Critical thinking and reflection are the heartbeats of needing to know and understand how life works—discovering the who, what, where, when, why, and how of things and then using that knowledge to determine what matters most. Research methods are specific procedures for collecting and analyzing data, and critical reflection is a large component of understanding and developing research methods. Developing research methods is an integral part of the research design whereby most research methodologies use one or both of two categories; quantitative and qualitative. The research stream I have chosen for this essay is a qualitative methodology approach while using a case study method due to my research question’s essence.

            In this essay, I will identify my research question, include my professional context on qualitative research, and summarize why this approach resonates with me. I will reflect critically on the philosophical foundation of qualitative research and the scope of its focus, including strengths and weaknesses. In conclusion, I will identify what I will do to satisfy some of the significant research requirements while using a qualitative methodology.

Research question

            My research question is, how does retirement impact a police officer’s health and wellness? I am pleased with its openness because it may provide me with new or unexpected insights into the subject, suggest further practical courses of action to resolve the problem, and open new directions for future research. The case study approach allows me to focus on an already existing concern in society whereby I may shed some new light on the research problem. I will expand on the research by Carney et al. (2019) Exploring the Impact of Retirement on Police Officer’s wellbeing by searching to uncover new concepts and ideas that could be incorporated.

Why I have chosen the qualitative research method

            It is difficult to find a standard definition of qualitative research used by most qualitative researchers and approaches. Today, there is no lack of articles and papers on criteria, checklists, standards, quality, rigour, and evaluation of qualitative research. Questions about the quality of qualitative research are no longer raised because of the lack of scientific quality. More important questions are how to assess or evaluate what I am doing, and did I demonstrate quality and professional integrity in my research and in a confident way?

            My work and much of my personal life have been involved in law enforcement. Projects and assignments have involved qualitative (words, understanding, insights) and quantitative (numbers, graphs, generalized facts) research and documentation. However, my preference is qualitative research approaches due to social aspects while associating with real people rather than numbers and statistics. I feel very comfortable with semi-structured in-depth interviews with research participants.

            When planning research methods, two critical decisions must be made. First, how is the data to be collected and second, how will the data be analyzed? Qualitative research can offer valuable insights into the participant’s social, organizational, behavioural and interpersonal aspects. These may include wellbeing, attitudes, perceptions and beliefs, education, professionalism and a wide range of issues around participants’ experiences. Participant’s self-care and post-retirement outcomes can be positively impacted as a result of acquiring these insights. The insights I seek can be best found through qualitative research.

Why I have chosen the case study research approach

            The case study approach involves qualitative methods, but quantitative methods can also be used. The case study allows in-depth exploration of issues in their real-life settings and is used to describe, compare, evaluate, and understand different aspects of a research problem. Based on my research topic and question, I can reflect on the type of case study design and specific research questions. This approach can help answer the data sources used and the particular advantages and disadvantages of employing this methodological approach.

            For my research question, a case study is appropriate because I want to gain concrete, contextual, in-depth knowledge about a specific real-world subject. This approach will allow me to explore the key characteristics, meaning, and implications of my research topic. I do not have the time or resources for a large-scale research project, and a case study will keep my project focused and manageable. I will be exploring one case study and analyze the subject in depth. My goal will gain as thorough an understanding as possible of the case and its content.

            I will primarily focus on qualitative data using methods such as interviews, observations, and analysis of primary and secondary sources such as newspaper articles, journals, and official records. I am interested in accessing experiences, interactions and documents in their natural context. My findings will be reported by way of a written narrative style.

            I am aware that a case study is an appropriate method for my research topic, but if the case study does not fit, it will be adapted, or a new process or approach will be introduced and developed.

How I chose my research question.

            Should my goal be to become a critical social researcher by discovering and uncovering new knowledge, I must have a systematic, purposeful, and disciplined process of discovering the realities of human experiences (Reid et al., 2017). To be that focused while spending enormous time and energy, I must have a research question that genuinely engages, challenges, and excites me.

            Completing further research on policing, health and wellness, and retirement, I discovered an article by Christine Carney et al. written in 2019 entitled Exploring the Impact of Retirement on Police Officers Wellbeing. The article examines the impact of retirement on police officers—a simple yet complex concept. The researcher interviewed 20 police retirees from Queensland, Australia. The article explored the effects of retirement on police officers’ sense of wellbeing and their coping strategies. Retirement experiences varied amongst participants depending on their role while employed, the types of social interactions, and their post-retirement financial situation. Common themes emerged, such as conflicting emotions, anger, disappointment, financial and social loss. Coping mechanisms were noted, such as counselling, hobbies, and expanded social networks. The goal of the article was for prevention and support for the police officers before retirement.

            I was a police officer for 25 years and experienced what many of Carney’s participants felt and went through. I empathize with her participants and can relate to their experiences while considering my demons of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, sleep disorder, anxiety, depression, and alcohol self-medication. Once reading the abstract, my creative juices and vision began to flow.  By utilizing (Reid et al., 2017) conceptual funnel concept, I used the three components from broader to narrower; research interests, research focus, and research question. The article by Carney et al. (2019) transitioned into my current research question.

