Tiana Mikes Project - Alaska Pacific University

Insights into Feminism 30
is essential to do qualitative research, because it gives the meaning behind the numbers,
by highlighting the lived experiences of the participants (p. 18).
According to Marshall and Rossman (2006), qualitative research is a broad
approach to the study of social phenomenon (p. 2). They describe five characteristics of
qualitative research: takes place in the natural world, uses multiple methods that are
interactive and humanistic, focuses on context, is emergent rather than tightly prefigured,
and is fundamentally interpretive” (p. 3). There are qualities of the qualitative research
that I will need to envelop. They believe that the researcher must acquire the following
traits: views social phenomena holistically, systematically reflects on who she is in the
inquiry, is sensitive to her personal biography and how it shapes the study, and uses
complex reasoning that is multifaceted and iterative (p. 3). Research is vital since it can
evoke positive change. Qualitative research is a systematic approach of discovering,
documenting, and explaining the human experience.
Research Approach
According to Tellis (1997), “case studies are multi-perspectival analyses” (p. 5).
Tellis (1997) believes that the researcher gives a voice to the powerless or voiceless. Case
studies are images of real situations that provide a situation for others to investigate. Case
studies typically involve complex issues where there is often no single correct answeryou
may be asked to select the “best” answer given the situation (Arthur Lakes Library,
2007, p. 1). Furthermore, Robert K. Yin, a well-known case study researcher says;