Challenges Concerning the Generation of Knowledge in Contemporary Qualitative Social Research

Authors

  • Marcela Cornejo Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
  • Carolina Besoaín Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
  • Francisca Mendoza Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-12.1.1527

Keywords:

reflexivity, rationale and practice of qualitative social research, data production, knowledge construction

Abstract

Within the field of qualitative social research there has been an emerging interest in issues concerning "the subject" and "subjectivity" as objects of scientific study, re-establishing assumptions about the development of knowledge in the social sciences. From this emerging interest, words are conceived as contextual, situated, and dialogical events, where meaning-making occurs. Knowledge emerges at the meeting point between the researcher and the research participant. This article presents a critical review of the foundational arguments on which qualitative social research are based, challenging and proposing ways in which these theoretical/epistemological positions relate to research practice. Three research studies are presented to illustrate some of these positions, including the description of particular techniques developed to support and sustain the processes of data production and analysis. Also addressed are issues related to the conditions of data production, the relationships between participants and researchers, and the collective nature of research teams. We propose some ways of thinking about and discussing the relevance of techniques, such as self-reflective journals, inter-analysis meetings, and transcribers’ field notes, to achieve a reflective process of knowledge construction. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs110196

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Author Biographies

Marcela Cornejo, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

Marcela CORNEJO es Doctora en Ciencias Psicológicas por la Université catholique de Louvain de Bélgica. Actualmente es profesora e investigadora de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile en la Escuela de Psicología. Sus áreas de interés son la investigación social, los enfoques biográficos-narrativos, la memoria social, los traumas psicosociales producto de la violencia organizada y los procesos de elaboración psíquica individuales y colectivos.

Carolina Besoaín, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

Carolina BESOAÍN es psicóloga clínica y doctorante de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile en la Escuela de Psicología. Sus intereses académicos son la investigación social y el estudio de los procesos de subjetivización en los escenarios sociales contemporáneos, en particular, el diálogo entre las políticas sociales y las construcciones de identidad de personas que viven en situación de pobreza urbana.

Francisca Mendoza, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile

Francisca MENDOZA es psicóloga clínica de la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Sus áreas de interés son la investigación social cualitativa, los traumas psicosociales producto de la violencia organizada, el psicoanálisis y la psicoterapia en contextos de salud pública.

Published

2011-01-21

How to Cite

Cornejo, M., Besoaín, C., & Mendoza, F. (2011). Challenges Concerning the Generation of Knowledge in Contemporary Qualitative Social Research. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-12.1.1527