QUALITATIVE METHODOLOGY AS CARING SCIENCE METHODOLOGY

Interest in the use of qualitative methodology is increasing among researchers within the field of caring sciences. Several reasons might account for this growing interest: disappointment from experiences with quantitative methodology in this field; interest in caring issues which do not lend themselves to quantitative analysis; and, simply, an emerging appreciation of qualitative methodology. There is a need for additional clarity about the applications of qualitative methodology in explication of caring. The major questions concern the suitability of qualitative methodology to the study of caring and the scientific status of qualitative methodology. This paper advocates qualitative methodology as a methodology of choice for scientific exploration in the field of caring.