All Is Data

Barney G. Glaser, Ph.D., Hon. Ph.D. ……Although data is plural “is” sounds better All is data” is a well known Glaser dictum. What does it mean? It means that exactly what is going on in the research scene is the data, what ever the source, whether interview, observations, documents. It is not just what is being, how it is being and the conditions of its being told, but all the data surrounding what is being told. It means what is going on has to be figured out exactly what it is for conceptualization, NOT description. Data is always as good as far as it goes, and there is...

The Temporal Integration of Connected St...

Helen Scott, PhD Candidate Abstract From the point at which a learner commits to undertaking a course of study, and conceivably some time before, that learner holds an intention to study. This paper offers a theory which explains how that intention to study is strengthened or weakened as a course of study progresses. It suggests that it is much less a matter of learners deciding to persist with or depart from a course of study and much more a matter of continuing upon a course of action embarked upon – of maintaining an intention – by its temporal integration...

Generalizing: The descriptive struggle

Barney G. Glaser, Ph.D.; Hon Ph.D. The literature is not kind to the use of descriptive generalizations. Authors struggle and struggle to find and rationalize a way to use them and then fail in spite of trying a myriad of work-arounds. And then we have Lincoln and Guba’s famous statement: “The only generalization is: there is no generalization” in referring to qualitative research. (op cit, p. 110) They are referring to routine QDA yielding extensive descriptions, but which tacitly include conceptual generalizations without any real thought of knowledge about them. In...

From Pathological Dependence to Healthy ...

Liz Jamieson, Ph.D; Pamela J. Taylor, F Med Sc; Barry Gibson, Ph.D. Abstract People with mental disorder are admitted to high security hospitals because of perceived risk of serious harm to others. Outcome studies generally focus on adverse events, especially reoffending, reflecting public and government anxieties. There is no theoretical model to provide a better basis for measurement. There have been no studies examining discharge from the perspectives of those involved in the process. This paper begins to fill this gap by generating a grounded theory of the main...

Moral Positioning: A formal theory

Thomas Aström, Ph.D. Abstract This article presents the main outlines of a theory of moral positioning, contributing to the analysis of moralizing as a social phenomenon. It is a formal theory in several of its aspects. The discovered patterns help to explain social interaction in conflicts and how ordinary people use these patterns in relation to others. Moral positioning is frequently occurring in social situations were imbalances and conflicts arise among individuals and groups. Moral positioning is here theorized concurrently with a supporting conceptualization of...