David Morgan incisively explains the fundamental principles of learning and cognition, presenting these concepts as processes that allow animals, including humans, to adapt over time to complex environments. Thus, he consistently applies the theme of adaptation, emphasizing the distinction between phylogenic adaptation (biological evolution) and ontogenic adaptation (including learning). Morgan's engaging style employs a minimum of jargon, resulting in an insightful and a rewarding reading experience. Concepts are skillfully applied to daily life in chapter-opener vignettes, many of which focus on unique challenges that students face.

Traditional qualitative interviews typically involve a single subject; interviews of dyads rarely appear outside marketing research and family studies. Experienced qualitative researcher David Morgan’s brief guide to dyadic interviewing provides readers with a road map to expand this technique to many other settings. In dyadic interviews, the interaction and co-constructions of the two subjects provide the data for the researcher. Showing the advantages and disadvantages of interviewing two people at once, the first book on this research topic -covers key issues of pair rapport, ethics, confidentiality, and dealing with sensitive topics;-describes the entire process from selecting the participants to the role of the moderator to analyzing results;-uses examples of grad student experiences, physician behavior, substance abuse, services to elderly, and dementia patients to show its many applications.

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This volume describes a variety of applications for focus groups in social science, pointing out its potential as a self-contained means of collecting data and as a supplement to other research methods, both qualitative and quantitative. The author compares the focus group to more common qualitative techniques - individual interviewing and participant observation - stressing the advantages and weaknesses of each. He presents a thorough treatment of practical issues of planning and running a focus group and suggests ways research can be designed around the technique. The volume closes with a look at the potential contributions of focus groups to qualitative research.

Product Description: This is the first book to systematically address the issues, practical wisdom and problems in conducting focus groups. Written by an interdisciplinary group of scholars, this well-integrated collection of articles represents the state-of-the-art in focus group applications...read more