Bias in Qualitative Research

Social Desirability

Bias -Participants tendency to respond or behave in a way that they think will make them liked or accepted To Avoid -Questions phrased in a non-judgemental way that suggests any answer is acceptable -Ask questions about a third person (ie. what do your friends think)

Sensitivity

Bias: A tendency of participants to answer regular questions honestly, but distort their responses to questions on sensitive subjects. The participant may give incorrect information to hide secrets. How to avoid: Build a good rapport with each of your participant(s). Build trust between yourself (the researcher) and the participants). Behave professionally Make ethical guidelines regarding issues such as confidentiality absolutely clear to the participant and increase the sensitivity of questions gradually while being responsive to the participant's concerns.

Acquiescence

Bias: A tendency to give positive answers whatever the question. Some people are naturally acquiescent, and some may be lead on by certain questions or situations. How to avoid it: Make sure not to ask leading questions, instead using open-ended, neutral questions focused on the opinions of the participant.

Sampling

Definition- occurs when the sample is not adequate for the aims of the research Example- the Truman-Dewey presidential race Ways to avoid it- use stratified random sampling and make sure your target population is properly defined

Dominant Respondent

Definition: A participant in a group setting in which dominates the conversation, demonstrates assertiveness, and makes other participants uncomfortable. This can cause unequal opportunities to talk and express true opinions. How to Avoid Bias: A researcher should have a group in an area where everyone in that group feels comfortable and not scared to talk or that one person who talks about themselves and not letting others talk about their accomplishments or about themselves in any way possible.

Biased Reporting

Definition: Occurs when some findings of the study are not equally represented in the research report How To Avoid: To counteract biased reporting, reflexivity, integrity, and training of researchers may be used

Question Order

Definition: The response to one question that influences the participant's responses to the following question. This bias is based off of beliefs and actions. Question order matters because responders want to appear consistent in their responses. Example: If a interviewer asks- What is the most pertinent problem in underfunded high schools? And the responder answers- The lack of access to supplies or textbooks. If the next question asked is: Is the Superintendent of the school system doing their job? To seem consistent the responder would be inclined to say no. Ways to avoid: Ask general questions before asking specific questions. Such as positive questions before negative questions or behavioral questions before attitude questions.

Leading Questions

Definition: When respondents in an interview are inclined to answer in a certain way because the wording of the question encourages them to do so. This causes data to be skewed and participants answers to be either dishonest or misrepresented. How to prevent this bias: Keep questions clear and simple. It is best to ask open-ended, neutral questions that do no suggest a particular answer. Also, avoid paraphrasing the participant's response to make sure they understood correctly.

Confirmation

Definition: occurs when the researcher has a prior belief and uses the research in an unintentional attempt to confirm that belief. Example: A person who believes that the earth is flat, would only state supporting data of the earth being flat, and not really stating the opposing or neutral data. Ways to avoid: Researchers can avoid this by considering alternatives and looking at more than one perspective of the research. one of the most hardest bias to avoid, but instead researchers should train to recognize this bias and take responsibility to avoid it.