ABSTRACT

In this chapter, the author explores challenges and opportunities inherent in grappling with originality and grounding in data analysis. One key implication for researchers grappling with originality and grounding in qualitative data analysis is adoption of flexible approach to coding and comprehension of the data. Analyzing qualitative data both deductively and inductively can be particularly problem-laden because it is so heavily reliant on both the interpretative skill and subject knowledge of the researcher. Flexibility refers not only to being open to originality and an acceptance of that which was unexpected but also refers to being open to multiple viewpoints on the story that the data have to tell. The quest for originality in empirical research need not denote innovation in terms of the development of ‘grand’ theory, nor the metaphorical ‘reinvention of the wheel.’ Originality can only be identified and appropriately situated in the wall in relation to the bricks upon which land next to which it is laid.