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The purpose of qualitative research

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Nursing Research

Abstract

Research fills a vital and important role in society: it is the means by which discoveries are made, ideas are confirmed or refuted, events controlled or predicted and theory developed or refined. All of these functions contribute to the development of knowledge. However, no single research approach fulfills all of these functions, and the contribution of qualitative research is both vital and unique to the goals of research in general. Qualitative research enables us to make sense of reality, to describe and explain the social world and to develop explanatory models and theories. It is the primary means by which the theoretical foundations of social sciences may be constructed or re-examined.

Research is to see what everybody has seen and to think what nobody has thought.

(Albert Szent-Gyorgy)

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nursing, Pennsylvania State University, USA

    Janice M. Morse (Professor of Nursing and Behavioural Science)

  2. Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta, Canada

    Peggy Anne Field (Professor Emeritus)

Authors
  1. Janice M. Morse
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  2. Peggy Anne Field
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© 1996 Janice M. Morse and Peggy Anne Field

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Morse, J.M., Field, P.A. (1996). The purpose of qualitative research. In: Nursing Research. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-4471-9_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-4471-9_1

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-412-60510-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4899-4471-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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