Methodological Considerations for Qualitative Research with Immigrant Populations: Lessons from Two Studies

Authors

Yu Lu, Pennsylvania State UniversityFollow
Mary W. Gatua, Clarke University

Abstract

Often, research strategies are guided by principles developed based on mainstream U.S. cultural norms. Immigrants, however, may differ in their cultural backgrounds and previous exposure to research. Commonly adopted research procedures, such as the informed consent process, may be culturally inappropriate for research with culturally diverse populations, and hence require cultural adaptations. Based on two qualitative studies, this paper describes the methodological issues encountered in the field when working with Chinese and Kenyan immigrants, and explains how these issues were resolved. Comparing and synthesizing experiences from the two studies, recommendations for methodological adaptations when working with immigrant populations are provided. Specifically, suggestions on how to prepare the research protocol, recruit participants, obtain informed consent, deal with unanticipated incidents during the research process, and choose the interview language(s) are discussed in depth.

Keywords

Qualitative Research, Methodological Issues, Cultural Adaptation, Immigrant Populations, Chinese Kenyan

Publication Date

7-28-2014

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2014.1035

Recommended APA Citation

Lu, Y., & Gatua, M. W. (2014). Methodological Considerations for Qualitative Research with Immigrant Populations: Lessons from Two Studies. The Qualitative Report, 19(30), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2014.1035