Grounded Theory

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Grounded Theory (see below for the problem of translation) is a social science approach to the systematic collection and evaluation of primarily qualitative data (interview transcripts , observation protocols) with the aim of generating theory. It is not a single method, but a series of interlocking processes. The Grounded Theory is often referred to as a methodology of qualitative social research . It is a research style that combines a pragmatic theory of action with certain procedural requirements. This procedure is based on the theory of symbolic interactionism . The aim is a realistic theory to develop to this for the practice to make applicable and thus to reduce the theory and practice scissors. Fundamental knowledge interest is not the reconstruction of subjective perspectives, but underlying (social) phenomena should be made visible.

Further goals are:

Grounded Theory as data-supported theory building

In German, the term is used as “grounded theory” or translated as “object-related theory formation” or “data-supported theory formation”. “Grounded” in the name of “Grounded Theory” is intended to indicate that theory formation is anchored in empirical data , in the data . The English term "theory" is ambiguous, since it is both a method of theory formation and a theory itself. Perhaps a more appropriate but too cumbersome formulation is "research style for developing theories based on empirical data".

Origin and basic concepts

The Grounded Theory arose in Chicago in the early 1960s , when Anselm Strauss , a student of Herbert Blumer , carried out medical-sociological studies in collaboration with Barney Glaser and systematized the instruments developed in the process.

Categories and coding play a central role in Glaser and Strauss' approach.

Strauss and Glaser commented on the genesis of the Grounded Theory as follows:

“We decided in our mid-60s to write a book about methods. We already felt that changes were in the air, because we wanted to write for the 'kids' - people over 30 already seemed too determined for us. Barney had a better feeling that such a book would be received, I was more skeptical because I was older. The title 'the discovery of grounded theory' already shows what was important to us, not the verification of theory, as is usual with school textbooks, but its discovery from the data. 'Grounded theory' is not a theory, but a practice for discovering the theory hidden in the data. "

They summarized the procedure:

“[The Subject-Anchored Theory] is discovered, elaborated, and tentatively confirmed through the systematic collection and analysis of data related to the discovered phenomenon. As a result, data collection, analysis and theory are interrelated. "

The procedure described here corresponds to the logic of abduction (cf. Pragmatism , Charles S. Peirce ).

Comparative analysis

The comparative analysis is used to build theories. Glaser and Strauss recommend the strategy of theoretical sampling ( English theoretical sampling ). The constant change between data collection, analysis and evaluation, which take place iteratively, is characteristic of grounded theory. Specifically, this means that after analyzing the first text corpora , researchers go back to the field to collect further data. Ideally, these should deviate as much as possible from the previous data so that maximum contrast can be recognized. If possible, the processes are continued until the theoretical saturation is reached.

Various (written) formats can serve as data sources, the narrative interview is one of the most frequently used. After the transcription, the coding steps (open, axial, selective coding) can be carried out on it.

Analytical method

Method of permanent comparison

A data analysis technique that specifies grounded theory is the "method of permanent comparison". With this method, the data collection as well as the coding and analysis of the data take place in parallel.

Substantive and theoretical codes are used for coding : the substantive codes are divided into open and selective codes. Open codes are used at the beginning of the analysis (open coding). Open codes are e.g. B. certain words that occur repeatedly in the data. The researcher looks for differences, similarities, patterns of action, etc. using the open codes with the aim of being able to create categories. The categories can be formed as soon as those behavior patterns have been identified that are significant or problematic for the study participants. These behavior patterns are also called core variables . In the second part of the analysis, the researching person only codes selectively (selective coding), i. H. based on the developed categories.

The other form of codes used are the theoretical codes developed by Glaser. Theoretical codes are "subject groups", e.g. B. on the topic of "strategies", based on which the individual data segments can be grouped. The aim is to be able to work out relationships and connections (Polit, Tatano Beck & Hungler, 2004).

Memos

During the entire analysis, the researching person documents the hypotheses and thoughts they have with regard to the data, the possible connections, etc. in so-called memos. By writing down which is reflecting on relationships, patterns, hypotheses and so promoted. This also supports the analysis of the data (Polit, Tatano Beck & Hungler, 2004).

Differences between Glaser and Strauss

Since the 1970s, the processes propagated by Strauss and Glaser have diverged. Both are still referred to as the grounded theory approach. Glaser (and the Grounded Theory Institute ) stands for a more induction- oriented approach, for a “just do it” and trust in the emergence of theories from data if they are only analyzed long enough. Strauss' approach is more oriented towards scientific verifiability criteria. Jörg Strübing sees these differences already in the fundamental work The Discovery of Grounded Theory ; whose ambivalences are z. This can partly be explained by the different epistemological backgrounds of the two authors: "While Strauss comes from the pragmatic pre-defined interactionist social theory and has developed it significantly, Glaser is a student of the positivist-functionalist Columbia School." (Strübing 2002: 320).

