NIH's report on Qualitative Methods in Health Research.  Offers good guidance (but is not formal guidelines) for grant applicants.  It is ethnographic in focus but very useful.  Thanks to social worker Susanne Heurtin-Roberts for leading this effort!

Ron Chenail at Nova Southeastern University School of Social and Systemic Sciences offers an extensive set of links at Qualitative Research Web Links. These include access to a wide range of online papers and other materials. Great work!

J. R. Norris's QualPage! from the University of Alberta offers a very complete and broad set of qualitative research links. Its materials on conceptual foundations are extensive. QualPage! links to an international, interdisciplinary organization on qualitative methodology.

Family Health International offers a document that simply depicts qualitative versus quantitative as a dichotomy (which seems simplistic), but their information on ethics is quite strong.

Bobbi Kerlin's Qualitative Pages cover lots of territory with a technology emphasis - but there's much more, too..

The Centre for Qualitative Research website run by the Bournemouth University provides information internationally of interest to qualitative researchers.  Great information on upcoming events.

Vincent W. Hevern, SJ, at Lemoyne College offers fine content and links on several areas of qualitative research with a narrative psychology focus. Content and links providing an overview of both philosophy and history are offered. Other sections addresses qualitative research methods including case studies, the process of qualitative interviewing and discourse analysis. An outstanding site.

There is a qualitative research list-serv discussion group run out of the University of Georgia.  The international discussion includes the usual range of beginners and often some very senior and well known participants. The discussion shifts, but content on credibility/validity, grounded theory, integration of different methods/triangulation and similar topics are common. Ask your questions!

The Sociology Department at the University of Surrey (England) has a site related to computer aided qualitative data analysis. It includes links that allow downloads of a several qualitative data analysis software product demo (trial) versions.

Publications Open to Qualitative Research

First, don't write off the major social work journals, they are adding more knowledgeable members to their editorial boards.  

Qualitative Social Work: Research and Practice, with Editors in Chief Roy Ruckdeschel of Saint Louis University, Missouri, USA and Ian Shaw of Cardiff University School of Social Sciences.

Families in Society publishes a good deal of high quality qualitative research, 

Social Work has published qualitative research on various issues (and in my view of varying rigor),

Affilia does as well on issues of importance to women, 

Smith College Studies in Social Work is publishes considerable qualitative research on issues of social work practice,

Clinical Social Work publishes clinically oriented pieces, 

Family Process

Multidisciplinary Qualitative Inquiry has published articles by social workers, as has

Qualitative Sociology.

Qualitative Research, with Editors in Chief Paul A Atkinson and Sara Delamont of Cardiff University.

Bobbi Kerlin updates a list begun by Judith Priessle which offers a useful list of publishers and publications open to qualitative research.  

Linda Wark, at Nova Southeastern University, offers a list of journals which are open to qualitative manuscripts. 

St. Louis University Libraries has a lengthy list of qualitative journals, covering many disciplines.

Consider online journals too -- if your institution values them!

Support for Qualitative Research in Social Work

Roberta Sands, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania SSW, Chairs the Qualitative Interest Group of the Society for Social Work and Research [SSWR].  This large and growing interest group helps social work researchers find common interests and promotes high-quality qualitative research within social work.

Jane Gilgun, Professor at the University of Minnesota SSW, Chairs the social work interest group at the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry held annually in Champaign, IL.
 

The CSWE Qualitative Interest Group has been disbanded.  Members of the group which was active for several years, have largely moved to SSWR, and the diversity of content areas among the group made developing "symposium status" unlikely.

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begun in 1997; last update 7/9/07