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Qualitative research, methods and
data Qualitative
research is "any type of research that produces findings not arrived at
by statistical procedures or other means of quantification"
(Strauss/Corbin: 10). It is indepth investigation
of phenomena, taking as many variables into consideration as possible. It is
interpretive, employing often naturalistic approaches to people's lives,
experiences, emotions, behaviour, as well as cultural phenomena, social or
political interaction, etc. It is "multimethod
in focus" and an attempt "to make sense of, or interpret, phenomena
in terms of the meanings people bring to them" (Denzin/Lincoln
1994: 2). The
assumption in qualitative research is that a person who experiences or
perceives a phenomenon can also give the most precise description of it. Data in
qualitative research are derived from a variety of empirical material, such
as observations and explanations from personal perception, case studies,
field notes, life stories, diaries, interviews, questionnaires, all kinds of
texts and documents, as well as films or videotapes. Accordingly, a wide
range of interconnected methods is used in an attempt to explore the
complexity of a phenomenon holistically, because it is assumed that the whole
is more than the sum of its parts. In TS, the
most popular qualitative methods are introspective methods, such as
think-aloud (TA), retrospection, interviews, questions and questionnaires.
Using these methods, researchers hope to increase knowledge about, for
example, translators' intentions, problems, strategies, decisions, attitudes
and preferences. By investigating translation processes, for example,
observers can register pauses; although why the translator stops writing and
what he/she thinks during the pause, observers do not know. They have to rely
on individual reports and interpret what the translators tell them. References
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