Qualitative research method

            How to address the issue of quality in qualitative research? Brinkmann and Kvale (2018) give instructive reflections about the validity and objectivity of interview research, Coffey (2018) does the same for observation and ethnography, while Barbour (2018) for focus groups. The quality of qualitative research is not so much focused on demonstrating the scientific quality from the ‘outside.’ It focuses more on the ‘inside’ perspective: how to assess and evaluate qualitative research actively and confidently—examples such as acceptance of specific procedures results. “The focus of the discussion about the quality of research has – not completely, but mainly – shifted from fundamental, epistemological and philosophical levels to more concrete and practical levels of planning, doing and presenting qualitative research” (Flick, 2014).

            Qualitative research is based on subjective, interpretive and contextual data, but quantitative research attempts to control or exclude those elements. Joseph Maxwell (1992) developed a thorough conceptualization creating five categories to judge the validity of qualitative research: descriptive validity, interpretive validity, theoretical validity, generalizability, and evaluative validity.          

            A significant part of qualitative research is based on interviews, texts and writing – from field notes and transcripts to descriptions and interpretations and finally, the presentation of the research findings as a whole. The interviews of the participants will be at the discretion and interpretation of the researcher.

            As human beings, we all have abias.  It would be unrealistic to think that research is trying to get everyone to think or feel the same – those different experiences, opinions, and objectivity are part of the process.  Questioning is vital to bring forth an understanding of why those opinions and biases exist.  Malthouse et al. (2015) stated, “…questions become reflective when emergent ideas are related to existing senses of knowledge, self and the world; as new understanding emerges” (p. 73).  Perhaps the point is that human beings agree to disagree but should be respectful in the process and get insight into what others bring based on their experiences to develop an understanding.

            The nature of qualitative data makes it difficult, if not impossible, for the person analyzing to separate himself or herself from the data. My research will be basic, with a limited number of participants (approx. 100). I will be searching for other data sources that support my interpretations, giving me more confidence that what I have found is legitimate. I will consider whether there are other reasons why or how I obtained my data. If I can rule out or account for alternative explanations, my interpretations will be more robust. I will compile a list of others to review my conclusions. Maybe others will see things that I missed or identify gaps in my argument that need to be addressed. They also can provide affirmation that my conclusions are sound and reasonable, given the data. Also, I will examine Seale’s (2004) criteria for quality in qualitative research, which gives some guidance to qualitative research to improve or judge qualitative research quality. Common elements, such as validity and reliability.

Conclusion

            Qualitative research findings are the result of interpretive effort and are not objective but subjective. I know that I am part of the research process and affect the results, so my internal conversations and ongoing reflexive work as a researcher must be an on-going process. Questions I will ask myself are: Does my research meet the criteria of credibility? Am I managing the quality in my qualitative research? What can I do to improve and demonstrate qualitative research quality?

            This essay identified my research topic, which is a specific, grounded topic. I identified my case study approach and addressed the core issues when utilizing qualitative research. While conducting my research, I will demonstrate criteria, strategies, and methods to distinguish my research as rigorous. Reflect on an understanding of what it means to make this process transparent and support ways of enhancing rigour within the qualitative research paradigm. As a researcher, I desire the truth.

References

Carney, C., Bates, L. & Sargeant, E. (2019) Exploring the impact of retirement on police officers wellbeing: Police practice and research, DOI: 10.1080/15614263.2019.1658584 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15614263.2019.1658584?journalCode=gppr20

Corlett, S. & Mavin, S. (2018). Reflexivity and researcher positionality. In Cassell, C., Cunliffe,   A. L., &            Grandy, G. The sage handbook of qualitative business and management research methods (pp. 377-398). 55 City Road, London: SAGE Publications Ltd doi:10.4135/9781526430212     https://researchportal.northumbria.ac.uk/en/publications/reflexivity-and-researcher-         positionality(18a28f20-36fc-4bd7-a030-8dd6597015af)/export.html

Flick, U. (2014). An introduction to qualitative research (5^th ed.). Sage.

Glaser, B. G. (1998). Doing grounded theory: Issues and discussions. The Sociology Press.

Hampton, C., Reeping, D. (2019). Positionality: The stories of self that impact others. Virginia Tech.   file:///Users/laurie/Downloads/positionality-the-stories-of-self-that-impact- others%20(3).pdf

Maxwell, J. (1992). Understanding and validity in qualitative research. Harvard Educational Review.             62(3):279-300.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284892180_Understanding_and_Validity_in_Qualitativ e_Research

Panucci, C., & Wilkins, E. (2010). Identifying and avoiding bias in research. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 126(2), 619-622. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2917255/

Reid, C., Greaves, L., & Kirby, S. (2017). Experience, research, social change: Critical methods (3rd      ed.). University of Toronto Press. Chapter 3: Being a Researcher, pp. 47-52.

Seale, C., Gobo, G., Gubrium, J., & Silverman, D. (2004). Qualitative research practice. Sage.