the schools. The identity and institutional association of the researcher and supervisor, as well as contact details were made available to participants. All documents and audio tapes
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would be stored safely in a cupboard in an office at the university for a period of five years, after which time they would be destroyed.