3.2.8 Human resources necessary

Observations can be the work of one researcher, a pair of researcher, or a whole team. Which arrangement is most appropriate depends on the research questions and the features of the setting. Also members of a team can disperse to different locations individually, or in pairs or groups, in order to construct a more complete picture of the issues being studied.

One of the advantages of team work is that field notes can be compared and that team members can question each other about assertions being made. “Taking another perspective on validity Graneheim et al. (2001) used multiple data collectors with different perspectives (insider or outsider) to observe the same situation. This may not accord with the idea that every researcher may produce a unique account of a situation that is valid in its own right. But with extensive mutual reflection, as undertaken by Graneheim and colleagues, these combined observations may have consensual validity. However, from a practical standpoint few projects are afforded the luxury of multiple data collectors.” (Mulhall, 2003⁸⁴, p. 309).