In an interview carried out shortly before his death, Strauss names three basic elements that a procedure called Grounded Theory should contain:

“First, the type of coding. Coding is theoretical, so it is not just used to classify or describe phenomena. Theoretical concepts are formed that have an explanatory value for the phenomenon under investigation. The second is theoretical sampling. I kept meeting these people in Chicago and elsewhere who had collected mountains of interviews and field data and only afterwards thought about what to do with the data. I realized very early on that it was important to start the evaluation after the first interview, to write memos and to formulate hypotheses that would then suggest the selection of the next interview partner. And the third is the comparisons that are drawn between the phenomena and contexts and from which the theoretical concepts emerge. "

See also

literature

  • Andreas Böhm, Heiner Legewie , Thomas Muhr: Course Text Interpretation: Grounded Theory. Report from the interdisciplinary research project ATLAS. 1992. ( online ). Last accessed October 14, 2016.
  • Barney G. Glaser: Theoretical Sensitivity. Advances in the Methodology of Grounded Theory. Sociology Press, Mill Valley CA 1978.
  • Barney G. Glaser, Judith Holton: Remodeling Grounded Theory. In: Forum Qualitative Social Research . Vol. 5, No. 2, 2004, Art. 4, ( online ).
  • Barney G. Glaser, Anselm L. Strauss: The Discovery of Grounded Theory. Strategies for Qualitative Research. Aldine, Chicago IL 1967, (German as: Grounded Theory. Strategies of qualitative research. Huber, Bern et al. 1998, ISBN 3-456-82847-0 ).
  • Barney G. Glaser, Anselm L. Strauss: The Discovery of Objective Theory: A Basic Strategy of Qualitative Social Research. In: Christel Hopf , Elmar Weingarten (ed.): Qualitative social research. Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 1979, ISBN 3-12-923591-4 , pp. 91-111.
  • Udo Kelle : "Emergence" vs. "Forcing" of empirical data? A Crucial Problem of "Grounded Theory" Reconsidered. In: Forum Qualitative Social Research. Vol. 6, No. 2, 2005, Art. 27, ( online ).
  • Günter Mey, Katja Mruck (Eds.): Grounded Theory Reader (= Historical Social Research. Supplement 19, ISSN  0172-6404 ). Center for Historical Social Research, Cologne 2007.
  • Denise F. Polit, Cheryl Tatano Beck, Bernadette P. Hungler: Textbook nursing research. Methodology, assessment and application. Hans Huber, Bern et al. 2004, ISBN 3-456-83937-5 .
  • Wolfgang Pomowski: The pedagogical psychodrama in special training courses in vocational schools. A grounded theory study in classes with disadvantaged young people (= Darmstädter Contributions to Vocational Education. Vol. 28). EUSL, Paderborn 2006, ISBN 3-933436-74-5 (also: Darmstadt, Technical University, dissertation, 2006).
  • Odis E. Simmons, Toni A. Gregory: Grounded Action: Achieving Optimal and Sustainable Change. In: Forum Qualitative Social Research. Vol. 4, No. 3, 2003, Art. 27, ( online ).
  • Anselm Strauss in an interview with Heiner Legewie and Barbara Schervier-Legewie: Research is hard work, there is always a bit of suffering associated with it. So on the other hand, it has to be fun. In: Forum Qualitative Social Research. Vol. 5, No. 3, 2004, Art. 22, ( online ).
  • Anselm Strauss, Juliet Corbin: Basics of Qualitative Research. Grounded theory procedures and techniques. Sage, Newbury Park CA et al. 1990, ISBN 0-8039-3250-2 .
  • Anselm L. Strauss: Fundamentals of qualitative social research. Data analysis and theory formation in empirical and sociological research (= transitions. Vol. 10). Fink, Munich 1991, ISBN 3-7705-2656-2 .
  • Anselm L. Strauss, Juliet Corbin: Grounded Theory Research: Procedures, Canons and Evaluative Criteria. In: Journal of Sociology . Vol. 19, No. 6, 1990, pp. 418-427, JSTOR 23845562 .
  • Jörg Strübing: Just do it? On the concept of the production and assurance of quality in grounded-theory-based research. In: Cologne journal for sociology and social psychology . Vol. 54, No. 2, 2002, pp. 318-342, doi : 10.1007 / s11577-002-0042-9 .
  • Jörg Strübing: Grounded Theory. For the social-theoretical and epistemological foundation of the process of empirically founded theory formation (= qualitative social research. Vol. 15). VS - Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2004, ISBN 3-8100-3963-2 .
  • Jörg Strübing: Pragmatism as an epistemic practice . The contribution of the Grounded Theory to the empirical theory question, In: Herbert Kalthoff, Stefan Hirschauer, Gesa Lindemann (Eds.): Theoretical Empirical. On the relevance of qualitative research (= Suhrkamp-Taschenbuch Wissenschaft. 1881). Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 2008, ISBN 978-3-518-29481-9 , pp. 279-311.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Anselm Strauss and Juliet Corbin: Grounded theory methodology . In: Handbook of qualitative research . 1994, p. 273-285 .
  2. ^ Jörg Strübing: Grounded Theory. For the social-theoretical and epistemological foundation of the procedure of empirically founded theory formation. 2004, p. 13 f.
  3. ^ Barney Glaser, Anselm Strauss: Grounded Theory: Strategies of qualitative social research . Ed .: Hans Huber. Göttingen 2010, p. 7th ff .
  4. ↑ Heiner Legewie, Barbara Schervier-Legewie: In conversation: Anselm Strauss. In: Journal for Psychology . Vol. 3, No. 1, 1995, pp. 64-75.
  5. ^ Grounded Theory Institute
  6. ↑ Anselm Strauss in an interview with Heiner Legewie and Barbara Schervier-Legewie: Research is hard work, there is always a bit of suffering associated with it. So on the other hand, it has to be fun. In: Forum Qualitative Social Research. Vol. 5, No. 3, 2004, Art. 22.