| Effective Term: | 2025/20 |
| Institute / School : | Institute of Health and Wellbeing |
| Unit Title: | Qualitative Health Research |
| Unit ID: | HEALT7000 |
| Credit Points: | 30.00 |
| Prerequisite(s): | Nil |
| Co-requisite(s): | Nil |
| Exclusion(s): | Nil |
| ASCED: | 060301 |
| Other Change: | |
| Brief description of the Unit |
This unit will enable students to explore and discuss qualitative research and the specific paradigms associated with contemporary qualitative research. Students will learn how interpretative, postmodern, constructivist, and critical standpoints inform qualitative research questions and design. Students will explore the processes involved in planning a qualitative research project. Students will learn about a variety of research designs that describe and give meaning to life experiences such as phenomenology, ethnography, and grounded theory. Research methods that include qualitative sampling, data collection methods and data analysis techniques will also be explored. The principles and practices of establishing trustworthiness and/or rigor in qualitative research will be identified and discussed. |
| Grade Scheme: | Graded (HD, D, C, P, MF, F, XF) |
| Work Experience Indicator: |
| No work experience |
| Placement Component: | |
| Supplementary Assessment:Yes |
| Where supplementary assessment is available a student must have failed overall in the Unit but gained a final mark of 45 per cent or above, has completed all major assessment tasks (including all sub-components where a task has multiple parts) as specified in the Unit Description and is not eligible for any other form of supplementary assessment |
| Course Level: |
| Level of Unit in Course | AQF Level(s) of Course | | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | | Introductory | | | | | | | | Intermediate | | | | | | | | Advanced | | | | |  | |
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| Learning Outcomes: |
| Knowledge: |
| K1. | Recognize the key qualitative paradigms and core philosophical principles that are common to qualitative research. |
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| K2. | Evaluate whether your research question aligns with a qualitative paradigm and assess its consistency with the chosen philosophical standpoint. |
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| K3. | Examine the principles of trustworthiness and rigor in qualitative research, and justify how they are upheld through research design. |
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| Skills: |
| S1. | Suggest and justify specific qualitative research strategies that match your research question. |
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| S2. | Critically examine the methodologies associated with the qualitative research paradigms. |
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| S3. | Design a research tool that effectively addresses your research question and defend its appropriateness for your study. |
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| S4. | Assess the ethical considerations of your research design and propose strategies to mitigate potential challenges. |
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| Application of knowledge and skills: |
| A1. | Demonstrate the philosophical foundations of qualitative research by articulating them clearly and coherently. |
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| A2. | Critically evaluate qualitative research paradigms and ethical considerations to design and implement an appropriate data collection technique that effectively addresses your research question. |
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| Unit Content: |
Topics may include: - Purpose of qualitative research in health sciences
- Theoretical foundations of contemporary qualitative research paradigms
- Principles of establishing rigor and / or trustworthiness in qualitative research
- Qualitative sampling techniques and data collection techniques
- Approaches to data analysis and the synthesis of qualitative findings
- Establishing philosophical consistency between research question, qualitative paradigm and research design
- Developing qualitative research proposals for implementation
- Communicating qualitative research findings in the health science sector
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| Graduate Attributes: |
| | Learning Outcomes Assessed | Assessment Tasks | Assessment Type | Weighting | | 1. | K2, K3, S2, A1 | Using key qualitative paradigms, outline the research question and justify the research design. | Defense | 20 - 40% | | 2. | S2, A2 | Develop and defend a tool for data collection. | Developed Tool | 20 - 40% | | 3. | K1, K2, K3, S1, S2, S3, S4, A1, A2 | Methods chapter towards a thesis. | Written Task | 40-60% |
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