Macro and Micro Difficulties in Qualitative Research with Field Surveys

Abstract

The difficulties of qualitative research from both macro and micro perspectives by focusing on field surveys are discussed in this paper. Regarding macro difficulties, two points are raised: (1) qualitative research tends to be costly in terms of time and money, and (2) qualitative research opportunities for secondary analysis of and verification of results are limited. Regarding micro difficulties, the author’s past research on French women’s civic movements that promote women’s political participation are used as a case study. Micro difficulties arise in the research request and rapport building processes and can be resolved by the researcher’s communication efforts and using internet websites. At the end of this paper, the author presents the two significances of conducting qualitative research: inductive theory creation and verification of quantitative findings.