QUALITATIVE DATA (GCP - HSR - HTA)

Although there is no unified definition of qualitative research, most authors agree about its main characteristics. Creswell formulated it like this: “Writers agree that one undertakes qualitative research in a natural setting where the researcher is an instrument of data collection who gathers words or pictures, analyzes them inductively, focuses on the meaning of participants, and describes a process that is expressive and persuasive in language” (Creswell, 1998). The gathering of qualitative data takes many forms, but interviewing and observing are among the most frequently used, no matter the theoretical tradition of the researcher.