An Introduction to Qualitative Research Synthesis : Managing the Information Explosion in Social Science Research

Providing a comprehensive guide for understanding, interpreting and synthesizing qualitative studies, An Introduction to Qualitative Research Synthesis shows how data can be collated together effectively to summarise existing bodies of knowledge and to create a more complete picture of findings across different studies

The authors describe qualitative research synthesis and argue for its use, describing the process of data analysis, synthesis and interpretation and provide specific details and examples of how the approach works in practice.

This accessible book:

• fully explains the qualitative research synthesis approach;
• provides advice and examples of findings;
• describes the process of establishing credibility in the research process;
• provides annotated examples of the work in process;
• references published examples of the approach across a wide variety of fields.

Helping researchers to understand, make meaning and synthesize a wide variety of datasets, this book is broad in scope yet practical in approach. It will be beneficial to those working in social science disciplines, including researchers, teachers, students and policy makers, especially those interested in methods of synthesis such as meta-ethnography, qualitative meta-analysis, qualitative meta-synthesis, interpretive synthesis, narrative synthesis, and qualitative systematic review.

Claire Howell Major is Professor of the Higher Education Program at the University of Alabama, USA.

Maggi Savin-Baden is Professor of Higher Education Research at Coventry University, UK.