"It's Like Looking for a Needle in a Haystack." Methodological Reflections on Recruiting Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Families Into Qualitative Studies

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-22.2.3609

Keywords:

socially disadvantaged families, qualitative social research, access, recruitment of study participants, sampling, hard-to-reach groups

Abstract

Recruiting hard-to-reach groups in qualitative studies is challenging and yet rarely becomes the subject of methodological reflections. In this article, we describe the recruitment strategies of a research project and reflect on them in terms of reaching socioeconomically disadvantaged families by highlighting the barriers and success factors of the strategies. It can be shown that the choice of the recruitment strategy can influence the sample composition, highlighting the need for regular reflection loops and the use of diverse strategies. It is also important when accessing socioeconomically disadvantaged groups to consider the context as well as the structural conditions of the target group. When recruiting families, the development of a child-friendly approach is relevant. It is central to inform the child about the interview setting and to obtain his or her explicit consent. Furthermore, it can be shown that access to hard-to-reach groups requires significant investments in time and in some cases financial resources, and that increased flexibility is necessary on the part of the researchers.

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Author Biographies

Nikola Koschmieder, Hochschule Luzern

Nikola Koschmieder hat ihren Master in Soziologie an der Universität Freiburg im Breisgau abgeschlossen und ist als Senior Wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin am Institut für Sozialmanagement, Sozialpolitik und Prävention an der Hochschule Luzern – Soziale Arbeit tätig. Ihre Arbeitsschwerpunkte liegen in den Bereichen qualitative Sozialforschung, chancengerechte Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung sowie vulnerable Gruppen.

Sabrina Wyss, Hochschule Luzern

Sabrina Wyss ist wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin am Departement Soziale Arbeit der Hochschule Luzern. Ihre Forschungsschwerpunkte sind Organisationsforschung, soziale Ungleichheit und Suchtprävention/Suchthilfe.

Andreas Pfister, Hochschule Luzern

Andreas Pfister ist Professor für Soziale Arbeit an der Hochschule Luzern. Seine Arbeitsschwerpunkte liegen in den Bereichen gesundheitsbezogene Soziale Arbeit und chancengerechte Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung.

Published

2021-05-27

How to Cite

Koschmieder, N., Wyss, S., & Pfister, A. (2021). "It’s Like Looking for a Needle in a Haystack." Methodological Reflections on Recruiting Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Families Into Qualitative Studies. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 22(2). https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-22.2.3609