Critical reflections on conducting qualitative health research during Covid-19: The lived experiences of a cohort of postgraduate students in a South African university

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dc.contributor.authorGithaiga, Jennifer Nyawira
dc.contributor.authorSpath, Carmen
dc.contributor.authorSicwebu, Namhla
dc.contributor.authorPerera, Shehani
dc.contributor.authorTolla, Tsidiso
dc.contributor.authorLeon, Natalie
dc.date.accessioned2023-04-12T08:16:59Z
dc.date.available2023-04-12T08:16:59Z
dc.date.issued2023-01-02
dc.description.abstractCOVID-19 ushered in public health guidelines restricting face-to-face contact and movement, and encouraging social distancing, all of which had implications for conducting field-based research during the pandemic. For qualitative researchers, this meant adapting conventional face-to-face methods and resorting to virtual variations of the same in adherence to stipulated COVID-19 health protocols. Virtual qualitative research introduced new concerns and logistical challenges. This paper presents critical reflections on experiences of conducting qualitative research during the pandemic, from the perspectives of a cohort of postgraduate fellows. A critical reflection framework was utilised to explore fellows experiences and meanings ascribed to their experiences. The research findings illustrate three overarching processes which, in turn, shaped ways of thinking, doing and being. First, explicating tacit assumptions about their anticipated research journeys and interrogating these. Second, shifts in power differentials demonstrated by role reversal between researchers and participants, and between fellows and supervisors as they re-negotiated their positionalities in virtual research spaces. Third, context specific sense-making, in which - narrative accounts support the notion of knowledge as a social construct. Our findings have important implications for qualitative research practice. Our study documents methodological nuances and social implications of conducting qualitative research during COVID-19 and in a-South African context. In addition, our study exemplifies the use of critical reflection in qualitative research practice in the specific context of postgraduate academic research. Further, our study illustrates how the use of technology shapes qualitative research protocol development, data collection and analysis phases.en_US
dc.identifier.citationGithaiga, J. N. et al. (2023) Critical Reflections on Conducting Qualitative Health Research During COVID-19: The Lived Experiences of a Cohort of Postgraduate Students in a South African University. International journal of qualitative methods. [Online] 2216094069221148406–16094069221148406.en_US
dc.identifier.issn1609-4069
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10566/8749
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherSage journalen_US
dc.subjectqualitative researchen_US
dc.subjectCOVID-19en_US
dc.subjectvirtual researchen_US
dc.subjectcritical reflectionen_US
dc.subjectSouth Africaen_US
dc.titleCritical reflections on conducting qualitative health research during Covid-19: The lived experiences of a cohort of postgraduate students in a South African universityen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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